Hot water, fresh water

2Doxies

Hi all,
new to this forum, but have been reading it for a year.What a wonderful resource! I have a 2019 320, and am gradually learning how to use various systems. Before last sept, i never towed anything or even had been in a camper!
loving my t@b.
was just out boondocking, and trying water features for the first time. I filled, then emptied my fresh water tank, At home,then refilled it before taking off.
When at the dispersed site, I tried to fill a bowl of water for my dogs. It came out smelling vaguely of antifreeze, and had slick white foam....needless to say they didnt get that drink. Fortunately we were on a creek, and they could drink there, but I had gone under the assumption I could make my coffee from the fresh water tank. Fortunately I had a gallon of water in the truck, so I used that.
later on in the day, i tried changing the temperature on the faucet (kitchen), and found there was less foam and smell when it was on cold.
next morning, thinking I could make ccoffee with it, I filled my mug, on cold, but it came out dark, murky and smelling of antifreeze.
so, any thoughts on what might be going on?
do you ever use the fresh water tank for drinking, or cooking?
is it possible to still have antifreeze in tanks, even though I had it winterized at a great dealership? And dewinterized.
how does the water that would get hot get into a tank?
please answer as simply as possible, as Im only beginning here, and starting with no handybones in my body!

Thanks

DougH

@2Doxies ; YUCK! 

Could be someone put antifreeze in your fresh tank, and didn't get it all out when dewinterizing.  But it could also just be antifreeze in your water lines if you or that dealer you mentioned didn't flush them out completely.

What most of us do at the start of the season is fill the fresh tank with water and a little bit of bleach.  Let it sit for a day, and maybe even take a short trip to let it slosh everywhere.  We isolate the rear Alde by rotating two or three valves so the bleach cannot accidentally get into the Alde heater.

Then we use the water pump and run that bleach water through every hot and cold tap at the sink, toilet, shower and external shower until the tank is empty.  

But then we fill up the water tank again, and with the Alde valves letting the water run through it again, we run through at least one or two or three more full fresh tanks of water (both hot and cold taps) until we cannot smell any bleach anywhere.  That water should be clear and almost safe to drink.

Sharon_Is_Sam posted a dewinterizing and sanitizing document in the "User Manuals" area the moderators have set up.

    https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com/discussion/8904/de-winterizing-and-sanitizing#latest

Even though your dealer dewinterized for you, was that a week ago, or several months ago?  Because we normally empty all the tanks and lines if we are not going to camp for a while.  And we normally flush the fresh water tank at least once and run a tank's worth of water or two through the Alde before the start of a trip.  Many re-sanitize several times a year.

If the hot water came out murkier, it could be just those lines were not thoroughly sanitized and rinsed out.  But there's also a slight chance some bleach or antifreeze that was allowed to get into the Alde tank caused some yuckiness.  It might be tempting to go onto a city water line and run the hot water taps only on and off repeatedly until you've run a million gallons through the tank and lines and everything runs very clear with no smell.  You can also pick up a cheap TDS (total dissolved solids) meter to see if you get as low readings as you do at home.

This forum is split though.  Half never drink from the fresh tank, and only use it for flushing the toilet, showering, and doing dishes.  The other half drink from it as well if they've sanitized it properly.  Many bring jugs or filter systems (Berkey, etc) for drinking.

VictoriaP

Please don’t use the water currently onboard your trailer for ANYTHING until you can sanitize with bleach (unscented and not gel, only use plain bleach that has not expired). It’s clearly not safe for drinking or washing at this point. 

I’ve gone both ways on drinking from the tank and campground water hookups over the years, mostly because carrying extra water for drinking is a nuisance. I do think if you’re going to drink from the tank, you need to be scrupulous about sanitizing multiple times a season, and about draining after each trip. And you should probably filter that water before consuming it, with a filter that can handle bacteria, not just sediment and chemicals. People have developed Legionnaires Disease from RV water. If you’re likely to be drinking water from unknown/unverified water sources, make sure your filter can also handle viruses and cysts. (The need for bacterial filtration eliminates both Brita and Pur, by the way. I’m leaning towards Epic Water’s Nano pitcher for camping, because unlike some better known brands, their testing is to NSF certified specs and their process for that is pretty transparent.)

