sink water disposal in campground

W

woodduck

New member
Greetings, We will be using our 25' C Dory for dry land camping including the trip to Lake Powell and I'm looking for suggestions for sink (gray water) water disposal in campgrounds. Jim (Wild Blue) chronicaled his modification in his photo album (102-105) and that looks practical and easy enough to do. Any other suggestions? Just received my Stan Jones map of Lake Powell. It's enough to make me pee in my pants with excitment! Currently reading about John W. Powell's trip. He did it all with one arm...can't believe it. Thanks in advance for any suggestions. See you all in Bellingham.
Ken aka: Wood Duck
 
Hi Ken,

The easiest way to handle the sink water in a campground is with a dishpan that fits in the sink. When it gets full, you take it outside and dump it in the sewer connection.

When traveling with the boat, we use campground showers (since that would require another hose for the shower thru-hull).

Some states have a NO EFFLUENT law - you dump anything out and you can be in big trouble. Some states have no problem with gray water. A big part of the problem is the perception... when people see anything coming out of a boat or RV, they assume it is... well, you know. Park in a Wal-Mart lot and let anything drip out of your boat or RV and you will likely have a visit from the local law enforcement folks.

Hope that helps.

Best wishes,
Jim B.

PS If you think the maps of Lake Powell are impressive, wait 'till you see the real thing! :thup :thup :D Have a great time!
 
We do the same--dish pan in the sink. I have tried the various in the thru hull fitting mods, but short of tapping and putting threads inside of them, I am sticking with pans--and head pumping after we find a pump out station. (the earlier 25's had large holding tanks).
 
Many thanks for the responses to the gray water issue. A pan in the sink works great for us. Had thought of that, but didn't know if anyone was more creative. Practicality beats creative any time.
Ken aka: Wood Duck
Bend, Oregon
 
Well, we let our gray water run out on the Walmart parking lots in Yakima, WA, Jerome, ID and Richfield, UT. No visits from anybody, guess we were just lucky. So, if you use a dishpan in the sink, where do you dispose of the water in the dishpan when you are at a Walmart????
 
Well, I made a fitting that fits in the sink drain/overboard where it comes out of the hull which lets me use a hose and bucket to drain the sink.

1/2" plastic pipe, file and hacksaw. File the end of the pipe until it fits in the hole, cut a couple of slots in the end so it fits past the drive ribs in the overboard fitting, put an elbow and hose fitting on the end, attached a hose, put the hose end in a 5 gal bucket, and Judy continues to use the sink as normal.

Used this setup for the last several years and never got a comment, let alone a complaint. Dump the bucket when you leave, not after every wash.

Boris
 
Pat Anderson":2096jrq9 said:
Well, we let our gray water run out on the Walmart parking lots in Yakima, WA, Jerome, ID and Richfield, UT. No visits from anybody, guess we were just lucky. So, if you use a dishpan in the sink, where do you dispose of the water in the dishpan when you are at a Walmart????
Click to expand...

Hi Pat,

Not to be disrespectful, but Wal-Mart is not a campground. They have no facilities for a dump site. If you read through the overnight guide from Good Sam, Escapees, FMCA and other RV organizations, you will see that dumping of anything in a parking lot is considered a no-no. So, if you can't contain it, you should consider staying elsewhere.

You know it's nothing particularly bad... the perception of the public is VERY different, and that's how local laws get enacted banning Wal-Marts from allowing overnight parking.

http://campingrving.suite101.com/articl ... _ediquette

http://www.goodsamclub.com/community/ParkingRights.aspx

http://www.goodsamclub.com/rvcentral/Hi ... ssueID=905

http://www.escapees.com/boondocking.asp

All it takes is one incident reported in the local paper... more and more Wal-Marts are being forced to eliminate overnight parking. We've certainly used some of the commercial parking lots (Wal-Mart, Camping World, etc), but follow the guidelines established by the RV groups.

Hope that clarifies.

Best wishes,
Jim
 
We do what Jim does. Pan in sink. We carry a big funnel and put the gray water into a couple gallon non transparent jug, like a soap detergent jug with handle. Then it is disposed appropriately. John
 
journey on":1cysxdh4 said:
Well, I made a fitting that fits in the sink drain/overboard where it comes out of the hull which lets me use a hose and bucket to drain the sink.
Click to expand...

