How to fill water without gravity fill?

[DAS26miles]

My current MH has a gravity fill and I have used it many times dry camping to add water from jugs. We are looking at maybe getting a new MH. They all seem to have only screw on pressurized hose fill. One salesman said you can take the winterizing tube and suck it up and somehow turn valves, but he wasn't sure.
I suppose I could take an old water pump that I have and stick one end in a jug and the other using a hose screwed into the pressure fill. Will that give me enough pressure to add water to the tank?

[SCVJeff]

WELL you learn something here everyday. The hose thing came from someone here and it made perfect sense. I had no idea it would draw into the tank all by itself. Out here we don't winterize, so there's never been any reason to really understand that flow. THANKS !!

Anyone need a short hose?

[wnjj]

SCVJeff wrote:
SO... It actually looks like this ?
(Sorry for the cheezy lines. This was on Acrobat)

Almost. Like Dutch said, the check valve is at the pump inlet so the winterize tube is further to the left in the drawing. The check valve is so the pump can shut off and the system can maintain pressure.

You shower hose just comes from the blue pipe and feeds back into the park water inlet (in a circle). It could help increase flow a little by providing a second route from the pump to "near" the fill tank valve.

[Dutch_12078]

The check valve shown between the tank and the pump is part of the pump. My setup looks like the drawing except that the fill valve simply bypasses the pump and connects the selected fill source to the bottom suction port. The tank drain valve uses the same port. The only other port in the tank is the vent at the top.

[SCVJeff]

SO... It actually looks like this ?
(Sorry for the cheezy lines. This was on Acrobat)

[wnjj]

Your "fill tank" valve is connected to the blue line to the right of the water pump in this picture and dumps into the top of the tank. The pump or camp site water connection can provide water to that valve.

[wnjj]

SCVJeff wrote:

wnjj wrote:

SCVJeff wrote:

SCVJeff wrote:

Salvo wrote:
There's a third way Jeff. Directly from the clear winterize hose when the "Normal" valve is turned to "Fill Tank". Your little hose is not required. Give it a try!

SCVJeff wrote:


But there are only two ways to fill the tank: gravity fill, and street hose port.

Don't understand how it could, but I will, maybe today

well I do believe you're correct. It does draw out of the jug but appeared to be slower than with the hose but the tank overflowed before i could really figure it out. Gonna oull the drawings tonight and see how that works. Thx!

All the "fill tank" valve does is connect the pressure side of your system to the tank, just like your outside hose does. Normally the pressure to fill comes from the city water hose but it can come from the pump via the winterizing tube just as easily,

well clearly you're right, I'm having a hard time understanding why it's built like that?
I got the hose idea from several members here and it makes sense, but not this.. What's the point?

Think of the "fill tank" valve as nothing more than a faucet in your RV that pours into your fresh water tank. If you leave it closed, you use the city water inside at your kitchen sink. If you open it, it fills your tank. Now on my camper there is a threaded city water connection and a capped tube next to it to fill the tank. The tube won't hold a hose end so I had to make a PVC pipe hose end to keep from having to hold the hose the whole time I am filling the tank.

With a fill valve like your rig has, you can use the city water, then simply turn the valve to fill your tank before departing.

I could use your hose with a smaller exit end to send my shower into the fill tube. That's the suggestion people have used on here. With your system you don't need it.

[SCVJeff]

wnjj wrote:

SCVJeff wrote:

SCVJeff wrote:

Salvo wrote:
There's a third way Jeff. Directly from the clear winterize hose when the "Normal" valve is turned to "Fill Tank". Your little hose is not required. Give it a try!

SCVJeff wrote:


But there are only two ways to fill the tank: gravity fill, and street hose port.

Don't understand how it could, but I will, maybe today

well I do believe you're correct. It does draw out of the jug but appeared to be slower than with the hose but the tank overflowed before i could really figure it out. Gonna oull the drawings tonight and see how that works. Thx!

All the "fill tank" valve does is connect the pressure side of your system to the tank, just like your outside hose does. Normally the pressure to fill comes from the city water hose but it can come from the pump via the winterizing tube just as easily,

well clearly you're right, I'm having a hard time understanding why it's built like that?
I got the hose idea from several members here and it makes sense, but not this.. What's the point?

[wnjj]

SCVJeff wrote:

SCVJeff wrote:

Salvo wrote:
There's a third way Jeff. Directly from the clear winterize hose when the "Normal" valve is turned to "Fill Tank". Your little hose is not required. Give it a try!

SCVJeff wrote:


But there are only two ways to fill the tank: gravity fill, and street hose port.

Don't understand how it could, but I will, maybe today

well I do believe you're correct. It does draw out of the jug but appeared to be slower than with the hose but the tank overflowed before i could really figure it out. Gonna oull the drawings tonight and see how that works. Thx!

All the "fill tank" valve does is connect the pressure side of your system to the tank, just like your outside hose does. Normally the pressure to fill comes from the city water hose but it can come from the pump via the winterizing tube just as easily,

[DAS26miles]

SCVJeff-interested to see if it works. So place the winterizing tube into the jug. Turn knob from normal to fill and turn on pump?.. I think when you turn winterizing knob it will stop any water from going back into tank. If I get the new MH, I still have the extra pump and I can easily attach it directly to city/fill connection. 2.5 gpm

[SCVJeff]

SCVJeff wrote:

Salvo wrote:
There's a third way Jeff. Directly from the clear winterize hose when the "Normal" valve is turned to "Fill Tank". Your little hose is not required. Give it a try!

SCVJeff wrote:


But there are only two ways to fill the tank: gravity fill, and street hose port.

Don't understand how it could, but I will, maybe today

well I do believe you're correct. It does draw out of the jug but appeared to be slower than with the hose but the tank overflowed before i could really figure it out. Gonna oull the drawings tonight and see how that works. Thx!

[Dutch_12078]

When I relocated the water pump in our Landau shortly after buying it, I also added a suction fill setup that can be used for both winterizing and adding water to the fresh tank. The three way valve at the pump is used to select the suction hose as the pump inlet, and the normal fill valve on the panel is used to select fill or winterize.

[SCVJeff]

Salvo wrote:
There's a third way Jeff. Directly from the clear winterize hose when the "Normal" valve is turned to "Fill Tank". Your little hose is not required. Give it a try!

SCVJeff wrote:


But there are only two ways to fill the tank: gravity fill, and street hose port.

Don't understand how it could, but I will, maybe today

[Salvo]

There's a third way Jeff. Directly from the clear winterize hose when the "Normal" valve is turned to "Fill Tank". Your little hose is not required. Give it a try!

SCVJeff wrote:


But there are only two ways to fill the tank: gravity fill, and street hose port.

[SCVJeff]

Salvo wrote:
You should be able to fill the tank without that small hose.

1. Turn the "Normal" water fill valve to "Tank Fill".
2. Turn the Winterizing knob from "Normal to "Winterize".
3. Place clear hose by winterizing knob into axillary water container.
4. Turn pump on.

If I want to take a inside shower using the water in a solar shower bag then I use steps 2, 3, 4.

Sure, and good idea, I hadn't thought of that.

You are missing the return path to the tank. There are only two ways to fill the tank: gravity fill, and street hose port. So that hose simply links the pressurized side that would normally draw FROM the tank, but now obviously not with the other valve set in Winterize mode, is drawing from the jug.