Fresh Tank Capacity...

[Windjammingnc]

We've been camping in our new Rockwood WJ and we tend to do a substantial amount of dry camping.

We started noticing that our fresh tank would seem to go empty sooner than expected (for a 43 gallon tank) and when the pump starts sucking air, more than 1/2 the time, the water gauge shows 25% remaining.

I decided to do a test and purchased a water flow meter and drew down the water tank until the pump was pulling air and wouldn't shut off when the tap is closed.

Using the water meter, I refilled the fresh tank and was only able to put 32.9 gallons in before water was running out the fresh water fill port.

This happened with our last trailer where the intake pipe on the fresh tank was inserted into the tank such that we were only able to use 3/4 of the stated volume of the tank.

Can't manufacturers attempt to put the tap lower in the tank so more of the capacity is available??? In the winter and when we sterilize the tank, we usually lean the trailer to the side of the fresh water pull to get the most water out.

[5picker]

This seems to be a common problem as I've seen this same situation discussed on several different R/V forums. Most folks with this problem add a 'tee' to the fresh tank drain plumbing and replumb the pump intake to draw there as the drain is typically on the bottom.

[Windjammingnc]

On our old trailer, the pump pickup was attached to an T out the side of the tank that was also the drain for the tank