Dish Water, Shower Water, Gray Water...

[m.hony]

Originally Posted by Lily&Me

I think they intend for people to carry water to their campsites, and do their dishes in a basin there rather than at the faucet available for everyone to use.



Think of the mess....campers lined up, dirty dishes, utensils, pots, etc., in hand...then monopolizing that faucet as well as leaving food bits and whatever around and under the faucet.





Maggie

Where do campers empty the basin?


Sent from my iPad using Airstream Forums

[Lily&Me]

Away from their site, somewhere, unless strictly prohibited due to bears, when I have seen specific areas for dumping of dishwater.

This is the way tent campers have been doing things since day 1.


Maggie

[SteveSueMac]

I used a bucket of grey dishwater to douse my fire the other night. Last night when I went to start another fire, there were a couple pieces of pasta and other food bits in the fire ring. I think I'll be investing in some cheesecloth! Great tip - thanks!

[WherryWillie]

Greenfire's explanation of backwoods leave no trace camping is worth noting. On a typical day, four guys camping, we likely have about three cups of soapy dish water to dispose and the technique depends on the location. In the Quetico they want it dispersed 100 feet from water or camp-site. Enforcement is done by the bears. In Zion Park, I recall they wanted it poured in a sump. The point, made by many, is pay attention to the rules of the specific camp and follow them. And if you are stingy with the resources, compliance is that much easier.
Just as there is a variety of AS campers, there is a variety of tent campers. Some, like Greenfire, have a wilderness ethic that they bring along even to densely used campsites. Others might be young couples who are traveling with what they can afford, perhaps without any camping experience or ethic. I helped one such couple pitch a tent they had just gotten and couldn't figure out. And a storm was obviously coming soon. Along the way, I dropped a few hints about getting the hang of taking care of yourself and the camp-site, which seemed well received.
The point here, is that because a tenter might not have or know a better option than dumping it wherever, doesn't excuse messing up the campground.

[Msmoto]

Gray vs. black water. As showering involves most often washing all of one's anatomy, the waste from a shower will in most cases have small amounts of fecal material, thus making it black water.
Urination would not necessarily create black water except by definition. Urine is sterile unless one has a bladder infection.
The only real gray water is from the sinks, but if one takes a sponge bath, rinsing in the sink, now it is black water.
It would be nice if we could drain the gray water into the black to create a longer boondocking period.


Ms. Tommie Lauer
Sent from my iPhone using Airstream Forums

[dkottum]

Originally Posted by Msmoto

. . . It would be nice if we could drain the gray water into the black to create a longer boondocking period.


Ms. Tommie Lauer
Sent from my iPhone using Airstream Forums

Hmmm, if the black tank was low and the gray tank was near full, what would happen if you leave the external drain cap on, open the drain valve for the gray tank, then open the black tank valve. Beside possibly making a mess to deal with when the the external drain cap is removed, would the gray water flow into the black tank until the levels equalize?

[Len n Jeanne]

Dunno, but we travel with one of those blue mobile waste water tanks (biffy box) or with a bucket for draining the gray water tank if necessary as it seems to fill up faster than the black water tank. In an undeveloped public campground, you can dump the bucket of gray water down the pit toilet. With a dispersed campsite, you can take it a long way from your site or anybody else's, and then water a likely bush or tree.

We should probably start a new thread for folks who use the outdoor shower, and have enough privacy to go natural.

[mojo]

Originally Posted by dkottum

Hmmm, if the black tank was low and the gray tank was near full, what would happen if you leave the external drain cap on, open the drain valve for the gray tank, then open the black tank valve. Beside possibly making a mess to deal with when the the external drain cap is removed, would the gray water flow into the black tank until the levels equalize?

Yes it does and if you get one of these http://www.campingworld.com/shopping...ush-king/20522, it's great for double flushing the black tank and you can see when it's running clear.

[explore more]

when I'm backpacking I don't dump ANY food on the ground. If I use soap (not usually), then it's always biodegradable. When I wash my dishes it's usually just with about 1/4 cup of water then tossed into the bushes.

I know a lot of people dump their grey tanks at their sites whether it's permitted or not. I frown on this, as it does attract animals, as well as dumping toxic contents onto the ground. The reason I love camping is because it reminds me of nature and simpler things. If I just wanted free rent then I'd park at the Walmart.

I'd LOVE to dump my grey tanks, it'd allow me to stay out almost double the time I can now (limit is 2 weeks without dumping), but I care about the environment more. I'm not some crazy tree-hugger either, I just think we should leave a spot better than when we arrived. I'd hate to be camping in a spot where the previous camper dumped their grey tank before leaving. Leave no trace.

It's easy enough to find a dump station where it can be properly handled. I feel the same way about "composting" toilets (which don't actually compost anything), but that's another discussion for another day.

Originally Posted by Greenfire

Dumping grey water... that has soaps in it, salts, oils, food particles, it's just not cool, no mater where you are, it has impact. Even someone who uses eco friendly shampoos and cleaners, even baking soda, that builds up, and hurts either plants, or fish, or both. Why do we go out there? (I'm a backpacker as my choice of camping, and carry my house on my back, my airstream will be to live in when I'm not out there hiking) But really, you guys go out for the same reason I do. We love it, right? It's beautiful out there. The more of us find out how it is, the more of us go, let's do our part to keep it as clean and fresh and untouched by us, as possible, so that it's still there for us next time.

