Recommendations on this "water use" scenario

westernaccents wrote:
Is it prudent to also have the fresh water side full (inside tank)?? I am assuming that I can use The "city side" for pressure, then if needed , just turn my water pump on to use my Holding tank?? If this is acceptable, do I need to disconnect the "city side" 1st??
I am also concerned of contaminating my tanks after reading some "disinfecting" threads here..

Yes. You can actually use both.. the one with the highest pressure wins. No, but if you mean the exterior hose, you don't want that freezing.

It's your call. I've seen many 'non-potable' water sources which are just fine, it's just that the local water board doesn't treat it so it can't legally be called "safe". It may be just fine.

You most definitely can have water in your fresh tank and still be hooked up to City water. FYI, there is no pressure IN your fresh water tank. Your pump simply "pumps" it out. There is some pressure between the pump and your faucets, otherwise water would never come out.

When you turn your city water on, the city water overrides the pump and the on-board pump should never come on. This is accomplished by in-line check-valves.

Sounds like you're attempting to tap into an artesian well. I don' t see any reason why you could not, but whenever you are on "city water" the pressure of the water coming through your lines is only as great as the pressure from the source. If you are sharing the same faucet among other campers, and everyone uses the water at the same time, you might not have any pressure.

If the water is safe to drink, there's no "real" reason to sanitize, provided your tank is clean to start with. If you are hooked up to city water, your fresh water tank should not ever fill, unless one of those valves are broken.

If the water is non-potable water, I wouldn't drink it. However, for flushing toilets and such, there would be no problem there.

Thanks !! The water was used for an old Military training base in the 30's-40's, Indians used it before then, now locals use it for water where wells wont work, but the main spring is used by everything from bears,elk and deer, so not a sealed system.

Intention was for showers/potty. Will carry purified for drinking and coffee. I am now concerned about introducing "germs" LOL and freezing after relies I got on the manufactures web forums. BTW 2008 3010TT Not sure if I can even take water without ruining my plumbing!!! Might should have bought a tent!!! LOL

Actually I would fill my holding tank with the water from the spring and then treat it with chlorine to kill bacteria etc. Then there is no worry about cold temps freezing anything

darsben wrote:
Actually I would fill my holding tank with the water from the spring and then treat it with chlorine to kill bacteria e.tc. Then there is no worry about cold temps freezing anything

I was wondering about that, probably needs to be chlorinated anyway. How does that effect the flora or chemicals used in the black tank though? Yes absolute newb and trial by fire for me.

westernaccents wrote:

darsben wrote:
Actually I would fill my holding tank with the water from the spring and then treat it with chlorine to kill bacteria e.tc. Then there is no worry about cold temps freezing anything

I was wondering about that, probably needs to be chlorinated anyway. How does that effect the flora or chemicals used in the black tank though? Yes absolute newb and trial by fire for me.

No issue there. Many times the water you hook up to at a campground will be chlorinated so this is no different as long as you use the proper amount.

johnwalkerpa1 wrote:

westernaccents wrote:

darsben wrote:
Actually I would fill my holding tank with the water from the spring and then treat it with chlorine to kill bacteria e.tc. Then there is no worry about cold temps freezing anything

I was wondering about that, probably needs to be chlorinated anyway. How does that effect the flora or chemicals used in the black tank though? Yes absolute newb and trial by fire for me.

No issue there. Many times the water you hook up to at a campground will be chlorinated so this is no different as long as you use the proper amount.

Great, didnt know that since I have never been to a TT campground! I guess what I'm doing is called "boondocking"? LOL

westernaccents wrote:
I was wondering about that, probably needs to be chlorinated anyway. How does that effect the flora or chemicals used in the black tank though? Yes absolute newb and trial by fire for me.

Your black tank is just a "holding tank" for sewage. It isn't like a septic tank, you don't need any bacterial "digestion" going on in there. You can add whatever liquid you want to the tank to clean/disinfect/sanitize it without concern about interrupting the breakdown of the sewage.

fill your fresh water tank with decent potable water and do not contaminate it with untested spring water. you can use a bucket of the spring water to flush toilet, etc.
bumpy

Bumpy gets my vote. You bought an RV for a reason, and the RV has a fresh water tank for a reason too; USE IT!

If the tank is larger than what you think you will use and you don't want to carry that much weight, fill it with the amount you think you need, plus a little more. It's better to have extra than not enough.

The only time I travel with an empty freshwater tank is when I know I'm going to a place where potable water is available at the site. Otherwise, I fill the tank and the water heater full (26 gallons total).