Water Usage

[NCMEDIC]

Exactly! Using my method, you never have to lift the weight of the water. "Work smarter, not harder"! LOL

[polarlyse]

JB, you asked a question regarding the filling of the blue boy tank. Your trailer discharge has sliding gate valve. I think the blue boys have a gauge to warn you as it approaches full. You can shut the gate valve to stop the flow and re-start it after you empty your blue container. We find the grey water tank fills up much faster so we wash dishes using a tub in the sink which we can empty into the toilet to balance out the grey and black tanks a little. Works good for us. We also use paper plates a lot to minimize the dish washing.

[leedav]

Originally Posted by polarlyse

JB, you asked a question regarding the filling of the blue boy tank. Your trailer discharge has sliding gate valve. I think the blue boys have a gauge to warn you as it approaches full. You can shut the gate valve to stop the flow and re-start it after you empty your blue container. We find the grey water tank fills up much faster so we wash dishes using a tub in the sink which we can empty into the toilet to balance out the grey and black tanks a little. Works good for us. We also use paper plates a lot to minimize the dish washing.

can this really be done without spillage? i can see where grey water into a blue boy is not too risky. black water i'd be very nervous

[aftermath]

Originally Posted by Hans627

There is water available several campsites away. So assuming one could fill a portable container, is a funnel needed to pour the water into the AS tank? I guess I'll find that out when I pick up our AS tomorrow but just curious.

I will answer this. You can do it without a funnel if you have the right container. I have an Igloo (I think) and it came with a spout about 8 inches long. It is curved so it fits easily into the FW opening on the side of the trailer. I also have a round barrel looking tote that has a white plastic spigot on the end. This one sits on the picnic table and we use it to fill coffee pots and water bottles. If need be, I can fill the Igloo and transfer that to the trailer.

Toting water gets old in a hurry and the older I get, the harder it becomes. DHC-2 on the forum has devised a brilliant way to carry extra water and extra space for gray water. He has installed a couple of tanks in the bed of his truck that he accesses with a 12v pump. When he needs more water he just pumps some in and when his gray tank gets full he just pumps some out to the spare tank. No lifting required.

[jcanavera]

I've got a 60 gallon tank on my Classic and like others have said it can go fairly quickly, especially if you wash dishes and don't minimize your use of the shower. Typically when I go to a site without water, I carry 3 additional 7 gallon plastic water cans that I bought at Walmart. This allows me to top off the tank during my course of the stay, without having to move the trailer to refill. In some campgrounds you may be close to a community water outlet that, if you have enough hose length, may also allow you to top off the tank if necessary.

I try to dump the black water tank full so in most cases those extra water containers allow me to fill the black water tank prior to dumping it.

I wouldn't doubt that with you being new to the trailer, that you may run out of water. Be sure to bring something to help you fill the tank from a water source at the campground. Also be careful regarding grey water. Again washing hands, dishes use of the shower can fill that tank quickly. In campgrounds that have no sewer hookups, I bring a blue water tank on wheels that can be pulled or towed to a dump station. Be cautious on size since these things can get heavy loaded. Unless they are sitting on a hard paved surface, the wheels can sink into the gravel or ground next to your trailer.

Jack

[aftermath]

Originally Posted by robert claus

Our 26 gallon fresh water lasts us 3 days. We always bring an additional 6 gallons but don't always need it. We shower e'day, too. You'll learn quickly what your useage is and how to predict what you'll need. If the trailer has no water in it, fill the fw tank and then turn the pump on-it will then pump water into your hot water heater. That's 6 gallons down, so now you can top it off again.

Uh....while what you say here is true it does not help the OP when it comes to managing water. The statement above applies to dewinterizing and the need to fill the HW tank at the first of the season. Once that tank is full you really do not have access to these six gallons when you are dry camping. Once your FW tank is empty it will not pump water and the 6 gallons in the HW tank are trapped there. It will always be full. In the case of an extreme emergency, you could access this water by opening the low point drain under your trailer or by removing the drain plug in the heater. It is best not to count the 6 gallons in the heater.

[polarlyse]

The blue boy is a supplemental waste tank. Transportable and on wheels so it's made for black water usage as well as grey. I'm not sure what there is to be nervous about. It does get heavy when full but on good ground it's easy to transport to the dump station rather than moving the trailer. Moving the trailer is, of course, still an option. I often see people tie them onto the rear hitch and drive to the dump station but it would be heavy to lift into a vehicle. Beware they have plastic wheels but it is often done.

[jcanavera]

Originally Posted by polarlyse

The blue boy is a supplemental waste tank. Transportable and on wheels so it's made for black water usage as well as grey. I'm not sure what there is to be nervous about. It does get heavy when full but on good ground it's easy to transport to the dump station rather than moving the trailer. Moving the trailer is, of course, still an option. I often see people tie them onto the rear hitch and drive to the dump station but it would be heavy to lift into a vehicle. Beware they have plastic wheels but it is often done.

Good ground is the key.. It needs to be on a solid surface because if you sit on a gravel site or sandy/soft soil, the front steerable wheels will dig into the ground and you will go nowhere fast. Happened to me in Fla. I didn't have a choice other than to empty it there on the ground. I don't use it for black water since I accumulate grey faster. The black tank is plenty big enough to last us over a week without dumping.

[NCMEDIC]

There is a mod to replace those plastic wheels with inflatable rubber tires, which should work better.

[robert claus]

Originally Posted by aftermath

Uh....while what you say here is true it does not help the OP when it comes to managing water. The statement above applies to dewinterizing and the need to fill the HW tank at the first of the season. Once that tank is full you really do not have access to these six gallons when you are dry camping. Once your FW tank is empty it will not pump water and the 6 gallons in the HW tank are trapped there. It will always be full. In the case of an extreme emergency, you could access this water by opening the low point drain under your trailer or by removing the drain plug in the heater. It is best not to count the 6 gallons in the heater.

It matters because they are picking up a new trailer and using it for the first time. Since they are concerned about having enough water for their first trip, I thought I might clue them in on how to make sure that their fresh water tank is really full. Since they will lose 6 gallons to the hot water heater the first time they turn on the pump, they can put 6 more in the fresh water tank. I thought I'd share something you'd only know from experience, instead of just stating the obvious.

[Msmoto]

My Serenity has 54 gallons of fresh water, plus I carry 9 gallons of reverse osmosis drinking water for cooking....mainly coffee.

By myself, I can get about 8 days, but the problem is the 39 gallons in the gray tank...it fills before I run out of water. I suspect with very careful use, one can get even more, the shower and dish washing being my biggest gray water producers.

If a park has showers, this can make a two week stay possible for two people as dish washing barely increases for two over one.

[andreasduess]

Considerations like this made us decide on a composting toilet. A combined tank, all grey, will allow us to stay out for a week with five people.

[handn]

Originally Posted by Minno

How big are your holding tanks? We have 45 gals of fresh water, and after 3 or 4 days, I'm adding 6 or 12 gals to the tank. We have enough black and gray water capacity to handle the extra fresh water, so we can go 4 or 5 days before we need to dump. We carry a 6 gal green water jug and I use that to haul water to the trailer from the closest faucet.

Chris

My tank is 40 and my wife and I can go 4 or 5 days. We take quick showers, get wet, soap up an rinse off. We wash our hair every third day.
Where legal, we dump our grey on nearby thirsty plants. The toilet, 40 gallons, lasts 10 days.
We add water with a 5 gallon jerry can. Be sure to get one with a good handle on the side, it makes filling a lot easier.

[halftimer]

If my wife is with you one day maybe.