Water tank cleaning and refreshing 100 gallons

[mitchellg2241]

RV stored in Florida for two years with Well water in tank (100 Gallons). Want to refresh and clean out house water tank. Read in an RV book:

1. Drain water tank completely refill halfway with clean water

2. Mix 1/4 of a cup of household bleach for every 15 gallons of tank capacity in a container with a gallon or two of clean water.

3. Pour this mixture into the water tank and top off the water tank with fresh water.

4. Drive the rig around the block a few times to mix the solution.

5. Pump the bleached water out of every faucet, at least a quart. Run the water through the hot water tank thoroughly.

6. Let water stand for a few hours. Then drain the entire tank including the hot water tank.

7. To remove bleach odor mix 1/2 cup of baking soda with a gallon of water and pour into the fresh water tank. Circulate that water through all faucets and hot water tank.

8. Let sit for a few days drive the rig around the block a few times then drain the system and fill with fresh water.

 

Any other ideas or any corrections to what I just wrote would be greatly appreciated thank you,

Mitchell Goldman

Monaco Diplomat 40' 2001

[KevinH]

If you have any built-in water filters you should remove them Before adding the bleach.

[RVhorod]

Only addition, remove any in line water filters.  Install new ones after sanitizing system.

[Adam_C]

A half tank is excessive.  Last time I did mine I used 10 gallons of bleach solution for three sinks, a shower, and an ice maker.

[mitchellg2241]

Also is it bad to leave the bleach solution in the tank for a day or two?

[jacwjames]

41 minutes ago, Adam_C said:

A half tank is excessive.  Last time I did mine I used 10 gallons of bleach solution for three sinks, a shower, and an ice maker.

This is what I do, I'll rill the tank with enough water for the pump to pick up and then run each faucet both hot and cold water to push the solution through.  I'll run the hot water a little longer to circulate the solution in the tank.  

[Guest Ray Davis]

Use plain bleach not scented or any other additives.  I don't leave it in for 1 or 2 days, I don't know if it will damage plastics etc. or infuse a taste or smell I can't get rid of.    I don't think it matters very much if you do 1/2 tank or more especially if you drive it some which I like to do.

 

[Tom Cherry]

your formula does not meet the Parts Per Million level for sanitizing a a home and/or a well system.  Most public boards of health or the various federal and state agencies recommend 250 PPM.  To achieve that you need a CUP of bleach for every 15 gallons of water.  I checked a few references….some locales will let you get by with 200. The Clorox site is lower.  If you read the copy and paste from my Monaco manual below, it is pretty straight forward.  If you multiple the tank volume by 0.13….that is the OUNCES of bleach needed.

Next is the time.  You need a a free chlorine residual for about 4 - 8 hours….  You run the system until you get a bleach smell from every faucet or outlet….including icemaker and W/D. A quart is excessive,,…but it will work.

Water Filter.  Monaco is saying….i THINK….remove the filter housing….don’t bleach it.  I have a short bypass hose that Monaco provided. I remove the winged fittings from the filter and then install the short bypass line.  I do that for winterization also.  I would not put the bleach into the icemaker…disconnect the line….and manually open and flush it 

 You need to probably dilute the bleach in a 5 gallon bucket….maybe use a 1/4 th and fill it up and then use a hose and funnel and pour into the tank.  Do that 4 times.  You do not want to dump all the bleach in at once.  If you filled the tank about 1/3 full…then put in say half the amount the the rest at 2/3.  The final filling of the tank will do the mixing.  I would FILL THE ENTIRE SYSTEM.

As far as leaving the baking soda in…your call.  

One thing that would work….assuming you have a hose available.  This also assumes you can dump “chlorinated water” on a driveway or street.  Grass will not like it. Drop the entire tank volume.  Then hook up your hose and use the city supply to purge the plumbing.  Then mix up the neutralization solution of sodium bicarbonate in the fresh tank and then purge the plumbing ….the quart is a good rule.  Top off the fresh tank and let it sit to suit you.

There was a lot of debate over the years on the Yahoo site.  I did a lot of research and the Monaco information is correct.

Good Luck

Disinfecting Fresh Water

Disinfecting the water system with household bleach protects against bacteriological or viral contamination from common water sources. Read the following instructions completely before attempting to disinfect the fresh water system.

When to disinfect the fresh water system:

 If the motorhome is new.

 If the motorhome has been in storage.  Every three months during use.

