We went camping with our Bullet Premier 32BH for the first time during Labor Day weekend. Before the Bullet Premier we had a pop-up ( had to campgrounds facilities). We used the sewer connection at the campground and we really enjoyed using the facilities of the Premier camper(shower, sink, toilet). My question is this: What do you do when you go to a campground that does not have sewer? Can the shower still be used? The kitchen sink? I'm unclear on how that works. Does it mean that we're stuck and would have to use the dump station for the shower and kitchen sink? Or buy one of those carts? Thanks for your experienced input...

You do have holding tanks, right?

For those places with no sewer hook ups you need to empty your black and grey tanks. You can do this by taking the trailer to the dump station or buy a honey tank and tow it to the dump station behind your TV....very slowly, LOL

Just spent a week in Sequoia. Tanks held all waste water for the eight days. Dumped on the way out. Used the pay shower facilities during the week.The portable tank went with the pup when we sold it. Glad to see it gone.

On the Bullet Premier 32BH you have the following capacity:Fresh water tank - 41 GallonsGray water holding tank - 30 GallonsWaste (sewage, also known as "Black water") holding tank - 30 GallonsYour toilet will flow into the waste tank. All other drains will flow into the gray tank. You can wash dishes, take showers etc. When either the waste or gray water tanks get full, you'll either have to move the trailer to the dump station, make the sewage connection and dump them, or dump them into a portable tank which you can then take to the dump station to get rid of.

That is what I thought - that we would have to use one of those containers or literally hook the camper up and go to the dump station. It just seems to me that all that effort really takes the joy and fun out of camping. For me, I think we are going to steer clear of campgrounds that don't have a sewer connection.

Campgrounds without sewer hook up | Good Sam Community

dsotmoon
Explorer
Sep 05, 2013
full_mosey wrote:
If your site has a sewer connection, you are RVing, not camping. :)

HTH;
John

sewer, no sewer, rv'ing, camping, glamping, this or that, if i'm out in my TT then i'm not at work and having fun, all that matters to me :)
full_mosey
Explorer
Sep 04, 2013
If your site has a sewer connection, you are RVing, not camping. :)

HTH;
John
dsotmoon
Explorer
Sep 04, 2013
Seattle Lion wrote:
downtheroad wrote:
Crawfordville wrote:
For me, I think we are going to steer clear of campgrounds that don't have a sewer connection.

To each his own...but why even have an RV?
Maybe hotel/motels or out west many state campgrounds offer cabins and yurts.

It feels like we are getting a bit pedantic. There are plenty of reasons to have an RV without dry camping. We have our first travel trailer and frankly I always look for full hookups. Why? Because I like convenience and comfort and while some full hookup sites are not as rustic as we may like, they are way better than local hotels/motels.

Some of us don't necessarily want to "camp", but rather "vacation". We consider our TT to be our vacation house. As such, we want all the amenities we would have in a stationary house. So yes, we want long showers, private bath, satellite TV, etc. Our TT cost a lot of money (a lot less than the motor RV's, but still a lot for us). If we wanted to "camp" we would have used our tent.

My point is that one reason there are so many different RV's is that there are so many different ways people want to use them. Roughing it is not "camping" with a 30 ft RV that isn't hooked up to water and sewer. Nor am I a "sissy" for wanting full hookups.

It's silly to imagine that people shouldn't own a TT if they aren't willing to use the facilities that came with it. We have power, water, and sewer hookups so that we can enjoy the comfort and convenience of our TT's. Choosing not to use these things doesn't make you a "true camper", just someone willing to forgo some convenience for the sake of enjoying a spot without the hookups.

perfectly said, my thoughts exactly, we have only camped in FHU sites so far, will i limit myself to them? no, I'll eventually stay in a non FHU site where I know I can make it 3-4 days without dumping and there is a dump station easily accessible on the way out, me and my wife are on vacation when we camp, the last thing i want to do is tote my******around :) but thats my right and how i feel, the great thing is we can all do it how we want and enjoy it the way we want!

this is your experience to have, do what makes you happy!!!!
Nvr2loud
Explorer II
Sep 04, 2013
pappcam wrote:
Nvr2loud wrote:
bedell wrote:
then just dump the water in the woods. Biodegradable soap and no issues....

This could be a problem in some parks in states where any kind of surface dumping is outlawed. Best to check the local regulations rather than risk a fine and/or eviction.

I didn't even know that some places outlaw surface dumping, I've never camped outside Ontario. I even dump my fresh water on site as I drive away.

.

Do you really dump your grey tank on the ground where you camp?

No I don't
dadmomh
Explorer
Sep 04, 2013
Some time ago I pondered a question either on the HTT side or on Hybrid Explorer.....What would be the difference between, example, washing a skillet or DO outside with the shower hose or tenters who have no other option than to just toss the water vs those with trailers and grey tanks. It rambled on for several pages and seems like the consensus was that you shouldn't be doing dishes outside and rinsing off if you can empty it in either tank, but tenters probably use less water and have no other option, so they basically get a pass on that rule. Think it boiled down to - if you have a grey tank it needs to get used as opposed to dumping on the ground, or add it to the black tank for more liquid. It was an interesting discussion although a few feathers were ruffled for whatever reason.
opnspaces
Navigator II
Sep 04, 2013
Crawfordville wrote:
That is what I thought - that we would have to use one of those containers or literally hook the camper up and go to the dump station. It just seems to me that all that effort really takes the joy and fun out of camping. For me, I think we are going to steer clear of campgrounds that don't have a sewer connection.

Try experimenting a bit the next time you go out. The great thing about full hookup is you can experiment with a safety net.

