Who tows with full tanks?

Partyof5 · 06-30-2012, 08:22 AM

I have a 2011 26BH and I always thought it wasn't smart/safe to tow with a full drinking water tank. What are your thoughts? I am driving cross country next week, so I am curious.
Thanks,
Jay

dalenoel · 06-30-2012, 08:27 AM

I will seldom have the FW tank full but will always have 5 to 10 gallons for personal use during the trip. If the trip is short it may only be the 5 gallons for a couple of flushes if needed.

If bringing G'kids I may need more.

tnchuck100 · 06-30-2012, 08:34 AM

Generally I keep about 5-10 gallons in the tank all the time just in case I need some water en-route for some reason. If I know I am not going to have hook ups at my destination I will fill the tank at home. I KNOW the quality of water here. I do not have much confidence in what you might get a truck stop just prior to your destination. However, the distance I am going to travel may alter this.

On another note: ALWAYS fill your fresh water tank from a filter. Small particulants (ie: that stuff that accumulates around your shower head at the house) that may get in without the filter can be a problem with the valves in RV plumbing.

dmax_83 · 06-30-2012, 08:57 AM

I almost always travel with a full fw tank. Most of the campgrounds around here have a really high iron content in their water and I prefer my 'city' water better. The only time I travel with full or nearly full black and gray tanks is if the line at the campground dump station is too long. There is a dump station near my house that seldom has a line.

kfbeaver · 06-30-2012, 09:56 AM

I also keep about 5 to 10 gallons of fw in the tank but I always dump my blk and grey tanks because they are behind my axles and it just ads to trailer sway. Empty tanks no problem.

CruizinKim · 06-30-2012, 10:55 AM

We only fill the fw tank if we are going to a local CG. We have an 86 gal tank & don't want to pull that extra weight too far.

drfife · 06-30-2012, 11:18 AM

I regularly tow with a full fresh water tank.

Often, the gray and black are nearly full while towing. I prefer to dump the tanks upon arrival at a campground. There is never a line on Friday. Plus, the motion beaks up the "stuff".

I've towed over 50,000 miles. I keep meticulous fuel records. I have found my fuel economy is not affected by having fluids in the tanks.

Denise · 06-30-2012, 02:14 PM

Depends. (Considering....for us we camp 99% with full hookups, so we don't have to worry about water or waiting in line for dumping). But for most part we have less than 1/3 of a tank when heading to a full hookup campground. Long distance travel we will have less but enough if we plan to 'boondock' at a WM/etc. When we do full day drives, we usually spend a few days at c/g before doing the next full day drive so it's no biggie for us to hook up the water

We empty our blk/grey before breaking camp. Occasionally we add ice with the little "clean" water that remains in the black tank to help with cleaning while driving down the road. We always add a few drops of dish liquid.

With our current tv, we do see about a 1/2 mpg difference when towing with less water. We also feel a slight difference when towing with all tanks full (we have a 1/2 ton).

Our home water isn't the greatest (and most c/g's) so no matter, we bring a couple of gallons of bottled water for coffee/cooking.

Are you traveling to 'sight-see' and is the whole family going along? We spent three summers with our kids years ago seeing the lower 48. Great memories! Have fun!

nylyon · 06-30-2012, 08:27 PM

I pull with full tank for 2 reasons. First, it actually rides better. Second, some of my family has sensitive skin and prefer's a "home" shower.

cekkk · 06-30-2012, 09:21 PM

I'm with the "few gallons just in case" crowd. Mainly for en route flushes.

hammer · 07-01-2012, 05:51 AM

Full tank all the time for me you never know when you might need some water. Weight is not a big deal for me

tinlizzie23 · 07-01-2012, 10:48 AM

Since we camp mostly at CGs with full hookups, my vote goes with about 1/3 full in FW tank. We live in a valley between two mountain ranges, and have to go up one or the other to get out, so it helps the truck with about 300lbs less weight to pull up the hill. Every bit helps. We have very good well water at home, and usually take containers of it to drink, and use city water for dishes, showers, etc. at the CG. When we leave, we flush out the city water with our own from the FW tank, and have never had a problem, even when the system sits for several weeks between camping trips.

McMonk · 07-04-2012, 09:54 PM

Generally empty - but it depends where we're going. We keep a 4ltr jug by the toilet for those road-side-stops, and another in the kitchen for drinking (just in case).
If we're boondocking locally, we bring in water. I also keep the fresh water tank full in the trailer when it's parked in the driveway - that'll give me 5 days of water in an emergency (west-coast living=major earthquake expected...not that I'm paranoid or anything...).

dahkota · 07-05-2012, 09:52 AM

We generally have at least 30 Gal in our FW tank (holds 90). You just never know when it might come in handy and it has no effect on our gas mileage or towing characteristics.

alaskahofferts · 07-18-2012, 07:50 PM

Here in Alaska, the few times I've used our new trailer--we prefer our own water. So full FW tank.

edatlanta · 07-19-2012, 03:51 AM

I only tow with a full fresh water tank when I'm going to a boondocking site and I don't want to have to fill with water from a gas station or some other unknown source.

grantsoo · 07-19-2012, 02:24 PM

I don't have enough experience with my trailer yet, but had lots with my 31 foot motorhome. I got about 10 mpg with it with a strategy of 1/2 full FW tank and run the gas down to 1/4 tank and then fill.
I had a problem once (couldn't fit in the gas station) and couldn't fill at 1/4 and had to run it down to 1/8. The rig handled beautiful with the less weight and didn't drop out of overdrive as often.
I then began going down to 1/8 and filling to 3/4 only. I improved my gas mileage by 20%, up to 12 mpg and it kicked out of overdrive only 10% of the time it did previously.
With my 26 footer and Suburban, I've seen wind make a 20% difference, but I haven't had it on the road enough to determine the gas difference with less fuel/water.

Grant

clutch · 07-19-2012, 07:05 PM

We only carry around 10 gallons for flushing and doing a few dishes.

wjfawb0 · 07-19-2012, 07:12 PM

It's full when going dry camping and almost empty when going to a campground with water hookups. My X17Z only has 30ish gallon tanks, so it's only a few hundred pounds with the fresh water filled.

Rustic Eagle · 07-19-2012, 08:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Partyof5

snip.....I always thought it wasn't smart/safe to tow with a full drinking water tank. What are your thoughts? I am driving cross country next week, so I am curious.
Thanks,
Jay

Jay

Well, you must have better then half your cross country trip behind you by now

I avoid towing with a full fresh water tank whenever possible. My WDH is dialed-in based on empty tanks, and my fresh water tank is located at the rear of my TT so when filled it compromises my desired tongue weight.

Bob

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