Can you take a shower while boondocking?

GaiaGoddess

I have 2 camping trips planned this summer where I will have no access to electric or any hookups, and I have done this one other time but it was 2 years ago and I don't remember what the problem was...but I thought I could use battery power to operate the water pump and the Alde hot water heater but nothing happened when I turned on the water pump and I don't know why. So now that I am going to do it again this summer I thought I would ask what is possible as far as getting hot water to take a shower while boondocking. I have propane but have never used it for hot water. And why didn't my water pump work when I tried it last time?

ScottG

I hope it's possible, as I have done it on several occasions!  :-)

You can not run the Adle on battery alone. If you are not hooked to shore power, you must use propane as your heat source.

I can't tell you why your water pump didn't work, however. The water pump is designed to run on battery (12V) alone. Check to make sure your battery is not disconnected and that the 12V fuse for the pump circuit is not blown.

rkj__

Yes, you can shower without any hookups, as long as you have battery power, propane, and fresh water in the tank.

You need to have the battery connected, the propane tank open, and set the Alde to the flame (and hot water) setting. 

You will need to provide some more information if you want help diagnosing potential problems with your water pump.  Do the lights work on battery power?  When the water tank is full, and the pump is on, does it make any noise at all, like a gentle hum?  What happens when you open the faucets?

DougH

@GaiaGoddess : Not long hot showers, sadly.  More 5 seconds of getting wet, turning off water, lathering up, rinsing off, repeating.  320 only has 11 gal of water, so when boondocking a lot of folks bring one or two additional 2.5 or 5 gallon jugs of water to get some extra showers (and for drinking water). 

P.S.  Was your previous tornado damage eventually fixed okay?

GaiaGoddess

ScottG said:

I hope it's possible, as I have done it on several occasions!  :-)

You can not run the Adle on battery alone. If you are not hooked to shore power, you must use propane as your heat source.

I can't tell you why your water pump didn't work, however. The water pump is designed to run on battery (12V) alone. Check to make sure your battery is not disconnected and that the 12V fuse for the pump circuit is not blown.

My battery was fine when I tried to use my water pump (the lights worked), but I didnt know I needed the propane. Now I know that, and hopefully my pump will work this time!

jkjenn

DougH said:

@GaiaGoddess : Not long hot showers, sadly.  More 5 seconds of getting wet, turning off water, lathering up, rinsing off, repeating.  320 only has 11 gal of water, so when boondocking a lot of folks bring one or two additional 2.5 or 5 gallon jugs of water to get some extra showers (and for drinking water). 

P.S.  Was your previous tornado damage eventually fixed okay?

Imagine getting by with a 5 gallon freshwater tank I can get 2 showers per 5 gallon tank refill...3 if I am super judicious with my water use.

GaiaGoddess

rkj__ said:

Yes, you can shower without any hookups, as long as you have battery power, propane, and fresh water in the tank.

You need to have the battery connected, the propane tank open, and set the Alde to the flame (and hot water) setting. 

You will need to provide some more information if you want help diagnosing potential problems with your water pump.  Do the lights work on battery power?  When the water tank is full, and the pump is on, does it make any noise at all, like a gentle hum?  What happens when you open the faucets?

It was 2 years ago so I can't remember exactly but I know my battery was good, my lights worked for the whole 3 days I was camping, the battery lasted the whole time. I have used my water pump since then when I was camping with electricity only and then it made the humming noise and it worked just fine, but my reasoning was that maybe it needed the electricity to work BETTER than just using battery power. I can't even remember if I was able to use my faucets, I dont think so, I just remember being mad that I filled my tank and wasn't even able to get the water to come out. But I know the pump works because I have used it since then, just with electric hookups.

GaiaGoddess

DougH said:

@GaiaGoddess : Not long hot showers, sadly.  More 5 seconds of getting wet, turning off water, lathering up, rinsing off, repeating.  320 only has 11 gal of water, so when boondocking a lot of folks bring one or two additional 2.5 or 5 gallon jugs of water to get some extra showers (and for drinking water). 

P.S.  Was your previous tornado damage eventually fixed okay?

Oh yeah I have taken showers with the fresh water tank and just electric hookups, so I know how quick they have to be, and have also brought extra gallons to put more in. The only thing I was wondering about is if I can do the same without electric hookups.

Yes it's all fixed up, thanks for asking! Took them 2 months over the winter so it was nice to have it indoors during that rough winter we had. I've used it 3 times this summer so far!

