JimK-NY
NY
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Joined: 05/12/2010
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Just one more comment on use of FW for showers. I often camp in the desert SW when temps are relatively high and access to water can be limited. A daily shower is almost a necessity.
When I really want to extend my trip, there are some options. First is to give up on washing hair every day. A quick rinse without using soap works pretty well at least for a day or two and cuts down on the 1 gallon of FW I typically would use for a shower.
Next is a sponge bath to substitute for a shower. With proper technique you can do really well with less than a quart of water. You can even use "body wash" instead of regular soap. Just be sure to get an appropriate product. Typically they will be advertised as "hospital grade, no rinse" or some similar description.
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ReneeG
Meridian, Idaho
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Joined: 07/13/2005
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We always have rinse-free body wash and waterless shampoo on hand when we are on a trip. The rinse-free body wash comes in handy for freshening up just before bed especially when you've had to use bug repellent. We buy it at the drug store in the convalescent needs section, where the walkers, etc. are.
2011 Bighorn 3055RL
2011 F350 DRW 6.7L 4x4 Diesel Lariat and Hensley TrailerSaver BD3
1992 Jeep ZJ and 1978 Coleman Concord Pop-Up for remote camping
Dave & Renee plus (Champ, Molly, Paris, Missy, and Maggie in spirit), Mica and Mabel, both Rat Terriers!
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2oldman
NM
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Joined: 04/15/2001
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I carry lots of water because I eat on real dishes, take daily showers and I don't want my black tank clogging up.
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Vintage465
Prunedale CA.
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Joined: 05/02/2015
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While I had the belly down once I ran a recirculation line and connected a high heat, food grade, 12v recirculating pump to it. Caught the water at the tub/shower hot inlet, ran it to the cold inlet of the water heater. Pump in between obviously. I bootlegged a wall mount mounted bathroom light switch to turn the pump on when ever I want to use the pump. I run the pump for 30 seconds or so and turn it off. I have instant hot water at the shower.
![[image]](https://i.imgur.com/YXcsUPHl.jpg)
I replaced the valve you see with a shark bite check valve.
![[image]](https://i.imgur.com/4s7tcZVl.jpg)
V-465
2013 GMC 2500HD Duramax Denali. 2015 CreekSide 20fq w/450 watts solar and 465 amp/hour of batteries. Retired and living the dream!
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JimK-NY
NY
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2oldman wrote:I carry lots of water because I eat on real dishes, take daily showers and I don't want my black tank clogging up.
I don't know what you mean by lots of water. I am limited with a 30 gallon FW tank. On rare occasions I also fill one or two 5 gallon folding jugs.
I also almost always use "real" dishes. I can still do my cooking and kitchen clean up with about 1 gallon/day. My 3 gallon use is pretty evenly spread with a gallon each for showering, kitchen use, and drinking. Fortunately I don't have to worry about even more for the BW tank.
With some thought and experience there are lots of techniques that can help conserve water. Fortunately my wife is onboard with this. The alternative means short stays in remote areas where we would really like to stay longer. It can also mean driving long distances just to fill the FW tank. Even with care my stays without water are limited to a week or so. I don't want that to turn into just 2 or 3 days.
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Vintage465
Prunedale CA.
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2oldman wrote:I carry lots of water because I eat on real dishes, take daily showers and I don't want my black tank clogging up.
That black tank clogging up thing......I've found that sometimes in our efforts to save water boondocking we starve the black tank for water it needs to do it's job. Now-a-days I use a plastic dish pan in the sink in the kitchen and pour some of that left over water in the black tank to mitigate that. All bueno now.
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StirCrazy
Kamloops, BC, Canada
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Joined: 07/16/2003
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I don't think I would ever recirculate my hot water back to the freshwater tank, but if you can do it, it might be an idea to circulate your shower hot water line to the inlet of the hot water heater. just have to add a check valve so it can't back flow to the water pump. that way you could tune it on for 30 or 40 seconds and it would preheat the line all the way to the shower valve, turn it off and start having your shower.
2014 F350 6.7 Platinum
2016 Cougar 330RBK
1991 Slumberqueen WS100
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2oldman
NM
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JimK-NY wrote:I don't know what you mean by lots of water. I am limited with a 30 gallon FW tank. 100 gallons on board, 75 on the truck.
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2oldman
NM
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Vintage465 wrote:That black tank clogging up thing......I've found that sometimes in our efforts to save water boondocking we starve the black tank for water it needs to do its job. Yeah, the potty is not where you want to conserve water.
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JimK-NY
NY
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It seems obvious that there will never be any sort of universal agreement or even understanding on this topic. There are just too many differences between the rigs we have, the type of camping we do and the access to water where we camp. Someone who has a big rig with a 100 gallons of water, or who takes short trips, or has ready access to water, is not going to understand camping in remote areas for many days with a small FW tank. I have seen plenty of people camping in van conversions or other small rigs and getting by for days with 10 gallons of water or less.
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