Drinking/Cooking with Water from Fresh Water Tank & Storing Hot Water Tips

Topic: Drinking/Cooking with Water from Fresh Water Tank & Storing Hot Water Tips (Read 1012 times) previous topic - next topic

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June 27, 2018, 05:16:33 pm

How many of you just use it for showering, washing hands, bathroom etc

I’m planning to filtering it either way, but to remain drinkable I will have to maintain it regularly. How do often do you do this?

What filters do you use? Kent told me about The RV Water Filter Store, they have good filters, I think you can order their products off Amazon too it seems

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #1 – June 27, 2018, 05:29:52 pm

I do. Compared to others light filtering (there was a very good discussion on this maybe a year ago). I am on city water in a large metro area. I use the city water to sanitize the tanks (fresh and water heater) and lines a couple days before a trip. Then just before the trip I dump the water on the yard and hibiscus via the driveway (I live on the east coast with no water restrictions) and fill with the water I am going to use. I am more careful when on the road. The further from home the more I rely on bottled water to drink and brush teeth even when using the filter. I still cook with the tank water and use it for coffee and tea letting the tea kettle sing for a few minutes.

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #2 – June 27, 2018, 05:37:45 pm

We have a high quality water filter from the RV Water Store, with its own deck mounted faucet.
It's used for all drinking water and cooking. For showering and washing dishes, water from the tank is used.
We mostly fill at home but do use campground water time too. Campgrounds usually have decent water and require a treatment plant and permit, in most states, if on well water.
Before filling, I check the water for color and smell, usually filling straight from the faucet. If the water has issues, I will pass on it, filling elsewhere. If all else fails, we do carry a small container of pool chorine for emergency sanitizing.

I do carry a small sediment filter but it doesn't remove the harmful stuff. That's what the water filter is for.
A few months go, I ran an endoscope into the water tank, when empty, and was happy to see very little sediment, just some sand. It's has been filled hundreds of times over the last 15 years.

I rarely sanitize the water system, well just about never. We use the rig regularly and always refill with city water as soon as we get home.
If the rig sat for long periods, a different strategy would be used, we travel year round .
This method has work fine for us over the last 23 years and 170,000 miles of LDing.

Larry

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #3 – June 27, 2018, 05:47:24 pm

Oh goodie, I get to post what will probably be the only dissenting opinion.

We don't filter. We don't buy bottled water. [In fact, we snicker at people who think bottled water is "purer".]

I do add an ounce of Chlorine Dioxide every time I fill the tank. One brand name is Purogene.

In storage, I put in a cup Sodium Hypochlorite [Clorox] and fill the tank.

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #4 – June 27, 2018, 05:49:51 pm

I use the water in fresh water tank for everything. Good water in is good water out 😁

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #5 – June 27, 2018, 06:06:05 pm

Pretty much always, but we usually a filter the drinking water for taste purposes.

Pete

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #6 – June 27, 2018, 06:40:04 pm

Since upgrading to the two stage water filter system (thanks Harold), I always filter the LD water coming in no mater where I am. We use the tank water for all our water needs, although we do carry Arrowhead bottles for other needs.

Recently there was a discussion about sanitizing the fresh water tank so I switched gears for about a week. After our trip to Zion, I fed the garden what filtered water was left in the tank and then filled with Long Beach tap pure and simple. We have a substantial chlorine content (or so it would appear 🤭) so I hoped it would help if there was a need.

Prior to heading up to Serrano Monday night, I fed the neighbors garden with my tank and then used the two stage filtration system to refill the LD.

Before all this “water filter chit chat” about a year ago, I had used the ol’ Camco Blue filter. Now I use that filter to wash the cars.

Waste not want not.

Kent

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #7 – June 27, 2018, 07:01:34 pm

I filter all water on the way into the fresh water tank, using one of the blue Camco water filters. Then I drink and cook with and use that fresh water for all purposes. I'm not real picky about water. The only exception is when I'm in parts of Arizona where the tap water is so bad that even I can't stand it. In those cases, I go to a local "water store" to purchase their reverse osmosis water. I carry several collapsible 2.5 gallon containers for that purpose.

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #8 – June 27, 2018, 07:08:09 pm

Thanks, Kent!

