We own a Autosleeper Neuvo EK...5.75mtrs long.
It has an on board 100 ltr tank for fresh water.
My Q is do we fill to the top prior our trip ? We are staying on private sites for 4 nights so not sure accessibility of water tap to pitches. We do have a 10 ltr jerry can though, just in case.
What do other MH owners do.
Not a motorhomer but caravanner for many years, Personally I would not travel with it full as it will slosh about when travelling, 3/4 full at the most. Then have water in container with a screw top on tightly. We always carry some drinking water in container in the shower.
I drain and fill up my tank which is about 80L with fresh water at home before I leave.
I don't use the water from the tank as fresh water for drinking, more for washing up and flushing the loo.
If I were to drink from the tank, I would boil the water first to get rid of the musty smell.
Once I am on a site, I would fill up the kettle and 2 x 1L jug and bottle with fresh water from the tap for drinking, and refill as and when required.
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Regular question, if you search the forum.
I have a friend who drains the tank before leaving each site because he reckons the water sloshes around & affects steering etc. Another does the same but to reduce weight, to keep within the legal limit. Both fill up on arrival, to 100%, for a weekend, so they’re draining 75% of the tank before going home. I find it wasteful to drain good water away like that.
We have the very same MH, and roads in SW Scotland can be pretty bendy. We fill to 50% max at home & the stability is absolutely fine. We get water from the site tap for drinking (us & dog), we use the site showers (that’s a way to go through your water tank quickly!), so water is only used for cooking & kettle. The tank lasted 6 days recently, the alarm will go when it’s close to empty & that didn’t happen.
Remember, the waste tank size is in proportion & sloshes around (or not) in similar fashion. We have a black canister & empty it daily. A collapsible bucket does the same. A lot of MHs rely on a drive-over drain, but you should consider that a luxury. Emptying it on the hard stand is just not on, I’ve challenged people about it - it was on a site with no drive over, they had no canister & didn’t care.
20ltr max is recommended by some manufacturers for travelling, extra weight, fuel consumption, etc.
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We travel with just enough water to last the journey (for loo stops) and fill up on site. There will be a tap, might even be a hosepipe on if you're lucky - you just need to ask where it is and fill up before setting up. Keep a 10m filling hose and some connectors for the taps and a watering can in the van and you won't go far wrong.
Wouldn't travel with a full tank - that equates to roughly 100KG so will eat a chunk into your payload for sure.
Our current moho recommends travelling with 20 litres on board, the fresh water tank is above and to the rear of the rear axle so from a stability point of view it makes sense.
Previous moho's had the tank under the floor at midships, we've travelled with full tanks before or at least partially full, I did use it as ballast when travelling on a gusty day and I think it helped.
What does your manual recommend? It could be there's a limit down to the restraints of the tank (it may come loose in the event of very heavy braking).
Some will quote fuel consumption concerns but 1 litre of water weighs 1kg, so 100 litres is 100kg (about the same as a large adult). 100kg averaged across a 3.5t motorhome is less than 3% so it's up to you whether you think that's a big deal to you.
The first question is what is your payload allowance? Some modern vans have very small user payloads and a full tank could take you beyond your legal weight. Now if you have plenty of payload, as we did in our last van, by all means take a reasonable amount of water with you to use en route and maybe the first day on site (just in case its raining!) I used to carry about three quarters of a tank of water When on site I used a 10 litre watering can to top up, found it slightly easier than a jerrycan.
Always leave home with a full tank of fresh water, tiny % of overall weight so unlikely to make any significant difference to handling or fuel consumption. I keep the water system well cleaned and we use it for drinks , cooking etc.
We always fill before leaving home and every few days whenever we can on route but we are very lucky to have a very large payload. We'd rather have plenty than no water than run out and find it difficult to fill up using watering can etc. due to the weight and the placement of our water filler. We use the onboard water for everything as we have an inline water filter fitted. Can see the problem if you don't have the payload though.
Can't say we've noticed any discernible effect on handling or fuel consumption.
We travel with 40 Lt of water enough for :- two showers, cooking, wshup and toilet for two days.
Always carry a watering can and 10 Lt empty water cannister.
We also flush out after each trip, and sterilise the tank annually. Never use any hosepipe.
We have never found it hard to find water even when off grid.
I just keep ¼ tank of water on board for travelling. I fill up on pitch or if not accessibly I use a 10L watering can just for the purpose of filling up, doesn't take long to fill up & good exercise!
Hi Hymervan, thank you so much for your reply, which is later than everyone else, but just as valuable 😊
If anything you have just confirmed exactly what we've decided to do.
Thank you very much
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Topic: Travelling with full tank fresh water on
via mobile 01/10/2024 at 7:47am
