Is it possible to take a shower in the Roadtrek?

[dcawd]

For those that do shower on board, I'm curious as to what your avg consumption is. Looks like Steve gets 5 out of 35 gallons (plus other misc usage); BasicBill gets 4 out of 30. Any other data points? Will obviously vary based on other consumption for dishwashing etc, but still helpful to know.
Thanks!

[avanti]

Originally Posted by dcawd

For those that do shower on board, I'm curious as to what your avg consumption is. Looks like Steve gets 5 out of 35 gallons (plus other misc usage); BasicBill gets 4 out of 30. Any other data points? Will obviously vary based on other consumption for dishwashing etc, but still helpful to know.
Thanks!

We have a 29 gal tank. We get three showers easily, four by being careful. We don't try very hard--use a lot of water for other stuff.

[gerards8630]

Good discussion, am just now getting out to camp, of the three nights on the road I boondocked (BLM) and on the second day of driving I decided to try the wand shower, curtain surround. I had read somewhere to use a showering pan to stand in, catch most of the water, also, I rinse, lather up, wash down, then turn on to rinse clean; I had very little clean up, and I slept much better. I have not as good a luck using the toilet (poor flushing, waste not cleared of bowl, odor) so I’ve decided not to use on board toilet, unless I have no other choice.

[mkguitar]

if the bowl is "icky" use the shower wand to spray it clean



Mike

[k1hog]

Not to muddy up my own post, but we Americans are prown to take to many baths, washing the protective coating of as it were.

[avanti]

Originally Posted by gerards8630

I have not as good a luck using the toilet (poor flushing, waste not cleared of bowl, odor)

If your toilet smells, something is broken. A proper setup is completely sealed and vented.

[yogi22]

We have never used the aisle shower in 25 years of RoadTrekking. Have used the outdoor connections a couple of times. We recently discovered Truck Stop showers. Wonderful!

[jrobe]

We both take showers every single day in our “B”. I can take a shower with 1 gallon of hot water. Turn on water for 5 seconds to get wet, soap up with the water off, turn on water to quickly rinse off. My wife probably uses 2 gallons. At home we probably use 50 gallons each but it doesn’t get us any cleaner.

The trick that helps us to use our shower more is to have a quick and easy system to add water to the water tank. I rigged up a siphon system where I can set a 5 gallon jug of water by the back door, stick the end of a hose into the jug, flip 2 lever valves, turn on my water pump switch and let the water pump suck the water into the freshwater tank quickly.

[themexicandoctor]

I, have a 2005 Roadtrek 190 Versatile & love taking a shower but I do this;

1. After shower, let the thin plastic curtains hang outside the shower area to dry off, leaving them in the aisle (I used to have a long dry bag to put them in but this is just as effective because then the bag would accumulatea damp smell).

2. I always use the exhaust fan at high power afterwards to remove the moist air from both me & the coach.

3. I hang a liquid soap container made out of a small camelback water holder, from the shower curtain rings with two looped zip ties.

There is no logic behind Roadtrek's design of not accommodating the wet shower curtains - the way above is probably how 80% of us full timers solve the problem.

I like the idea of a fully enclosed shower but it uses a lot of rare space in a Class B.

I do not like the idea of standing in the tray like some of the Pleasureway Lexors.

[Average_alice]

OK maybe I'm missing something obvious but exactly how do some of you boondockers measure the water you're using coming from the water heater? We pretty much exclusively boondock and in places with no water so our showers are every other day, 2.5 gallons for 2 people. We have yet to even use our water heater because of this issue (plus not wanting to heat a full 5 gallons and waste propane doing that). We're heating water on the stove in a stockpot and using a battery pump Zodi shower with a hanger set up in the shower enclosure. The heated stockpot goes on a wood cutting board that we place on top of the toilet. This is good for winter camping also. The pain with this system is when it's time for person #2 to take their shower and the whole hanging arrangement has to be taken down so we can open the door. I'm not going to deny there have been days when it was "shower day" and we were too tired to set the whole thing up so we ended up with a quick sponge bath in the hallway.

My tips for taking navy showers: 1) keep all the windows and fans closed and have the interior space well heated! 2) use a combo shampoo and conditioner so you only rinse your hair once, 3) lather up your shampoo, then without rinsing do your shaving, then rinse everything.

We also have the issue with water all over in the hallway at times, and a squeegie works well for clean-up (plus an extra towel). I had to make a rigid ABS plastic disc cover for the floor drain to prevent punching a hole in our rubber flooring that we installed (the floor just rolls up along with a rug).

Compared to our last camper, which was a Aliner pop up trailer, the Roadtrek shower is much more spacious believe it or not, the shower is so much easier to assemble and clean up, and we have a nice dressing room of sorts there on the bed with a drying off area and place to lay out your clothes. The negatives are that anyone else in the RV who is not showering has no access to the sink or back of the RV while the other person is showering. Heaven forbid you should need anything back there...

I'm not looking forward to the day we have to replace the 20 year old shower curtain. It looks like it has special hangers. Any tips on that one would be appreciated also. I guess the previous owners never used the shower from what we can see and right how it's in perfect shape...a heavy vinyl.

[Eraygunz]

Originally Posted by k1hog

We do.have an outside shower, we thought about getting a outside shower enclosure, but that path seems cumbersome.

