We winterized our tanks before heading to Yosemite in January, and I de-winterized them this summer before heading to Durango, but I seem to have a foul taste in the tanks that I can't seem to clean out, and I got a bit of an upset stomach after trying to drink what had been fresh water from the sink after pouring purified water into the fresh water tank. What do I need to do to make the fresh water tank usable again?
Water Tanks How Best To Clean The Water Tanks?
- Thread starter sarmay
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- water tanks
Van_and_Terri
Ranger
Some have good results with vinegar. Others recommend flushing with a mixture of Clorox and water; but need to rinse several times. Clorox can attack plastic and rubber if mixed to strong and not rinsed thoroughly.
I have used "Sani-Tabs" These are used by restaurants & Bars to sanitize dishes and glasses. One of the problems with Bleach is that the symptoms for food/water born illnesses and too much bleach are identical i.e. stomach distress and diarrhea. Sani-Tabs are nontoxic. Pick up a bottle at a restaurant supply like Gorden Foods (GFS).
Oh, good to know! I am going to try this.
Your manual has instructions, which are consistent with what you would find on the web:
"Sanitizing the fresh water tank- If your water has a strange odor, color or taste: •Drain the fresh water tank fully. •Sanitize the tank by adding one (1) cup (8 oz.) of plain (unscented) chlorine bleach then filling the tank with fresh water. •While filling, run at least one quart of water out of the faucet. •Fill tank until water runs out of the vent tube. •Let stand for 1/2 hour. •Drain the tank by running the faucet and allowing the bleach water to go down the sink drain. This will help clean out the gray water tank as well. •Refill the freshwater tank with fresh water, then 15 drain the tank again by removing the drain cap. •Refill with fresh water. •Run at least one gallon of water out of the faucet. •After this treatment, the water may have a slight chlorine taste and odor, but that will go away with time and is not harmful. •Remember to drain the gray water tank"
In my limited experience, you will need to flush the freshwater tank a few times. I can't compare this to the SaniTabs approach, though.
-Al
"Sanitizing the fresh water tank- If your water has a strange odor, color or taste: •Drain the fresh water tank fully. •Sanitize the tank by adding one (1) cup (8 oz.) of plain (unscented) chlorine bleach then filling the tank with fresh water. •While filling, run at least one quart of water out of the faucet. •Fill tank until water runs out of the vent tube. •Let stand for 1/2 hour. •Drain the tank by running the faucet and allowing the bleach water to go down the sink drain. This will help clean out the gray water tank as well. •Refill the freshwater tank with fresh water, then 15 drain the tank again by removing the drain cap. •Refill with fresh water. •Run at least one gallon of water out of the faucet. •After this treatment, the water may have a slight chlorine taste and odor, but that will go away with time and is not harmful. •Remember to drain the gray water tank"
In my limited experience, you will need to flush the freshwater tank a few times. I can't compare this to the SaniTabs approach, though.
-Al
Then you probably only need to flush the tank a couple times. Even if you don't use the water for drinking, I don't think you want to leave water with a high chlorine level in the tank (as it degrades plastic, etc.).
-Al
Could it be the shutoff at the drain?
I'm not certain. We tried to tighten the shut off, but still had a leak, so either we didn't get it tightened enough, or there is another problem.
Check to make sure you haven't lost the washer in the cap.
Or cross threaded the cap. I did that.
Just in case you determine you might need new caps, I bought this a few years back
Edit: removed link so as not to confuse people with a bad link
Edit: removed link so as not to confuse people with a bad link
Last edited:
Cary Winch
Camp-Inn Staff
Don't use the brass metal caps like skissinger shows there. That is how they get cross threaded. Use a cap just like she shown but in plastic.
Cary
Cary
Thanks, Cary.
I’m wondering how many tabs to use for this size tank. The bottle instructions seem to be for smaller quantities.
I used the prescribed amount but I dissolved the tabs in warm water before putting it in the tank. I think it is something like a tab per gallon. So 8 tabs.
Jim
Sweeney
Administrator
Rinsing thoroughly, then using 'starsan' may be another option? Starsan is used by home beer making...its powerful stuff. The instructions would basically be the same as bleach with the big difference being this doesn't have any odor, and after a rinse the taste would be completely gone the first go.