Please post your ideas for saving water!

[Mex-Busnut]

Dear Friends,

Here are mine:

1. From our past experience of five years full time in a fifth-wheel, we learned that when we bathe, we first wet down, turn off the water, then soap and shampoo to our heart's content, and turn on again for a rinse off. Nothing wastes water more than having it running while you soap up. By the way, you also save your house batteries' power, if you are running the pump off them.

2. I am thinking of using gray water for toilet flushing. A friend gave me an extra water pump, which I plan to use for that purpose. Maybe put in a screen at the inlet for a filter. How does that idea sound?

Any input is appreciated!

[TomC]

Sounds good on paper, but gray water contains oils and dirt from the skin, soapy residue which does smell. Gray water will take on a lovely smell which can be pungent, but controlled with a bit of bleach.  Much of the same thing happens with boats that uses sea water for flushing-the micro organisms in sea water, once it has dried, die and create a lovely smell.  So most boats have gone with fresh water flushing-as I suggest you stay with also.  Good Luck, TomC

[gcyeaw]

  My only issue with grey water flush is the grey tank can get pretty ripe smelling as well. Although you still need to vent the bathroom after certain types of use anyway, so it seems like a good idea.

 You will have to come up with a way to flush when the grey tank is empty. I would be concerned about having the fresh and grey connected to a single output for the toilet. Even with one way valves you do break the plumbing code and a failure or even minor sepage allowing grey water to enter the fresh water system could present a health risk.

[Oonrahnjay]

Sounds good on paper, but gray water contains oils and dirt from the skin, soapy residue which does smell. Gray water will take on a lovely smell which can be pungent, but controlled with a bit of bleach.  Much of the same thing happens with boats that uses sea water for flushing-the micro organisms in sea water, once it has dried, die and create a lovely smell.  So most boats have gone with fresh water flushing-as I suggest you stay with also.  Good Luck, TomC  

    Yes, and the function of flushing water is to rinse away "stuff that you want to rinse away".  Besides the issues that Tom noted, the contaminants in grey water are sticky and they leave a film on a toilet that actually sticks the" stuff that you want to rinse away" to the toilet and pipes.  I'm sure that people have done it and got away with it but it's going to take a lot of work and brush cleaning to keep things working right.  If you're truly desperate, maybe, but not a good way to go IMO.

[gcyeaw]

  When we know we will be away from a water supply and dump facilities for an extended time we convert to paper plates and cups. This can also be effective if a campground water supply has an odor, which is not that uncommon, and you don't want to refill there. We always try to leave with full water and empty holding tanks. That way we are prepared for whatever happens, including a breakdown.

  We also carry 6 or 7 gallons of water in plastic bottles for drinking and cooking. My wife doesn't trust the on-board system, she has a very sensative sense of smell, and it never smells right to her.

[technomadia]

After 5+ years of full timing (ranging from a 16' TT to now a 35' bus) - with lots of boondocking experience, here are our tips:

- For washing dishes, pre-soak your dishes using a squirt bottle with soapy water. Scrub.  Then rinse lightly.  When living off grid, we've been able to do a load of dinner dishes for two with about 2 cups of water this way.  And bonus, you'll always have soapy water on demand for checking air leaks!  I get squeamish when I watch people in residential houses do the dishes now.

- We'll use a collection bin in the sink when doing dishes. This helps us keep very aware of how much water we're using to rinse. And gives us the option to dump the water on the ground if it's permitted, or evaporate it. 

- Switch to no-poo!  (No, not that kind).  Neither Chris or myself has shampoo'd our hair in several years. Instead, a couple times a month we scrub our hair with baking soda, rinse with water, and then rinse with diluted apple cider vinegar.  My hair has NEVER been healthier, as most shampoos strip your hair of their natural oils.   And bonus, this saves tons of water for us (and money) as we're not having to rinse shampoos out of our hair on a regular basis.  Just a quick rinse a few times a week is all it takes.  Those who have met us probably will recall our hair may be funky colors at times, but it's always clean!

- When taking a shower and living off-grid, we'll collect the clean un-used water that comes out as we're waiting for the warm water to reach us (those of you with on-demand heaters probably don't have that problem).  We'll then use that water for rinsing the toilet, dishes, etc.

