Questions re water to and from m/h (1 Viewer)

Daisy21

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Apologies now for questions that are probably covered several times over elsewhere but.....

Re filling fresh water tank with water. Been using cheap garden (never used for the garden) hose from Argos. This never caused me a problem in my old van but when my darling little person came along I stopped using the fresh water from the van for anything other than washing up, as van v. old and not sure what condition the external water tank was in. So used the cheap 17p per litre table water from Sainsburys for drinking and then refilled empty bottles on site for cooking. Now changed van and have water tank inside. Looks lovely and clean so wouldn't be averse to using for cooking/drinking. However, since joining this site I've discovered reference to food grade hoses. What is this about? Do the normal garden hoses release chemicals into the water? Should I be changing mine? Also, how do I keep the hose clean....I always run the water a little before filling and replaced it last year? Are flat hoses better in that respect? Not too worried for me (hasn't killed me in the last 4 years) but my little person is only 2 so like to be a bit more careful on her behalf!

Then I have the waste water issue. Last van was a small panel van conversion with just cold water to sink. So never used that much water. 25l waste water tank could go a couple of days without emptying, rarely stayed on a site without a m/h service point and generally drove off the site at some point in the day so no trouble visiting the drainage point. Now in coachbuilt m/h I can see us not moving it off sites quite so often. Seems a shame to have to move off a pitch just to empty the water, and I can see us using more water with toilet flush, shower etc. Also, don't really want to be restricted to sites with a service point. Water outlet is really easy to access at side of van. Has a metal screw thread at end of pipe and you just pull the handle round to open, so looks like it should be possible to attach a hose, but larger diameter than normal garden hose? Thought we could then invest in the Fiamma m/h waste water 23l rollalong container as takes forever using a bucket....have to tilt bucket to fit under so can only empty 1/2 bucket at a time! Only had 1 weekend away so far and stayed on serviced pitch whilst I worked out how everything works, so no hardship tipping bucket straight into drain...but don't fancy a long walk backwards and forwards umpteen times. Is the Fiamma product ok? (liked compact size as will have to travel in the bathroom when on the move). Any suggestions re attaching hose? Are these items I'm likely to be able to pick up at the Shepton Mallet show next weekend?

Sorry for the long babble....too tired to write more succinctly :RollEyes:

Thank you
Daisy2
 

JayDee

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Apparently garden hose is made from a product that does contain harmful chemicals. Lots of people don't bother but we always use food grade hose. Lay flat is good but some of them are not too clever and spring leaks along the folded edges. Having said that we've had one for about 7 years and it sprung its first leak about 4 inches from the end earlier this year, so well pleased with that. Another one we had leaked before the year was out, but Waudby's gave us our money back with no quibble.

It is recommended that you clean the tank each start of season with a mild mixture of something - lots of people use Milton (but apparently Sodium Metabisulphate, or is it -ite, is not good for the motorhome heating system), run it through the whole system, leave it to stand for several hours, drain it all down and then flush the whole system through with lots of fresh water.
We carry a smallish water carrier that we fill at the drinking water tap for drinking and tea / coffee making (though that is partly due to it being a pain filling the kettle under the kitchen tap) and just use the tank water for washing, showering, washing-up and cooking.

Some people have an in line filter, others have fitted Nature Pure (and swear by it). Really it's down to your choice.


John

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chrisgreen

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Apparently garden hose is made from a product that does contain harmful chemicals. Lots of people don't bother but we always use food grade hose. Lay flat is good but some of them are not too clever and spring leaks along the folded edges. Having said that we've had one for about 7 years and it sprung its first leak about 4 inches from the end earlier this year, so well pleased with that. Another one we had leaked before the year was out, but Waudby's gave us our money back with no quibble.

It is recommended that you clean the tank each start of season with a mild mixture of something - lots of people use Milton (but apparently Sodium Metabisulphate, or is it -ite, is not good for the motorhome heating system), run it through the whole system, leave it to stand for several hours, drain it all down and then flush the whole system through with lots of fresh water.
We carry a smallish water carrier that we fill at the drinking water tap for drinking and tea / coffee making (though that is partly due to it being a pain filling the kettle under the kitchen tap) and just use the tank water for washing, showering, washing-up and cooking.

Some people have an in line filter, others have fitted Nature Pure (and swear by it). Really it's down to your choice.


John
i was talking to someone on a rally,and they bought a flat hose for filling the van,and when they connected it to the tap and turned it on water came out of about a 1000 holes:Eeek:
they had bought a sprinkler type one for watering the garden:Eeek:
should'nt laugh but:ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO:
 
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lorger

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Hi we use the blue food hose but i also have a 25l container if spicket is to far away, still buy bottled water for drinking the tank water has never done me any harm but can stick botle in fridge so nice and cool.

As for the waste i have one of the 5l fold away water carriers so i can just empty 5l at a time and carry it over to service point i find i only need to do this once a day so not a hassle and when not being used it folds away nice and small saves carring a bucket.
 
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GeraldandAnnie

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Hi Daisy

We're on our fifth year with our blue, food-grade, roll-flat hose. I like it because of it's two key properties - it's food grade, and rolls flat :roflmto:

I've cut it into two pieces - about a quarter / three-quarters, so we can use the short one when we're close to the tap, and the longer one, or even the two together (with a Hozelock-type joining thing) if we're further away.

I use sterilising tablets once a year in the tank, with a flush through. In the summer, I don't leave water in the tank when we're at home.

For emptying grey water, we have what we call our "Italian Bucket" (it's a bucket we bought in ... Germany :ROFLMAO: ) But it's shorter than most 'normal' British buckets, but wide too. We tend not to stay on sites for days and days, but if we do, I will make around 4 trips to the emptying point to give us at least a days-worth of grey water capacity.

In our new van, we have considerably more storage space than in the previous one, so maybe I could be persuaded to invest in one of these fancy Fiamma things.

Gerald

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Touchwood

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For emptying grey water we have a black "jerry can" type container with a second screw on lid on the side so that it will slide under the van - I thought these were the usual method? Much better than a bucket, though not as good as a wheeled container like the Fiama.
 
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Daisy21

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Thanks for all the replies. Looks like I'd better take the credit card along to the show for new hose and some sort of bucket/container ::bigsmile: Will watch out for sprinkler hose too.....daft sort of thing I'd do! :Doh:

Daisy2

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EthnGeoff

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Cannot explain the answer to your question, but may be able to explain why we choose to join Motorhome Fun.
This was an answer to the same question posted on MH Facts:

"My understanding of this is that the plasticisers used in food grade and non-food grade hose differ. Those in non-food grade hose can be phthalates. There is no requirement to label the hose as containing them but blue, food grade hoses do not contain them.

Phthalates are found in the environment anyway, having migrated from the plastics around us. They are generally considered to be harmful in large doses and are cumulative in the body. They are implicated in changes in the endocrine system, birth defects and so on in humans.

I think that the problem is not that you will receive a large dose of migrated phthalates each time you use the hose but, over a period of time, added to the ones you are breathing in anyway from the environment, you might be exposed to higher doses of them than are desirable for a normal life and, if you are of reproductive age, this might affect the outcome.

I guess an analogy might be cigarettes. One will not kill you but many, over the years , will certainly affect your quality of life."

:whatthe::whatthe::whatthe::Eeek::Eeek::Eeek::Confused::Confused::Confused:

So now you know!:ROFLMAO:
 
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