How To Keep The Water In Your RV Fresh And Safe To Drink (Step-by-Step)

Paying attention to a few key points will ensure that your RV trip isn’t spoiled by contaminated water. It is easy to ensure your water supply is clean and fresh by following the advice below. 

How To Keep RV Water Fresh (The Right Way)!

  1. Mix one cup of bleach to 4 gallons of water
  2. Put this solution into your empty fresh water tank and top it up with fresh water.
  3. Drain the tank by opening the faucets and running the water out and leave overnight.
  4. Fill and drain in the same way but this time it should only be fresh water.
  5. Repeat step 4 again
  6. Refill the tank with fresh water and repeat step 4 until there is no trace of bleach left
A Better Alternative?

Not everyone likes to use bleach as it can be harsh and could cause damage to the seals. A popular alternative is Happy Campers Extreme Cleaner as it is safe to use and has excellent cleaning power. 

Ideally you will need to have some mean of agitation to make it really effective. A long curvy drive or tank rinser sprayer will do just fine.

  1. Empty the tank and rinse thoroughly
  2. Into a large bucket of hot water pour the whole contents of the container.
  3. Once it is fully dissolved pour into the tank. Pour down the sink for grey water tank or into toilet for black tank.
  4. Add clean water. If you are going to be agitating only fill it half full. If not fill it right up.
  5. Using your long curvy drive or tank rinser sprayer, agitate aggressively. If you are not able to agitate the mixture leave it to soak overnight.
  6. Empty the contents and rinse thoroughly .
Don’t Forget The Sink

It is not just the tank that can cause bad odors. Sinks can become a breeding ground for bacteria which can lead to unpleasant smells drifting up from the pipework. 

Keeping the sink and pipework is actually very easy and you don’t even need to be any special products or equipment to do so. You probably have what you need in your kitchen store cupboard already. You may also like our guide on how to unclog an RV toilet.

Kitchen Cupboard Solutions

Adding a few spoonfuls of baking soda to the water when rinsing the grey tank will help to keep it smelling fresh as the baking soda neutralizes the bacteria that cause those unpleasant smells.

Pouring vinegar down the sink is also effective. Don’t worry if the vinegar smells at first. The smell will disappear when it dries and it leaves the air smelling fresher. If you don’t like the smell of vinegar in the air you can try pouring a can of soda down the sink. The bubbles in the drink work as a scouring aging to remove the build-up of old food remains around the pipe. Choose your favorite flavor to ensure a pleasing smell.

That's not all...
Preventing Build Up

Prevention is always better than cure. If unpleasant sink odors are a regular problem it might be better to take a preventative approach. As left-over food from washing dishes is usually the cause of the problem fitting a mesh filter over the sink opening will prevent larger particles from going down the drain. This should avoid the buildup of bacteria which is at the root of the smell.

Change Your Water Filter Regularly

And finally, don’t forget to change your water filter as often as recommended by the manufacturer or when-ever you notice if becoming less effective. Water filters can also harbor bacteria. By replacing the filter regular you can ensure that it doesn’t taint your water supply. If you enjoyed our article check out our in-depth reviews on our favorite RV surge protectors, best tankless water heater for your RV and the best RV water pump on the market.

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