Have you considered using this system for the macerator output as well, so you can use the head in a campground and pump the contents into the RV sewer system? I talked to Bob and Jim about this once and they did not pursue it but I still think there is an answer out there, somewhere. Maybe this is it.

Warren
 
There are any number of hoses, adapters and fittings that will fit snugly into the overboard drain. Draining the sink into a plastic jug or old gas can looks better than an open bucket and can be emptied elsewhere.
 
A couple more thoughts on this subject...

I've posted on this forum about being turned away from campgrounds with our boat. The reason (if one is given) is that the owner has had to deal with effluents being dumped on the ground... that's not poopy water, that's ANY liquid. Many campgrounds have rules about "non-standard camping units" (anyone remember when we put up a tent so we could stay... even though we didn't stay IN the tent?).

Some campgrounds do not allow pop-up campers for the same reason: many do not have a gray tank to contain their wash water. Common strategy for that is to run a hose out to a 5 gallon bucket (like Boris mentions) to contain the water.

Think this doesn't affect local/state laws? The state of Arizona has a ridiculous law that states: your sewer HOSE may not touch the ground. That's right, not only what's coming out of it, but the actual HOSE itself! We were in AZ during most of March and had to make sure our HOSE was contained in some fashion so it didn't touch the ground. This is at ALL campgrounds in the state. We went to Home Depot and bought some plastic rain gutter to keep the hose from touching the ground.

The Wal-Mart in Rapid City wanted to build a new Super Wal-Mart a few years ago. It was delayed for over a year because local residents were up in arms about people staying in RVs in the lot and "dumping their waste tanks." I never saw this, can't imagine anyone would ever dump a black tank, but it cost Wal-Mart thousands of dollars to defend this and in the end they had to expand their proposed parking lot by over 20% and agree that the lot would be patrolled.

The new Wal-Mart in Spearfish has "NO OVERNIGHT PARKING OR CAMPING" signs all over their lot. If you park there overnight, you will be visited by the local police and told to move. The old Wal-Mart there allowed overnight parking, but too many people took advantage by staying multiple nights.

There is a book published, and even the Wal-Mart atlas that tells which Wal-Marts that no longer allow overnight parking. Please read the following link:

http://www.walmartatlas.com/no-park-walmarts

Wal-Mart, Camping World, Flying-J, Cabela's, Bass Pro/Outdoor World... it would be a darn shame to have these convenient overnight parking places completely disappear because of the actions of a few. Education and respect will go a long ways towards keeping these available.

Respectfully,
Jim B.
 
As far as the into the bucket, I suspect that the hose will work fine, but the liquid is under virtually no pressure head at that point. The macerator is much different. I made a macerator converter for the RV (before we had fully legal sewer discharge at the house--full hookups) and it would pump the sewage 100 feet easily--and still have a good pressure gradient at the end of the hose. If you were to put threads, and use teflon tape, you should be able to make an adaptor--but then there are other problems--such as the seal (see below), where it is discharged etc.

I agree with no allowing any liquid on the ground at any parking lot etc.

Many RV facilities insist that even the grey water be completely sealed at the dump site--with with a foam doughnut or a threaded fiitting.

So far I have not been refused at a camp ground--but on several occasions I had to say I was sleeping in the SUV and would not be cooking or using the facilities in the boat, but in their guest head.

When I register I say "Van pulling a boat". Of course if I use the class B or Class A RV, there should not be a problem. But some campgrounds don't allow class B, and some don't allow Class A older than 10 years of age. Hard to win.
 
Doryman":17nuj11i said:
journey on":17nuj11i said:
Well, I made a fitting that fits in the sink drain/overboard where it comes out of the hull which lets me use a hose and bucket to drain the sink.
Click to expand...

Have you considered using this system for the macerator output as well, so you can use the head in a campground and pump the contents into the RV sewer system? I talked to Bob and Jim about this once and they did not pursue it but I still think there is an answer out there, somewhere. Maybe this is it.

Warren
Click to expand...

