Carrying extra water for boondocking

[Lexx]

We still haven't decided on a trailer yet. I'm leaning towards a Grand Design Momentum toy hauler 351M. It carries 157 gal of water.

We have 3 kids and 2 adults. Because of my psoriasis, I need at least 10 min of hot water. So I figure 2 gal/min x 30 = 60 gal just for showering. That means we can go 2 plus days boondocking. If I could get another 100+ gal of water, we could go another day at least. That gives us 3 - 4 days, which should be enough.

Do any of you carry an extra water tank in the bed? If so what kind? I've seen water bladders but I think it would roll around or slosh. Do I need a dedicated water tank like an auxillary diesel tank with baffles?

I also realize the gray tank only has so much capacity. What's the general rule with gray water in areas you can boondock? If biodegradeable soaps are used with this water, is it ever acceptable to dump the water in the bushy areas or is this verbotten?
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[Happytraveler]

When we dry camp we take along our 65 gallon water tank (Safe for drinking) & a small pump to pump the water out. It fits in back of our CVR. A few years ago I call this company Water Tanks and gave them the measurements and they made it up for us.

[DSDP_Don]

I think you need to look at this another way. Many that get the large bladder as an additional source of water, don't drive around with it full. They use their truck, drive to where there is water and fill bladder. Return to the campsite and pump the water form the bladder into the RV. Gravity (height of truck to height of tanks) should be sufficient to transfer water.

[pnichols]

Needing all that water for staying clean implies the OP will be boondocking in a desert/dusty area?

If so, can't rinsing off quickly using the outside shower be used to reduce grey water tank fillups? That's what we can do in those situations. Also, to conserve water when boondocking we use a lot of baby wipes for sponge-bath type clean ups in between showers.

Wow .... now I know where all those forum discussions are coming from regarding whether or not to leave home with the RV tanks full!! Carrying those huge amounts of water is a lot of weight to haul up and down grades, and stop with, until one gets to their camping destination. Even most full-on $$$$ expedition vehicles don't carry those amounts of fresh water.

[Grit_dog]

Lexx wrote:

Ivylog wrote:
We can go 7 days with 100 gallons and two adult without cutting back on water usage. I think you numbers on water usage are way high unless you are taking three shower/day???

The Oxygenics shower head flows 2.0 gallons/min. Not accounting for waiting till water gets hot enough while flowing, I normally take 10 minute showers. This is a medical necessity due to my psoriasis (it's a skin condition). My wife washes her hair every night. That's another easy 10 min. Then I have 3 six year old kids. 3 min a piece? So that's an easy 30 min @ 2 gal/min = 60 gal. That's not including washing dishes, brushing teeth, etc. With 3 kids, it's tough to do anything in a small way lol.

Aside from your issue, the other 4 people should be able to stay clean on 20gal/day or so. But this isn't luxury showers, it's get wet, turn water off. Soap up, rinse done. Navy showers.

Look at wakeboard or wake surf ballast bags. You could get 1500 lbs of ballat sacks that sit in front of a bed divider. Ballast pump with longer hose to xfer to camper. Find a package on close out. Couple handled for 2 bomb proof ballast sacks and a 12v pump. Fold up and store when not in use.

When we go out for long boonie trips, I'll stop n fill a 450 lb sac on the back seat floor (truck camper) and 3-4 days later when our 50 gal runs out, drain gray back into the woods and refil FW.

Look at wakemakers.com for ideas.

[drmopar]

My Stealth Toy Hauler has 200 gallons water capacity. With "Navy" showers we can go for about 7 days. Long enough for a good get away.

[BizmarksMom]

You need the 10 minute shower for your skin issues, but does everybody else really need that? I'm a woman with thick, medium length hair and I wash it with a Navy style shower. (Get wet all over. Turn water off. Soap up all over. Turn water on and rinse off.) Takes 5 minutes, tops. I do not wash my hair every day, especially while camping.

For that matter, basin baths work really well for daily washing. And they take about 1/2 gallon of water. You can do a lot with a sink of water and a soapy wash cloth. There are ways to cut way down on the amount of wash water you use. A friend of mine camps with their 4 children, and everybody stays reasonably clean while boondocking.