First and most important is to realize that even when you are at a full hookup site you should always leave the blank tank valve closed. If you leave that valve open you will wind up with a big pyramid of poop in the tank under the toilet. Leave the black tank valve closed until the tank is at least 3/4 full before you go out and pull the lever to dump.

Since you're already hooked up try simulating for the weekend that you are at a Water/Electric only site. This is easy to do as you just hook everything up but leave the black and gray tanks closed. You will still have all the water and electricity you need but limited tank capacity.
Now just camp as you would normally,being aware that you will have to check the tank levels from time to time. If you make it the whole trip without filling the tanks you know that you can make it without a sewer hookup. If you do though fill the tanks, send your husband outside to pull the levers and empty the tanks as you're still at a full hookup site.

If you make it through the trip without filling the tanks the only difference between a full hookup and a partial hookup (non sewer) site is that with a partial site you will have to stop at the dump station on the way out of the campground to empty the tanks. This adds a bit of time to your departure, but most people just take it in stride as part of the experience.
loulou57
Explorer
Sep 04, 2013
loulou57 wrote:
Nvr2loud wrote:
loulou57 wrote:
Nvr2loud wrote:
bedell wrote:
then just dump the water in the woods. Biodegradable soap and no issues....

This could be a problem in some parks in states where any kind of surface dumping is outlawed. Best to check the local regulations rather than risk a fine and/or eviction.

I didn't even know that some places outlaw surface dumping, I've never camped outside Ontario. I even dump my fresh water on site as I drive away.

I am in Ontario also. You are not allowed to dump your grey water, sink dish water or even brush your teeth and dump water in the bush. If you are caught doing this in a provincial park you can be evicted. Where do you camp in Ontario?

I never said that I dumped my grey water tank in the woods. I said that I do dishes in a rubbermaid container with biodegradable soap and dump that outside the trailer.

I have only camped in Provincial Parks, and technically it isn't illegal by Provincial Park rules to dump some water in your camp site. It is however, not legal to dump your grey water or black water tanks, but that should be common sense anyway. It is advised to dump your dish water down the vault toilets to avoid wildlife visits to your site. Since we keep a clean site, and garbage and food put away, we have not had any visitors just sniffing around the dishwater. We have had some little visitors looking for marshmellows around the fire :)

I am sorry if you thought I suggested you dump your tanks, that was not the question.

It is not a criminal offence to throw your dishwater out in a P park, however, if you are constantly throwing out your dishsoap, washing hair etc. there is a possibility you can be evicted. This summer we spent quite a bit of time in the parks and it was expressed very clearly that it would not be tollerated. We saw people evicted for this reason. Most people do care about wildlife but If everyone dumped their dish water, after a time that would create a very dirty campsite.
We have some wonderful parks in North America. Lots of small mistakes by a large amount of people will quickly cause irreversable damage, not only enviromentally.
downtheroad
Explorer
Sep 04, 2013
Seattle Lion wrote:
downtheroad wrote:
Crawfordville wrote:
For me, I think we are going to steer clear of campgrounds that don't have a sewer connection.

To each his own...but why even have an RV?
Maybe hotel/motels or out west many state campgrounds offer cabins and yurts.

It feels like we are getting a bit pedantic.

Now you sound just like my wife...:)
loulou57
Explorer
Sep 04, 2013
Nvr2loud wrote:
loulou57 wrote:
Nvr2loud wrote:
bedell wrote:
then just dump the water in the woods. Biodegradable soap and no issues....

This could be a problem in some parks in states where any kind of surface dumping is outlawed. Best to check the local regulations rather than risk a fine and/or eviction.

I didn't even know that some places outlaw surface dumping, I've never camped outside Ontario. I even dump my fresh water on site as I drive away.

I am in Ontario also. You are not allowed to dump your grey water, sink dish water or even brush your teeth and dump water in the bush. If you are caught doing this in a provincial park you can be evicted. Where do you camp in Ontario?

I never said that I dumped my grey water tank in the woods. I said that I do dishes in a rubbermaid container with biodegradable soap and dump that outside the trailer.

I have only camped in Provincial Parks, and technically it isn't illegal by Provincial Park rules to dump some water in your camp site. It is however, not legal to dump your grey water or black water tanks, but that should be common sense anyway. It is advised to dump your dish water down the vault toilets to avoid wildlife visits to your site. Since we keep a clean site, and garbage and food put away, we have not had any visitors just sniffing around the dishwater. We have had some little visitors looking for marshmellows around the fire :)
Lantley
Nomad
Sep 04, 2013
Doug33 wrote:
I can deal without water and sewer hookups (use the tanks and tote for dumping), but my wife can't deal without her A/C in the summertime! Honestly the TT gets really hot in the sun, and even in the shade with the humidity, opening the windows does not really help too much (unless you are near the beach where a cooler breeze blows consistently).

I've thought about a generator, but the fact that you can't run it past 10 pm in most CGs is a negative. I can use the battery for the 12V lights and water pump.

Question for those that use grey water totes and dump them at the dump station: Do you connect the tote to a sewer hose and then place the hose in the hole? Last trip I just opened up the tote near the dump station hole and let it fly. The grey water goes out on the concrete apron slab, which is sloped down to the hole, and eventally drains down to it, although it is a little messy at first.

The portable tank should be connected to a hose and dumped as normal.
Dumping without a hose creates a mess as you observed!

Forum Discussion

Campgrounds without sewer hook up

About Travel Trailer Group

Related Content

Sewer Pipe Storage

sewer hose

Sewer smell

Sewer smell

Sewer