By Cheri Sicard
When camping without the benefit of hookups, there are tips for every room in your RV that can help extend the amount of time you can spend off-grid before having to come in and reboot.
As I am generally not a fan of staying in RV parks any more than is absolutely necessary, I have accumulated quite a few boondocking tips over the years.
It’s a bummer to discover a great off-grid boondocking spot only to have to leave prematurely because you ran out of water, or because your holding tanks were getting full. While the 40 to 60 gallons of water your RV tank carries might seem like a lot, you can go through it mighty quickly if you are not careful.
I had one friend who was so obsessed with having enough water, he installed an extra water tank in his truck. While that is always an option, these tips are far simpler, easier, and less expensive.
Of course, if you are camping in a place with public restrooms, showers, or even vault toilets, use those as much as is practical. However, here I’m going to assume those are not options.
RV bathroom tips for maximum boondocking time
- Collapsible water storage jugs make it easy for you to cart 10 to 20 gallons or more of extra water along without the hassle and expense of installing an extra water tank in the truck, like my friend did. Fill up just before heading out to your remote spot. When empty, fold up and store until next time.
- Easy-to-install oxygenating showerheads are a game-changer. They provide increased water pressure for a better shower while using FAR less water than traditional showerheads. Be sure to choose one with a switch that lets you shut the water off while you soap up. Oxygenics is a popular brand.
- This is probably the most common of all RV bathroom tips, but it’s a classic for a reason: Take navy showers to conserve water.
- Beyond the navy shower, turn off the taps and stop the water from running when brushing teeth, scrubbing hands, waiting for hair conditioner to soak in, etc.
- Collect the water that runs while waiting for hot water to come out of the faucet. Use for cleaning, washing, or for toilet flushing.
- Using less soap, shampoo, and hair conditioner when showering or washing equals less rinsing, less fresh water used, and less water in the gray tank. Use ONLY what you need to get clean.
- Pick up an inexpensive solar shower or two and fill them with water just before heading out to your boondocking location. Set the bags out in the sun and you will have hot water for 2-3 extra showers per bag. By showering outside you’ll also save putting extra water down the gray water tank. For those who like privacy, you can pick up a portable shower stall pop-up tent to go with your solar shower.
- Use a leave-in hair conditioner instead of the usual kind that needs to be rinsed out.
- Shower less often! It may sound odd to a society conditioned to shower each and every day, but according to no less an authority than Harvard Health, it’s not at all clear that a daily shower accomplishes much. In fact, daily showering might even be detrimental to your health!
- Rinse-free body wash or bathing wipes can keep your face and body feeling clean and fresh between showers.
- Dry shampoo can save the need to wash your hair for several days longer than you ordinarily would. Spray on then brush out to clean shiny hair. Not Your Mother’s is my personal favorite brand.
- Disinfecting cleaning wipes will save you water when cleaning counters, walls, etc.
- The less toilet paper that goes down the toilet, the less water you need for flushing (and the easier your next trip to the dump station will be). I like to keep biodegradable dog poop clean up bags to deposit soiled paper in before throwing in the trash.
- If you are boondocking out in the middle of nowhere, especially with a big group or family, take a cue from tent campers and use an outdoor camp toilet in addition to your RV’s bathroom. Check this one out. The same pop-up tent you picked up for outdoor showers also makes a good private outdoor bathroom.
Do you have more RV bathroom tips that extend your off-grid boondocking time? Be sure to drop your favorites in the comments below. Happy boondocking, everyone!
##RVDT2319
We do not Boondock, but we do camp without hookups in developed campgrounds. I got tired of catching water from the shower for morning coffee. I installed a switched solar 12V water pump to pump hot water into the hot water line while the shower head is shut off and the hot and cold shower valves are open, so the hot water flows to the shower and cold water flows back into the water heater in a loop. The pump only needs to run 10-seconds to have hot water at the shower.
When we boondock it takes almost a gallon of hot water to reach the faucets so we turn off the water heater and heat water on the stove for dishwashing and bucket “showers”. Yes, really can get clean with less than a gallon of water in a bucket! We also keep a plastic ice cream type bucket in the sinks to catch water for the toilet and for hand washing.
I started boondocking this season on November 13th the trailer has not moved from my favorite spot in all this time. I have a 60 gallon fresh water bladder and use an old RV water pump to transfer the water, I have a 45 gallon waste water tank with a macerator pump. Doing this is easier than packing up the RV for a trip to the dump station. Been doing this for over 15 years now.
We use a “Diaper Jeanie” as my wife has an autoimmune disease that requires frequent flushes. This cuts down on black tank consumption considerably. Also there is no smell and it doesn’t take up much room.
I have a similar problem and use rhe same solution.
Great tips! Thank you!
