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Old 08-20-2020, 07:03 AM   #1
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Boondocking with view adding a tank

Will I am new to boondocking I have a view and I guess we don't know how to conserve very well but what I come up against is not enough holding capacity for grey water. I read that one way to increase was to equalize black and grey but I not a fan of that concept. So I was kicking around removing the spare tire that I will never use and replace it with another holding tank. I seen a company that sells this. 🔍
21-Gallon Mercedes Sprinter Spare Tire Basket Water Tank. Looking for opinions on this concept. Keep in mind I know I said never use, never said I wouldn't need it. But at my age I will call a mobile tire repair which I have already done even in front of my house.
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Old 08-20-2020, 09:14 AM   #2
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The fresh water will run out before the gray or blank tanks need to be dumped.

On the Views, the fresh water tank is smaller than the gray and black tanks, so with a full fresh water tank and empty gray/black tanks - you can't fill up either the gray or the black tanks - until you've refilled the fresh water tank at least once.

On our first few trips with our 21VD, it took us some time to become more efficient in our use of fresh water - particularly for washing dishes and taking showers.

And while that's helped, we probably need to refill the fresh water tank about every 3 days - and dump the gray/black tanks every 5-6 days.
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Old 08-20-2020, 10:47 AM   #3
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There are some YouTube videos on the efficient use of water and tanks when boondocking.

Here's one:
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Old 08-20-2020, 10:59 AM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rprochnow View Post
The fresh water will run out before the gray or blank tanks need to be dumped.

On the Views, the fresh water tank is smaller than the gray and black tanks, so with a full fresh water tank and empty gray/black tanks - you can't fill up either the gray or the black tanks - until you've refilled the fresh water tank at least once.

On our first few trips with our 21VD, it took us some time to become more efficient in our use of fresh water - particularly for washing dishes and taking showers.

And while that's helped, we probably need to refill the fresh water tank about every 3 days - and dump the gray/black tanks every 5-6 days.
That has been my experience as well. Most RVs fit that criteria: fresh water goes first, then grey, then black.

David
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Old 08-20-2020, 11:11 AM   #5
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Do wish the Views came with better tank sensors.

Especially for first-timers, having the fresh water tank quickly drop from F to 2/3 can be confusing, even though when it's reading 2/3, the tank could still be nearly full!
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Old 08-20-2020, 11:26 AM   #6
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Originally Posted by rprochnow View Post
Do wish the Views came with better tank sensors.
There are better sensors out there and some RVers have had them installed or did a DIY install. These show tank levels in Percentages, not 1/3rds.

Look for See Level II Tank Monitors. There are install videos on YouTube for these.
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Old 08-26-2020, 05:26 PM   #7
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I carry two 6 gallon water jugs when we're going to boondock where there is no fresh water available - put them in the toad. I do need to come up with a pump setup to transfer the water into the RV instead of lifting the jugs - has anyone else noticed that gravity is getting stronger? My Navion has a 30 gallon fresh water tank and 36 gallons of capacity in each holding tank so we're good for at least two fresh water fills before we need to dump. I think this is preferable to the opposite situation - one of my old truck campers had a 30 gallon water tank and only 8 gallon capacity black and grey tanks - that one was a management challenge, aggravated by the total lack of tank gauges - just had to "play it by ear".
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Old 08-26-2020, 06:24 PM   #8
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Showers

The biggest waste of water is showers. We bought a Britta pitcher and catch the water from the shower till it’s warm enough to step in, then adjust further as we wet ourselves. The rest is navy shower to save more, and the pitcher if water makes morning coffee!

When doing dishes I don’t fill the sink, but merely wet a sponge with whatever temp comes out of the faucet, and wash the dishes, then rinse.

We had only a 40 gal fresh water tank and we’ve gone two weeks without needing water or to dump, and we do t short ourselves on taking showers as wanted.
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Old 08-26-2020, 07:03 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jayelldouble View Post
I carry two 6 gallon water jugs when we're going to boondock where there is no fresh water available - put them in the toad. I do need to come up with a pump setup to transfer the water into the RV instead of lifting the jugs - has anyone else noticed that gravity is getting stronger?
I used to carry two of those 6 gal jugs and shelp them to the RV every day. But I found a 45 gal water bladder online (Camping World actually). I used to put it on the roof of my Expedition, fill it up and the campground water spigot and then park next to the RV and run a hose from the bladder to my gravity water feed.

It works GREAT! But then I bought a smaller SUV for my toad and so now I put the bladder in the "truck" of the SUV. I found a small 12v RV water pump on sale for $35 and rigged it up on a board with a 12v cord. The SUV has a 12v receptacle in the back and I plug in the pump and pump it into my RV.

This works even better.

