dumping gray water in forest

I guess it has to do with amount. A tent camper has an occasional pan of wash or dish water to dump that doesn't make much of a spot but a RVer may dump 40 gallion at a time. ??? IMO...

Actually, all dumping is illegal it's just some don't care what they do or when and how they do it. For some of us we follow the rules.

It probably has something to do with the old adage, "Give them an inch, and they'll take a mile". If dumping grey water on the ground was endorsed, then many campsites would become mud holes. Having to dump grey water at a dump station provides an incentive for people to use the campground's shower facilities.

As far as tent campers go, we do not have showers so there is no shower water to dump. My dishwater goes in the fire pit. If I had to transport every pail of water to a dump station, I would quit tent camping.

Plus, rustic campgrounds often favored by tent campers have no dump station to begin with. So now that I have pumped a pail of water to wash my dishes, what in the heck am I supposed to do with it when I am done? Surely cannot dump it in the outhouse.

Amounts are very different. If you are hard up and need to take a #2 in the forest I don't think anyone will say you are evil for doing so. One poop in the forest vs you pooping your pants isn't a big deal. Now dump 40 gallons of black in a spot and just about everyone will think you are a D bag.

See the difference?

Tent campers might have a pan of water they use to clean up. They might pee in the woods or maybe do a #2. Regardless their foot print is very low.

As opposed to me pulling up and dumping 70 gallons of grey water or 40 gallons of black in one spot. Tent campers can do it though so what is the difference? A big one to anyone with half a brain.

Not too mention my grey stinks like all hell since we live full time, use the sink like its a home and I don't think anyone would want to smell it festering in the soil.

I will dump true GRAY water (shower) anywhere it's legal to do so but I do NOT dump galley water with all the grease and dish washing residu in it. Galley water stinks as bad as black water and anywhere someone else camps (or me for that matter) it not a place to dump it.

As to the question about the difference, it's a matter of dumping a gallon or two from a dish pan vs dumping a 40 gallon garbage filled tank. Yes it may be the same KIND of stuff but certainly to a far different degree.

We were at a CG in NY this past weekend where the owner asked us to please let the grey water out on the grass as they have been having a drought. :p

There's a camp ground in Wisconsin that all season campers dump there grey water in the forest.And any one else that camps near the woods also does it.
Never seen it muddy or stink.

I use grey water at home from washing machine to water fruit trees. No issues and trees are very healthy.

This is one of these topics a person could bet on the hand wringing and righteous indignation, and win, every time.

IF a person in an RV pulled in with FULL tanks and dumped on the ground, that would be a mess until it all was absorbed. And they would be the ones sitting in it. For the most part, people do not drain from the RV onto the ground, simply because we can store it easily and dump at a designated location. There are those that have a garden hose attached to the end-cap and let the water run out onto the ground. If a person is going to be parked there for any length of time, sooner or later...that water has to go somewhere. There's only so much room to store it.

The only time grey water smells if it has been sitting in the tanks for a fair length of time. It doesn't just start smelling the second it goes down the drain.

And yes, in many places it is illegal. So is speeding, over-weight rigs, a beer in the drivers lap, littering, etc, etc, etc. All those who never never ever do any of the etc's? you go to the head of the class. The rest of us, get to use common sense.


Gary Haupt

If it's illegal then it applies to ALL....tent campers, pop-ups, trailers, MHs etc.

If not illegal then......that's why they make a drain line end cap with a garden hose connection so one can hook up hose, run it out to tree, bush, woods and slowly drain.