Sanitizing the water system of a camper trailer is different for a new and a used one. For a new camper trailer, sanitation should be done prior to using the lines and water tanks according to instructions indicated by the manufacturers. If there are no instructions available, the following procedure can be utilized:
- Fill the tank with water half-filled.
- After that, through the fill spout, pour in ¼ of a cup of chlorine bleach for each 15 gallons of tank capacity. Do not pour straight chlorine into the fill spout and always dilute it with water.
- Next, fill the tank to the capacity with more water.
- Then open all faucets until the water flows steadily from them then close them.
- You can leave the bleach in the tank for three hours.
- Drain the system and flush it with the use of the tank drain and faucets. In order to remove any remaining chlorine taste and odor, dissolve ½ cup of baking soda in one gallon of very hot water. Make sure that all the baking soda is dissolved.
- Pour the solution into the tank and let it stand for eight to ten hours or overnight.
- Utilize the faucets and tank drain to drain the tank then flush the system with fresh water twice.
On the other hand with a used camper trailer, there is no way of knowing the condition of the tank or how long it has been standing, full or empty. These might either cause the water to have a bad taste or encourage bacterial growth. On any recreational vehicle whose water system is suspect, more will have to be done to ensure the cleanliness and safety of the water system. The following procedure can be done.
- Initially, flush the water system of the camper trailer by putting four teaspoonfulof dishwashing detergent for each ten gallons of water into the tank.
- Then fill the tank and open every tap in trailer and run the soapy water through until such time that the tank is empty.
- Next thing to do is refill the tank with clear water then drain running the water through all the faucets.
- Put a strong chlorine mixture in the tank with 2/3 of a cup to ten gallons of water. Again, dilute the chlorine in water prior to pouring into the fill pipes.
- Proceed with opening each faucet individually and permit water to run through it until the chlorine smell is detected. Repeat the running at hourly intervals until the chlorine smell is immediately perceivable when the faucet is opened. It might take manyhours of repeating the procedure in order for this to occur.
- When the smell can be quickly detected, empty the tank by running the chlorinated water through the faucets then flush the system with fresh water until no chlorine taste remains, or utilize the baking soda solution.
Maintaining the cleanliness of the water system is important. Any cleaning and purifying procedure is time consuming but must be done when possible. It is important to use the tank water regularly so that the water will not sit long enough to become favorable for bacterial or algae growth. Hence, one should be responsible enough to maintain the good condition of water tanks as this is related to health.