Well said! You're our kind of people.

[Adventure.AS]

Originally Posted by dkottum

Hmmm, if the black tank was low and the gray tank was near full, what would happen if you leave the external drain cap on, open the drain valve for the gray tank, then open the black tank valve. Beside possibly making a mess to deal with when the the external drain cap is removed, would the gray water flow into the black tank until the levels equalize?

The Wynns (Jason and Nikki of 'Gone With The Wynns') have an article on using a Valtera T58 Twist-on Waste Valve to easily combine the two tanks.

Also a YouTube Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1dXcBchbuQ

[rvb]

Our vintage trailer has small tanks so we put a plastic tub in the kitchen sink and to catch wash water and then use it to flush the toilet when boondocking. This helps extend the stay by not filling the grey tank as quickly.

This summer we camped at one of the nice Ohio Turnpike rest areas with RV hookups for water and electric and watched some bozo in a class C dump about 20 gal. of grey water on the pavement before he drove off the next morning. He was about 150' from the free dump station but too lazy to drive over and hook up a hose!

[JamuJoe]

This Wynn method might work. Results will depend upon the relative as-built heights of the grey and black tanks, which are unknown to me. Inches matter here. Caution, though, our black tank CAN OVERFLOW into the area between floor and pan (just hook up the sewer flush and forget to open the black drain valve&#128562. With the inaccuracy of our tank level indicators, it could be tricky to estimate how long to leave both valves open.

[Len n Jeanne]

Explore more, w definitely hear you. But in your home base of Utah, most of the BLM lands where we like to camp are open to cattle grazing. Nuthin' like doing the ecologically sensitive and hygienic thing when all around us are cow pies of various vintages and signs of over-grazing.

We live in bear country, where campers and residents need to be extra-particular about not dumping anything or leaving anything outside (like an unwashed BBQ grill) that might remotely smell like dinner to them.

[Hittenstiehl]

The cows don't have that option we do. 💩🐄

😚

[explore more]

Agreed, there's plenty of over-grazing in parts of Utah. I just focus on what I can do. I think a cow patty is less likely to do damage than someone dumping their shampoo/conditioner/dish soap on the ground.

I can't do too much to stop the cows, but I can do my part to leave no trace myself. Regardless of how damaging the cows are, I try to do my part not to contribute. (as I'm sure you do too).

We have plenty of bears, mountain lions, moose, coyotes, raccoons, and other critters what will wander into camp to check out human food. Utah's got some great deserts (what most RVers know due to the national parks) but we also have some amazing alpine camping. Utah is a great state. I hope people keep treating it great.

I like Idaho's slogan "Idaho is too great to litter." It's a great statement.

[pcskier]

Originally Posted by Lily&Me

I think they intend for people to carry water to their campsites, and do their dishes in a basin there rather than at the faucet available for everyone to use.

Think of the mess....campers lined up, dirty dishes, utensils, pots, etc., in hand...then monopolizing that faucet as well as leaving food bits and whatever around and under the faucet.


Maggie

I've been in campgrounds where people wash or rinse dishes at the water spigot and it's DISGUSTING. Scraps of egg, veggies, coffee grounds, etc. sometimes even toothpaste residue where they use the spigot as their bathroom area. I love filling a water jug while trying to avoid standing in a puddle of water filled with food scraps

[Len n Jeanne]

Originally Posted by explore more

Agreed, there's plenty of over-grazing in parts of Utah. I just focus on what I can do. I think a cow patty is less likely to do damage than someone dumping their shampoo/conditioner/dish soap on the ground.

I can't do too much to stop the cows, but I can do my part to leave no trace myself. Regardless of how damaging the cows are, I try to do my part not to contribute. (as I'm sure you do too).

We have plenty of bears, mountain lions, moose, coyotes, raccoons, and other critters what will wander into camp to check out human food. Utah's got some great deserts (what most RVers know due to the national parks) but we also have some amazing alpine camping. Utah is a great state. I hope people keep treating it great.

I like Idaho's slogan "Idaho is too great to litter." It's a great statement.

Agreed. We're currently in Montana, en route to the North San Rafael Swell, hopefully to be followed by some camping in the Canyon Rim area south of Moab. We used to love Zion Canyon, which I first visited in 1971, but it's just gotten much too crowded for us. Back when I lived in Utah, the Uinta Mountains and Wasatch Plateau were favorite destinations.

[MontyV]

interesting thought. I do dump dish water on the ground, or more accurately on bushes, when we do not have full hook ups. I have not done it in an area that specifically says not to. but admittedly I think if dish water differently than I do shower water. It seems akin to brushing your teeth outside with a little cup of water.

[Msmoto]

As I read the thread I think about folks who have swimming pools. As the unfortunate behavior of urinating in swimming pools is not uncommon, especially when we might have been younger and the swimming was associated with beer consumption, I discovered that when I had my own pool, this was something I could never do.

Maybe we need to think about dumping our waste water, gray, black, or whatever, like we were dumping this on our own front lawn. Just what would be our practice in this case. As the outdoors is in a way, someone's front lawn, this may be useful in determining our relationship to the environment.

[Countryboy59]

Originally Posted by TRizzuti

I don't know about the rest of the campers in the world, but it's very difficult for me to take a shower and not pee at the same time, so I don't dump my "gray" water on the ground.

^^^^^^^^lol