clay Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 very well put kadavi. we must remember when most of us were guys and galls we drank water which came directly to us via the good old lead mains. as has been said we all live in a far more steralised world nowa days and are becoming less resistant to these germs. not my words , picked it up on discovery channel last week. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kedavi Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 Clay, You may well still be drinking water delivered in lead pipes - there are still miles of old lead mains still in use. The water companies dose orthophosphoric acid at the treatment works as a sort of 'corrosion inhibitor' to prevent the lead from the distribution network pipes being liberated by the action of the chlorine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alf Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 clay - 2009-09-07 7:20 PM trooper - 2009-09-06 7:49 PM Hi Clay, you may be slightly wrong when you say basins are on the main, for years the cold to the basin was teed of the cold to the bath as its near, and is therefore from the tank, having been retired for 9 years I dont know what is done now.hi trooper, on occasions i have come across this . i did mention that there were times when things altered. but in my 40 years in the trade i personally found that the vast majority of baths, basins etc. are connected to mains even the old lead. it may vary in your area as i have no reason to doubt you have seen differently. so i think the best thing we can do is meet up on a camp site somewhere , open a few tinnies and while away the time boring our other halves chewing the fat over plumbing matters. cheers mate (lol) (lol) Trooper most now have combi boiler and both cold and hot are mains fed water. Clay in the majority of older houses the bathroom water is low pressure ie fed from the cold water header tank mainly to ensure both water taps at the same pressure of course this can vary by individual plumbers Alf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
libby Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 I don't think anyone has mentioned "when emptying the tank after a journey, or for a winter layup". It is adviseable to open all taps so leaving a throughway for air to pass. Last year I forgot this and the shower head accumalated a film of brown slime. Tanks, I remove the bung and clean the whole interior dry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malc d Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 This is an interesting debate, which comes up from time to time. It always reminds me of the 'smoking' debate. " I've been doing it all my life and it never did me any harm" comes to mind. As always, it's up to the individual to assess risk, if any - and decide for themselves. :-( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clay Posted September 8, 2009 Share Posted September 8, 2009 alf - 2009-09-07 8:30 PM clay - 2009-09-07 7:20 PM trooper - 2009-09-06 7:49 PM Hi Clay, you may be slightly wrong when you say basins are on the main, for years the cold to the basin was teed of the cold to the bath as its near, and is therefore from the tank, having been retired for 9 years I dont know what is done now.hi trooper, on occasions i have come across this . i did mention that there were times when things altered. but in my 40 years in the trade i personally found that the vast majority of baths, basins etc. are connected to mains even the old lead. it may vary in your area as i have no reason to doubt you have seen differently. so i think the best thing we can do is meet up on a camp site somewhere , open a few tinnies and while away the time boring our other halves chewing the fat over plumbing matters. cheers mate (lol) (lol) Trooper most now have combi boiler and both cold and hot are mains fed water. Clay in the majority of older houses the bathroom water is low pressure ie fed from the cold water header tank mainly to ensure both water taps at the same pressure of course this can vary by individual plumbers Alfat the risk of boring the both of you i have with due respect been in the trade over 40years and i stand by my statement as i have said if you see a kon tiki on site flying a chelsea flag (the wifes not mine) call by and we can chat about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trooper Posted September 8, 2009 Share Posted September 8, 2009 I do know a little about plumbing, the last year in business my company sent out over 4000 invoices. As has been said, quite rightly, there are many variations on systems. One thing that has not been mentioned is the danger of storing hot water at too low a temperature, there can be a build up of legionella bacteria which can only be caught by breathing in the water vapour while showering, just a thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel B Posted September 8, 2009 Share Posted September 8, 2009 So in addition to only drinking bottled water, we're all now supposed to take cold showers! 8-) ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trooper Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 Very Good :-> :-> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tracker Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 clay - 2009-09-08 6:54 PM (the wifes not mine) call by and we can chat about it. So whose wife is she then Clay - anyone we know? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alf Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 Quote ( at the risk of boring the both of you i have with due respect been in the trade over 40years and i stand by my statement as i have said if you see a kon tiki on site flying a chelsea flag (the wifes not mine) call by and we can chat about it. ) Clay with due respect to you I have upwards of 50 odd years man and boy in the trade as you call it and the last 15 covering most of the National Housebuilders and Insurance Company's emergency service from the Midlands to Norhumberland with a 15 plumbers and I stand by my opinion in the area that I live and trade but you will note I did say it vary's plumber to plumber area to area. All bathrooms used to be low-pressure water i.e. fed from water tank to minimise water noise in the night and allow for better mixing of water at taps etc. (No noisy flushing toilets) In 1999 When the Water Supply Regulations came in to force there was a recommendation that the old fashioned way of providing the only Drinking Water tap in the kitchen be revised but recommended that in rooms containing a toilet drinking water be provided from a protected cold water storage tank. It’s a boring subject so if you wish to carry further do by PM please. This is not what the OP asked about either. Regards Alf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peedee Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 Some interesting views. I have always filled a two litre bottle from a tap for drinking water except in some areas where the taste has been so foul, over chlorinated or brackish, that I have purchased bottled water. I have used the tank water for everything else, even to clean teeth. I used to annually clean the tank with Puriclean diluted to the right proportions and flushed through but every couple of years the seals on my water pump used to fail. After the third failure, Whale suggested I stopped cleaning my tank. I did and the waterpump has now been running very well for over three years. Perhaps I should not have run the Puriclean solution through the system but I no longer bother to clean my tank or system peedee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trooper Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 Could'nt agree more Alf, but we must remember, pressurised systems and combis have made big inroads into domestic plumbing, with all there own problems, but the water is always safer to drink and clean teeth. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Momma Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 Have had my current van for 5 years and have just (1 week ago) cleaned out fresh water tank for very first time. I have always emptied tank at the end of each trip and filled with fresh at start of each trip. Never had a problem and have always used the tank water to brush teeth. When in Spain used non-potable water in tank for washing up but not for doing teeth. used Bottled water for drinking. having had non-potable water in tank needed to clean out before re-filling with potable water. I used Milton Steralising fluid, left in tank for few hours then flushed through all taps. Then completely filled with fresh water again and left for couple of hours and then emptied. Last week went away and filled fresh water tank, used it for hot drinks and for cleaning teeth, no problems and no after taste. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trooper Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 once again, common sense rules o/k Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted September 11, 2009 Share Posted September 11, 2009 Big Momma - 2009-09-10 8:49 PM having had non-potable water in tank needed to clean out before re-filling with potable water. I used Milton Steralising fluid, left in tank for few hours then flushed through all taps. Then completely filled with fresh water again and left for couple of hours and then emptied. Milton is a bit risky it attacks stainless steel and the Truma water tank is stainless. On another thread someone burnt a hole through their sink, they had left a leaking bottle of Milton in it. Truma recommend white wine vinegar to clean the system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Porky Posted September 11, 2009 Share Posted September 11, 2009 In addition to all the good advice why not fit a water filter. We used one for years on our cruising boat and believe me marina water can be of very dubious source. It is essential to change the cartridges every 6 months, but then you have clean drinkable water all the time. No need for buying expensive water or keeping large containers. Make sure the one you buy though filters out ALL micro organisms. We now have one, Nature Pure by General Ecology (American technology) in our van and just would not be without it. Have you heard of all the people who end up with jippy tummy on a Nile cruise and say but I didn`t drink the water, or have ice in my drink. Ask them if they had coffee and I`ll bet they say yes. Water needs to be well boiled for the bugs to be killed, not just brought to the boil. I suspect there is a minimum time which someone else will be able to advise on. Roy Fuller Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Momma Posted September 13, 2009 Share Posted September 13, 2009 lennyhb - 2009-09-11 9:23 AM Milton is a bit risky it attacks stainless steel and the Truma water tank is stainless. On another thread someone burnt a hole through their sink, they had left a leaking bottle of Milton in it. Truma recommend white wine vinegar to clean the system. Lenny - thanks for that bit of advice did not know it attacked Stainless Steel. Assumed if it was good enough to clean out babies bottles it would be good enough for the Motor Home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
le canichot depang Posted September 14, 2009 Share Posted September 14, 2009 Sorry to join in late, but only just back from holiday. Our van has a filter installed so that when we fill it from the mains, it is filtered initially, then when in Europe we use a "brita jug" to re-filter water for drinking either cold or in hot drinks, this seems to work well with no jippy tummies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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