Water Solutions

[PackRat]

Many good options/solutions but...to answer your question....YES....you are using too much water for "camping"! You can utilize many of the suggestions here but cutting down on USAGE is the first issue to address.

 

[Timothy McGowen]

What about mounting something like this to the very front of your truck bed?

https://www.frontrunneroutfitters.com/en/us/water-solutions/tanks-mounts/front-runner-upright-water-tank-with-two-cut-outs-flat.html

And then build a small, simple spacer around it (set the camper back a few inches from the front of your truck bed), so the camper does not touch the water tank.

Would get you another 10 gallons and might be able to buy a hose kit and use gravity to access the water.

Just a thought.

I was looking at these for grey water.

 

[Timothy McGowen]

I usually hit a campground once a week for a shower and fill up then. In between campgrounds I hit the pay showers at truck stops to save water.

 

[doc]

I usually hit a campground once a week for a shower and fill up then. In between campgrounds I hit the pay showers at truck stops to save water.

Great idea, but what does your wife do? I'm assuming my wife wouldn't want to shower at a truck stop. I even fear suggesting the idea. She doesn't mind female shower facilities at the 'RV resorts,' but that and a water supply is all they're good for. Is that what you mean by campground?

 

[doc]

Finished adding this today. I've always felt reassured having an extra 5 gallons of fuel. Now I'll have more water too. I'm 6'2, so by standing on a stump or small step stool, it'll be right at the level of the water fill while resting on my shoulder. Most federal campgrounds have potable water, so I can fill it if need be. As for preventing damage to the door, I added a small bump stop which works great. And extended the door latch, which also seems to work well.

I still plan to cut down on the water usage too.

 

[klahanie]

^ I like it ! You have a filling and extra storage container in one. Get a tube like esimmers mentioned and you'll be set - filling will take some time tho. And nothing saying you can't fill the container only half way to ease lifting and pouring when replenishing the main tank.

Secpters are awesome. The wide mouth is a great feature when cleaning and air drying the container. And allows good inspection of water inside when checking for floaters, turbidity etc. For eg, sometimes we'll find the water to be a bit sandy - esp from a lake side well.

 

[DavidGraves]

Great idea, but what does your wife do? I'm assuming my wife wouldn't want to shower at a truck stop. I even fear suggesting the idea. She doesn't mind female shower facilities at the 'RV resorts,' but that and a water supply is all they're good for. Is that what you mean by campground?

Just for info sake....the showers at most Flying J truckstops are entirely up to par.....clean and comfy and come with towels etc.

Ten bucks and you get two good showers....long as you are willing to share.

Sure serves the need when making miles crossing the continent.

David Graves

 

[James T Kirk]

What about mounting something like this to the very front of your truck bed?

https://www.frontrunneroutfitters.com/en/us/water-solutions/tanks-mounts/front-runner-upright-water-tank-with-two-cut-outs-flat.html
....

Thanks for posting the link to this company. Great, ingenious, products. Probably going to get some of their stuff for gray water. Looks like they did a photo shoot in my backyard. Castle Valley...Kirk Out

 

[norcalhawk]

I agree with DavidGraves, the Flying J showers are great. They are large, clean, sanitary and warm. Also with sink, well ventilated and towels are included...or use your own as I do. You can also share a shower with your wife/girlfriend and cut the cost in half.

I too, use a water container with pouring spout to fill my main water tank when my filler hose does not reach. I carry 3/2.5 gal. Scepter (food grade & easy to handle) water containers that we use only for drinking & cooking. Main water tank is used for cleaning dishes, clothes and washing our bodies. Also, we use natural water sources, such as, creeks/rivers by filling a bucket from the sourse, carry it back to camp (away from river), wash whatever and dispose of the water properly.

 

[DanoT]

Heat water on the stove and use a portable shower with a low flow shower head.
Paper plates
HD vinegar for cleaning counter tops etc as it is non toxic so it doesn't need a water flush
Wet Ones and hand cleaner.

 

[smlobx]

We find one of our rate limiting steps is water supply. With even rationed consumption, we can stretch the 20 gallon tank to 3 nights max, but that is still cutting it close.

We've (regrettably) stayed a night in an "RV resort." Upsides were: hot showers and beach access. Downsides were: a lot. We also felt way out of place. This was an easy way to fill up though.

We've stopped at market and bought 10 1 gallon jugs, which worked, but was a bit of a hassle and an extra stop.

Now, I'm going to mount an AT water can holder on the jack bracket. This will be an extra ~ 5 gallon reserve and I can fill in campgrounds with potable water...

What are other people doing to filling up while on a trip?

I noticed that you have a double cab and in looking around at the website noted above I saw this...

https://www.frontrunneroutfitters.com/en/us/water-solutions/tanks-mounts/front-runner-footwell-water-tank.html

It might help extend your range....

 

[PackRat]

Mounting a couple cans where you can safely hang them so they don't destroy the siding of the camper or the vehicle for WATER ONLY would be something to consider. No problem with a fireball if you get run into with H2O only!

At about 8 lbs per gallon plus the container weight, that's about 50 lbs you are having to lift up and my back won't allow for anything like that being hoisted up head-high or even above that.

So...
Water conservation
Filling up whenever possible
Monitoring usage

After a couple trips you will have figured out the usage and tailored your consumption to that amount you want to carry.

By the way, with a nod to overloading the rear axle, adding another couple 50 lb loads to the REAR of the vehicle is going in the wrong direction...so consider fabricating a mounting system up FRONT and let the front axle carry that extra 100 lbs or so.

 

[pawleyk]

We fill the main 20(+6) gallon tank from wherever we see a spigot or hose someone will let us use. We bleach that water according to WHO specifications so no matter what's in it, we can drink it if we're don't mind it tasting like pool water. That water though is basically used for everything but drinking. Dishes, quick showers every few days, brushing teeth, etc.

We have two 2.5gal jugs we fill with potable water wherever we can get it and use those for our drinking water.

We've found it's nice to have two different options for filling and carrying water. With this setup we can easily go a week to two weeks before needing to refill. One of our road rules though is to fill the main tanks whenever we see a hose, unless we know we're going to a place where there's water and we're going to have a long driving day. It's nice to keep the weight down.

 

[pawleyk]

I was looking at these for grey water.

Anybody know if they make something similar for fuel?
https://www.frontrunneroutfitters.com/en/us/water-solutions/tanks-mounts/front-runner-upright-water-tank-with-two-cut-outs-flat.html

 

[Dandil]

I told my wife when we were talking about what and how we deal with trash because we have to hall out all of out trash when wild camping. My response was not how we deal with trash but what we have to do in order not to generate trash. In regard to cooking, clean up and water, I try to cook with not making a big mess that needs to be cleaned up with water which is limited. So one thing you can't get around is the number of people, however you may have to re-think your meals and cooking methods simply because you're not at home and water is in short supply. When we leave home we have 20 gal tank full and be sure your hot water tank is also full (another 6 gal) if you have one. We also buy 24 pacs of bottled water whenever we can and pac bottles in every nook. This helps a lot. As far as campgrounds, we have accepted overnighters at organized campgrounds as a matter of convienant stop. Top of water, laundry, charge batteries and a shower.

Happy camping