Water

 

At home we don’t think about water much. We just turn the faucet handles and out it comes in abundance. We don’t need to force ourselves to take super short showers.

In an RV with a 33 gallon fresh water tank, you think about water more often. Take 2 or 3 “long” showers, fill up the dogs water dish 3 times a day for a week, wash you hands, flush the toilet a few times a day and soon you’ll be out of water. 33 gallons doesn’t last t-h-a-t long. I took a shower this morning and then noticed the water level was on empty.

Generally,  RV water is pretty easy to find. You just have to do is look and/or ask for it. All I need to fill up the RV is an outside hose connection.  Most people don’t put a dollar value on water. So, getting it free is the norm. It’s one of the few things you can still get for free in many restaurants. 

This morning I drove around the back of the walmart that I stayed at last night and saw a outside spigot. I tested it and found plenty of water. So, I backed the RV up nearby and hooked up the hose. It only takes about 4-5 minutes to fill up the tank and I’m set for another week or so.

 

Drinking water (potable) is different from “RV water” (non potable). I usually buy my drinking water at a walmart for around 79 cents a gallon. I’ll save the jugs and then fill up at one of these water stations (found all over the place) for 25 cents a gallon. They’re everywhere out here, like Red Boxes.

 

I talked with some View owners afterwards. They were hanging out in their 08 model 24H View. I pulled up next to them for a photo op. Since we have nearly identical RVs we had much to chat about. I got some some good advice about places to go locally and some ideas about making the RV more livable. They have the diesel engine and get 16 mpg while travelling 60mph. We have the gas engine and get 12.5mpg travelling at the same speed. Considering diesel fuel is usually 25% (at minimum) more than gasoline… it really isn’t less expensive to own a diesel. It might end up being even be MORE expensive.