That is exactly what I do. I have the little pop up Shower tent .
Works great!!!
In Florida , showering in the RT makes for a very very humid RT!!!
But , it is doable.
Eddie

[ChicagoTom]

Your Lexor, should be the same as mine, even though different years. It has an aisle shower and it's very roomy and you stand up in it. Only drawback is it is a PIA to wipe down and put the drain pan back, but it does keep the bathroom clean!

[Pam G]

The Roadtrek aisle shower/floor design is one of the things I really don't like about my 99D190P. I had a 1998 Coach House Wide Body for 5 years prior to the Roadtrek, and Coach House had a MUCH better design for the floor. Instead of the sunken floor that extends the length of the kitchen and bathroom area, they had a panel just the right size for the aisle shower that you lifted up and removed. The floor below the panel was about 3" deep with the drain in that. I used that shower several times over the years and was really glad to have it. The shower curtain was a thin material, and I used small clips to clip the curtain to a cabinet handle or drawer on a couple of sides to keep the curtain away from me. I've only taken one shower in my Roadtrek and was horrified to see the water spreading out to things I had on the floor behind the driver's seat. I had to quickly grab things up and then dry the floor after the shower. Never had to do that in the Coach House as I just put the panel back in place after taking a shower and never had water on the rest of the floor. Roadtreks do have some other features that I really like, but my perfect Class B would be a combination of a Coach House and a Roadtrek.

[ChicagoTom]

The Pleasureway Lexor TS, 2009 that I own is different. I wasn't aware Roadtreks were that much of a pain. Mine just has a pan you slide out from the storage spot in the bathroom. You then have a sewer cap that unscrews and you place the pan over it. No leaking. As mentioned, it is a PIA to then wipe everything down, but the shower itself is great.

[GallenH]

My experience. I inherited our 97 PW from my FIL 4 years ago and have used it monthly since that time. Longest trip 2 weeks to Glacier. I have never technically used the shower. What I have done...every day without exception...is to navy shower. I wash from my hair down. I follow a consistent procedure of soaping up and using a 1 quart water bottle to rinse. I never use more than 1 sinkfull of water plus 2 water bottles. Ok. I don't have that much hair and it's short. But I wash all body areas and use the bottle as a spray rinse for hair and body. Afterwards I use a squeegee to get the excess water down the shower drain and then dry it off with a towel. I've never missed a day and use little water that goes into the grey tank.

I understand how this might not work for everyone but it's worked well for me.

[avanti]

Originally Posted by GallenH

My experience. I inherited our 97 PW from my FIL 4 years ago and have used it monthly since that time. Longest trip 2 weeks to Glacier. I have never technically used the shower. What I have done...every day without exception...is to navy shower. I wash from my hair down. I follow a consistent procedure of soaping up and using a 1 quart water bottle to rinse. I never use more than 1 sinkfull of water plus 2 water bottles. Ok. I don't have that much hair and it's short. But I wash all body areas and use the bottle as a spray rinse for hair and body. Afterwards I use a squeegee to get the excess water down the shower drain and then dry it off with a towel. I've never missed a day and use little water that goes into the grey tank.

I understand how this might not work for everyone but it's worked well for me.

Sounds like you have that down.
One question, though: What is the purpose of the 1 quart water bottle? Why don't you just use the shower wand? Is it that it provides extra discipline by making water usage clear?

I guess a shower head attachment that metered out exactly one quart after which you would have to press a button would be interesting.

[Davydd]

We have 40 gallons of fresh water on board with hot water on demand (no tank). My wife washes her hair every morning at the sink, shower or not. We take "Navy" showers but if there is a decent shower room in the campground we are not above using them. The Corps of Engineer showers are the best when they have a private full bathroom setup available. On extended road trips our water lasts an average of 13 days. Our shower head doesn't leak and is grip handle with the spring lever that you can operate with short bursts of water that operates like your similar lawn water hose attachment. My previous Bs had those handles that leaked with the push back and forth button.

[GallenH]

Originally Posted by avanti

Sounds like you have that down.
One question, though: What is the purpose of the 1 quart water bottle? Why don't you just use the shower wand? Is it that it provides extra discipline by making water usage clear?

I guess a shower head attachment that metered out exactly one quart after which you would have to press a button would be interesting.

No. I'm not that disciplined. I have one of those lav sink faucets with the diverter and it constantly malfunctions. Been meaning to replace. Thought about something more elaborate with a temperature metering/mxing valve connected to a single handle faucet and also to a valve for a hand shower. Next life probably.

[MsNomer]

With COVID, we are much less likely to use campground or other public facilities, so we use our shower every day. About a gallon for the two of us together, and we feel clean with that. Another half gallon if I wash my hair.

I very highly recommend the Sous Vide, which is simply a thermostatically controlled heating element with a propeller to circulate the water. Even if to conserve electrons you heat a pot of water, the Sous Vide will assure you the perfect final temperature with zero wasted water, zero plumbing.

[Hal Gosling]

Everyone is assuming that you have a shower in your Roadtrek; if yes then the answer to your question is yes you can take a shower in your Roadtrek.
My 1995 RT190 Popular does not have a shower, it has a drain in the aisle floor but that is it. Also, I do not have a hot water system; all from the factory this way.

Btw, saw a video where owner reversed airflow from the fan to blow shower curtain Away from body giving more room when showering.