But, oh what a mess if that fitting isn't perfect! No, I don't want to pursue it, but I would like to be there to photograph it when you do. :twisted: Here's my take: if we are conservative, we can make that poop tank last a week or more. We use the boat as a camper only when getting from one cruising area to another... if you are spending more time than that on land, it may be time to reconsider your routing so you can have the boat in the water while enroute. Or do the truck camper pulling the boat routine. Or use an RV when on land. For all the reasons mentioned in this thread, I don't consider our boats a reasonable substitute for a fully self-contained RV. They work... with limitations. Could you set up your boat to be fully self-contained? Probably, but it will be neither convenient nor cost effective. You could carry a porta-potty (this will bring the porta-potty faithful out of the woodwork). Your boat macerator kicks out the poopy water on the "wrong" side... you could pull backwards into a dump station... or you could have a REALLY long sewer hose (which is going to be a gawd-awful smelly mess to clean and carry around). Or, you can use your boat like we do: as a "hard tent" while on the road and use the campground facilities as much as possible. That's the main reason we don't overnight in parking lots very often with the boat - it's just plain easier and more functional in a campground. Even better: it is MUCH MORE functional on the water.

My apologies for going on about this. As a long time RVer (long before our boating days), we've seen parking opportunities go away. When we first bought Wild Blue, we were anticipating the "boater home" aspect we read about here. You can make it work, but it will never be as easy and functional as an RV... just like you could make an RV float, but it will never be as functional as a C-Dory on the water.

The right tool for the job.

To quote the philosopher Forrest Gump: And that's all I got to say about that.

Really.

Jim
 
I rigged up a valve under the sink where I can route water overboard, or, twist the valve and route it into a bucket under the sink. In addition to not dumping while dry camping, it's kind of nice to not dump at some marinas.
 
Yeah, that is more along the lines of what I was planning to do for our next trip in September...

journey on":gh49u9rz said:
Well, I made a fitting that fits in the sink drain/overboard where it comes out of the hull which lets me use a hose and bucket to drain the sink.

1/2" plastic pipe, file and hacksaw. File the end of the pipe until it fits in the hole, cut a couple of slots in the end so it fits past the drive ribs in the overboard fitting, put an elbow and hose fitting on the end, attached a hose, put the hose end in a 5 gal bucket, and Judy continues to use the sink as normal.

Used this setup for the last several years and never got a comment, let alone a complaint. Dump the bucket when you leave, not after every wash.

Boris
Click to expand...
 
Again, we have not been turned away from any campground because we're on a boat. And it's started some fine conversations. Though we've rejected some campsites, because when you call in for reservations and tell them you're on a 25' boat, and show up with a trailer that's a bit longer, well.....

As I mentioned above, we do drain our sink into an external 5 gal "holding tank", via a hose. Also for those times when you have to dump the head holding tank, I bought a 4" rubber collar, normally used to seal the dump hose to the hole in the ground, attached it to a standard dump hose elbow, thence to a dump hose. Now whenever we need to dump the BIG holding tank, I hold the rubber collar/muff over the macerator discharge port, Judy flips the switch and several minutes later the holding tank is empty. Never failed, or leaked (as long as Judy and I co-ordinate our respective motions.) Never got an objection either.

Of course you also need a bucket of water to flush the head when the boat is on the trailer. But you knew that. Or at least you'd of found out. And this is important to us because usually it takes us a couple of days to reach our cruising destination.

Boris
 
My RoadTrek RV only has a 10 gallon black water holding tank--if I am careful, I can get almost 2 weeks before it needs dumping. This often means using the head facilities at campgrounds of houses where I am staying. This is with just one person--so two would be substantially less time.
 
Boris, where are you keeping that sewer hose while trailering? Since the macerator discharge thru-hull is on the starboard side and RV dumps are on the port side, how much hose are you carrying?

We considered that solution, but both of us wanted to be the one on the switch, and neither of us wanted to be the one on the outside holding the hose against the boat. :mrgreen:

Best wishes,
Jim
 
We've never camped with our boat before but on our trip next month to lake superior we hope to.We don't intend to use the head or sink. It sounds like we better call for reservations and tell them up front that we're pulling a boat & see if that's OK. I guess it can be an issue at some camp grounds. Alan
 
Jim, I keep the dump hose in a heavy duty trash bag in the back of the truck. After I flush it out with a water hose. Don't need it with the boat in the water.

On Journey On, our macerator outlet is on the port side. If it's been changed to the starbord side, just add 8' more hose. The elbow lets it lay flat to the boat's side

As far as being the one who holds the fitting against the side, it takes good co-ordination. We've never missed yet. If we do, there's going to be a change of who does what.

Simplicity, we camped along the south shore of Lake Superior:Camping and cruising describes it. Used both KOA and city campgrounds. Try the one in Houghton, Mich. It's right on the canal across the Keweenaw Pennisula

Boris
 
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