To Disinfect the Water System:

1. Remove water filter element and re- install the filter housing.

2. Drain the fresh water tank. Close drain Valves when empty

 

3. Prepare a disinfecting solution using

one of the following methods:

 Combine one gallon of water and 1⁄4 cup

of household bleach. Use 1 gallon of this solution for every 15 gallons of tank capacity.

 Multiply tank capacity (in gallons) by 0.13. The result is the amount (in ounces) of household bleach to pour into fresh water tank. These methods will yield a

50 PPM (parts per million) disinfecting solution in the water system that will act as a quick-kill dosage for harmful bacteria, viruses and slime-forming organisms. Concentrations higher than 50 PPM may damage the water lines and/or tanks.

4. Pour the solution into the gravity fill opening.

5. Top off tank with fresh water. 6. Turn on the water pump in the

motorhome.

7. Open each faucet and run water until

you smell a distinct bleach odor. 8. Turn off all faucets and allow the

system to stand for four hours. 9. Drain the fresh water tank of the

mixed solution.

10. Fill the water tank with fresh water.

Thoroughly flush hot and cold lines with fresh water. Repeat this process until the chlorine bleach smell is no longer detected in the water.

11. Install new water filter.

INFORMATION:

Household bleach is 5.25% Sodium Hypochlorite. Higher concentrations increase PPM Ratio

 

[96 EVO]

On 10/6/2022 at 6:00 AM, mitchellg2241 said:

Also is it bad to leave the bleach solution in the tank for a day or two?

You should be fine if your Dip doesn't have a Aquahot system.

The bleach will start reacting with the copper tubing in the AH, so you don't want to leave it in that for an extended time.

[Steven P]

Just remember to thoroughly rinse all bleach out before your wife washes her hair.  Luckily my friend's marriage is still going strong after that. 😆

[Paul J A]

Use a NON chlorine bleach.

[mitchellg2241]

With all my reading I've never seen anything talking about use only non chlorine bleach please explain what the problem would be.

[Tom Cherry]

One of about 10 articles out there.  

https://www.grove.co/blog/non-chlorine-oxygen-bleach

there MAY be some Non Chlorine or Hydrogen Based “bleaches” out there that would work,…all the ones I read and skimmed say no or maybe.

In addition, the accepted standard by most Boards of Health and the CDC is to use a chlorinated bleach for disinfecting potable water supplies such as wells, as well as the potable systems in a hime or commercial building.  There are no “PPM” calculators for a non chlorinated bleach.   From  a “clean water store” site

Peroxide is not a good disinfectant in water, compared with chlorine. If you have bacteria present, you might want to use chlorine instead of peroxide, or use the peroxide to oxidize iron and sulfur odors, and install a UV sterilizer or bacteria filter as a final stage.

OK….finally from the “Bulk Peroxide” site….

How To Purify Water Using Hydrogen Peroxide – Drinking Water

The second category we’re talking about is drinking water. This is probably the most important category as you will be ingesting this water, meaning it should be completely safe and clear.

Even the slightest of impurity in drinking water can prove to be detrimental. Therefore, you should be extra cautious in this regard! Moreover, this is why you should opt for perhaps the best antimicrobial agent out there! (Edit note….are they implying use a Chlorine based product?)

What You Need

For this method, you should use 3% hydrogen peroxide. Higher concentrations may affect the pH of water itself and cause irritation or burning sensations when you drink it. DO NOT use chlorine for this method as it and its by-products are toxic to our body’s internal environment. You will require:

• 1 liter of tap water
• 1 mL of 3% hydrogen peroxide

How to Use

When going about this approach, you should be extremely cautious of the concentration you are using. Always use it on a small sample first. In the case, it is not drinkable and you attempted it on a large scale, the water will not remain viable any longer.

Pour the 3% hydrogen peroxide into the liter of tap water. Hydrogen peroxide is an extremely fast-acting disinfectant so it should not take it long to clear the pollutants found in the water.

Once you see there is no active reaction taking place, you can try it out to see if it is drinkable and should be done on a larger scale or if adjustments need to be made.

