Travel with full water tank

DC8Captain · 03-25-2016, 03:28 PM

Hello all,
Since I have a new JayFlight TT I was spending some time with the operating manual. On p8-2 there is a Warning Box that says "Never travel with full fresh, black or gray, water holding tanks." Why would that be? If the tanks can't hold the weight of a full tank then it should have been made smaller or built beefier to handle the full weight of the water. Also I always was under the impression that full tanks were less of a sway problem because there would be minimal sloshing.

On p8-3 there is a Caution Box that says "Be careful not to overfill the fresh water holding tank. It can pressurize the tank causing leakage and water damage and void the warranty. DO NOT leave the tank unattended while filling." I understand why you should not leave the tank unattended while filling. How can you over pressurize the tanks when they have overflow tubes installed? That's what overflow tubes do.

I've never run across restrictions like this in my previous TT and it didn't even have overflow tubes. I Boondock most of the time so I don't have the luxury of having a City Water connection most of the time.

Perplexed
Dale

Jagiven · 03-25-2016, 05:11 PM

Lawyer talk!

I think they do not want you driving long distances with a full tank, as it puts a lot of stress on everything. I suspect the plastic tanks on very rough roads could in theory flex and break.

Cosmik Debris · 03-25-2016, 05:13 PM

You can put water in faster than comes out, thus pressurizing. Just attend it and don't get too busy with something else.
I sometimes travel with fresh water, most times not a full load, just enough to get by. I have hauled it full for some shorter, and less rigorous road trips.

Northern Jay · 03-25-2016, 06:26 PM

I ALWAYS travel with full FWT. It is a necessity as I always boondock and even when I have the option of filling at some CG's I still take my own water. I think in all my years with a camper or TT I have had the "luxury" of full hookups 4 times. And that's over a span of 15 yrs. Full hookups have never been a requirement for our style of camping. We prefer more trees and less.people.
Happy Camping

fochman · 03-26-2016, 07:24 AM

I have traveled a lot with the tank on my X213 full when camping at state parks that do not have water hookups. It's a 26 gallon tank. I can't feel the additional weight when towing.

Seann45 · 03-26-2016, 08:35 AM

Lawyer speak... plain and simple.. but a word of caution.. even when full there is space in the water tank and the water can slosh around esp when going around a corner. In an emergency manover this could cause stability problems.

Fire_Instructor · 03-26-2016, 09:17 AM

The FWT is usually sitting high, above the framerails, and is usually supported by the framerails and flooring. Traveling with this FULL is safer that with it partially full, as a partial tank, without baffles, will "slosh" and cause surge or sway. The only thing that you are hurting with a full FWT is your mileage, as water weighs 8.3#/gallon.

On the other hand, the waste tanks are usually slung between or under the framerails. Traveling with them full will likely pull and tug at the fasteners holing them in place. Over the years, I've seen more than one traveler dealing with a waste tank that's come loose in travel. I annually make the run from the Dover NASCAR race for about 50 miles before I hit a dump station, but I always stop there to dump, before the remaining 225 miles to home!

slabat · 03-26-2016, 04:33 PM

I run with mine full periodically. But if I can run with them empty I do.

Paintinfool3 · 03-26-2016, 04:44 PM

I try to keep mine empty if I can and always empty when I leave the campground ... I would love to believe the fwt is connected in a solid enough location to hold up to the road but if I don't have to worry about that or the added weight I am better off

dzwiss · 03-27-2016, 06:21 AM

I travel with my fresh water tank as full as possible and my black and gray as empty as possible.

spoon059 · 03-27-2016, 08:13 AM

I've never been to a campground that didn't have water somewhere. If I am going to a state park without full hookups at the site, I just fill up at the water spigots that are placed throughout the park.

These are higher quality entry level campers... but they are entry level campers none the less. They weren't designed to haul full tanks of water over a 1000 mile journey. They were meant to fill up at the campground and then parked at your campsite.

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