How long will water stay fresh?

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IowaNomads

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This is a newbie question I know but haven't found anything in the search. I was wondering how long the water in the fresh tank stays usable for consumption.
 
I don't consume on board water, I do use it for washing and cleaning purposes, but I will not drink it.
 
  Probably too many variables to give a definitive answer. How clean (sanatized) is the RV system, original purity of the water, etc.  When boondocking we have (though seldom) pulled water from a stream ( must feel pretty confident of source), through a filter, into a 55 gal. drum, with chlorine added. Allowed water to stay in the drum for about 24 to 48 hours prior to transferring to the RV.

  There are some extremely effective water treatment systems available, which would guarantee the potability of the water. You could... run the water from your RV through such a system prior to consumption. The good, high volume systems are "pretty pricey though!  Look on some survivalist forums, to see what is available.
 
I spent $300 and bought an RO system for my RV so I never consume water from the tap or the tank. System was $200, installation was $100.


https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B003XELTTG/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
 
Too many variables to be definitive, but anywhere from a several days to a few months. Chlorinated water lasts quite well, many months if in a closed container, but the RV system is not closed/sealed. We routinely used water from the same tank all summer, filling from a chlorinated (city water) source and occasionally draining some off and replacing if we were not otherwise using the water from the tank. We sanitize the system once a year. If I'm not sure the "city" water source is reliable, I add a few drops of chlorine to the tank to make sure.

Some will be aghast at this, others never drink that tank water anyway, and the rest of it use just like water from the tap at home. Your mileage may vary...
 
Even though I sanitize my fresh water tank regularly, I also aced Biology in University. Now I am not saying that every tank out there is contaminated, and I don't believe mine is contaminated it is in fact more than likely as clean as the water I put in it, but I am not going to drink it. Too many variables to risk illness or worse for a glass of water.
 
One of the important factors here is the individual experience with drinking "contaminated' water. If you do so regularly, you have antibodies that cope quite nicely, but if you stick mostly to bottled water you are going to be susceptible to most any microbe in the water.  And there are always some...

Another major factor is the presence of giardia, which is much more common in the western US than eastern.
 
    Gary, a good point as is usual. And, with my limited knowledge, it's my understanding that chlorine/Clorox has minimal or no effect on giardia.
 
Memtb said:
    Gary, a good point as is usual. And, with my limited knowledge, it's my understanding that chlorine/Clorox has minimal or no effect on giardia.

One cup of chlorine bleach in a gallon of water is an effective disinfectant for Giardia cysts. ... Be sure to let the bleach sit for a few minutes to completely kill the Giardia cysts. See www.bestfriendsvet.com/library/parasites/giardia/

R
 
It's just my personal experience (nothing scientific) but our family has drank water from the fresh water tanks of our cab-over camper and three Class As, for more than 25 years with no ill affects whatsoever. I've used both green and white garden hoses to fill the tanks (mostly green) and used the water right out of the tap. Water has sat in our tanks for as little as a few days to, in one case, nearly six months, with no problems at all.

The only times I ever felt the need to purify the water systems was when we first took delivery of our RVs, but I don't think it would be a bad idea to purify fresh water systems annually. In storage, water keeps longer when it's treated and kept in the dark (Like many RV tanks.)

Kev
 
I echo Kevin's take....
I did research it once though.  Found a few references, one particular was something form the CDC regarding chlorine levels necessary for safe water storage in a fridge (as in like a pitcher).  I was surprised to learn that the level found in city water out of the tap were not high enough for storage very long.  I tested my water using my pool kit and it wasn't enough based on that reference.
I wish I could find that....
Anyway, I do a cursory sanitize roughly every year or so...nothing too careful or scientific... and I store it with water full (mostly for emergency prep)
if it's been sitting maybe 6 weeks or more...I'm not strict about it...and IF time permits I'll usually drain it and refill fresh before a trip...but that's mostly just for taste.  Family mostly drinks bottled on trips, but I use it to drink when brushing teeth or making coffee.  No problems yet...knock on wood....
 
blw2 said:
I echo Kevin's take....

