Prepping water lines for first trip?

[mtns4mama]

Hi folks! Trying to get a general consensus on this... We are preparing to head out for our maiden voyage in our GD Reflections 260RD which we took delivery of on 11/2020. We winterized it when we got it home and will be flushing the lines with county water but wondered if we need to do anything beyond that since we won't be using the fresh water tank on this trip. I've read that the chlorine in the local water (and you can often smell it in ours) is enough - especially since ours is a new unit. Thoughts, please?

 

[TNFLineage]

Yes, you should be fine. Just flush the system continously for several minutes. All lines, including standing on the toilet valve, you don't want to risk any antifreeze ending up in a drink, brushing your teeth or rinsing clean dishes.

 

[Chewwi]

Even for a new system, the GD owners manual recommends sanitizing the potable water system and provides instructions for doing so.


2020 2600RB,
2017 Silverado Crew Cab 1500, 6.2L

 

[mnrover]

As Chewwi says: read the GD manual and do what it says because it says it for a reason even if that reason is not apparent to you.

 

[boyscout]

Hi folks! Trying to get a general consensus on this... We are preparing to head out for our maiden voyage in our GD Reflections 260RD which we took delivery of on 11/2020. We winterized it when we got it home and will be flushing the lines with county water but wondered if we need to do anything beyond that since we won't be using the fresh water tank on this trip. I've read that the chlorine in the local water (and you can often smell it in ours) is enough - especially since ours is a new unit. Thoughts, please?

Hi there, welcome to the forum.

You can choose to go with the advice from the RTFM guys above, or you can follow [MENTION=310]TNFSolitude[/MENTION]'s advice. Since you won't be using your onboard fresh water system, and the effing manual probably counsels some laborious flushing and sanitizing of that part of your system, my advice would be like TNFSolitude's.

What I'd add, though, is to be sure to flush out any of the less-used water lines you may have such as the spray port in the Nautilus system and the lines for a washing machine. Antifreeze left in those lines could blend back into the lines you use all the time.

Some time when you ARE going to be relying on your onboard fresh water system you should flush and sanitize it, which is likely described in the manual.

Hope your first trip is great. Welcome again.

 

[JM0397]

Just did the same on our Solitude this past weekend, minus sanitizing yet.
The GD video was a good overview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0TgDW_z5bw

Word to the wise to avoid my rookie mistake that chewed up an extra 90 minutes when I should have been relaxing with an adult beverage!
Your HW heater anode rod should have been pulled to drain for winterization. Learn from my mistake and have the correct socket ready before you get there! Luckily there was a Home Depot only 10 minutes away.

It's apparently a standard size for all RV WHs - 1-1/16" socket, per my brother who took the opportunity to make fun of me. It's only fair, I'd do the same to him. My two different tool kits I brought stopped at 1" and my error for only eyeballing and not measuring to be sure. I mean, what the hell? How hard would it be to make the standard 1" which most tool kits have? I swear, the Waterheater - Craftsman Tool Industrial Complex is surely out to screw us, with that extra 1/16" just to mess with us and make us buy more crap we'll only need once a season!

The compartment was too tight for a crescent wrench so the socket is a must-have, IMO. Ensure you have enough of an extender to get the socket in cleanly, also. I bought a 5" extender just to be sure, but a 3" would have been enough.

Also, due to the weight of the rod and the tight fit, I backed it in and out like 4x just to be sure I wasn't cross-threaded. The lever-like action of the rod length makes it easy to cross-thread - that would be huge PITA to fix. Go slow and don't be afraid to back it out and double-triple-quadruple check it's threaded correctly.

 

[Chewwi]

The permissible concentration of Chlorine in drinking water systems is significantly less than the concentration of Chlorine required for sanitization the RVs water system or for disinfecting surfaces.


2020 2600RB,
2017 Silverado Crew Cab 1500, 6.2L

 

[Calbar]

Hi folks! Trying to get a general consensus on this... We are preparing to head out for our maiden voyage in our GD Reflections 260RD which we took delivery of on 11/2020. We winterized it when we got it home and will be flushing the lines with county water but wondered if we need to do anything beyond that since we won't be using the fresh water tank on this trip. I've read that the chlorine in the local water (and you can often smell it in ours) is enough - especially since ours is a new unit. Thoughts, please?

I sanitize my water lines every spring when I de-winterize. I would hate to get sick or something worse if I didn't take the extra couple of hours of my time and the time for the solution to sit and ruin my trip. Even if not using the fresh water tank the plumbing lines still need to be sanitized.

Rob

 

[sande005]

The permissible concentration of Chlorine in drinking water systems is significantly less than the concentration of Chlorine required for sanitization the RVs water system or for disinfecting surfaces.


2020 2600RB,
2017 Silverado Crew Cab 1500, 6.2L

Exactly! Most municipal systems are designed so that there is very little chlorine making it to your house taps. Definitely not enough to sanitize anything.

Will you get sick if you don't sanitize, especially if loading up with city water? Highly unlikely. But even with just natural condensation inside the tanks (fresh/water heater) there can be enough to allow some bacteria or algae to grow. Which can lead to water that stinks or has an off taste. Over warm weather, that is a prime culprit for "Sulphur smell" from the hot water (the other is a bad anode, if your heater even has one - many don't). Where did they come from? Likely a campground hookup that is on a well, or other untreated source. No issue as the normal concentrations in the water are very low, and most campgrounds have to go through some kind of local periodic testing. But give them some time in a nice warm place.....again, will not make you sick...but smells bad....

BTW - a strong chlorine smell is from the breakdown components of the chlorine (chloramines)! It is a classic indicator that a swimming pool is pretty dirty and needs much more added.

Almost everything that would actually make you sick comes from water exposed to poop! Human or animal. So if your sources are verified clean or treated, not an issue. The rest is "just" a taste or smell issue...but that can get pretty bad if left unattended.

 

[Heavysledz]

Sanitize as-per the owners manual and you will be all set. Also, now is the best time to add even a simple inline what filter if you want to ensure you aren't introducing contaminants to your brand new unit.... Your hot water heater will also thank you in time.....oh and congrats o the new rig and welcome to the forum.