Just curious

If y'all have been drinking RV water for so long, that might explain a few things...

Mine has a slight "musty old camper" smell and flavor to it, and early in the season it still has a tinge of RV antifreeze to it. Doesn't matter how many times I flush or sanitize or bleach the tank. I drink bottled water, but I also don't go away for weeks at a time, and where I go usually serves bottled water as a beverage choice, and it's a fundraiser so I don't mind spending a few extra dollars on bottled water or I'm working at the event and drink for free.

My FW came with a whole house quality filter, and I use replacement high quality cartridges from the water filter store. I still use a tank filled, Brita pitcher in the fridge to keep drinking water cold.

Jerry

A good white vinegar soak will kill the bleach and antifreeze tinge. I use about a pint with a water fill, run faucets until the vinegar is detectable, then let stand overnight. Drain, fill, drain, and fill.

All the time, fill the tank when home. Better option from park water.

I have always drunk from my fresh water tank.

When I first get an RV, I sanitize the tank using chlorine granules for a swimming pool/hottub. It doesn't need to be rinsed out to get rid of the bad bleach taste (which is added to bleach to stop kids from drinking it, so it is purposely made to taste horrid). Any chlorine residue is minimal and no worse than other chlorinated drinking water.

Then I always fill the tank at home from my municipal water (from which at least one bottled water company buys their water to bottle). It is chlorinated so no need to worry about re-sanitizing the tanks under normal circumstances. If the water starts tasting musty, etc, I would re-sanitize it, but that hasn't happened as yet.

Of course, I also drink from my tap. And yes, I have drunk from my garden hoses too. And swallowed pool water.

Timely question - just sanitized the tank today. Yes, I have been drinking our own water for 35+ years. No reason not to and the water at several of the campgrounds we use is hideous tasting.

BTW, if you wan't to destroy the bleach smell/taste just add a couple of ounces of Hydrogen peroxide. Disappears instantaneously.

We camp at least twice a month and typically run water out of the tank and refill when empty. When drinking water, we prefer certain bottled varieties but use the tank for cooking, bathing, cleaning...

toedtoes wrote:
I have always drunk from my fresh water tank.

When I first get an RV, I sanitize the tank using chlorine granules for a swimming pool/hottub. It doesn't need to be rinsed out to get rid of the bad bleach taste (which is added to bleach to stop kids from drinking it, so it is purposely made to taste horrid). Any chlorine residue is minimal and no worse than other chlorinated drinking water.

Then I always fill the tank at home from my municipal water (from which at least one bottled water company buys their water to bottle). It is chlorinated so no need to worry about re-sanitizing the tanks under normal circumstances. If the water starts tasting musty, etc, I would re-sanitize it, but that hasn't happened as yet.

Of course, I also drink from my tap. And yes, I have drunk from my garden hoses too. And swallowed pool water.

Flavor added to bleach to make it undesirable to drink?
First I’ve heard of that…


On another note, it’s hilarious how many “old” folks have become so conditioned to only drinking bottled water!
No wonder so many were so easily brainwashed in recent years.
I think/hope adults were actually a bit tougher in the past. (Not you, you seem pretty tough. people in general)

RetiredRealtorRick wrote:


I agree, except for the source of bottled water. "Purified" water might come from a source exactly as you describe, but "spring" water does not, and can not, come from a source other than a natural spring. For those who insist on bottled water, there should be no option other than spring water.

The fact that it came from a spring does not mean it is pure.
Was the spring from deep, underground water or surface water that percolated through the soil recently? What minerals does it contain? Who tested it and how often and for what contaminants?

Even if it starts out pure, there is the issue of the plastic bottle and often extremely long contact between the water and the plastic.
In 2018, a study examined 259 bottled waters and 93% of them contained micro plastic synthetic polymer particles, according to Frontiers in Chemistry.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6141690/

valhalla360 wrote:
Been drinking rv tank water for 50yrs. Never had an issue and never sanitized a tank. Just check the water before filling and use a filter on the hose while filling.

Ditto.

I almost always carry at least 1/2 a tank as IDK if there are trustworthy water sources where I'm going and more often then not I'm boondocking/dry camping without any hookups.

While I will filter the city water via hose while filling the tank, I have no issue with drinking it OR ever having to "sanitize" the water system.

IMHO: some folks just like to make stuff more complicated than they need to be. :)


- Mark0.