Whole RV Water Filter

[98silvz71]

So today we added a whole RV water filter inside the belly of my parents 5er. We used a 2.5" x 10" whole house filter and added a 5um carbon block filter. We cut the pex after the pump and city connection comes in and spliced the water filter back in. Really easy to do and in an easy spot to get to. Cost us about $40 for all the parts.

[Goostoff]

I have contemplated many times taking the filter out of my system. We dont use it. Its more of a sediment trap that anything else. It is a factory installed unit with no bypass so it makes winterizing a PITA as well. I think this spring may be the year it gets done. Now that I have all the tools to work with this plastic pipe and stuff it will be a PC of cake.

[98silvz71]

SparkDr wrote:
Nice, clean install. For anyone else considering this type of mod, I would suggest a shutoff valve on each side of the filter. Very inexpensive adder to the project and will allow changing of the filter without shutting down the water supply. It also reduces the mess by preventing back siphoning of the water in the lines.

Normally I do this on regular filter installs, but like I said, we don't full time, we camp less than 20 days a year, so we will just drain the camper at the end of the season and throw the used filter out. Others may want to if they camp a lot more than we do. Also our low point drain is less than 5 feet from the filter. 5 seconds of draining and the filter can be removed. Not everyone will be that lucky.

[98silvz71]

Lynnmor wrote:
I like the wood block to take out the shake while traveling. I would add a Velcro strap to keep the canister from bouncing away from that block.

That's what we plan to do. Good eye on the block, the bracket was a little flimsy for my taste that's why we added the block.

[myredracer]

Looks like a great install. A 10" cartridge like that is good for minimizing pressure drop and maximizing flow. What carbon filter cartridge? KDF or silver in the filter?

As mentioned above, I'd also suggest looking at a 2nd filter. It it were me, I'd make the first cartridge strictly a sediment filter and keep it 5 microns. Use a string-wound cartridge and not a pleated paper type as bacteria love to grow on them.

Doulton makes an excellent ceramic filter that fits in a 10" housing and is what we use. They have their "ultracarb" 10" cartridge that has 4 stages and has a carbon block stage and has silver to make it bacteriostatic. It's less than 1 micron and removes micro-organisms and some bacteria. Can also be cleaned and re-used with a brillo pad. Info. here. It's a good idea to keep a filter(s) in the fridge between trips during the summer heat (never in freezer).

Doulton has some good info. on water filtration specifically for RV-ers here.

[John_Joey]

For those up north types make sure you buy a unit that has a bypass option. Makes winterizing the rig with antifreeze a whole lot cheaper and easier.

[SparkDr]

Nice, clean install. For anyone else considering this type of mod, I would suggest a shutoff valve on each side of the filter. Very inexpensive adder to the project and will allow changing of the filter without shutting down the water supply. It also reduces the mess by preventing back siphoning of the water in the lines.

[Lynnmor]

I like the wood block to take out the shake while traveling. I would add a Velcro strap to keep the canister from bouncing away from that block.

[gbopp]

Very nice/clean installation. Thanks for posting.

[98silvz71]

Bill.Satellite wrote:
My suggestion is (again, my suggestion) that you need another filter. A sediment filter prior to the carbon filter will make your long term satisfaction much higher. I have a similar setup but with 2 cartridges and I have come upon some iffy connections which filtered out some serious cr4p before it got to the charcoal filter. I replace the sediment filter about 3 times before I have to replace the charcoal filter. Please don't take this the wrong way. I am only suggesting that while this is a very nice upgrade, there might be a way to make it even better with very little effort.

We have well water at our house and have some trouble with clay/rust coming in when we first moved out here. We used a 20um filter in a housing just like this that we had stuffed in the central hook up compartment. After we used it nothing came in that bothered the camper ever. After we had the house finished I installed 2 4" x 10" "Big Blue" filters one with a 20um to catch the big jumk (i can't believe we can't say cr4p), and the second with a 5um to polish it off. I have never seen anything on the 5um. I still change them around every 6 months but the 20 um catches all the junk. Since we camp maybe a 20-30 nights a year, I figured the 5um would make it through the whole season just fine. Anything is better than the Camco inline filters that pack up after a couple of days with the water we get around here. Thanks for the suggestion and for checking out our install.

[Bill_Satellite]

My suggestion is (again, my suggestion) that you need another filter. A sediment filter prior to the carbon filter will make your long term satisfaction much higher. I have a similar setup but with 2 cartridges and I have come upon some iffy connections which filtered out some serious cr4p before it got to the charcoal filter. I replace the sediment filter about 3 times before I have to replace the charcoal filter. Please don't take this the wrong way. I am only suggesting that while this is a very nice upgrade, there might be a way to make it even better with very little effort.