Quote:
Originally Posted by 08f150
We would be in a campground but figured we could save around $30 bucks without the hookup. It would just be me, wife and 2 year old. It sounds like I should just pay the $30 and one less thing to worry about. thanks for the help
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Hi 08
If you go full hook up that will cover all the issues. To answer your 1st question, how long will on board tanks last for a 3 day weekend?
That depends on how you use the camper and the size of your tanks to start out with. You did not list a year on your camper so I could not look it up to see your tank size. Here are some guides from what we have done.
If you are conservative, we have gone 4 days and ran out a 32 gallon fresh water tank. It is just my wife and I. Our gray tank was 35 gallon and the black 30 gallon. As you can see since we ran out of the 32 gallon fresh supply and never filled either the gray or the black as it was split between the 2 tanks. But it takes some thinking and conserving to get to that point.
The 30 gallon black can go a week or more, again pending use. If we are out for 4 plus days during the day I'll use the shower house rest room leaving the camper black tank for night use, DW or , ya gotta go...
The gray, here is where most of your fresh water ends up. Doing dishes in the camper, taking showers and hand washing are the 3 biggest users of fresh water and filling the gray tank.
For dishes, we use to do many of them outside on the picnic table in a wash tub. This came from our pop up years. It would save both the fresh and gray tank supply. Then we migrated to doing dishes inside but being very conservative in how you do them. Don't over do it with the soap to start with and using a 2 sink or 1 sink 1 rinse tub approach will save water. If you do not over soap them you can reuse the rinse for several dishes until you need to add more. For sure you need to get the soap off but running water down the drain to rinse every dish, fork etc uses a lot of water.
Showers, here if your shower does not have a quick single on and off lever on the hose, get one so once you create the right temp mixture, wet your self, shut the water off with the single hose control, soap up, then rinse. This uses a lot less water then letting the water run the entire shower time.
Hand washing, again here let the water trickle from the faucet, wet your hands, soap up and then rinse. Yes it takes a whopping 30 seconds to 1 minute longer but it uses less water you have to haul. Having a small trickle verses fast running water like at home drastically reduces water use just washing your hands.
We also carry 2, 3 gallon fresh water cans to refill the fresh tank as needed. And a drain tank tote (aka blue tote) to take out excess gray water. On the morning of day 3, I add 6 to 9 gallons of fresh and take out about 10 to 15 gallons of gray and we just keep on going. If we are into a week plus I get into a daily or every other day chore to add more fresh and take away some gray. The black I have always made it going to the dump station at the end of camp but if needed this can be done with the blue tote too.
The real issue generally is kids who are old enough to take showers by themselves in the camper. If you have 3 kids they can drain you completely in 1 day.... In this case heading to the shower house solves this problem or let them help haul fresh and gray water until they too learn how to conserve.
Being water conservative for 2 adults and a young child Mom and Dad are caring for can go 3 to 4 days if they stretch it. It comes down to choices. If you do not want to use the camp shower house, then do dishes on the picnic table to save the water for the shower. In time after you camp long enough you will get the feel for how long you can go and will end up with some fresh water supply cans to re-fill fresh water at camp and a blue tote to get ride of gray water when needed.
Hope this helps and good luck
John
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