[wa8yxm]

Options abound. Many types of water tanks including ye old 55 gallon drum If it's more than 5 gallons add a water pump (A good old Sur-Flo from your RV dealer is a great choice or you can get a small 120 volt job) to transfer

you can also get "Bladders" of assorted sizes (Easier to store and carry when empty)

And I would recommend .. Your choice of options.

[ike66]

The tank in the truck is 25 gal from Big R. Biggest i could fit in truck while hooked to 5th wheel. I also bought a 12v pump to pump from on tank to the other.

[drsteve]

The Oxygenics shower head flows 2.0 GPM at 80 PSI. Lower pressures result in lower flow rates.



Your onboard pump will not supply anywhere near 80 PSI. This graph is for the Shur Flo 4008, a common pump. Note that as pressure rises, flow rate decreases.



Bottom line is I would be surprised if your actual flow rate when running off the onboard pump was even half of the shower head's rated 2.0 GPM.

[SteveAE]

Lexx wrote:

Ivylog wrote:
We can go 7 days with 100 gallons and two adult without cutting back on water usage. I think you numbers on water usage are way high unless you are taking three shower/day???

The Oxygenics shower head flows 2.0 gallons/min. Not accounting for waiting till water gets hot enough while flowing, I normally take 10 minute showers. This is a medical necessity due to my psoriasis (it's a skin condition). My wife washes her hair every night. That's another easy 10 min. Then I have 3 six year old kids. 3 min a piece? So that's an easy 30 min @ 2 gal/min = 60 gal. That's not including washing dishes, brushing teeth, etc. With 3 kids, it's tough to do anything in a small way lol.

Gosh, but as I see it, you either need to cut back or stay at full hookup sites. I respect your medical needs (which can probably be reduced if you really wanted to), but why does your wife need to wash her hair (or even shower for that matter) every day and why do the children need to take daily showers? And, when they (the wife and children) do shower, why not have them take "navy showers"? It's called camping for a reason and those of us who go out of our way to boondock accomplish it by making concessions that allow 30 to 60 gallons of water to last a week ..... or two. Sorry for being a bit hard on you, but unless you want to bring along a water truck I just don't see how you can meet your requirements with most "regular" RV's (a toy hauler would help....some). But the good thing is that you still have the option to get out and enjoy yourselves by staying at campgrounds that have water and sewer connections.
Good luck and .......... have fun.

[memtb]

Lexi, A bladder may be your best option, but here’s another possibility. “IF” you are not using-up all of your space in the toy hauler area....how about a couple of (food grade) 55 gallon, plastic drums. They are tough (puncture/tear resistant), taller than a bladder (taking up less square footage of floor space) and (though a bit heavy) can be moved with a dolly. We take one on many of our extended “boondocking” trips. Though...it rides on the trailer with the Polaris Ranger and other gear.

[DutchmenSport]

What size is the water heater? If you are using "hot" water, you'll rip through 6 gallons of water in that heater in a heartbeat. If it's a 10 gallon, you'll still use up that 10 gallons (@ 2 gallons a minute?) in only 5 minutes, if you really need it hot. Not to mention, the close that (10 gallons) is used, cold water is replacing it. It doesn't take very long for HOT water to become cool water.

[kerrlakeRoo]

Try tractor supply, they carry quite a few tanks. On handling the grey, wash dishes outside when possible and use the outside shower when possible.
Edit add on,
Also look into a non RV showerhead, in my s&b I have a low flow showerhead 1.5 gpm flow rate. It may not feel as good as the oxygenics (I havent used one so I cant say) but that would amount to a 25% savings.

[Lexx]

Ivylog wrote:
We can go 7 days with 100 gallons and two adult without cutting back on water usage. I think you numbers on water usage are way high unless you are taking three shower/day???

The Oxygenics shower head flows 2.0 gallons/min. Not accounting for waiting till water gets hot enough while flowing, I normally take 10 minute showers. This is a medical necessity due to my psoriasis (it's a skin condition). My wife washes her hair every night. That's another easy 10 min. Then I have 3 six year old kids. 3 min a piece? So that's an easy 30 min @ 2 gal/min = 60 gal. That's not including washing dishes, brushing teeth, etc. With 3 kids, it's tough to do anything in a small way lol.

[Ivylog]

We can go 7 days with 100 gallons and two adult without cutting back on water usage. I think you numbers on water usage are way high unless you are taking three shower/day???