BUT….if you buy 3% H2O2 at Walgreens, it says “use as a mouth wash” or you find “Food Grade” H2O2….then you would need 12 -15 OZ or maybe a pint.  It would need to be mixed in the tank and then immediately dispersed into the plumbing as the reaction is quick.  Chlorine, whether in drinking water or in a swimming pool depends on the “free chlorine” available or the “residual”.  The Formulas for that were posted earlier.  Once you achieve that concentration, you circulate or mix and allow the free chlorine to kill or destroy (oxidize) any bacteria.  Obviously a swimming pool doesn’t require the same PPM or free Chlorine residual…..but you will not “swim” nor ingest the 50 PPM that the agencies or CDC recommend.  You flush it out….and then use the sodium bicarbonate to neutralize (chemically) any chlorine residual (I may be wrong, but it is technically a mild, very mild HCl or Hydrochloric acid…).

 Then you are good to go….but don’t rinse your hair in it….sorry…but that was a great example. That brought back a tale.  I can tell you from a costly “experiment” that two chemists, not me….THANK GOD…did to descale a commercial cooling system that went awry when they left early to go fishing and forgot to tell the maintenance employees how to neutralize and flush the system.  We had to replace about $100k in piping and water cooled injection molding dies and the molding department was down for 2 weeks.  I later inherited those two….after the fallout….which lead to a managerial change….and I then had to keep making more repairs….as there was hidden and collateral damages throughout the entire operation.  These guys were synergistic and brilliant….but when they messed up, it was almost nuclear…..

That’s my take….options may exist…just a matter of standardization….which is what Monaco and the agencies recommend…l would stick to bleach and know the concentration and follow Monaco’s guidance….

Good Luck….

 

 

[Frank McElroy]

On 10/9/2022 at 10:29 AM, Steven P said:

Just remember to thoroughly rinse all bleach out before your wife washes her hair.  Luckily my friend's marriage is still going strong after that. 😆

That's a great comment.  Wow - your friend must have over achieved in the chlorination of his system - sometimes more is not better and the unintended consequences can lead to a very bad performance review.  As the saying goes, dilution is the solution.  So rinse rinse rinse all that chlorine out when the job is done.

[Steven P]

7 hours ago, Frank McElroy said:

That's a great comment.  Wow - your friend must have over achieved in the chlorination of his system - sometimes more is not better and the unintended consequences can lead to a very bad performance review.  As the saying goes, dilution is the solution.  So rinse rinse rinse all that chlorine out when the job is done.

I should have mentioned he drives a Tiffin. 😜😜

[mitchellg2241]

Thanks for all the help.

I ended up using my original formula which I got out of a few books seems to of worked fine.

Again thank you for all your responses.

Mitchell Goldman

Monaco Diplomat 40' 2001

[Tuck2562]

I recently bought a 2005 Windsor with a hose reel. Where is the gravity feed for the water tank or how do I put the Clorox in?

2005 Monaco Windsor 

[Guest Ray Davis]

2 hours ago, Tuck2562 said:

I recently bought a 2005 Windsor with a hose reel. Where is the gravity feed for the water tank or how do I put the Clorox in?

2005 Monaco Windsor 

Jim,  On my 03 Windsor I have a basement door on the driver's side towards the front, there I can access one end of the tank.  It has a cap that screws onto the water tank for gravity filling.

I usually screw a hose onto the water connection in my wet bay.  I hold the other end up while pouring bleach into the hose then connect it to another hose attached to the pedestal water.  I use 2 hoses so I don't have to lower the hose allowing my bleach to run back out.  If you prefer you can pour bleach directly into the tank.  I like to have plenty of water in the tank for proper dilution.    Use bleach without any additives,  the smell & taste of additives are harder to remove than bleach is.                 Flush the system afterward.

[Tom Cherry]

3 hours ago, Ray Davis said:

Jim,  On my 03 Windsor I have a basement door on the driver's side towards the front, there I can access one end of the tank.  It has a cap that screws onto the water tank for gravity filling.

I usually screw a hose onto the water connection in my wet bay.  I hold the other end up while pouring bleach into the hose then connect it to another hose attached to the pedestal water.  I use 2 hoses so I don't have to lower the hose allowing my bleach to run back out.  If you prefer you can pour bleach directly into the tank.  I like to have plenty of water in the tank for proper dilution.    Use bleach without any additives,  the smell & taste of additives are harder to remove than bleach is.                 Flush the system afterward.

My suggestion is that you read your manual or any Monaco manual and get the proper formula and concentration.  This has been posted here before.  If you over concentrate with bleach, you run the risk of damaging the rubber seals and components in the plumbing system.  Under concentrate, then there is not enough free chlorine residual or radical to kill the bacteria.  The instructions are simple. If not in your manual, download the 2009 Camelot  manual from Monaco and follow the directions.

