Daily Water Use for Boondocking in a 2013 Sightseer

[TomJeanWoz]

Hey friends, are there any statistics stating the average quantity of water required/used per day per person for a motor home? We're taking a long mountainous trip with some boondocking and need to watch our weight thus don't want to carry extra unneeded water.

 

[Morich]

I'm not sure I would want to trust that sort of info much as it varies so badly. New folks who have never learned to live/ bath out of a helmet do use lots more water! If you throw in a couple ladies who like to keep that nice long hair all shined up, the stats get iffy!
My move, when in doubt has been to adapt as we found it worked. We hauled a couple jugs of water as reserved, then when/if we ran low, we still had water needed for cooking but deferred on other uses like washing dishes and showers, until we got past the crisis stage!
The closer we got back to the "roughing it " where we were in tents, the more it made us like the RV!

 

[Eagle5]

If it were me, I would keep your fresh water tank full at each opportunity and not worry about that water's weight. I would guess that you two will use 40 gallons a day. Guessing that your Class A carries at least 74 gallons of fresh water, that is just a two day supply.
Eagle5

 

[Morich]

When in remote areas it just becomes a little more obvious that we need to adapt what we do to what effort we want to put into doing it some other way.
When in rough areas, that can mean there are water suppies to be found reasonably handy. If we can't get it out of hose, getting it out of the local creek or river can extend the supply a long time if we have given it some thought. A bucket to dip, a funnel to pour it in and bleach to make it safe are some small ways we can restock if we want to use more water. Figuring out how we each want to deal and making those adjustments can get us a long way but it does take some planning to not be sick when we get done!
It's too bad we have moved so far away from thinking how to get by with less. I see on the news how distraught the folks in the "new" Tornado Alley when they have no idea how to cope without electricity. They have no idea how many of their parents grew up without it!
Given a few more years and more weather changes moving storms North and East will give them incentive to figure it out!

 

[FIRE UP]

"If it were me, I would keep your fresh water tank full at each opportunity and not worry about that water's weight."

EXACTLY!!!!!!!!!!

The amount of weight the "extra" water (above what you MAY think that you CALCULATE correctly)weighs matters very little in terms of NEED when you need it. And there's a whole bunch of reasons you may need that full amount of water once you're at one or a series of remote destinations. If you're getting 7-10 mpg hauling a half tank of water, you'll probably drop to 9.99999999 mpg if you add the other half tank. But you'll surely thank yourself when you have that "extra" you thought you'd leave behind when you need an additional shower because you broke something or something failed and you got nice and dirty and sweaty repairing it. If needed, drop a gear and take the grades a tad slower if you think "Power" is the potential problem. You may also have something go wrong and you need to stick around in a spot for an extra few days while things get straightened out. Been there, done that more than I care to admit.
Scott

 

[RV_Lee]

If you are not drinking from the fresh tank (most do not) its not much use unless you are showering and doing dishes etc every day. I would still want 2/3 tank.

 

[AstroTom]

How much water is needed highly depends on the user. We boondocked in our class A with 100 gallon fresh water tank, and could go a week, 10 days max, if the two of us took short showers and used some other water saving measures. Now that we're in our Micro-Mini, which only carries only 30 gallons, we can still go about 5 days using several conservation tricks we learned in our big rig.

It's important to note, we both have short hair, and I've off grid camped both on a motorcycle, and a tiny trailer, with about a 5 gallon fresh water tank, using a solar shower, so I can get acceptably clean using very little water.

I found no difference in mileage with a full tank or a half tank. While weight takes horsepower, it's pushing or pulling a cube through the air at highway speeds that uses the most fuel.

Here's a couple tricks we use to extend our water when boondocking:

We keep a small bucket in the shower to catch the water as it warms up. That water is used for other things - washing dishes (heat it in a pot) washing faces, etc, and flushing the toilet.

Paper plates and even plastic utensils.
One skillet meals, or pre-prepared meals that can be microwaved or heated in a skillet or pot to minimize dishes or cooking utensils that need to be washed.
In a pinch, I can "shower" using a ladle/pot/cup and the water from the shower bucket left over from my wife's shower, even if it's cold water.

Best way to find out how much water you'll need is experience. You can even experiment in your driveway, or a campground with hook-ups. Even though we started off boondocking and trying to conserve, we got better over time, which prepared us better for boondocking in our Micro Mini trailer. We've stayed in campgrounds with power, but no water or sewer, and I'll use the campground restroom/pit-toilet to save a few gallons over time.

 

[creativepart]

How long is a piece of rope??

 

[TomJeanWoz]

If it were me, I would keep your fresh water tank full at each opportunity and not worry about that water's weight. I would guess that you two will use 40 gallons a day. Guessing that your Class A carries at least 74 gallons of fresh water, that is just a two day supply.
Eagle5

Thanks for your reply. Based on our usage, 20 gal./person-day is excessive as we are generally very conservative.

 

[TomJeanWoz]

"If it were me, I would keep your fresh water tank full at each opportunity and not worry about that water's weight."

EXACTLY!!!!!!!!!!

The amount of weight the "extra" water (above what you MAY think that you CALCULATE correctly)weighs matters very little in terms of NEED when you need it. And there's a whole bunch of reasons you may need that full amount of water once you're at one or a series of remote destinations. If you're getting 7-10 mpg hauling a half tank of water, you'll probably drop to 9.99999999 mpg if you add the other half tank. But you'll surely thank yourself when you have that "extra" you thought you'd leave behind when you need an additional shower because you broke something or something failed and you got nice and dirty and sweaty repairing it. If needed, drop a gear and take the grades a tad slower if you think "Power" is the potential problem. You may also have something go wrong and you need to stick around in a spot for an extra few days while things get straightened out. Been there, done that more than I care to admit.
Scott

Thanks for your reply. Lots to think about and consider

 

[wyocamper-WO]

The capacity of your grey water tank and your ability to empty it is more of a limiting factor than weight when it comes to how much fresh water you carry.

 

[TomJeanWoz]

The capacity of your grey water tank and your ability to empty it is more of a limiting factor than weight when it comes to how much fresh water you carry.

Absolutely something to keep in mind. Thanks for sharing this thought

 

[dickb46]

Also, don't skimp on water into the black water tank. Taking a shower is optional, flushing the toilet isn't.

 

[klook]

I have told many people this as a mobile tech, but I do not follow that advice myself. With enough experience you can clear any problems and with a tank flush system you can be extra diligent when you get to a dump station. As in use a lot of soap, your choice, cheap dollar store detergent works fine, and I use Borax and fabric softener as well. I have cases of Unique, and use it if I know I am going to be getting fairly full before dumping. My Class C also has a tank that has higher pressure then the flat crap tanks they put in the TT's and 5th wheels. You better hold the end of the hose down when you open the valve. Never leave the tank dry and put something in immediately. If I am moving I like a little liquid to slosh around.

 

[klook]

As to the amount of water, I would put all I could in if I didn't know how much I would use. And we have also seriously reduced our usage by the methods posted here.