to drain or not to drain fresh water

[mcal63775]

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.

[rondeb]

BB_TX wrote:
I sanitize with bleach at the start of the season and then partially fill with chlorinated city water. Don't drain until end of season. But for the most part we only use that water during rest stops to flush. And use park water when parked at a RV park.

Same with us although we only keep enough water in the tank to flush etc while moving. Once stopped for more than a few days we drain the fresh water. Then before we head out again, put a little in for toilet etc. use.

[mikensallyt]

All great posts btw. Newbie here living in S Texas. I guess its fine to do whatever choice you use. I used to pour Clorox down all our house drains once a month. Not any more for the past few years. I think Clorox can be a bit overused. Have had our Class A for three months now and I still drink the water from it. Others prefer bottle water (didn't now it had an expiration date). Now the big thing next for me is how to drain and fill the tank properly without the "OMG, Am I doing this correctly". Guess I need to take the plunge and suffer any consequences. And its time to really get into it including showers. I've used the water sparingly and used bottle water like the others in my family do. But I do want to drain the HW and refill so no probs later down the line. Later its the black water and gray tanks. Shaky I tell you being such a novice/newbie.

[bshpilot]

for those of you that DONT drain your hot water heaters - are you flushing them well at the end of your season or when you drain them ??

I found that i was going thru anode rods every 6 months or so...and i had quite a bit of sediment in my tank (so i was flushing / rinsing the tank) - if i empty the tank after a weekend or two of camping i don't need to flush the tank (if i have any sediment to speak of it generally comes out when i pull the anode & drain it).

[Tinstar]

Algae needs photosynthesis to grow. My tank is in a dark area so no worries about growing algae.

[s_N_s]

I always drain both as soon as we get home.

[Kaz]

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.

Skip

[bshpilot]

I always dray the water heater - its only 10 gallons & i drain it to prevent corrosion, sedimentation & deposit build up.

i generally do not drain our Fresh Water tanks (they hold 220g of water), not even in the winter (I'm in enclosed storage & use space heaters when the temperature gets below 45*.

[Jim_Arndt]

My thoughts were to always leave full, as you will always have some water with an empty tank. A little water is enough to keep the interior surfaces moist, and worse with the air space much of the chlorine will evaporate into the air space. This would leave you with a small amount of non chlorinated water, a breeding ground.

Keeping the tank full, would allow for minimal evaporation of chlorine, and most interior surfaces would be protected as they would be submerged in chlorinated water.

Would dew form on the interior surfaces with the day/night heating /cooling cycle, this is what concerns me storing with an empty tank that has a small amount of water that won't drain. Thoughts?

[tropical36]

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 never do and you can always add a little chlorine if you feel it's needed. Also, if it's been awhile, a bunch of showers should take care of getting rid of it. Besides water lasts a long time in an enclosed container without causing any ill effects. We don't usually drink it anyway, unless it's been filled a few times and then just for cooking. I realize that it gets mixed in the lines going from a CG to traveling elsewhere, but so far, so good with our routine.

[discovery4us]

I'm in earthquake country so we keep water topped off as a emergency preparedness device. Propane topped off, diesel topped off, and full of water.

[obgraham]

fivejackie wrote:
I drain and refill before every outing.

x2

In my Class B, I use only the tank, never the city fill, and when I leave on a trip it is with a fresh refill. And we drink it and cook with it. Still kicking.

[fivejackie]

I drain and refill before every outing. During the winter, I drain and fill with a little extra bleach.

[robertbenita]

Drain every season and sanitize. Then whatever is inside is inside for the season and replenished as used. Use bottled drinking water and a pump on a 5 gallon sparklett's jug for cooking. I have not drained water heater specifically, but I do heat up the water when I exercise the generator. Right or wrong, it has worked for me from camper to Class C and now to Class A. I will add that there is this fluid called beer that comes in "Olympia" aluminum cans and another fluid called whisky that comes in glass containers with Jack Daniel's on the label that is used for drinking too:)

Check this out! Good timing...

http://thervgeeks.com/quick-tips/sanitize-rv-fresh-water-tank-without-winterizing-kit/

[fourmat]

If its going to be more than a week I drain tank and H/W I re-sanitize again before leaving