5th wheel with largest tanks

We just bought a fifth wheel and it has a puny 44 gallons fresh water tank. Yes its made for FHU, but we dry camp a lot. 30 days this year. 44 gallons good for 4 days me and the wife its not enough. So in the spring I will either add or swap tank out for more. Funny they aren't built for dry camping yet the grey and blank tanks are huge. I guess they figure that I can pee more than I can drink....go figure....

allen8106 wrote:
I'm considering pulling my current fresh water and replacing it with a larger tank.

FYI, you all realize most fresh water tank capacities include the hot water heater!!

Read the fine print.

You are right, but I believe you would need the same amount of water to go through the pump to push it out. If the fresh water tank is empty, and the hot water tank is still full, there is no way to get the hot water out unless it is gravity feed, which most are not. You could open the hot water tank drain and get it out. I don't think the pump would push enough air to push it out, but I could be wrong. I have never tried it.

I'm considering pulling my current fresh water and replacing it with a larger tank.

FYI, you all realize most fresh water tank capacities include the hot water heater!!

Read the fine print.

It is becoming an issue that most of the new trailers are not offering things like big tanks and extra battery space for extended dry camping. We were lucky to get an Alpenlite before the company went under. It is great, and the 100/50/50/50 tanks, and a compartment for up to 6 batteries, are wonderful for extended stays. The manufacturers seem to think that the only places we go have hookups, and are for huge trailers. That is not the case, but is one of the many reasons we haven't bought a newer trailer, that and the manufacturers seeming failure to be concerned about longevity and dependability. Just a thought though, my brother bought a new trailer that had a small fresh tank and a dealer was able to retrofit a second fresh tank giving him 95 gallons of fresh capacity.

While my 60 gallon tanks are not the biggest out there, they are the biggest that I have had in an RV and the room that I have for 4 batteries basically just has me spoiled I guess

It is not that people dry camp often, it is being equipped to dry camp when the opportunity to do so comes up. I am thinking events like the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, the EAA air show, music festivals, race tracks, many SPs that do not have water at the site.

In cruising boating water capacity & battery capacity is king. RVs are the same. Most are sorely lacking in water capacity & space for additional batterys.

Cummins12V98 wrote:

ford truck guy wrote:

Cummins12V98 wrote:
Current and last DRV 100g fresh, 75g grey and 50g black. Been a good combo fulltiming 8 years.

Now I have 66 fresh - 45 Black - 88 grey

Strange numbers.

Simply swap feeds on grey and fresh. :B

As it is now, those numbers are fine, we have not dry camped in 2 years and really don't see us doing it anytime soon.

As it is now, the only time we had in the past was at the NASCAR races, they have a honey wagon that will dump ALL your tanks for a minor fee.. something like $20.00 or $30.00.. We since upgraded to a full hook up site at the track so that's not a worry now..

I was considering selling the motorhome, and going to a fifth wheel toy hauler for the large tanks as well. The other consideration it seems, is lots of fifth wheels don't have generators. This also would be a must for me. The toy hauler not only has a tank for the generator, it has a spare tank for toys that also can be used to refill the generator tank. Some of the toy haulers have 150 gallon water tanks. That is a considerable amount of water. Add in the extra fuel for more generator time, and you could boondock for a long time. As a bonus, you can bring your wheeler or motorcycle. Im sure they are not every ones cup of tea, but something to consider. If you get a large enough one, Im sure the living quarters would be decent size.

Cummins12V98 wrote:

ford truck guy wrote:

Cummins12V98 wrote:
Current and last DRV 100g fresh, 75g grey and 50g black. Been a good combo fulltiming 8 years.

Now I have 66 fresh - 45 Black - 88 grey

Strange numbers.

Simply swap feeds on grey and fresh. :B

Absolutely! You can dump grey tanks without much notice if necessary and, while it may not be legal, at least it's not like dumping a black tank. Frankly, the forests out here in the West can use all the water they can get.

Lyle

That's one of the reasons we bought an Open Range fifth wheel. Our 31 footer has 85 fresh, 82 gray, 41 black and 10 gallon water heater.
It's no longer made, but the new model closest to it has 97 gray.
JK