"Prior to heading up to Serrano Monday night, I fed the neighbors garden with my tank and then used the two stage filtration system to refill the LD."

Heads up all of you Northern Calif. residents... it's now been revealed where all of our water goes. Straight to Kent's house to keep his neighbors flowers happy.

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #9 – June 27, 2018, 07:09:48 pm

I am picky about the water I drink. Therefore I use spring water that I get direct from the spring.
Currently using Harding Spring in Sedona, Az. Some of the best water in the country.
When up in Oregon, I like Tub Springs outside of Ashland. Finding spring water is not hard.
Some sources are easier to access than others but it's worth it to me.
For all other water usage I just fill up when I dump and get propane with city water.

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #10 – June 27, 2018, 07:19:09 pm

Thanks to all who responded I didn't want to find out in a year no one drank or used in cooking water from properly maintained LD tank.

I called Dave Brannam at the RV Water Filter Store and got a 2 stage filter, hoses, pressure regulator etc I saw Kent use
to keep his water safe. Told them Kent referred me and asked for and received a 15% discount #HappyCamper He told me the water hoses have a lifetime warranty
602 625-1875

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #11 – June 27, 2018, 08:08:44 pm

We fill from the hose and drink / cook / wash from the tank. Bottled water is a waste of money and creates mountains of plastic for which there is no longer any market for recycling since China is no longer interested in importing our garbage.

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #12 – June 27, 2018, 08:50:49 pm

I fill my tank at home and trust it for drinking and cooking. Actually trust it more than some water we have hooked up to in other locations. We have ran into some pretty funky tasting water. Where we have turned the hookup off and used our onboard water.

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #13 – June 27, 2018, 10:53:23 pm

Cook with fresh water for sure including coffee. Rich traditions include Top Ramen. Water bottles for guzzling straight.

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #14 – June 27, 2018, 11:35:41 pm

Keep in mind there are two primary methods for treating water - filtration and purification.

1) Filtration is normally used for water with suspended particles and can also filter out bacteria and protozoa.

2) Purification is the next logical step and can also disable viruses. They are much smaller and are not removed during filtration.

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #15 – June 28, 2018, 01:47:41 am

We drink and cook with LD tank water -- fill it at home before leaving with Tombstone city water, which comes straight from springs in the nearby Huachuca Mtns. Most trips are 2 or 3 nights long, so we have plenty of water, not needing refill on the road. But we also carry a pack of water bottles just in case.

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #16 – June 28, 2018, 02:12:21 am

A full tank of water can last us about a week, so a fill at home is good. It takes about an hour to slowly soften and mega filter the next tank full at a campground. DH has an elaborate set up for making as sure as possible that our water is clean and caliche free!

We carry distilled water for drinking and cooking. We have a large-ish distiller at home, so start out with about a week's worth of drinking water, and then replenish as we go. We recently bought a one-gallon sized distiller that is in the coach, but unused as yet. That should eliminate purchasing plastic containers of distilled water on trips.

Virtual hugs,

Judie

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #17 – June 28, 2018, 09:32:34 am

We do a fill at home - no filter. On the road we use a two stage filter system. We also disinfect with Lysol all the surface areas (water handle and threads) before we hook up the hoses. One never knows the previous users habits.

To answer your question directly we use the fresh water tank for drinking, showering, and cooking.

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #18 – June 28, 2018, 10:08:54 am

We use the fresh water tank for cooking and drinking, fill at home, dump everywhere as needed. With weekends we shower at home. Use camp ground showers when needed. Dry camp and rarely connect to city water and power. Leave the PC's at home, and leave the Lap top in the wardrobe closet until desperate to connect. Carry the camera and take pictures with the iPhone. Go figure!

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #19 – June 28, 2018, 10:46:15 am

Because we are an 30 IB, we do not fill up our water tank at home and travel with never more than a half tank. We use water from our reverse osmosis filter from home, carrying about 6 gallons. We use a gallon a day for coffee, drinking, and for the dog’s water bowl. We resupply on the road as needed. We have never had any issues with park water or accessing refill locations in our ten years of RVing.

You will find your path as with all things RVing. What works for one isn’t what works for all.