Sharon_is_SAM

@GaiaGoddess, your pump and all appliances are wired for 12 volts.  Your converter steps down shore power to 12 volts.  The only thing shorepower does that the battery won’t do is allow you to run your AC or run your Alde (on electric).  And, shorepower is an endless supply of power (hopefully).

Oftentimes when someone goes to use the pump from their fresh water tank, they end up having to purge the air from the pump and plumbing which wastes a lot of water.  If I were you, if possible, hook up to city water at home, open your taps, fill the Alde  and get all the air out.  Disconnect from city water and put some water in your fresh water tank.  Turn on your pump and open a cold tap and then a hot tap and make sure your pump pressurizes.  If it works, cool.  Then dump your fresh water tank before departing and fill upon entry to your campsite.  By doing this, you will not immediately use 3 gallons of water from your fresh tank the first time you turn on your pump at the campsite.  

Luckyj

I think you need to test this at home before leaving.  Get water i. The tank, test the pump and come back here if it does not work.  Do this way before the firts time on a trip.

it will help us to help you.  

GaiaGoddess

Sharon_is_SAM said:

@GaiaGoddess, your pump and all appliances are wired for 12 volts.  Your converter steps down shore power to 12 volts.  The only thing shorepower does that the battery won’t do is allow you to run your AC or run your Alde (on electric).  And, shorepower is an endless supply of power (hopefully).

Oftentimes when someone goes to use the pump from their fresh water tank, they end up having to purge the air from the pump and plumbing which wastes a lot of water.  If I were you, if possible, hook up to city water at home, open your taps, fill the Alde  and get all the air out.  Disconnect from city water and put some water in your fresh water tank.  Turn on your pump and open a cold tap and then a hot tap and make sure your pump pressurizes.  If it works, cool.  Then dump your fresh water tank before departing and fill upon entry to your campsite.  By doing this, you will not immediately use 3 gallons of water from your fresh tank the first time you turn on your pump at the campsite.  

That's an amazing idea!! Although I need to keep my fresh water tank full because there is no way to fill it where i'm going (not a campsite, will be boondocking in nature).

ChanW

Gaia, one of the first things I did when we got our Tab, was see how long a shower I could get away with.

I timed it at @ 5 minutes, and we only have a 5 gallon fresh water tank.

It was a fairly 'luxurious' shower, on continuously.

Not too bad.

GaiaGoddess

ChanW said:

Gaia, one of the first things I did when we got our Tab, was see how long a shower I could get away with.

I timed it at @ 5 minutes, and we only have a 5 gallon fresh water tank.

It was a fairly 'luxurious' shower, on continuously.

Not too bad.

Oh i'm not worried about how long my shower will last, I'm just wondering if the shower will actually work running off just battery power. I remember when I tried it once, my water pump didn't work and I don't know why.

danp212

Short and efficient showers utilizing the water on/off switch on the shower head are the way to go when boondocking. I can usually get 4 showers each trip without refilling the fresh water tank. 

In the 2 years and 20+ trips with our T@B we have ONLY boondocked, you just have to get to know the freshwater system a bit and be comfortable with everything before heading out to the campsite.

When I first started out this was mainly just figuring out how to get all the air out of the water lines after filling up (easiest and best solution was connect to city water and run shower/sink both hot and cold for 30 seconds each or so, this pushed out air in the lines before removing city water and turning on water pump from the full tank.

If there is air in the lines it could possibly cause issues with the water pump. Lots more info about this posted in previous threads you can search for.

pthomas745

Verna pointed out to the virtues of a hand sprayer and I bought one.  Fill it with warm water, pump up the pressure, and spray away.  I use it for showering, rinsing dishes, and general cleanup.  This one holds 48 ounces, and I usually get bored spraying myself clean before I run out of water in it.  Basically, a sponge bath on steroids.  I boondocked for a week waiting for the eclipse two years ago, and didn't come close to running out of water or filling up the gray tank, either.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00002N8OB/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Sharon_is_SAM

@pthomas745, we use that one, too.  It really is multi- purpose.

Photomom

First, a couple things about the Alde. To heat water, you will need either shore power or propane, and you will also need 12v power for the Alde electronics. That means shore power OR propane plus a charged battery with the battery switch on.

Also,there really isn’t much water there to work with. Google Navy shower or look at something like this. Just warm some water on the stove first. https://www.kurgo.com/dog-travel/mud-dog-travel-shower/