I also believe you don’t leave dewinterizing to someone else for exactly the reason you’ve run into: No one will take care of your rig the way you will, and it’s not a difficult task even for those who are not handy. If you’re going to let someone else do it, you still need to recheck their work and sanitize again before you leave home. 

TNOutback

We DO use the water in our fresh tank for drinking, but we do pass it through one of those Brita-type filter pitchers first.  At least on our camper, there is likely several gallons of water that won’t drain from the tank due to the location of the drain outlet on the side of the tank.  Before we even bleach the tank, I will partially fill and dump the fresh tank to try to get as much of the old water out.  Then add a few gallons, add bleach, fill tank.  Let it sit overnight.  Run some gallons through the pipes, then drain the tank.  Refill completely with fresh water, run some through pipes, then drain tank again.

The only antifreeze I use is 100% propylene glycol, and only in the pipes.  It is not necessary in the fresh water tank, and in my opinion, just makes flushing the tank that much more problematic.

I would run 2-3 tanks of water through your system, along with a sanitizing tankful with added bleach, then flush again.  After that, see what it is like.

Denny16

I would start with at least filling, pumping the water through the RV lines, then draining at least two times, followed by a bleach tank left overnight, and drained and flushed again.  Then hoot up to shore water and run water through the trailer taps and shower.  The you should be able to use the trailer water system.  

A Verna recommended, do a bleach treatment again, before any new trips, leaving the tank empty between trips. Taps and drain left open for air circulation.
cheers

Sharon_is_SAM

“any thoughts on what might be going on?“ - Incomplete rinsing with de winterization and it sounds like you have antifreeze in the Alde water tank. 

“do you ever use the fresh water tank for drinking, or cooking?“. No.  Too much time in between camping intervals and too much risk for bacterial growth.  I do brush my teeth with it😁

“Is it possible to still have antifreeze in tanks, even though I had it winterized at a great dealership? And dewinterized.“
Yes - check out the link provided by DougH.  Do not turn the Alde on until you have thoroughly flushed the Alde tank.  Not all antifreeze can tolerate the heat from the Alde.

“how does the water that would get hot get into a tank?”  To fill the Alde Water tank on city water, just open the hot water tap until it no longer sputters - typically the pressure of the city water fills the tank and clears the air in just a few minutes.  If you are going to be camping using your fresh water tank, then just fill your fresh water tank and turn on the pump, then open the hot tap.  It takes longer for the pump to fill the Alde water tank than a city connection (less pressure/flow).  If you can, it is best to hook up to city water first (at home or at the campground) and clear your plumbing of air and fill your Alde tank which is 2.5 gallons.  Then you can use the full amount in your fresh tank without having to lose some to the Alde tank.

DougH

@Denny16 ; Taps and drain open?  What if bugs crawl in?  They might drown later, and the negative karma would result in a blowout or equivalent life balancing event.  I drain the tanks after a trip, blow out the lines, and leave things closed... which I guess could lead to some microbial growth. 

What do the rest of y'all do?  Open or closed fresh drain and hot cold water line drain if letting the camper sit a month?

Sharon_is_SAM

I drain my plumbing then close the drains.  The Owners Manual just says to drain (Short term storage). Leave the low point and fresh tank drains open if storing under freezing conditions.

Homebodyatheart

@2Doxies welcome to the Tab family! The first time I ever ran my water(and was hooked up to
water) it came out lavender and fizzy! Dealer swore they dewinterized when I took possession, but obviously not! Since then I’ve had Some very patient Tab friends talk me through winterizing and dewinterizing. It makes more sense to me now than it did my first season when I’d look at that mangled mound of red, blue, and white(outdoor shower) hoses! You’ve got good advice above. Good luck!

PS I do drink from my water taps although it’s always shore water. BTW tell me more about your 2 doxies... here’s mine! The red one stays home with family while the black and tan camps well with me. 

Denny16

My reasons for leaving drains open for a while after draining, is to allow air circulation and help dry the tanks and lines out.  Mold can grow in warm moist conditions.  The other approach, is to leave the tanks and lines full with a sanitize water/bleach mix, between trips during the season.  Then just drain and flush before your next trip.  

In winter where freezing is an issue, tank and lines need to be either drained and blown out, or refilled with RV Antifreeze.  Since I am in a mild winter zone, I just drain and dry out my lines.

cheers