dick,

we always leave for a trip with a full tank of fresh water that we
know to be safe and clean just in case the water at our destination is
polluted (that happened to us in new mexico) or clean but bad tasting.
having a full tank of fresh water also enables us to be spontaneous in
terms of where we go and how long we stay when we get there.  all of
that is mute if the source of the water to be placed in your tank at
the start of your trip is bad. municipal water systems have to meet
state and federal standards regarding cleanliness and safety so i
wouldn't worry so much about those.  the few times we've had problems
have been with private well systems.  

if the sign in your rented RV meant city water in general then it was
probably intended for the protection of the rental company...although
i can't imagine what they're trying to protect themselves from.  if
the sign was referring to the city water in the town you rented the RV
in, then it might have been for your protection.

we've never been forced to drink bottled water and we don't buy it.
the wife of friends that we camp with insists on nothing BUT bottled
water..she says it tastes better than tap water.  so, other than the
cleanliness/spontaneous issues, it boils down (no pun intended) to a
matter of personal preference.

so tell us, how did you and your wife enjoy the RV?  where did you go
and what did you see?  was this a one-time thing or are you thinking
of buying an RV?

73,
rich, n9dko

Unless there is a sign in the RV park saying "Don't drink the water", and
there never has been, we hook up the hose and use the water.

We drink bottled water, because we like it better, but we use the water
where ever we are for coffee, showers, brushing teeth, cooking, etc. When
we've run out of bottled water we drink the city water.

We use the water at the campground but for coffee, glasses of wawa and
icecubes we filter it through a Brita that we keep in the fridge.

Cheers, Joe

I think a rental RV is a good place to use bottled water, as you have NO
IDEA how much care the previous renters took with their water supply,
and once a tank and pipes are contaminated it takes LOTS of work and
care to clean it.

We always drink the water from our RV tank...but we also use care where
we fill it, preferring treated city water when it is available, and
ALWAYS ask if the available water is potable before filling if there is
no sign.  ONCE the answer was no, and we filled elsewhere.  That whole
town bought bottled water!!  It's VERY good we asked.  We've never had
any inkling of a problem drinking our tank water in 4 years....

HTH,
Barrie B

In our RV we run all incoming water through a filter. Nothing really special
but one that helps remove some contaminants and tastes.
In our last RV we also had a 'purification system' going through one tap in
the galley. This filter took out bacteria etc.
That combination left us with no tummyaches.
I am installing a purification system in the new RV.

mike

DS> My wife and I rented an RV for the first time a couple of weeks ago.
DS> There was a sign in the RV saying to only drink bottled water and not
DS> the city water. We chose to ignore that sign thinking (hoping) that it
DS> was just for the rental company's protection and not for ours. What do
DS> you more experienced RV people do?

Because it is a rental, the fresh water system needs to be sanitized in
order to be sure that it is safe for drinking. The rental company is not
doing that.

JPinOH
Jon Porter <jporterDropthis@netwalk.com> Wed, 01 Jun 2005 17:35:05 -0400

Rental units water tank/systems cleanliness may be suspect.   Our personal
RV..well, I know the system has been taken care of but rentals ??

Before I used a rental, I'd dump all the water in the tanks/lines, then put
a gallon of bleach into the tank, and then add another gallon or 2 of clean
water and then run the pump thru the system/lines for a while, then drain
the whole thing again.
We've stayed at probably 20 different RV parks and have never had a problem
with their water.

R