Happy Trails,

Jules and Sue

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #20 – June 28, 2018, 10:51:37 am

I only fill our fresh water tank with water filtered to 1/2 micron and lead, chlorine, etc. removed. We use this water for washing, showering, and occasionally for making coffee. I never connect the coach directly to city water. The water filter makes such nice, clean water that we don't buy drinking water anywhere. We just fill 1 gallon bottles from the filter and use this water for drinking.

The only water problems we have encountered, as I previously posted, was from water we got at Buena Vista KOA in Colorado. The water tasted very salty with a delicate bouquet of hydrogen sulfide. The one night there was terrible and at the next place, Cimarron RV and Campground, I dumped the tank and flushed the lines and refilled with their well water. We were back to clean, decent tasting water in the tanks.

Harold

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #21 – June 28, 2018, 11:16:45 am

We do a combination of all the mentioned solutions. After coming out of winter storage (tanks stored empty or they freeze) we sanitize the water system with a small amount of bleach, rinse all with fresh water. We live in a rural area so we have our own well. We trust our water so we fill fresh water before we leave. We mostly shower at campground showers so our water goes along way for cooking, drinking, teeth brushing and dog bowl. Pet Supplies : Lixit Waterboy Travel Water Bowl : Pet Travel Bowls : Amazon.com (best dog bowl ever IMHO) We will refill if needed after checking for odor and taste and it is a clean well maintained fill station. We have an inline cartridge filter for the fill hose but haven't needed to use it yet. Probably will when we are on the road for longer trips. We do have a small on faucet filter by Instapure you can select what micron filter you want to use. We keep some bottled water just in case.

So in the end you have to do what works best for you.

tlbh2o

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Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #22 – June 28, 2018, 04:22:46 pm

I boon dock full time, have been for more than 11 years now.
My water usage isn't too bad. I quit using my shower years ago and joined a gym.
I picked Anytime Fitness because they have locations just about anywhere I would likely to be camped near.
Now, I go to a private bathroom, have a nice long hot shower with good pressure and if I choose, use the other facilities.
It isn't cheap, but the money I save on not paying to stay allows me to have such luxuries.

So, how you live in your Lazy Daze has much to do with how you deal with your water.

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #23 – June 28, 2018, 04:32:46 pm

"...and joined a gym. I picked Anytime Fitness because..."

Sounds like you've been reading the play-book from Tioga & George!

Re: How many of you drink & cook with the water In your LD fresh water tank?

Reply #24 – June 28, 2018, 06:17:25 pm

We use filtered water except shower and hand washing. We have a high bar faucet in the bathroom with a snap-on PUR filter. We fill a 2-liter thermos with boiling filtered water every morning for all cleaning and washing-up for the day. We mix it about 1 part to 3 parts cold tap water for comfort, or directly from the thermos for evening tea.

Steve

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June 27, 2018, 05:16:33 pm

Reply #1 – June 27, 2018, 05:29:52 pm

Reply #2 – June 27, 2018, 05:37:45 pm

Reply #3 – June 27, 2018, 05:47:24 pm

Reply #4 – June 27, 2018, 05:49:51 pm

Reply #5 – June 27, 2018, 06:06:05 pm

Reply #6 – June 27, 2018, 06:40:04 pm

Reply #7 – June 27, 2018, 07:01:34 pm

Reply #8 – June 27, 2018, 07:08:09 pm

Reply #9 – June 27, 2018, 07:09:48 pm

Reply #10 – June 27, 2018, 07:19:09 pm

Reply #11 – June 27, 2018, 08:08:44 pm

Reply #12 – June 27, 2018, 08:50:49 pm

Reply #13 – June 27, 2018, 10:53:23 pm

Reply #14 – June 27, 2018, 11:35:41 pm

Reply #15 – June 28, 2018, 01:47:41 am

Reply #16 – June 28, 2018, 02:12:21 am

Reply #17 – June 28, 2018, 09:32:34 am

Reply #18 – June 28, 2018, 10:08:54 am

Reply #19 – June 28, 2018, 10:46:15 am

Reply #20 – June 28, 2018, 10:51:37 am

Reply #21 – June 28, 2018, 11:16:45 am

Reply #22 – June 28, 2018, 04:22:46 pm

Reply #23 – June 28, 2018, 04:32:46 pm

Reply #24 – June 28, 2018, 06:17:25 pm

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