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Old 05-23-2015, 10:44 PM   #1
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Leaving water in fresh water tank

Hello all,
I'll be doing 3 day trips every other week for the summer. Should I be draining the fresh water tank after each trip or do you think it is OK to leave the unused water in the tank 2 weeks for the next trip? The reason I ask is I'm physically challenged on being able to get under the TT to open the drain. If needed I can get someone to do it.
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Old 05-23-2015, 11:11 PM   #2
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I leave water in my fresh tanks for weeks at a time during the camping season and just top them off for a dry trip. However, we only use the holding tank fresh water to wash & flush and carry a 5 gallon jug of RO water for cooking & coffee and drink bottled water.

I will pull the plug and drain the weight if they are really full and I have a long haul home.
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Old 05-24-2015, 01:01 AM   #3
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I pretty much do the same thing as Horned Toad. We always leave a bit of water in the tank for potty stops coming and going. Drain it down at the end of the year, unless there is an issue. FWIW we are using chlorinated city water in ours. We don't use it for cooking or drinking, just flushing, showers and washing up.

Maybe check around and see if your drain down valve could be moved somewhere that would be easier for you to reach? Mine is just under the front edge of the trailer and easy to get to, and mine is an actual valve not a pipe and plug fitting like some I have seen.

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Old 05-24-2015, 01:32 AM   #4
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Originally Posted by wahoonc View Post
I pretty much do the same thing as Horned Toad. We always leave a bit of water in the tank for potty stops coming and going. Drain it down at the end of the year, unless there is an issue. FWIW we are using chlorinated city water in ours. We don't use it for cooking or drinking, just flushing, showers and washing up.

Maybe check around and see if your drain down valve could be moved somewhere that would be easier for you to reach? Mine is just under the front edge of the trailer and easy to get to, and mine is an actual valve not a pipe and plug fitting like some I have seen.

Aaron
My valve is almost in the middle of the trailer underside. I'm going to take your suggestion of moving it to the side where I can reach it. I also bought some ball valves at HD for the fresh water drain as well as the hot and cold drain lines.
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Old 05-29-2015, 07:33 PM   #5
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Originally Posted by Fdhealy4 View Post
Hello all,
I'll be doing 3 day trips every other week for the summer. Should I be draining the fresh water tank after each trip or do you think it is OK to leave the unused water in the tank 2 weeks for the next trip? The reason I ask is I'm physically challenged on being able to get under the TT to open the drain. If needed I can get someone to do it.
We have a 28 gal fw tank and just bought our travel trailer in April but we don't like driving with the water tank full so we tend to leave just a few gallons for use during travel. One site we camped at had really rusty water so that turned us off from drinking the 'potable' water at campsites and we've started bringing a few gallon jugs of drinking water for weekend outings. Not saying our way is best. It's just where we are right now. I'm not sure how safe it is to drink 2 week old water unless you have a really nifty filtering/treatment system. Again though, I know very little about it.

Best of luck,
Ken
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Old 06-05-2015, 03:34 PM   #6
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We leave our camper parked at a river campsite most of the year. There is not a freshwater source yet but we plan to put in a sandpoint sometime this year or the next. I'm glad to hear I can transport water to the camper and safely leave it for a couple of weeks. I really don't want to transport 50 gallons of water per week to flush the toilet and rinse things off.
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Old 06-05-2015, 04:46 PM   #7
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[QUOTE=kalm_in_NJ;27110 One site we camped at had really rusty water so that turned us off from drinking the 'potable' water at campsites [/QUOTE]
Many times you will see "rusty" water at a campsite until the rust is flushed out. Run the water first (I'll connect the pressure reducer and hose, but not the trailer, so I can direct the water) for about 30 seconds. That also takes air bubbles out of your hose. THEN connect to your trailer. If the water looks or tastes bad after the flush, and before the "connect," then you can decide whether to use the remaining water in your fresh tank instead of campground pressure.
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Old 06-08-2015, 12:40 AM   #8
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Many times you will see "rusty" water at a campsite until the rust is flushed out. Run the water first (I'll connect the pressure reducer and hose, but not the trailer, so I can direct the water) for about 30 seconds. That also takes air bubbles out of your hose. THEN connect to your trailer. If the water looks or tastes bad after the flush, and before the "connect," then you can decide whether to use the remaining water in your fresh tank instead of campground pressure.
This was at the beginning of the season when campgrounds were just opening up in NJ. We were on our third trip out with the RV and apparently the first "lucky" campers at this site. After 20 minutes of letting the water run out at the spigot, we gave up and left the water disconnected.

Haven't had the same problem again but still drinking bottled water. What can I say?...

Ken
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Old 08-06-2015, 08:17 PM   #9
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Many homes use cisterns that hold water for drinking and cooking brought in by truck for many weeks if not months at a time, I highly doubt two week old water would hurt you in any way. I have left water in for a couple of weeks and never had any issues with it.
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Old 08-06-2015, 08:55 PM   #10
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I live in the desert & have done it for a couple of months with no problems.
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