How much water to use when sanitizing fresh water system

twgiambra

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Hello, we are getting ready for our first ever outing. I'm reading the manual on how to sanitize the fresh water system and it seems like their procedure wouldn't have enough water to do the job. Can someone please confirm, how much water should I use when sanitizing?

Unit: 2024 Grand Design Imagine 25DBE
Fresh water tank = 37 gallons

In the manual, on page 114 it lists the procedure to sanitize:

PREP: prepare a solution of 1 gallon of water plus 1/4 cup of bleach, for every 15 gallons of holding tank capacity. This means for my unit, about 2.5 gallons of water and just over 1/2 cup of bleach.

Procedure:
1. Pour the chlorine solution into the gravity water tank (so about 2.5 gallons)
2. Turn on the water pump.
3. Open all faucet fixtures, allowing all of the solution to pass through.
4. Let stand for 3 hours, then flush.

I want to be sure I understand correctly. At no time, does it say to fill the fresh water tank with additional water. It seems like with only 2.5 gallons in the tank, how am I able to get that small amount of water through all the supply lines? It would have to go through the kitchen sink, the bathroom sink, the shower, the spray hose, and the external shower connection. Can you please confirm if these directions are correct? Or, am I supposed to put additional water in (not listed in the directions?).
Thank you,
Tim
 
It assumes that you will fill the fresh water tank since it needs to be sanitized too. The way I handle the mixture is to pour the bleach into the hose and let the filling of the tank handle the mixing.
 
It assumes that you will fill the fresh water tank since it needs to be sanitized too. The way I handle the mixture is to pour the bleach into the hose and let the filling of the tank handle the mixing.

this is what I do too. Fill hose with bleach required, turn on hose, fill via gravity fill until the overflow starts to run, then turn on the pump, run water through all faucets with both hot and cold on, let run for 2 mins, then turn everything off and let it sit for a day. Then dump, flush, and use my water heater flusher hose attachment to clean out the water heater tank.
 
They missed that step. The initial dilution is just to make sure the bleach isn't too strong when being introduced. Yes, fill your water tank completely before pumping the mix through the rest of the system.
Fill your heater too - bacteria like the warm/cozy place.....(see threads about "Sulfur Smell")

Drain everything first, completely, using pumps, low point drains, heater plugs, etc. before rinsing. If you forget to drain the bleach water out of the heater, it will take forever for it to slowly dilute with fresh. Fill the main tank again with just water, and pump it through everything to rinse. You do not need to empty and refill again, unless you got carried away and used more initial bleach than recommended. What's left in the tank will be less than is present in "city water".
 

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