How often to use low point drains

[garbonz]

If you smell sulfur it is your water heater. The rest of the system should be fine, no need to drain it, just run the water for a few minutes, and get a Omni countertop faucet and filter for your drinking water.

[The Lieutenant]

One thing to also remember... if you are hooking up to chlorinated city (true city) water, you are helping to keep things tidy between sanitations. Hooking up between trips and flushing out your lines isnt a bad thing to do.

[Wolverine 1945]

Originally Posted by Sebourn

The more I think about it, it can't be good confined like that especially in Summer heat. I think I'll go back to draining each time and sanitizing before each trip.

Better safe than sorry !!!

[Mr. Dan]

Originally Posted by Flybob

Try this. Fill a glass with water from you system, cover it and let it sit in your RV until your next trip. Examine the contents of the glass and determine if you are OK using it,

Bob, would this experiment yield different results if we sealed and pressurized the glass? The water in my lines is not exposed to air from trip to trip. I’ve had no issues opening my low point drains only for winterization. Of course, I camped over 100 nights last year and am up to about 60 this year.

[Mikemdd]

Lots of microbes are anaerobic, meaning they grow without air. This is true of many sulphur producing microbes. Many pathogens are anaerobic.

[Mr. Dan]

Originally Posted by Mikemdd

Lots of microbes are anaerobic, meaning they grow without air. This is true of many sulphur producing microbes. Many pathogens are anaerobic.

I can’t deny that... no argument here. Some might say I’m wrong to say I’ve had no issues in 14 years with 4 trailers but that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

[Mikemdd]

Many wells have hydrogen sulfide producing bacteria naturally present which is why it is common to smell "rotten eggs" in well water. I last filled my FW tank at a campsite that was on a well. I think that is where my problem came from. As a correction to my previous post, the microbes don't produce sulphur....they use sulphur to produce H2S....

[stephndudb]

Originally Posted by grumpy0374

Only drain and when putting up for winter. Sanitize tank before first fill in spring. Doing it that way since first camper in 1971. Never had a problem.
For those of you that must drain everything every trip. question...
Does that mean that you drain your entire home's lines, hot water tank, fridge lines, ect. when you return from a long trip, or every trip? Just as much, if not more "stuff" in those lines as your rig.
Grumpy

X2

[AlaskaErik]

Originally Posted by itat

As I said in my post #4, I drain my TT's water system if it's going to sit in storage unused for more than 2 weeks. We still both work full time. We do a few one week trips over the season and several weekend trips. If we take the TT out for a weekend and won't be taking it out again for 3 weeks, I drain the water system.

Our home is never vacant for more than 2 weeks at a time. In fact, it would be rare for it to be unoccupied for more than a week. So the water in the lines and hot water tank at home are almost always being refreshed regularly. (Our fridge is not connected to the water lines.)

If I were a snowbird, then I would drain the lines and the hot water tank, and turn the water off before leaving for the winter. Admittedly, I'd do that as much as a precaution for losing power in the winter as for keeping the water system fresh.

I am a snowbird and while I do turn the water off and shut down the hot water heater, I don't do anything else. Never had a problem yet.

[TheWolfPaq82]

I only use mine in the spring and fall for winterizing. If the trailer sits for a couple weeks before we go out, I hook the city water at the house, turn on all the faucets and in 5 minutes I have all fresh water in the WH and all the lines are fresh. Low point drains only drain a portion of the lines and doesn't completely empty them.

[Dagodude]

What sort of sanitizing solution do you use/recommend? I just got a 2013 FR Sunseeker 3010DS that only had 5,127 miles on it and I'm pretty sure I want to clean the fresh water system out before we go on any trips!!


Mike & Wanida Monti

[Oaklevel]

We open our low point drains in the fall only. We drain our water heater in the fall only........ we have NEVER sanitized the water system. No issues 35 years and six trailers.........never had to replace a water heater........ we drink out of the same creek that the cows do....... maybe that's it.....

Never had an issue yet !!!!

[richp]

Hi,


We use our Silverback intermittently all year (lots of summer trips up north, and a couple of months of snowbirding), and only do a full drain before winterizing in the Fall.



I do drain the water heater after each trip. This helps avoid a sulphury taste in the hot water, which formerly happened if the full hot water tank stewed in the summer heat between trips.


FWIW.


Rich Phillips

[grumpy0374]

To those of you that drain your tanks and lines everytime you come home, even if it's only for a few weeks, remember, you will never truly get all the water out of your lines. And to go one step further, if your rig has a water filter, do you change that out each time you return home and replace it with a fresh filter. If not, than you can drain your lines till the moon turns to cheese, cause your new fresh water will be filtered by the remaining water in your filter. Filter will retain all the little "nasties" you think are there and will immediately contaminate your "fresh" water.
To each his/her own, and do what you feel comfortable with. But unless you fully sanitize all the lines, tank and W. Heater, there will always be some "old" water in your system.
Grumpy

[Wolverine 1945]

I am one that drains after each trip,,, and we don't even drink the water,,, I do add Tast Fresh to the water,,, I will always do this,,, it is my way !!!
I never thought about the low point drains,,,
but draining them is probably a good idea !!!
When I do sanitize I use a 1/4 to a 1/2 cup of bleach,,, run it thru all faucets & stool,,, and let it set at least for 1 day !!!

[W5CI]

Once a year when I Winterize

[NorSnrub]

Place a few ounces of cloreen bleach in before storage. Depending on how much is left in the tank.

[The Lieutenant]

Originally Posted by TheWolfPaq82

I only use mine in the spring and fall for winterizing. If the trailer sits for a couple weeks before we go out, I hook the city water at the house, turn on all the faucets and in 5 minutes I have all fresh water in the WH and all the lines are fresh. Low point drains only drain a portion of the lines and doesn't completely empty them.

I think that's an important part of the equation. That fresh chlorinated water will help kill ickies in your lines between sanitations.

[Wolverine 1945]

Originally Posted by The Lieutenant

I think that's an important part of the equation. That fresh chlorinated water will help kill ickies in your lines between sanitations.

Right On !!!
I use Taste Pure !!!
I buy it @ Wally World !!!

[CoMaddMax]

I live on well water and my well is 600 ft deep in the CO plains just east of Denver. We do nothing to our water and I fill my tank after winter and it can sit up to a month. Because of this thread, I just went out and drained the low point of my Fresh water tank that I filled up half way, at the end of March. The water was crystal clear and I tasted it. It was warm (it's been 100 degrees the lat 2 days) but not even a slight taste to it. SO, I will do mine in the fall, I am a lucky guy though so let your senses be your guide!