Watertank leave the lid off.

[RobbyMClark]

If using your MH every few weeks for short stays is it best to leave the lid off the watertank when not in use and drained down or keep the lid on?
I want to avoid any buildup of bugs and nasties in the system and wondered if leaving cap off will let it dry out.
Tank is under a seat inside.

 

[StitchesnFluff]

I let ours dry out without the lid over long periods but not usually during our busier use times

 

[funflair]

I am assuming your tank is in the dark so I would keep it that way, I never leave the lid off, and never would, I only empty it when there is a chance it might freeze otherwise there are enough chemicals in the water to keep it clear IMO.

Martin

 

[PeteH]

I have never taken the tank cover off during storage. Only to check the state of the tank for cleanliness from time to time. I use mine for drinking too, Never had gastro bug that could be put down to water contamination. UK water generally had more that sufficient Chlorine treatment to survive storge for several weeks. Just drain down if you not going to use it for a week or too and fill with fresh when needed. If you are not a fan of Chlorine fit an in-line filter to take it out.

 

[DuxDeluxe]

I have never taken the tank cover off during storage. Only to check the state of the tank for cleanliness from time to time. I use mine for drinking too, Never had gastro bug that could be put down to water contamination. UK water generally had more that sufficient Chlorine treatment to survive storge for several weeks. Just drain down if you not going to use it for a week or too and fill with fresh when needed. If you are not a fan of Chlorine fit an in-line filter to take it out.

just to add to the above, I regularly give a small dose and flush of Puriclean and also leave the tank empty when not in use for more than a week

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[MR BLO]

Hello. Only my opinion but I never drain my tank unless there is a chance of prolonged frost/ cold weather (I do leave van on shore power in the colder months). The opposite in fact- always full so we can just go at drop of a hat. Keeping the tank full reduces the amount of air which in turn reduces the amount of condensation and micro-climate and potential for bugs to build up. When I do drain down I simply give the tank a quick once over inside. Keep my water treated with Aqua-Sol. I tend to slightly overdose the tank so always carry a couple of 5l bottles for drinking water, but treated tank water is perfectly fine in tea or coffee. One thing that I always do is when going on a trip after the van has been sat on the drive for a couple of weeks is to flush the hot and cold taps through by filling the kettle a couple of times. Otherwise the first cuppa can have a bitter taint to it.
Did this for years on a boat and not dead yet with bonus of only have to clean my tank once a year.

 

[Jim]

Water tanks have a lid?

 

[PeteH]

Water tanks have a lid?

OK, we know yours is a Yank! What you want, Bragging Rights!

Seriously, my old Pace Arrow DID have a Cover? (84 model, self import) Bloody thing had about 50 bloody screws!. You only ever took that off once!. In fact I did wonder if a previous (US) owner had cut into the top and then Made the cover?.

 

[Garfields]

The chemicals in tap water that keep the bugs at bay disperses over two or three days.
No protection against nasties after that.
Not going to join the leaving water in the tank debate again
Lifes to short for that even in lock down

 

[Podney]

Hello. Only my opinion but I never drain my tank unless there is a chance of prolonged frost/ cold weather (I do leave van on shore power in the colder months). The opposite in fact- always full so we can just go at drop of a hat. Keeping the tank full reduces the amount of air which in turn reduces the amount of condensation and micro-climate and potential for bugs to build up. When I do drain down I simply give the tank a quick once over inside. Keep my water treated with Aqua-Sol. I tend to slightly overdose the tank so always carry a couple of 5l bottles for drinking water, but treated tank water is perfectly fine in tea or coffee. One thing that I always do is when going on a trip after the van has been sat on the drive for a couple of weeks is to flush the hot and cold taps through by filling the kettle a couple of times. Otherwise the first cuppa can have a bitter taint to it.
Did this for years on a boat and not dead yet with bonus of only have to clean my tank once a year.

I do exactly as. MR BLO does..........so he must be right!.
We don’t have a water filter,just take a 5l container of water from home,and top it up as we go for drinking. Most of our water has hops and barley mixed in with it.......can’t imagine why

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[SuperMike]

Like Lord Jim we have no lid. If it’s full, why would I dump 85gal on the floor, we are on a water meter.

