Do you use a water filter to fill the camper?

[JohnGB]

Hi Folks

We have not talked about water much here on SOC however I’ll pass this on from our last camping trip.

I am a firm believer in using a water filter when hooked up or filling up at a campground. This is the 3rd time we have hit a spot of stuff in the water. And from 3 different CG’s. Seeing is believing so here it is.

This filter was spotless clean when I put it on. Then 2 days later when we broke camp it looked like this. This is even slimy. I know high iron water can do this but the slimy part is nerving as that would have been inside my camper piping if I had not filtered it. While the water had chlorine in it these rusted pipe deposits are something I do not want in my camper.

Here is the filter core

A few years ago we where filling up at this one camp using the onboard fresh tank where I had good luck with the water on the spigot near the center of camp. Many people used it. Tasted great and no issue filtering. The filter was still nice and white after a weekend campout. Well this trip same park, but we went to a different spigot. This one we had not used before and was at the end of one of the camping loops so it did not get used that much. OMG…. :shock: The pics do not do this justice as most of the particles fell off before I took these pics. I totally clogged 2 filters trying to fill the camper…

The type of filter I use I can see it and clean it to get more uses out of it. See here where I cleaned them at camp. One clean

Two clean

So just passing this along about what a water filter can do to help protect your camper water system.

Hope this helps.

John

 

[Trailblazer-MGRV]

We started using a filter last year after a problem with water at a private campground. At that time we purchased the TastePure unit that Camco Mfg sells. This lasted us almost to the end of last years camping season before it plugged up. We bought a new one to start out this season with and it plugged up by the end of June this year and we are now on our third one.

I have been looking for a better solution for a water filter and want one that I can clean and is easily hooked up for use when filling the fresh water holding tanks as well as can be used when connect to campground water. It appears that your water filter system fits everything I am looking for. Would you mind telling me who the manufacturer is and where you bought this filter system.

In addition to the filter on the water connection, I also use a ceramic filter under the sink for all drinking and cooking water. The system we have is by Rainfresh and has worked very well for us. What I like about this system is that it can also be used on water drawn from a lake or a well.

 

[mainah-SUN]

Good ideal to have one. What I do is put my water (good old Maine spring water) in my tank and use the water drained from my tank to cook and and make coffee and use unknown campground water for the shower and dishes I just don't like the taste of water with stuff in it no matter how clean it is.

 

[MOKID]

Filters

We live in Rural MO and have our own well for our home. We use a Carbon filter and also a Sediment filter plus a water softner in order to keep our appliances and etc clean. So when we bought the trailer the first thing we did was get a Sediment filter but we only use the water for showers and dishes. We use bottle water for drinking and cooking. No problems so far.

 

[JohnGB]

Bill

Yes, you described one of the exact reasons I use this type of filter. You can see the condition of the filter and you can clean it. There are other reasons too.

This filter is a ceramic carbon filter. 0.9 micron. These are the same technology as we used back packing just bigger. The outer ceramic you use a scotchbrite to scrub away the dirt and stuff. The carbon inside is treated with KDF which retards/prevents micro growth inside the filter. After each camping trip I take the cartridge out and clean it if needed and put it in the sun to dry. It takes about 2 days to dry it out. This brand has the highest flow I have seen in the 0.9 micron size which is 2.5 gpm.

The brand is Camco CX90 and when I was looking the only folks who offered this.

http://www.camco.net/#app=a6cb&942e-selectedIndex=4&2a05-selectedIndex=0

Here it is for sale on Amazon
Amazon.com: Camco 40651 RV CX90 Ceramic Water Filter: Automotive

The filters
Amazon.com: Camco 40671 RV CXR90 Replacement Cartridge Water Filter: Automotive

Also to note carbon filters strip chlorine from the water. Depending on how fine they are is how much they strip. This CX90 will strip 3.5ppm chlorine down to 0.5 ppm in one pass. 0.5ppm chlorine is still in the potable water holding range and is what I target for residual chlorine. However if the camp chlorine is down in the 1.5 or 1.0 area the CX90 will take just about all if it out. Like I mentioned the finer the carbon filter the greater the reduction of chlorine. In the case of the chlorine being about gone I spike the tank a little and then life is good again.

And yes I have no issue drinking from the camper tank, cooking, showering or teeth brushing. The filter is part of a camper water program. And we do bring some 1/2 gallon cleaned juice jugs with filtered water from home for chilled fridge drinking water. Even 1.0 ppm chlorine tastes way too much for plain water to drink so we do both, camper water and home made bottled water from home. The home bottled water also help keep the body "system" normal.... as water changes do affect people different until they adjust to it.

However… with this CX90 I have a love hate relationship with them. I love the features and the performance. The cost is tolerable for what you are getting. The hate is the caution that must be used when dealing with the filter core. I have been using these since 2004 as I have not yet found a replacement of the features and Camco went through several upgrades to correct the product problems. They beefed up the lower hose connection that could pop off, they changed the way the filter is held inside the canister as the head of the filter pops off. They use to have 3 rubber rings inside to prevent shock against the core. They helped too good. The filter would not come out other then in pieces… And the last one, even with only 1 rubber ring inside to hold the bottom the top will pop off the filter core. In the early days that was a real problem. They seemed to have fixed it or at least made it better. You have to be gentle and turn the filter upside down and let gravity help the core come out. Do not pull on the white plastic core top. Once they helped the cracking problem of the core and I figured out how to get the core out the core will last a full year and by then it is scrubbed so thin you need to replace it. If you buy fresh filters, meaning ones that are not 4 years old sitting on someone shelf, they have the new upgrades.

The 0.9 micron filter will plug quick if your water has high iron in it. Some areas are just that way,. It is in the water. If you use the 100 micron Camco they do not clog up under the high iron. http://www.camco.net/#app=ec0&d2ec-selectedIndex=4&52e2-selectedIndex=0

We have one park we go to that there is high iron in the water in the entire county, so at that camp when we do full hook up I use the Camco Taste Pure. After a use or 2 I pitch the filter from being in that high iron area. They are really harder to dry out but at least they have the KDF in the carbon to help with the micro growth.

Hope this helps

John

 

[JohnGB]

Snip..
What I do is put my water (good old Maine spring water) in my tank and use the water drained from my tank to cook and and make coffee and use unknown campground water for the shower and dishes I just don't like the taste of water with stuff in it no matter how clean it is.

Hi Mainah

Yes I too haul water from home and I fill the tank without a filter when I do it from home. I know the water source and I do not have to worry about the unknowns. Most of our camping now that we have this bigger camper and truck to handle the tongue weight, we can bring a fresh tank of water from home and we can go the entire weekend and still dump a lot of it at the end of camp. Full hooks up we only do about 5% of the time. Most is off the on board fresh tank.

Water is a personal thing for sure. With all the books out there on RV everything, there are very few on actual camper water once you make it past the system sanitize to clean it. I found it a really hard time trying to find much of anything in writing back by creditable sources and why they do what they do and how people use their water system after the sanitize it throughout the season.

John

 

[justatourist]

We were carrying fresh water from home because when camping once we had a "reaction" to strange water. Nothing so unpleasant as camping and spending most of your time hugging a toilet.

Now, I use filters for all water and a second one for the kitchen water. Besides our own health I think the waterlines are more sanitary. Even with better water we do carry bottled drinks, Pepsi for her and Gatorade for myself.

jim

 

[Hematite]

John,
A great suggestion about the Camco Ceramic filter. I have been using the Camco sealed unit, which I have found to be good but the ability to see the condition of the filter and clean it is even better. If I keep the Sunline, I will definitely switch to this filter.