Here's a link to the bladder:
https://www.campingworld.com/portabl...llon-1605.html
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Old 08-26-2020, 08:07 PM   #10
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balance tanks

When I first turn on the shower, I point the shower head into the toilet and run water till the hot water comes through. By doing this, the two tanks are both full at the same time. Water saving tips: buy an oxygenic shower head and add a shut off valve from amazon to be placed before the shower head so that the water does not keep dripping from the shower head. Also on amazon are water reduction inserts for your faucets. The one I bought had three different flow rates. It took my factory kitchen and bath faucet head off and replaced them. The factory insert could fill a quart in 15 seconds, the reduction head took 45 seconds and yet seemed to spray more water. No matter what you do, you can go six to seven days (with a water refill at 3 days) before you have to dump. Besides, who wants to set in the same site for seven days without exploring the area around you? I take the wife to dinner every 3 days and fill or dump then. Give her a break from cooking, it is worth it. Happy wife, happy life.
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Old 08-26-2020, 08:13 PM   #11
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The View typically only has around 1,150 lbs capacity which after adding fuel, clothes, food, water, stuff and you doesn't really leave much reserve for carrying an extra water tank.

2 adults can add up to anywhere from 300 to 500 lbs potentially leaving you with only 650 lbs capacity for fuel, water, food and stuff.

Diesel weighs around 7.1 lbs so the 24.5 gallons of diesel weighs 173.95 lbs.
Water weighs around 8.3 lbs per gallon so the 31 gallons of water weighs 257.3 lbs.

So 431.25 lbs of fuel and water from the remaining 650 lbs capacity leaves you with only 218.75 lbs for food, clothing, tools, etc if you have the middle size 31 gallon water tank and not the 24J with the 37 gallon tank which weighs 307.1 lbs and leaves you with only 168.95 lbs of remaining capacity.

To add all the conveniences into such small motor homes many times the chassis is already loaded to near capacity with just fuel, water and people leaving you little capacity to carry more stuff.
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Old 08-26-2020, 08:23 PM   #12
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Harbor Freight Tools has several hitch mounted cargo carriers that can be mounted on the toad hitch that are suitable for carrying 4 or 5 5 gallon jugs,

HTF also has a small 12 volt water pump,with clip leads that can be powered from the toad battery.

Don't forget that your canopy can be used as a rain/dew collector, similar to sailboat water collection systems.
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Old 08-26-2020, 09:17 PM   #13
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We got better fresh water supply longevity in our Class C by installing inexpensive adjustable screw-on water restrictors onto each faucet in the coach. I turned them to their lowest setting of 0.5 gallons per minute flow rate.

We didn't notice any negatives in use of the faucets, but that really did "increase the size" of our fresh water tank!

Of course Navy Showers is always what you have to do when drycamping. Also, in our particular motorhome I can visually check the level in the fresh water tank so I don't have to rely solely on the gauge.
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Old 08-26-2020, 10:04 PM   #14
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I wouldn’t sacrifice the spare. Lots of good ideas above on bringing more drinking water in jugs (keep in mind your 1090 pound weight limit for food, water, people, clothes, etc).
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Old 08-27-2020, 05:40 AM   #15
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Good ideas for water conservation. However I would never, never travel without a spare. I don’t do a tire change myself either, but I certainly have a spare for them to change. I won’t describe my experiences (just don’t want to do all the typing), but if I didn’t have a spare it would have been a PIA and many wasted days.
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Old 08-27-2020, 06:06 AM   #16
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I here you about spare but if you have different rims than stock the spare is not going help anyway. a Mobil tire service can change out a tire or make a repair on the spot. When call a mobile tire service you just tell them to bring the size tire you need before they come out. I think if we are talking boon docking we should be able to handle a night or two if we have to wait. Just an FYI I do usually have a toad with us.
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Old 08-27-2020, 06:11 AM   #17
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I like the bladder Idea thanks I can put that in my toad for sure.
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Old 08-27-2020, 06:20 AM   #18
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I see your point. But why would you have a spare you could not use. And all my previous incidents happened on the road, where you could be barely off on a major highway. Not a great place to boondock. And you can’t be sure there will be a tire available without having to be ordered. Also, who knows where you will when it happens, we travel all over the place.
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Old 08-27-2020, 11:42 AM   #19
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Composting toilet? No thanks, disgusting. In addition, the tp has to be dealt with separately. Showering every 3rd day? Same thing. You can just use a 3rd valve and equalize tanks...that should buy you at least a couple of days.
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Old 08-27-2020, 02:24 PM   #20
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there were a few thing I did NOT see mentioned...
I also carry two 5 gal jugs of fresh water. have used them about day 4ish. for me, conservation is helpful to a point, and then the benefits of glamping in the middle of nature become lost, and I may as well resort to my backpack and tent HaHa. have you considered an external black/grey water tank. they come in many, many sizes, and can extend your boondocking stay. if you use biodegradable soaps, grey water can be released, abiding by common sense rules of being a certain distance from any type of lake or river. in the wilderness, my wife always gets to use the toilet, and I use nature, except between 10p and 6a LOL! that extends black water tank as well. happy boon
docking!
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