Cartridge in water filter upon purchase

[Charlene20]

I'm wondering if the under sink water filter comes with a cartridge already in it or is the one included suppose to be put in? I have a new Redhawk and gosh I was afraid I would destroy everything trying to get it open to see if the cartridge was already in. Trying to avoid going to the "shop" to find out. Thanks for your help.

[NC Roamer]

The filter in our Greyhawk is in a compartment in the rear storage area. When I found the filter cartridge in a drawer during the PDI, the RV tech installed it. I've changed it since and it wasn't difficult. Just depressurize the water system and have some towels handy when you open the filter housing.

[GrayHawk51]

Ours was in one of the drawers where the table is. Be careful if you haven't already opened the filter as there is water in there.

[The Logans]

Hi Charlene,

Which Redhawk do you have?

In the 23XM the filter is behind a hatch (held in by 4 screws) on the right side of the toilet. It is a real pain to get out... I put several large towels under it to catch the spills!

On the 26XD, it's under the bathroom sink... much easier to get at, and there is room to put a pan under to catch the spills.

Usually, when they do the "get ready" at the dealer, they don't put the filter in, as they don't know if you are going to winterize it, sanitize it, etc. Our unit was already winterized, so they un-winterized it, flushed the water system, filled the fresh water tank, and put in the filter.

The filter is usually in a bag with the papers, in a drawer or closet. I went ahead and bought a spare filter at the dealer, as we were leaving directly from the dealership to head for Florida.

Happy and safe camping!

[hoppers4]

Whether or not you get a filter with the rig, there's a whole gamut of filters that will work. All the way from just sediment removal to 99% microbe removal. Prices reflect the additional filtering. The ones we use are mainly for chlorination removal and aren't very expensive.

[corky111111]

Hi, on our 29XK the cartridge was in one of the drawers. I believe that the filter housing is in the drivers side rear compartment on our model. We did not install it, as we use an inline filter at the city water inlet.

Charlie and Meg

[Charlene20]

Thanks yall. I have a cartridge but wasn't sure if it was a replacement or needed to be put in. I found the filter under the bathroom sink so will give it a whirl and get it done.
Charlene

[Griswald One]

Hey Charlene,

It will be your original so if you want to use it then you need to put it in... I never installed mine... seems to me a fabric filter that gets only occasional water flow will be an invitation for bacteria growth. Would be different for full timers.

[norty1]

Mine was on a plastic bracket under the kitchen sink. Also found a grey bypass hose in place.

[Charlene20]

Thanks for all the feedback. Since I'm not a full timer YET the bacteria thing makes sense and a little worrisome. I may wait till I'm on the road full time or at least more!!

[Trippers]

When winterizing spent an hour replacing the under galley sink filter with the bypass hose, never again. Simply now use an inline easy to replace filter at the water hook up.

[The Logans]

Hiya Charlene,

If you leave your unit connected all year, as we do, you won't have a problem with things growing in the water filter. It gets changed each year after de-winterizing, and the whole system gets sanitized prior to putting the new filter in.

We use the Redhawk a LOT during the year... staying in it during a power failure, using it as a guest house, grabbing a cold drink out of the fridge during yard work, and of course, camping, etc. So the water system get plenty of use.

Fortunately, where the filter is in the 26XD makes it easy to change... the 23XM filter was a bugger to change!