|
I am new at Airstream camping, but it seems that some of the water hoarding and gray water minimizing techniques of wilderness camping might be of interest.
Trickle down.
When wilderness camping I'm among those who pre-wash the dishes without soap and drink the rinse. Water is hard to come by and you don't waste it. I'm not suggesting, “drinking the boiled bean juice” as my sons refer to this, just applying the concept. For example, capture the “warm-up” stream before your shower to flush the toilet or water the dog. The more experienced RV folks can comment, but flushing the toilet with actual dishwater is frowned on in marine systems. The grease and soap can cake up and – as I understand it – retard the decomposition of the solid waste.
Take time washing dishes.
At camp with my dad, the evening was washing the dishes and playing cribbage. Both about equally taxing and social. He'd make something of a game of getting them clean with a minimum of water. That it took a few minutes longer didn't matter. We'd play three hands of cribbage, he'd play the harmonica, and we'd go to sleep.
As with the shower, there is a stream of warm-up water. Use it and some paper towel to get food chunks and grease off and, if practical, into the garbage rather than the black tank. Use gloves and very hot water for the actual wash and rinse. It takes less water if it is real hot and the dishes dry quickly.
Don't get dishes dirtier than necessary.
To this end, don't stack the dirty plates and thus avoid having to wash both sides. Wash the dishes in ascending order of grease. Usually that is glasses first, pans last. I have no science to recommend or prohibit letting the dogs help with this pre-cleaning phase. Are they getting them cleaner or dirtier? I don't know, but they are eager assistants and I've not experienced any issues.
Cooking habits of the thirsty.
Cut up vegetables first and meat last, for example, so that you can get by with one knife and cutting board. Maybe you want the pre-washed salad ingredients. Maybe not, the point is being mindful of water consumption when planning and preparing food.
Get acquainted with using cast iron cookware. Understand it takes little or no water – and never never any soap – to get it clean. It took some years to convince my wife of this, but she is a convert now. As noted above, I'm not suggesting you drink the bean juice, but making gravy from the grease in the pan is a delicious path to a clean pan if you use cast iron.
Pasta can be cooked in much less water than the box directions suggest. It takes a little more stirring but with practice you can do pasta with little or no water to drain off. There are pasta recipes that are arranged so that you simmer the sauce in the starch-rich pasta water, or make the sauce right in the boiling pasta.
Finally: never extinguish a campfire with dishwater. It leaves a greasy mess in the fire pit. Even if you pick every little morsel of food from the mess, it will still draw ants and mice to the place where the next campers least want them.
Happy trails.
|
Linear Mode