- We do what my veteran Dad refers to as 'Navy' Showers (and what Mex-BusNut described above).  Rinse, turn off the water, lather, rinse.  If we're using more than 1-2 gallons of water for a shower, we consider it glutinous.

- When living off grid and wanting to be extra-conservative, we'll only shower once every 2-3 days.  On the other days, we'll wet down a facial wipe (found in the face cleansing section of any store, Walmart sells bulk packs with a pleasant aloe scent for cheap) and do a dry bath that way. Especially in arid environments, this works awesomely.


In our last trailer, we could carry 38.5 gallons of fresh water with it.  We could regularly make that last us 2 weeks living off-grid by following the above tips.   Now we have 90 gallons in our bus and feel downright abundant, and we've yet to deplete it.

- Cherie

[grantgoold]

Stop drinking it!

[pickpaul]

I have a crazy idea I'd like to hear your thoughts on. How about installing an extra 50 or 100 gallon tank as a rain barrel and hook it up to the back of the rain gutters and run hose though the engine bay to the tanks? Lots of water for toilet flushing and even showers if filtered. Just remember not to park pointing down hill or adjust the air leveling slightly. Most of the initial gunk that would wash from the roof could be handled by a three way solenoid valve controllable from the interior. Only flick the switch after 05-20 mins of rain. Toilets and showers are the two biggest water users right? Crazy idea?

Cheers, Paul.

P.S. I also think one of the new waterless urinals installed could save a bunch of water too.

[Joe Camper]

Use other toilets whenever possible and shower with your partner

Direct rain runoff into a tank and I have dozens of simple practical ideas to do it. 

Build a condensation machine 

[gus]

My 4107 has a water saver shower head which my 4104 did not have, I can tell it makes a great difference in water use.

[Tom Y]

I ran 3/8 od water lines. Hot water faster, and still enough flow for shower. I also have a shower head with a shut off on it. Tom

[artvonne]

  The longest I recall being on the road was about 5 weeks, but I started out with my folks as a kid, first a tent, then a teeny box trailer, then a BIG tandem trailer, then a pop up. We hauled that pop up all over the US and into Canada and Mexico.

  Showers, I can take one in about a minute if I try. Get in, wet your hair, start soaping up, as you work down keep rinsing from top down, by the time your to your feet you should be rinsed. I can also go days without a shower just washing up a bit and hit the road.

  We really don't usually drink the tank water, so its primarily for flushing, showering, cleaning. I may invest in a good filtering system on the Bus, I hate buying water.

  I'm always on the lookout for dump stations, and if a station has fresh water ill top that off too. Most campgrounds will also let you dump for a couple bucks. I think its a good idea to always have a full tank of fresh and empty holding tanks as much as possible. The day you have a breakdown and have to sit where you land, youll appreciate that.

  If I was really going to "rough it" a while out in the boonies, I would dig a latrine or something. Then for sure I would invest in a good water filtration system so we could drink the tank water. For the amount of water the toilet uses, it could have its own separate water supply and you could pump grey water into, add fresh water to thin it out, chemicals, etc..

  We also take good advantage of any stations or stores we stop at, so as to not use onboard water or add to our grey or black any more than absolutely necessary. And on the Bus I want a water pump switch and pump "on" light on the dash panel. Ive lost more water from someone forgetting the pump on, then leaving a tap open, toilet sticking, etc...

[Mex-Busnut]

Quite a few good ideas so far! Thanks to all!

So what type of water-saving shower heads are you people using that works O. K. with the typical low-pressure available from our 12-volt water pumps?

[technomadia]

We use the Oxygenics Body Spa:
http://www.amazon.com/Oxygenics-Handheld-Shower-Brushed-Nickel/dp/B005G4EMCC/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1322055530&sr=8-4

Designed to reduce water usage by 70%. We love it. The water pressure feels very high, but yet, uses little water. It's amazing!

- Cherie

[Oonrahnjay]

We use the Oxygenics Body Spa:
http://www.amazon.com/Oxygenics-Handheld-Shower-Brushed-Nickel/dp/B005G4EMCC/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1322055530&sr=8-4    (snip) 

     Thanks, Cherie, that's good to know.  Hey, Gus, what type of shower head do you use?  The idea that a shower head would make a lot of difference was kinda off my radar screen but now that you mention it, it sure makes sense.