Lakeshore RV Center
3/7/16
So your RV has everything you could possibly need to stay clean, happy, and healthy while on the open road! Lucky you! You have a sprawling kitchen that you could cook a five-course dinner in. And your large, luxurious bathroom is bigger than most people's living rooms. Ok, you know I'm exaggerating because RVs don't have enough room for sprawling kitchens or large bathrooms. But it's fair to say that your kitchen has a sink and your bathroom comes equipped with a shower, toilet, and sink. Everything you need to stay clean, happy, and healthy, just like I said. And that's great, because using campground toilets and showers gets old fast. But having all these comforts of home does come with one drawback, and it's a big (stinky!) one. Since your RV has plumbing for the sinks, shower, and toilet, that means you get to visit the RV sanitation stations to clean out the holding tanks. It's a dirty job, no matter how you look at it, but here's some advice on how to flush your tanks like a pro.
There's a lot of buzz about holding tank treatments in the RV community. And most of it stinks (pun intended!). The majority of holding tank treatments are made with chemicals that are downright harmful and dangerous to people and the environment. Chemicals like formaldehyde are used to help preserve (think fetal pig dissection from 7th grade Science class) the contents of the tank so that the smell from it doesn't send you packing (back home!). The problem occurs when you empty your tank into underground septic or sewer systems and the contents are not allowed to dissolve, so they sit in there for a long, long time. The chemicals are also poisoning the groundwater. A few states have issued warnings regarding the use of the toxic treatments and California is even considering banning the usage of them altogether. There are safer, healthier alternatives you can choose that still get your tank sparklingly clean. Here are just a couple that we like:
Does your RV have to go? There's an app for that! If your campground doesn't have a sanitation station, you can easily find one nearby by using one of the following websites or apps:
Sanidumps.com (app available)
RV Parks & Campgrounds (app)
Dump Stations—Let's Keep 'Em Clean People!