X3. In fact, in my first several RVs the most I ever did was drain and refill. Always drank the water, never had a problem. Now, I drain and refill prior to a trip if the rig's been sitting for more than a month. If it's been a couple months (which fortunately doesn't happen too often,) I treat, drain and refill. Sitting in the AZ sun I figure warm water is slightly more at risk.

Our rig has a carbon filtered drinking water tap at the kitchen sink, and primarily that where we get the drinking water.
 
John Beard said:
I don't consume on board water, I do use it for washing and cleaning purposes, but I will not drink it.

And I am exactly the other way around.. I filter all the water on board through Activated Charcoal and cold drinking water through a PUR filter.. (used to use a Brita but it broke).

Never had a problem, I go thorought 80 gallons fast enough it never goes stale.

 
same here use a britta for coffee,  and usally bottled water to drink, have drank from from the filtered water with no bad effects, when back home I complety drain water system incul water heater if rv going to set more than 3 or fore weeks.  if I don't the hot water smells real bad might be ok but the smell is terrible. we are on city water at home.  dabrown
 
To think, the other day, I drink out of my black garden hose. And from time to time, if walking in the woods and I come across a brook, I'll drink from that too. I can see I'm short lived. My days are probably numbered.
 
So, my plumber friend was over yesterday and we did a water test of both my tap water and the tap water from the coach (water in tank less than 24 hours). It was as I thought, both are safe to drink; however, our water, which comes from a well is hard, hard, hard. I haven't in many, many years drank tap water from home either.

I use an R.O. System in the S&B, and I don't need to drink out of the tank in the MH. I have other sources to drink and stay hydrated that do not give me pause.

I had a friend some years ago that ate raw meat and drank out of Lake Mead regularly. He boasted of drinking stream water, and never taking "extra" water with him. He's dead now, I don't know if there was a correlation between his eating & drinking habits and his early death, but...

 
He's dead now, I don't know if there was a correlation between his eating & drinking habits and his early death, but...

LOL. All our friends have died, or will die, sooner or later.  Some people drink white lightning, smoke cigars every day and live to 100+. Others die as infants for inexplicable reasons. The fact that somebody died isn't evidence of anything.
 
    Gary mentioned something in an earlier post, that made me remember something that pertains to everything health wise and not just drinking water. Several years ago I heard a report from a doctor ( of course that doesn't guarantee it's validity), That if the average American were suddenly placed into a third world situation, that (I've forgotten the approximate %) a very high percentage would die from disease. The reason is because of our extremely high use of antibiotics has destroyed our natural immunities we as humans developed over our existence.
 
Memtb said:
    Gary mentioned something in an earlier post, that made me remember something that pertains to everything health wise and not just drinking water. Several years ago I heard a report from a doctor ( of course that doesn't guarantee it's validity), That if the average American were suddenly placed into a third world situation, that (I've forgotten the approximate %) a very high percentage would die from disease. The reason is because of our extremely high use of antibiotics has destroyed our natural immunities we as humans developed over our existence.

I'm no doctor, but that doesn't smell right.
antibiotic use leads to stronger antibiotic resistant bacteria...but I don't figure it harms the immune system.  Not directly anyway.

Rather, I'd guess what was meant is that since we live in relatively clean environments, have access to soap, have cleaned a lot of nasties such as polio and many other things out of our environment, that our immune systems have not built antibodies for a lot of the junk that is still common elsewhere in the world....so we might get attacked by multiple different nastiest at the same time that our bodies can't easily fight
 
We sanitize the tank yearly but still don't drink the water.  Brush my teeth and wash my face with water from the tank and so far no problems.  But if there is ever an emergency (Earthquake or whatever) and a consequential water shortage, those 50+ gallons in the tank are going to be used.  We'll probably boil the water but, if that isn't possible, my thinking is pretty clear, we'll live longer with contaminated water than not having any. 
 
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