Camco water filter

[salem]

We usually drink bottled water and reserve the campground water for cooking, showering, etc. Now, bottled water is getting close to impossible to find. For that reason, I picked up a Camco Water Filter. The package says last up to six months. I'm not sure exactly what that means. Six months of continuous use, or six months of using while camping every few weeks. How often do you change your Camco filter? The cg water is regular city water so I'm not too concerned with bacteria. More a taste issue with us.

[JimK-NY]

If you use a Camco or similar RV water filter, the filter removes some or all of the chlorine. Chlorine is in municipal water for a reason and it will help keep your system free of pseudomona, legionella and other nasties. It is best to filter only the water you will drink right at the tap or with a separate Brita type filter.

[down_home]

Varmintmist wrote:
for about 40 bucks from a big box store, you can get a whole house filter, a hose bib, and a threaded connector for the other side and 2 carbon filters. 14 bucks will get you a 2 pack of good carbon filters from then on out.

I mounted the pressure reducer to the hose bib side and connect a potable hose to that output side. I will input with the double female ended 6 foot garden hose I made up. I can add either a longer potable to the output, or a reg garden hose to the input.

It is gravity mounted to the ground.

We have one of the smaller 110" housings that use a 4" filter also.CW does or did have a plastic stand it will sit down into nicely. It was designed for the size filter housing they have to sell and the one you bought will fit.

[Varmintmist]

for about 40 bucks from a big box store, you can get a whole house filter, a hose bib, and a threaded connector for the other side and 2 carbon filters. 14 bucks will get you a 2 pack of good carbon filters from then on out.

I mounted the pressure reducer to the hose bib side and connect a potable hose to that output side. I will input with the double female ended 6 foot garden hose I made up. I can add either a longer potable to the output, or a reg garden hose to the input.

It is gravity mounted to the ground.

[Gdetrailer]

wopachop wrote:
Generally speaking lets say its 80F and normal humidity. (whatever that is)
How many weeks can a used filter sit there wet?
If you have a 10" filter, is it best to remove it and let it air dry?

Asking here because you guys above seem to be pretty knowledgeable. I had the blue filters for awhile and now have a 10" housing. I did not read the fine print, but the filter is rated in months. Is there a little asterisk i missed and they give an estimation of how many gallons per month?

This type of replaceable filter?



THROW IT OUT WHEN DONE!!

At only $4.00 per filter, why be so darn cheap?

Is your life and health not more important than the $4.00 it costs for the filter?

There is no "safe" way to "store" a WET filter, especially if the incoming water has not gone through some municipal water treatment facility that treats the water and water system with Chlorine and even then I would highly question "saving" a wet filter.

Bacteria, mold or other stuff can easily multiple in a wet or damp environment and your wet filter will be a perfect breeding ground.

The only safe way is to continually use the filter keeping the bacteria flushed out OR open, clean, dry the filter housing and remove and discard the wet cartridge.

Don't play games with your health for FOUR LOUSY DOLLARS!

[pnichols]

salem wrote:
We usually drink bottled water and reserve the campground water for cooking, showering, etc. Now, bottled water is getting close to impossible to find. For that reason, I picked up a Camco Water Filter. The package says last up to six months. I'm not sure exactly what that means. Six months of continuous use, or six months of using while camping every few weeks. How often do you change your Camco filter? The cg water is regular city water so I'm not too concerned with bacteria. More a taste issue with us.

We're only occasional campers, so I can't help you much on how best to filter RV water for extended camping.

HOWEVER, one thing in your post above left me scratching my head ... what do you mean "bottled water is getting close to impossible to find"??

We use it all the time in our stick house for drinking - or boil the water from our well for drinking. So far, here in CA, we're able to still buy our drinking water in bottled form.

Is there some kind of country-wide shortage of bottled water going on? :h

[down_home]

I'm not sure how my two replies got out of order

[down_home]

rvshrinker wrote:

down home wrote:
Depends on water source for filter requirements.Fla, South Ga, La,Michigan needs lots filter capacity. The worse the water the more filter capacity required.
Th better the filter, the more they cost and the more frequent you have to replace them.
N way to cheat the situation.
A large whole house 10 inch filter housign with remote sensor to let you know it is full cost about 70,00 at Home Depot for GE or Lowes for Culligan. The less expensive 25 micron KDF filter of them will get just about all sediments and many bugs. Buy the filters on.25 micron kdf filter when if f lien and save.ng
Higher spec filters for those housings are available on line, and the variety confusing. Replace the large filter when led shows. A somewhat to a lot more expensive .5 micron or whatever,spected to get all the bugs won't have to be replaced so often.
In Michigan the well water at numerous campgrounds especially when the campgrounds are full will load up a filter in no time, like one day, if you wash clothes.
South Georgia, Louisiana, had .9 micron ceramic filter with a pre filter stop up in two days with stinky black and yellow sulfur and iron.
Those inline Camco filters load up fast and then everytime you turn on the tap flush sediment right past it and into your glass or shower, in Michigan per example.
Right now here in the desert we have just a half micron, high spec cartridge in small 10" housing. Cost was about 47.00. Don't remember the number right at the moment. But...nothing much gets through the filter, and the source has lots of calcium and magnesium, I think, but virtually no sediments.
All the KDF filters get the chlorine out of the water, I think, so I put some drinking water chlorine in the fresh water tank, and no taste if not too much is used.
No need or desire to buy bottled water with a shot of ozone in it to aggravate the palate.
On edit: I remember several years ago at a favorite campground in Michigan, a camper next to us, in conversation I showed him the sediment, mud, in clear filter housing. He said they didn't drink it but just showered and washed clothes in it. They drank bottled water.
His white t shirt and socks were a decidedly unlovely hue of yellow/brown. And his "tan" too.
yellow

i’m confused about where you are putting these filters. I’d like a decent filter of everything going into my tanks, even from my own house, even though our water is fine. But especially for campgrounds. The camco inline sounds simplest, but not best.

