Full hookup questions

[paullac]

We generally don't do full hookups so just work off the fresh tank (50 gallons) & gray tank (39 gallons) with navy showers.

This will be our first real full hookup weekend so curious what others do for the two things below:

When others are on full hookups, do they still do "navy showers" or leave the shower water on (albeit quickly - so as to not drain the water heater that's only 6 gallons)?

Also, I am planning to leave the gray tank valve closed & dump as needed (vs leaving the valve open all the time). Is that typical?

[Tvov]

Winged One wrote:
Somewhere on here someone just had a catastrophe with sewage being pushed back through their trailers system when they left the gray tank open, and the campground had a major problem. I will leave mine closed till dumping.

Yuck

Hadn't seen that thread before... makes me re-think leaving the grey water drain open...

[Tvov]

We do "modified" navy showers. Quick rinse, shut off shower, soap up, then take our time rinsing off. As others have mentioned, hot water heater, even though only 6 gallons, lasts a surprisingly long time and is quick to reheat.

Our TT's shower stall is quite small, so not too comfortable for long showers... and for better or worse, absolutely no room for two people...

Grey water valve we leave open when hooked to sewer. Close it the day before leaving to fill the tank a bit so I can rinse the stinky slinky when dumping the black tank the next day.

[Ron3rd]

NanciL wrote:
I was in the Navy and don't have a clue what a Navy shower is !

May be because I was stationed at an Naval Air station

I can only guess it is what I have done all my life

1. Shower for a few seconds to get wet.
2. Shut the water off and soap up
3. lather
4. turn the water on and rinse off

I do that at home as well as in the trailer. I leave the gray tank valve open except for the day before leaving the camp ground, so there is a good supply of gray water to rinse the sewer hose out after dumping the black.

Jack L

You just described the Navy Shower perfectly!

[ependydad]

I have a 10 gallon water heater and take long showers - I don't do navy showers. I just don't enjoy them.

I'm about 50/50 for leaving my gray valves open vs. closed.

[GordonThree]

Terryallan wrote:
Don't know how y'all do it. 6 gal of hot water won't get me a good shower unless I use the cut off, soap up, and rinse. Any other way. I'm our before half way.

i've found it makes a difference in how the hot/cold mixer is set - at least in my KZ it's not very efficient.

example 1: turn the hot full on and turn up cold until the water is comfortable, result: a short shower before the hot runs out

example 2: turn the cold on to 50-75%, turn up hot until the water is comfortable, result: a long shower before the hot runs out

[Iraqvet05]

We take Navy showers so the DW, kids and I have enough hot water for all of us to take a shower the same night if needed. I guess my water conservation practices were forced on me in Iraq...we didn't have running water and used a gravity tank that was filled every other day to take hot (only) showers.

I leave the grey closed to have water to flush the bump valve after the black tank is dumped.

[valhalla360]

Unless there are more than 2 of you or you take long showers, no need to ration the water on full hookups.

We do fill the tank and use the pump. That way the water in the tank isn't stale when we are off full hookups.

[Peg_Leg]

I was in the Army but did cross the Atlantic on a troop ship. Salt water was in their pipes. So I take a RV shower.

I do leave the dump valves closed even when were in FL for 3 months. Don't want any of those water bugs climbing up out of the ground. I dump the black water every other time compared to the grey tanks.

[Old-Biscuit]

koda55 wrote:
When camping with fhu we open the gray tank but keep the black tank closed until it is full or we are leaving. The grey tank we close a day or two before we leave. We have a 10 gallon water heater and we always have plenty of hot water for showers. When I retired from the Navy, I quit taking Navy showers.

I never took a 'Navy' shower when I was in the Navy. On board ship I was the 'water king' and I always had plenty of water or knew where I could get some when others where taking salt water showers. It is good to be King :B

[Winged_One]

Somewhere on here someone just had a catastrophe with sewage being pushed back through their trailers system when they left the gray tank open, and the campground had a major problem. I will leave mine closed till dumping.

Yuck

[koda55]

When camping with fhu we open the gray tank but keep the black tank closed until it is full or we are leaving. The grey tank we close a day or two before we leave. We have a 10 gallon water heater and we always have plenty of hot water for showers. When I retired from the Navy, I quit taking Navy showers.

[wa8yxm]

I will usually have at least 10 gallons in the fresh tank,, this is because in 2 of the parks I visit it is not uncommon to loose park water for a short period (Repairs).


I close dump vavles till it's time to dump.

IF I am taking showers in RV it's "Navy type" as you call them.. WHY, Water heater is six gallons.. though jsut now here in South GA, that is not such a big thing cause the water coming into the RV is not a whole lot cooler than the water out of the heater.

[Terryallan]

Don't know how y'all do it. 6 gal of hot water won't get me a good shower unless I use the cut off, soap up, and rinse. Any other way. I'm our before half way.

[mockturtle]

2oldman wrote:

Bumpyroad wrote:
the main issue is if two people want to shower, then I would suggest showering together.

Nah.. that takes way longer. 🙂

Oh, yeah! 😉

[sch911]

Use the city water. Take any shower I want. Tank recovers within 10 minutes on gas anyway. Black tank closed, keep the gray valve open except for a few hours right before dumping the black. Use that to flush the hose from the black dump. Then repeat.