Fresh Water Tank Sterilization

[wls]

Originally Posted by CharlieS3

If you have a winterization port, you may be able to suck water/bleach mix into your main tank. It depends on your setup.

that's how i did mine

[sh1pper]

Originally Posted by CampAndSki

I should have been more clear. Our water filter is not built in to the system. CC didn't provide/install the filter. Our filter is outside the camper and connected to the FW/City water inlet. I switch over from City to FW and the water, coming through the filter, is pumped into the FW tank.

X2 again

[MNtraveler]

Originally Posted by CharlieS3

If you have a winterization port, you may be able to suck water/bleach mix into your main tank. It depends on your setup.

That may work for some setups, however with many if not most setups the winterization port feeds directly to the pump and water lines for adding antifreeze, bypassing the FW tank entirely. Otherwise, antifreeze would be pumped into the FW tank, which is both not necessary and also very hard to get the taste and smell out.

Some setups have a lever to select to pump from the winterization port into the FW tank for adding water to it, or pump directly to the lines for antifreeze.

[nomad297]

How do you sanitize the top, inside of your fresh water tank?

Bruce

[MNtraveler]

Originally Posted by nomad297

How do you sanitize the top, inside of your fresh water tank?

Bruce

You use the appropriate concentration of bleach for the size of your tank and fill it to the very top with water. Then let it soak for 12+ hours.

[nomad297]

Originally Posted by MNtraveler

You use the appropriate concentration of bleach for the size of your tank and fill it to the very top with water. Then let it soak for 12+ hours.

How do you fill it to the very top? Isn’t an air pocket created that will prevent the water from reaching the top of the tank? Or are all of the vents attached at the top of the tank?

Bruce

[nomad297]

With a previous trailer I owned, the fresh water tank was under the bed. The tank was translucent, so I could see the water in the tank. The vent came out of the top of the tank, but the tank would never fill all of the way to the top — maybe about an inch or so below.

Bruce

[Fluffywhitedogs]

Originally Posted by nomad297

With a previous trailer I owned, the fresh water tank was under the bed. The tank was translucent, so I could see the water in the tank. The vent came out of the top of the tank, but the tank would never fill all of the way to the top — maybe about an inch or so below.

Bruce

I don’t know if you can do this with a larger trailer, but I push the side of my Clipper a few times to slosh the water around a few times while it’s sitting with bleach...

[rockfordroo]

Take it for a drive.

[MNtraveler]

In a typical unit with a fill port the water will fill to the top of the tank then rise up through the fill neck to the port.

Your results may vary depending on your setup. But I can't see any logical reason why a manufacturer would want to leave an air gap at the top. That would be lost volume.

To avoid gaps, level the RV, and if necessary level the tank if it's not level when the RV is level.

[rockfordroo]

Originally Posted by MNtraveler

In a typical unit with a fill port the water will fill to the top of the tank then rise up through the fill neck to the port.

Your results may vary depending on your setup. But I can't see any logical reason why a manufacturer would want to leave an air gap at the top. That would be lost volume.

To avoid gaps, level the RV, and if necessary level the tank if it's not level when the RV is level.

On many tanks, the fill and vent lines enter on the side, not the top. This is especially true when the tank is mounted up against the bottom of the floor. In order to attach the hose fitting to the tank, there must be 1/4" to 1/2" of area around it, so the top of the hole into the tank is often 1/4" to 1/2" below the top of the tank. So you can't really fill it "full."

See this one, for example:



Now if your tank looked like this, you'd be correct. But this kind of tank is usually mounted on TOP of the floor.



You appear to have a Class C, which probably has the tank mounted above the floor (probably under the bed). Most travel trailers are not built that way, but have the tank UNDER the floor, and hence cannot be completely filled.

[nrkmann]

Use this calculator

https://www.publichealthontario.ca/e...alculator.aspx

4ppm is the standard for drinking water. During health emergencies up tp 12ppm is used.

[Cold Lake Kid]

Originally Posted by rockfordroo

The OP doesn't have a gravity fill that you can put a funnel into. He only has a hose connection, below the blue valve handle. The blue valve handle directs his city water from the hose connection either to the RV or to the FW tank. There's a check valve located in the hose connection, so you can't really insert a funnel. That's why you pour it into the hose, then hook up the hose and fill the tank.

Yes, I got that; it just seems unnecessarily complicated to have to do that to do something as simple, necessary and recurring as that, using a hose in the manner described.

[ENE]

I just pour a cup of bleach into my water hose, then connect it to the fresh water tank, turn on water and it pushes it right into the fresh water tank. I open all the faucets and run water until I smell bleach. Live in system for a few hours, drain tank, fill with fresh water, run faucets again, drain tank again, fill tank with fresh water again, run faucets again.
Bleach smell should be gone if not flush it again.

[mbbutler]

Originally Posted by nomad297

How do you sanitize the top, inside of your fresh water tank?

Bruce

Bumpy dirt road


Sent from my Moto G (5) Plus using Forest River Forums mobile app

[Johnfort]

I've not seen this question...... is it okay to leave the proper ratio bleach solution in the tank and lines for a few weeks while waiting for the next trip?

Of course flushing it out prior to leaving.

[mwdilday]

I use about a cup

[ependydad]

Originally Posted by Johnfort

I've not seen this question...... is it okay to leave the proper ratio bleach solution in the tank and lines for a few weeks while waiting for the next trip?

Of course flushing it out prior to leaving.

Yes.

[Johnfort]

Originally Posted by ependydad

Yes.

Thanks.

[whaines]

Has anyone tried a siphon mixer to add bleach to fresh water tank to sanitize?