OPPS….no need to download.  Forgot how old this topic is.  Scroll up and I copied and pasted the Monaco instructions.

Good Luck.

[Tuck2562]

I’ve read the manual and all the previous postings. I understand the process and the formulas. All I asked was how to get the chlorine in the tank when you have a hose reel. Thanks Ray, your post was helpful. 

[Gweedo]

I used PUROGENE and went through the hose reel because I don't know if I have an access.  I mixed the solution in a 5-gallon bucket and used a submergible pump which has a hose fitting.  Then I ran clean water through the reel right away to clean the hose.  

[throgmartin]

I always hesitate to respond to treating fresh water tanks as in the past many thought I was full of crap or my chemistry was off. But few know that I am licensed by the State of Michigan to treat municipal drinking water systems and for several years treated 17 million gallons a day for the city of Lansing. I wont bore you with all the chemistry as I hated chemistry classes. I loved the microbio, physics and fluid dynamic's classes but hated chemistry with a passion. Stoichiometry was not my friend.

Tom hit on something that is important to remember - Free Chlorine. What this means is how much residual chlorine you have after treating the bugs in a water system . Our prescribed method was to maintain just a small amount of free chlorine after treatment. It got real complicated and the chemistry was atrocious to arrive at a minimal free chlorine at the ends of a water system that was a dozen miles or so from the plant.

With a coach fresh water system you have to remember you are treating a " closed system " and not a freshly drilled well or swimming pool. With that in mind, this is my prescribed method for " SHOCK " treating your fresh water tank.

1.) Drain the water tank. 2.) Partially fill the tank and then add one cup of clorox bleach which is approximately 6 % chlorine. 3.) Fill the tank up all the way and allow it to sit overnight. 4.) Drain the tank the next morning. 5.) Fill it all the way up again. 6.) Drain the tank and fill it up again and you are done.

Points to remember - You do not need to drive the coach around to slosh water inside the tank. Just the flow of water going into the tank will distribute the bleach. By letting it sit overnight the chlorine has time to attack and destroy the bugs ( bacteria loads ) completely. It takes time for chlorine to find the bugs and kill them. Filling it afterwards and draining it will provide you with fresh water and prevent the water from being heavily chlorinated. You have to remember that toxic and carcinogenic byproducts ( mainly THM's ) are produced when chlorine is added to regular drinking water at heavy concentrations. This is why I recommend draining your tank and refilling your tank and draining it again.

A couple foot notes here: Did you know that 1 1/2 teaspoons of bleach ( 5.25% Sodium Hypochlorite ) will treat 100 gals of drinking water with a free chlorine of 1 PPM after treatment ? Did you know heavy concentrations of chlorine can mix with organics in drinking water and produce THM"s ( Trihalomethanes ) ?  Do you know what THM's are ? Google it. You do not want high concentrations of THM's in your drinking water. And lastly, this is for Steve Parvin - Did you know I did my microbio classes at the real MSU ? Michigan State University.......................... Not Mississippi State where you and that other Bulldog ( Scotty Hutto ) went to school. Since you are a Vet you had to have had a bunch of chemistry. I suggest you go back and revisit some of that to arrive at the proper dosing levels for chlorine. My chemistry days are over and I wont revisit them again. Did I mention I hate chemistry ? I will pass the torch to you Steve to educate the masses on chemistry. I will stick with Bernoulli's principle. I always liked that Italian. LOL.  🙂

[Steven P]

@throgmartingreat info!  I like the part about not driving around to slosh the tank.  What about running the hot and cold water til you smell it from the faucets?  I've done that in the past.

Personally, I was more into biology and anatomy, physiology than chemistry. Although I did enjoy the proper mixture of hops and barley.  Oddly enough, for whatever reason, you just gave me flashbacks of seeing comedian Ron White give his view of anal bleaching during his show.  Later that night I pitched to him he may be onto something for Hollywood vets and their pets.  Not sure what that ratio of bleach and water would be.  🤔 

🤣🤣

Edited March 20, 2023 by Steven P

[Guest Ray Davis]

3 hours ago, throgmartin said:

many thought I was full of crap or my chemistry was off.

I never thought about your chemistry being off.   😁    Sorry Chris, I couldn't help myself.    😇

[96 EVO]

Just did mine the other day, but only left the high chlorine mix in for 4hrs.

I've read the copper loop in the Aqua hot doesn't like highly chlorinated water sitting in it for very long.

Regardless, my tank only get's good chlorinated city water so, unlikely any bugs.