We use a pump up sprayer for showering, 3 gallons of water goes a long way when using low pressure. The foaming nozzle is used to prevent that water stinging when you get to the end of the container. It can also be used when washing and rinsing the dishes.
These garden sprayers are also good for putting out campfires with less water, and if you have to clean mud or dust off your RV or its windows, super efficient.
My mother and her sisters did not have a shower available until they went off to college.
For me, a visit to the grandparents meant being placed in a porcelain pan in the kitchen sink, supplied with cold water piped from the spring and hot water from the wood stove.
Somehow we all survived.
In the RV, I use “Clean Ones” disposable food handling gloves. Costco has 500 for a couple dollars.
Combined with baby wipes, the nether regions are kept clean and I don’t even have to wash my hands because they have been in gloves.
When finished, I turn the glove inside out around the baby wipe and deposit in the trash can.
(continued)
Humans have three zones that can start to smell. By wiping these regularly with a baby wipe or two, the need for actual washing is greatly reduced .
Gloves and baby wipes are more solid waste, but the water savings are significant.
When needed, an oil change pan with hot water from the stove provides a quick bath with minimal water use.
You can buy another knife valve and attach it to your sewer outlet. Leave this valve closed and open both gray and black valves, By doing this your waste tanks will equalize in level so that the gray tank doesn’t fill nearly as fast.
Add a plastic tub to your kitchen sink and empty it outside on a tree etc. This saves gray tank filling up so quickly
Thank you, Cheri! DW and I both grew up on the country using well-water. We never knew they were “navy” showers. It was just the way we were taught to bathe. In any case, they DO save water. Thank you for the tips and tricks! Safe travels. 🙂
Some new RVs come with the Shower Miser shower water recycling system. It sends the cold water in the shower water pipe back to the fresh water tank until the water gets hot. A pipe changes color when the hot water arrives.
Amazon has a Shower Miser kit for $70 if you want to DIY it on your RV.
what wasnt discussed much was your stay is only as long as your grey and black tank stay NOT full. all the tips were great but you can only stay as long as those tanks dont get full. im not a huge fan of boondocking because i dont like to worry about the tanks. i love full hookups especially when i go somewhere where im not going to be sitting in or out of the camper. its way cheaper than getting a hotel room and i still have the luxury of emptying out the tanks right there at the site. i normally use it just for somewhere to lay my head at night. boondocking tends to be the “get to nature and stay in nature” approach and if you just want to disappear
We use a 50/50 mix of cleaning vinegar and water for all our plates, silverware, and pots & pans. We keep the mixture in a spray bottle on the counter. You spray it on, let it sit a few minutes, and then wipe it off with a paper towel. Some meals require more reps and a dirty pot might require a good spray and let it sit for a while. It helps to have high quality non-stick pots and pans. Everything turns out very clean, there is no residue and we use less than a cup of water to wash up a complete dinner for two with nothing in the grey tank. The downsides are the smell of vinegar (but it goes away in minutes) and we use a lot of paper towels.
“while vinegar does work as a disinfectant to some degree, it is not as effective as bleach or commercial cleansers when it comes to killing germs”
“to clean the insides of food-stained pots and pans, soak them in a mixture of one-half cup of white vinegar diluted with one gallon of water for 30 minutes. Then rinse in hot, soapy water.”
https://www.nsf.org/blog/consumer/reliable-scientific-tips-cleaning-with-vinegar
If You’re boondocking for a week or longer, you’re typically going to find a reason to go to a nearby town for food or other items anyway, so you should be set up to able to take waste to town with you & bring back fresh water in your tow vehicle or toad. This means you will need a waste tote, & a macerator to pump waste up into the tote in a truck bed or rear of an suv. You’ll also need a vinyl bladder & electric pump to bring back fresh water & pump it into the rv. We’ve been fulltiming for 14 years & sometimes spend several months in the Southwest desert without ever moving our 5th wheel, or now, our triple slide truck camper. Extended boondocking is very doable.
I haven’t had a shower in 6 years. I grew up washing with a bowl of warm water, soap, and a washcloth. Started doing it again when I went full-timing in a small RV. Washing hair is easy in a sink with a pitcher of warm water. I heat water in my kettle. My water usage is very minimal. Love boondocking!
A friend once told me, while we were Boondocking. “If it’s yellow let it mellow, if it’s brown, flush it down!” I got a good laugh out of that but it has come in handy many times since. Saves a few flushes when water is at a premium!
I keep a cleaned 64 oz. orange juice bottle with lake or stream water by the toilet to save fresh tank water.
Thank you for the comprehensive set of suggestions and tips, Cheri! The commode in RV #2 is so much more water-efficient than that of RV #1 that it essentially tripled how long we can be off-grid in terms of water use. Have a great day and safe travels!