How to save tank space?

[Rainier]

Hi everyone! I have a trailer with approx 30 gallon black and grey tanks. We ended up at a campground by the beach that is awesome, but we only have water/elect. With two young kiddos and myself and my wife, filling up the grey/black tanks is easy to do. Suggestions, tips, or products you would suggest to help manage this. A couple of places we want to go have this scenario, so any tips or ideas would be awesome!
Thanks everyone...

Matt

[Sillybugs2]

I think starting out as tent campers helps us conserve water now in the travel trailer. We have four of us. When camping dh and I shower every other day. Kids every third or fourth if we are swimming. Dh tends to use the camp ground showers and I use the trailer. We group dish washing and wash all then one big rinse. Just came back and after four nights had to add water to the grey and black to be full enough to dump.

[Dakzuki]

Bathe less, take navy showers, and outside showers if you can. Clean dishes outdoors as if you were tent camping. Use of paper plates will cut down on washing. I carry 5 gallon collapsible jugs and can suck water out of them with the winterizing hose to load the fresh water tank.

[wintersun]

Our gray water tank is what fills up first. We don't take showers except at the campgrounds where they provide them. Not a big deal to go a week without a full shower. With your children I would stay at campgrounds with showers. Then the only thing going into the gray water tank is from the sinks which should be very little. We don't make dishes like spaghetti where we have water to dumo as we want to conserve both our fresh water supply and the space in the holding tank.

We also use the available toilets at campgrounds and minimize our use of the one in the camper. It makes for fewer stops at dump stations as we travel.

[x5rdman]

We just got back from 6 nights and bareley filled the black tank, 4 of us. The grey tank we filled and I dumped a small amount, legally on the ground (inside a natonal forest where it is posted you can dump). We showered daily, but conserving water. We washed dishes, ect with no issues. It is all about not leaving the water run.

[Ron3rd]

You'll probably never fill up your 30 gal black tank, but the gray tanks can fill up quickly, especially with showers. We have a 32 gal Barker tote for the gray tank and a 60 gal "Water Boy" with pump for replenishing the fresh water. We conserve somewhat, but like to use our facilities in the trailer to their full potential, especially when the grand children are along. It's a bit of an investment, but the two items I mentioned can take the worry out of running out/filling up. As to the Water Boy, it's a bit pricey but there are other methods you can rig up like water bladders, extra water jugs, etc. One member even bought a huge ice chest with a spigot on the bottom that serves dual purpose as a water hauler (with small pump) and a conventional ice chest. The only time this method does not work is if you're staying at a campground with no fresh water or dump station, which is rare. Good luck.

[dcason]

If you are at the beach, can I assume you will be in the water a lot? So no need for showers (especially if there aren't any)...use the sea. The kids need less of a bath and I don't think they will mind.

We use paper or wash dishes once per day with a tiny bit of water and then think about dumping that water out. With two adults we could make it about 5 days with a 20 foot travel trailer. We took navy showers once per day as we were working on the road. And cooking meals/not buying.

Donna

[jtfcons]

Use a lot of paper, plates, bowls, cups and plastic flatware. Minimize dish washing.

[2oldman]

Rainier wrote:
A couple of places we want to go have this scenario, so any tips or ideas would be awesome!

Do those places have dump stations nearby? My idea of comfortable camping isn't conserving, it's figuring out where to get water and dump.

Conservation is the last resort. (no pun intended)

[mbopp]

Conservation only gets you so far, and DW isn't fond of cg showers. For gray water (assuming you can get to a dump station):

I got two 5-gallon buckets with lids and pour spouts from the local tire shop (bead lubricant.) Buy a sewer cap with a garden hose nipple and a short piece of garden hose. If your sewer outlet is high enough you can fill the buckets, cap them off, and haul them to the dump station. You may have to lay the buckets on their side to fill them.

A step up: I got a 30-gallon plastic drum ($10) and it rests on a cut-down, upside-down pallet (free) in the truck bed. It's outfitted with a ball valve, vent, and garden-hose connector. I use a HF 12V marine pump to fill it with gray water. It gravity drains through a short piece of garden hose at the dump station.

Working on stage III: I scored a NIB macerator pump off Craigslist. We'll be 10 days w/o hookups and I plan on using it if the black tank gets full, pumping it into the 30-gallon drum.

[2gypsies1]

- never leave water running for showers, hand washing, teeth brushing, dish washing
- Navy showers: quickly wet down, turn water off, soap up, rinse off.
- Don't do dishes every day. Go the a thrift shop for extra silverware, use paper plates/bowls for cereal. Wipe out a veg pot with a damp paper towel and re-use the pot the next day; same for frying pans. Don't keep grabbing new glasses or coffee cups. Re-use.
- Wipe used silverware and dishes with a used napkins or paper towel to get the majority of crud off. When it's time to do dishes you don't need much water because you won't have a lot of scrubbing to do. Use a dishpan so that you can
- Empty dish water into the toilet. The black tank can always use extra water to give a good dump.
- It's not necessary to take a shower every day. Use some wipes for a quick refresher.
- Use the campground showers and toilets.

[Dog_Folks]

Let the kids go without showers/baths daily. Have them "wash up" daily.

Explain to them that this is only an option when camping.


They will think is the greatest thing since sliced bread and you will save water at the same time!

[Lynnmor]

Get a couple of buckets. Have each person take their turn carrying fresh water to the trailer and the gray water to where it can be disposed of properly. After about a week of this, water conservation will be learned.

[jfkmk]

travisej wrote:
Dont know if its allowed where you camp but we always just leave our grey water valve open and let it out on the ground. We mostly boondock. as far as the black goes, most likely a portable waste tank will do.

Yuck! I'm pretty sure this is illegal in every state in the country. Can you imagine pulling into a site only to discover soap residue, food particles, etc that the previous camper left?

[fla-gypsy]

With a 30 gal gray tank you would best be suited for a portable waste tank. You will fill the gray tank in two days or less if you conserve and if you bathe daily. If you don't, well I guess that is a personal choice but doesn't work for me. Dumping gray water on the ground is prohibited in most locales. Check local ordinance before doing it or you could get into trouble.