to drain or not to drain fresh water

mcal63775 wrote:
Do you guys and gals drain your fresh water from holding tank and water heater when you get back home and leave coach/camper sit for 3 to 4 weeks? Or do you leave water in them for next time, whenever that may be. I have always drained , but I wonder now if its really necessary to do that, do to time involved for fill and drain, and wasting the water.

We use our onboard water for everything, including drinking and cooking. We drain and sanitize the tank every six months, which is the length of time FEMA says it's safe to store water. (Lots of references. See here for example: How Long Can I keep Fresh Water In the Tank?) Other than that, there's water in the tank so we're ready to go in case of zombie apocalypse, TEOTWAWKI, or (more likely) a spontaneous trip.

Incidentally, if you didn't see it, RVgeeks just released a new video yesterday on a clever, easy way to sanitize the water system. See here: Neat Trick to Sanitize RV Water System. Note, those guys also use the onboard tank for everything and follow the twice-per-year schedule for sanitizing.

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