Can you link to a few items or describe more?

Wee have ours in a stand under the coach many times but most near the faucet.I don't think I have room to custom mount it in the water bay.
Most times we use a smaller ten inch canister filter with a better/best quality filter that gets about everything but 47.00 each at CW.Lots of options in filters on the internet. I always filled our tank at our former home from our well, simply great water but still filtered because of some sediments and lime at times. I used the whole house large 4" I think 10" canister from Westinghouse from Lowes then.
no remote monitor but changer regularly and too regularly probably. It was a carbon cartridge and 30.00, I think. I installed it with valve in each side of the filter and should ahve put a drain valve for flushing otu the fines in a new filter, instead of first faucet on outside of the home. It is beat to keep the filter housing out of the sun an hoses short.

[Super_Dave]

Our trailer has the large housing style filter and I use the smaller blue filter at the faucet. I guess tht makes me a belt & suspenders guy. We also use 2.5 gllon jugs of drinking water to make our coffee and fill individual bottles of drinking water. The filters get replaced every Spring. My gut feeling is that we are way over kill on this but has just become part of the Winterization/Dewinterization process with the water system.

[wopachop]

Generally speaking lets say its 80F and normal humidity. (whatever that is)
How many weeks can a used filter sit there wet?
If you have a 10" filter, is it best to remove it and let it air dry?

Asking here because you guys above seem to be pretty knowledgeable. I had the blue filters for awhile and now have a 10" housing. I did not read the fine print, but the filter is rated in months. Is there a little asterisk i missed and they give an estimation of how many gallons per month?

[down_home]

How long a filter will last depends on how much dirt etc it hs to handle not time ...except the media takes up those pollutants and even in charcoal begins to row.
Charcoal filters with silver in the media kill bacteria and last as long or longer.
GE and Culligan whole house bit 10 in filters at Lowes and Home Depot etc come with a remote that lets you know it is time to change the filter....pores stopped up from use.
You might have to make your own stand for them and buy and hose connectors. They are a bit large but....
And still you do not want to leave the filter sitting there with pollutants in it forever....to start growing.
Certainly do not use a filter from last year or six months ago and if you hve been using questionable water sources or all water sources prior to using a filter sanitize the and lines.Those small in line blue filters ahve very little capacity and whn the fill up wit dirt etc, the next tine you open a tap it flushes past the filter. Such is the case dramatically seen at Midwest and other campgrounds on holiday weekends with lots of campers, ....that use well water.

[camper19709]

I am a fulltimer. I also use the blue camco filter but I do not leave it connected. I fill my tank and then put it away. I always pump water from the tank and never remain connected to water. The filter gets replaced every 6 months. I do move frequently. I do drink and cook with bottled water but I brush my teeth with tank water. I would have no problem drinking my tank water but I reserve it for showers.

[TechWriter]

rvshrinker wrote:
Can you link to a few items or describe more?

Here's our water filtration system.

[rvshrinker]

down home wrote:
Depends on water source for filter requirements.Fla, South Ga, La,Michigan needs lots filter capacity. The worse the water the more filter capacity required.
Th better the filter, the more they cost and the more frequent you have to replace them.
N way to cheat the situation.
A large whole house 10 inch filter housign with remote sensor to let you know it is full cost about 70,00 at Home Depot for GE or Lowes for Culligan. The less expensive 25 micron KDF filter of them will get just about all sediments and many bugs. Buy the filters on.25 micron kdf filter when if f lien and save.ng
Higher spec filters for those housings are available on line, and the variety confusing. Replace the large filter when led shows. A somewhat to a lot more expensive .5 micron or whatever,spected to get all the bugs won't have to be replaced so often.
In Michigan the well water at numerous campgrounds especially when the campgrounds are full will load up a filter in no time, like one day, if you wash clothes.
South Georgia, Louisiana, had .9 micron ceramic filter with a pre filter stop up in two days with stinky black and yellow sulfur and iron.
Those inline Camco filters load up fast and then everytime you turn on the tap flush sediment right past it and into your glass or shower, in Michigan per example.
Right now here in the desert we have just a half micron, high spec cartridge in small 10" housing. Cost was about 47.00. Don't remember the number right at the moment. But...nothing much gets through the filter, and the source has lots of calcium and magnesium, I think, but virtually no sediments.
All the KDF filters get the chlorine out of the water, I think, so I put some drinking water chlorine in the fresh water tank, and no taste if not too much is used.
No need or desire to buy bottled water with a shot of ozone in it to aggravate the palate.
On edit: I remember several years ago at a favorite campground in Michigan, a camper next to us, in conversation I showed him the sediment, mud, in clear filter housing. He said they didn't drink it but just showered and washed clothes in it. They drank bottled water.
His white t shirt and socks were a decidedly unlovely hue of yellow/brown. And his "tan" too.
yellow

i’m confused about where you are putting these filters. I’d like a decent filter of everything going into my tanks, even from my own house, even though our water is fine. But especially for campgrounds. The camco inline sounds simplest, but not best.

Can you link to a few items or describe more?

[pbeverly]

Bought a Reliance Products Aqua-Tainer 7 Gallon Rigid Water Container that I fill with water from our house that is used for coffee, drinking and ice. Our trips are usually 4 nights so we don't ever use this much water. Once we dump at the dump station what is left of this water is poured into the toilet so it can slosh around in the black tank on the way home.

We use to just use campground water until we stayed at a place in SW VA. I expected good water from the mountains. Nastiest water we had ever had ANYWHERE. The ice ruined sodas. Worse than water near the ocean.