Onboard Shower Ideas

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Would someone mind breaking down the concept of the water tank for me barney style? It sounds cool, but I don't understand why it's used. From some of the other builds I've seen, the waterpumps provide plenty of pressure to run a shower head or even a low pressure water jet, and the heat exchangers are efficent enough to make the water continuoulsy scalding hot. So why the tank? For example, on Kevin from WagonGear's rig, it's just a pump and exchanger. For water, he can either throw the pickup into a lake or a 5 gallon jerry. Maybe a picture would help. :popcorn:
 
The hot water tank is there so you don't have to run your rig burning extra fuel, or carry a separate fuel like propane to run one of the mini water heater units. Also it makes possible hot and cold running water.
 
right - my idea would be to heat the water while wheeling all day and have hot water ready for camp set up. With an insulated tank and depending on ambient temps I'd wager the water would still be useable in the AM. Internal combustion engines are very inefficient and waste a major portion of their energy making heat. It appeals to my treehugger side not to run the engine just to make hot water. Parking for a couple of days would be an exception rather than the rule for me. If you anticipate parking for a while one of the on demand heaters may be more your style.
 
Bogo said:
The hot water tank is there so you don't have to run your rig burning extra fuel, or carry a separate fuel like propane to run one of the mini water heater units. Also it makes possible hot and cold running water.
Click to expand...

You will still need propane for the stove .
Portable hot water units are much easier than turnng your rig into a mobile bathroom.
You also have hot or cold running water with the portable units
 
rosco - that coleman unit is quite cool. I found a link here. Thats the one??

So it uses propane for heat and a 6V rechargeable battery to pump. I could source the water from a large onboard tank and hook it to a bigger propane tank if I wanted to. I could build a spot for it in a kitchen setup.

Definitely a nice unit - something to consider.
 
Awl_TEQ said:
rosco - that coleman unit is quite cool. I found a link here. Thats the one??

So it uses propane for heat and a 6V rechargeable battery to pump. I could source the water from a large onboard tank and hook it to a bigger propane tank if I wanted to. I could build a spot for it in a kitchen setup.

Definitely a nice unit - something to consider.
Click to expand...

Yep ,thats the one. Hooking it up to small container stops you from using up too much water.;)
 
roscoFJ73 said:
You will still need propane for the stove .
Click to expand...

My stove runs on white gas or unleaded and it will run at 15k feet.:meh: Original MSR stove.;) Get a multi fuel Whisper and it will run on diesel and kerosene too.
 
Drofen said:
How big of a solar panel would be needed to push a coil in a reservoir?
Click to expand...
Figure a heating element in a RV water heater is normally 750 or so Watts. Figure 4 hours effective panel time in most places and your panel is flat mounted. You'd likely want at least 2 200Watt plus solar panels.

It would be better to make a solar hot water heater on the roof of the cruiser. Much higher capture efficiency could be done. Anyways the engine heat is there for the use.

If you want hot water on non driving days you could add a diesel or petrol fired Espar Hydronic boiler. Plumed right it could heat your cruiser over night and warm the engine in the morning. I'd seriouly consider having a house battery bank if I did that.
 
I like the idea of pulling heat off the exhaust system, I've been giving it a lot of thought. One idea is to have a tank of water that constantly circulates while you drive. If the tank was insulated you would have hot water for hours after you parked for the day.

If you don't move camp every day like we tend to I'd go with a Zodi or the Coleman.
 
The main reason I'm not happy with using the exhaust is at a certain point after running awhile it will be boiling the water. With using engine coolant you will only get up close to the coolant temperature then level off. No boiling of the hot water. Self limiting and no water waste.
 
Was thinking a bit just now.

Mostly using standard off the shelf parts. Only a very little fabrication is needed and that is only to support the ends of the copper tube against road vibrations and fabrication is needed for the outer case.

Start with one 2.5, 3, or 5 gallon premix keg. Get one that has a pressure relief valve in the lid. Note the type of input and output connectors it has. The parts I show are for ball lock kegs. There are pin lock versions of the parts I show. You may wish to pick up some extra o-rings for the lid and quick connects.

OK, wrap a length of 1/2" copper tube tightly around the keg near the base. See picture below. Orientate the input and output tubes suitably for your installation. Use a tube bender for tight bends, or just use suitable angle fittings. How long should the tube be? I don't know. What spacing to use between wraps? I don't know. Personally I'd just get a 60' length and wrap it all and pack the wraps together.

5gallon-keg-water-heater.jpg


On each end of the copper tube install a hose barb appropriate for your heater hose size. Use a brass barb rather than clamping to the tube because clamping to the tube will likely crush it plus it is a smooth tube with no grip. For the fitting you could either solder one on or use a flair fitting. It don't matter. Some support for the ends is a must. It would be good if they were affixed solidly so the tube does not flex from road vibrations. You will need to fabricate something to do this.:D

I'm thinking of using liquid nails to glue the tube in place, but I don't know on that. Suggestions?

For extracting hot water out. There are keg faucets that directly connect to the output port of the keg.
kegfaucet.jpg

I'm not sure how the quick connect and keg faucet will respond to 180F water, but it is worth a try.:lol:

For pressurizing so the water will flow out. Use quick disconnects with hose barbs to connect your pressurizing system up to the tank.
liquidballbarb.jpg

Add to that a hose and bits for whatever pressurizing method you want. It could just be a metal valve stem cut off and clamped into the tube.

Around the whole tank I'd insulate it with expanding foam. It would be good to have an exterior case but that can be your choice. I'm thinking a stainless steel tube then filling expanding foam in between it and the keg.

Refilling the keg is via it's lid.

With all new parts it should be under $300 without the case. Using a used reconditioned keg will chop $60 to $70 off that.

Thoughts?
 
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Trollhole, that's awsome! In that one pic it looks like your trucks pissing! :D I might shoot you a pm when I get the truck back from IPOR about how you put it all together. Thanks for the post.
 
*Gotta play catchup on the posts above but are we implying use of a pisser tank also? There's enough of those as well as the milk containers still floating around I may just play with that idea too. ;) If nothing more than to spare the waste of a good keg. Just imagine the look on fellow wheelers/campers faces when they think you're bathing in hot wort or beer! Now that would be pimping! :lol:
 
I love my Stainless Steel pump can (AKA bug sprayer)

Just add water....put it on the stove for the right temp and your ready to shower...

I payed around $50 total all setup....Ebay for the sprayer and the local home dump for the rest...

Parts list:


  • Stainless Pump sprayer
  • High pressure 3/8" I.D. hose: 8'
  • Ball valve
  • Brass garden hose adapter to 3/8" hose
  • Shower head
  • Hose clamps

And can't for get one of these:

PUP--PETT.jpg


Here is a great thread from the ExPo on this:

Shower Shelter - Expedition Portal Forum
 
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