Forum Discussion

AllenTC2's avatar
AllenTC2
Explorer
Dec 28, 2017

Submersible pump with inline water filtration?

Have any of you boondockers done something like this to supplement your fresh water supply? Run a smallish submersible pump (like for use in a well) off your generator, with some sort of filter either at the pump or between the pump and the freshwater tank?
  • The problem with a submersible pump may be, if “unsupported “ would be the torque during a start. The pump will twist, pretty aggressively!

    We’ve done similar using our (back-up) 12 volt RV water pump. We pulled from a clean mountain creek, discharged thru a filter, into a 55 gallon (food grade) plastic drum with Clorox (bleach) in drum. We left the bung open on the drum, and waited at least 24 hours four the water treatment to be effective, and to gas-off ( minimize the residual chlorine in water).

    Probably frowned upon by many, probably “not” recommended, but,we didn’t die....at least not yet! :B
  • You can get any "water transfer pump", 120 AC volt or 12 DC volt, that pumps through a garden hose. They actually work very well. Lowes, Home Depot, any Home Improvement store has them.

    Since your pumping from a lake or stream, I suppose its really no big deal then to use a standard garden hose!
  • even small ones put out a lot of volume. but I had a cabin on lake erie and had one set up to run all our water needs just like in a house,I used a 1000,gal tank to hold the water. water delivered back then was .08 cents a gal.
  • Maybe pump through a active carbon filter into a jug and then add a chemical treatment to kill any biologicals?
  • What water source, like pumping from a stream or lake?

    I've seen videos of overlanders doing it, with a 12v pump mounted under the hood of their Toyota.

    I'd pretty skeptical of any compact mechanical filter with a high flow rate being able to clear biologic contamination from the water.

    Dunno why I have that phobia, since I've consumed water from various lakes and streams over my years and haven't been struck down yet. I guess the difference is taking a quick drink while swimming versus filling a container to drink from for the day or days?
  • What is your fresh water source? Most ground water or stream water is not going to be potable.

About DIY Maintenance

RV projects you can tackle on your own with a few friendly pointers.4,353 PostsLatest Activity: Feb 14, 2025