 

[Gaston aires]

I only flush the tank ready for winter. Never leave the top off, never had a problem.
We only use tank water for drinking when it’s boiled, like in tea, coffee. Drinking water, we use old milk 4 pinters.
Phil

 

[PeteH]

The chemicals in tap water that keep the bugs at bay disperses over two or three days.
No protection against nasties after that.
Not going to join the leaving water in the tank debate again
Lifes to short for that even in lock down

Hi. at one time I was into Home Brew. The perceived wisdom was that Chlorine will disperse naturally if left to stand for at least 24+hrs. (Sufficient not to affect the brew, or can be boiled off). Chloramine, however can only (really) be got rid by a charcoal filtering system. So it is dependant upon what your local water authority system is using?. My experience over some 20+years now is as post #4. We also used Camden Tablets to remove it. (but is extremely "pungent").

 

[Graham of Madrid]

I don't know if this is valid but I prefer to leave water in the system to keep any seals from drying out which can prevent future leaks.

 

[F.M.C.Fourier]

I read the banter above about lids, but, to be serious, do some fresh water tanks have lids? Can someone explain please (genuine request)? I've had four motorhomes and none of them had lids (or if they did I never discovered them). These were all European, coach-built vans; not US outfits like Jim's.

For the record I only drain my fresh water system in the winter; then, before my first trip in the new year, I use some "Puriclean" to clean it through. I don't use the water from the fresh water tank for drinking, not even for tea or coffee. I carry a 5l water bottle that I fill from the on site tap for that.

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[XxAnthxX]

Lots of images on Google would suggest most have a lid or cap of some description.

 

[F.M.C.Fourier]

Lots of images on Google would suggest most have a lid or cap of some description.

OK I see that now, yes, and I suppose it should have been obvious that most tanks will have a cap on top (though I would not have described these as "lids", but that is being pedantic perhaps). But the real point was that the inference from the OP is that some vans have lids (or caps) on their water tank that they can access and hence leave open (or off). I have not been able to do that on any van that I have owned. The water tanks were not accessible as far as I know. I assume now then that, in some vans, perhaps where the tank is below a seat, you can access the cap that one can see on the top of most of tanks in the pictures you have shown and that is what the OP was referring to.

Apologies for making a meal of this but I was genuinely confused, not just by the OP, but by some of the subsequent comments.

 

[Minxy]

A lot have lids but due to their location in inaccessible places they never get taken off. We've rarely taken them off ours unless we have to sort something out, like an in-tank water pump issue - one thing do though is make sure they are tight!

When we had our first Globecar we got a 'flood' and found out it was because we'd used a Heosafe hose connector thingy to fill the tank which when full didn't allow sufficient back-flow and thus pushed the excess water out through the side of one of the caps (no overflow on the tank itself). I mopped it up and it all dried out well so no lasting damage but it had obviously been loose from new as we hadn't touched it previously.

I wouldn't bother taking it off unless you really need to be inside it for some reason.

 

[Lenny HB]

All tanks have a breather/overflow so no need to leave the cap off.
We always drain the tank after every trip.

I am assuming your tank is in the dark so I would keep it that way, I never leave the lid off, and never would, I only empty it when there is a chance it might freeze otherwise there are enough chemicals in the water to keep it clear IMO.

Martin

Chlorine disperses after a few days if leaving more than 5 days always best to drain the tank.

 

[funflair]

All tanks have a breather/overflow so no need to leave the cap off.
We always drain the tank after every trip.

Chlorine disperses after a few days if leaving more than 5 days always best to drain the tank.

Well not done that in 8 years so I guess I won't start now so you won't want a cup of tea then?

Martin

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[Lenny HB]

Well not done that in 8 years so I guess I won't start now so you won't want a cup of tea then?

Martin

No thank you.
So pleased you didn't offer us one when we met.

 

[PeteH]

Just as an Example, we where out to-day for a few Hours. We stopped and obtained fish and chips sat in the van to eat them and I drank water from the tank, and made tea from it, it has been in the Tank since the 20th May by my estimate, taste was a touch "brackish". So If I have the "trotts" to-morrow I`ll post?.