I Should Have Known it was a Problem When . . .

[Jimbow]

The counter and faucet were replaced. Later when I filled the fresh water tank for a dry camping trip I realized there wasn't a water pump and the faucet wasn't a manual pump style, it had been replaced by a residential faucet.

Basically when the previous owners told me they only camped at full hookups I should have known it would take some time, effort, and money to get it boondocking ready.

 

[theseus]

The manual pump faucets are awful in my opinion. Install a standard RV water pump. A it will allow you to use the residential faucet. They are 12v and you install them with a switch so they are boondock friendly. The real question is where to put it.

 

[Lug_Nut]

Install a standard RV water pump. .... The real question is where to put it.

As low as possible.They are terrible at creating vacuum so strive to keep the pump's inlet port gravity fed (even when the tank is nearly empty).
Oh, the pumps will work when they are higher up, but they work better when placed lower.

 

[jmkay1]

Brings back memories with mine except mine wasn't the pump but the fill hose. Apparently the prior owner with mine never used it dry camping either. They had the camper plugged in and everything worked when I looked it over. Take it dry camping on my first trip with it and absolutely nothing worked and when I tried to fill the tank all the water went to the ground. Had work to do when I took it back home to trace the 12v issue and fix the missing water hose. Good luck!

 

[kcsa75]

Later when I filled the fresh water tank for a dry camping trip I realized there wasn't a water pump and the faucet wasn't a manual pump style, it had been replaced by a residential faucet.

That sounds like something I would do except I probably wouldn't figure it out until I got to the campsite and be SOL.

 

[Jimbow]

I caught it at 9:00 pm the night before we left. So yeah, it was a problem.

 

[BBQdave]

I caught it at 9:00 pm the night before we left. So yeah, it was a problem.

Time for a 5 gallon igloo water cooler, complete with a water dispensing system

 

[Arruba]

As low as possible.They are terrible at creating vacuum so strive to keep the pump's inlet port gravity fed (even when the tank is nearly empty).
Oh, the pumps will work when they are higher up, but they work better when placed lower.

What they said is right on. If you haven’t already done it, good luck with your mod.

 

[eprovenzano]

I installed a pump in an older apache camper (wish I still had it). One of the best mods I ever did

 

[brettstoner]

I removed my old hand pump faucet, installed an electric water pump, and installed a home kitchen faucet. I then ran the pump to one handle and the other handle to city water connection. It’s a good setup and not too hard to do.

 

[eprovenzano]

I removed my old hand pump faucet, installed an electric water pump, and installed a home kitchen faucet. I then ran the pump to one handle and the other handle to city water connection. It’s a good setup and not too hard to do.

I did the same thing in a old Apache camper I had... (wish I would have kept that one)

 

[JohnoWolf]

The manual pump faucets are awful in my opinion. Install a standard RV water pump. A it will allow you to use the residential faucet. They are 12v and you install them with a switch so they are boondock friendly. The real question is where to put it.

I put a water pump into my Jayco Qwest 10X many years ago. It wasn't difficult; I located the pump in the dinette bench next to the counter stand, then ran a hose behind the counter into the dinette storage space and back. Yes, it required two hoses and a bit of finagling to get them into place. Drilled the hole for the switch and mounted it so it's easily accessed without having to open the dinette storage. Used a lighted switch so I can tell when the pump is turned on. I did leave an option to easily disconnect the pump and re-hook to the hand pump (still have the original faucet in place). That way if I choose to switch back to hand-pumping I can. If I remember correctly, I got the lowest-price ShurFlo pump I could find (1 GPM) since it was only going to be used with the sink. Not a difficult project. Getting it secured and "silenced" wasn't too bad either: I mounted it on a board with a mousepad for the vibration dampening. I was able to use my original water tank (the one for the hand-pump) so I didn't have to try to mount in a second water tank (considered it, but it would have taken up a lot of space otherwise used for storage, always premium). I bought an additional water tank/jug matched to my Qwest system instead. That way I could have one in with water, one available to refill and just switch them over. Extra water jug can go in the TV or stored if there's room in the PUP. Probably overkill for the amount I used it, but better safe ...

 

[Michael J]

I removed my old hand pump faucet, installed an electric water pump, and installed a home kitchen faucet. I then ran the pump to one handle and the other handle to city water connection. It’s a good setup and not too hard to do.

I did that mod also! Works great.

 

[GaWalker]

I did this modification to water system. It has never failed me.

Robot or human?

I removed my water tank and electric water pump when repairing my trailer after last years crash. We never cook in the trailer or used the water. Note that using my modified water system has changed my winterization procedure to:
1. Close garage door.