Potable water at truck stops??

[{tpc}]

I’m looking for my daughter/son in law for a truck stop that has potable water, somewhere between Waterford Michigan and Norwalk Ohio.

So you understand, he is pulling what is tantamount to a semi trailer...ok it’s a semi but the trailer behind it is for his race car, and it’s just as big as a normal semi.

The issue is they can’t find a place to stop for potable water. Unfortunately they have filled their tank with non-potable stuff and have added some bleach, but I have advised against using this water for much more than the toilet and hand washing. They want to shower and stuff but she is nervous about it all.

So any way to get real water into the tank? We though about pulling it up to the house but where we live isn’t conducive to big semis.

Any help is appreciated!

[Frank G]

Are they using the Ohio Turnpike? The newer rest stop around Fremont should have potable water. Also the Pilot TS north of the turnpike on I-280 has potable water at the RV dump station. I frequent this Dump station and it is labeled as potable water and not to use for flushing.

The Wyandot Rest area mile post 76.9 on the Ohio TP has potable water at the RV overnight parking area.

[sourdough]

"Non potable stuff" with bleach?? In a fresh water tank? Why???

What kind of non potable stuff is it? If it's like the non potable water we have popping up all around our city parks etc. it is just somewhat sterilized sewer water from the homes. I hope to heavens they didn't fill their fresh water tank with something like that.....I don't know that I would ever use it again if they did. Is the water sort of green looking....?:eek::facepalm::nonono:

[notanlines]

Anthony, obviously they aren't towing an RV with an RV water system? Is this just some self-rigged unit they have, or is it a factory unit for hauling cars. I might add that there are many different kinds of non-potable water. Clear mountain streams and horse troughs are just two of them. It might not be a big problem. I'm just curious what they have for a water system.

[{tpc}]

Let me explain a little better. Its a featherlight trailer designed for a race team (hauling cars). Not a regular RV. However, it has a bathroom with a toilet and shower and a sink. It does have things like a refrigerator, AC units, generator, hot water tank, etc.

I'm unsure of the color of the water, but I do know it came from a truck stop. I don't know which one but it would have had to have been in lower part of michigan, either near the ohio border or just inside of ohio, since they have only been to columbus and norwalk for a race, and are planning to go back to norwalk again in a few weeks.

The issue is the sheer size of this thing makes it only suitable for truck stops. If you have ever driven past a nascar trailer or something of that size, you know what I mean. It has a upper level with storage and lounge, a lower level which pretty much is the workshop of sorts after the car is out, and a middle area that is accessed via stairs on the way to the lounge, that has the bathroom in one part and an office in another.

Typically stored at his "shop", there is no water hookup there. I also did not realize that there might be some confusion as to what type of water to put into it. So thats how the non-potable water ended up there.

I'm not sure that the water is indeed some reclaimed sewer water or something, but I know there is a concern about it, and I think that's when someone told them to add some bleach to it.

Frankly, I think there is/was some confusion as to sterilization of the tank using bleach, and sterilization of this non-potable water.

Removing or replacing the tank isn't an option, well I guess it is always an option, but I can assure you, unless it breaks from a leak, it isn't going to happen. To me, the best option after that would be to dump the tank, fill with fresh water and some bleach like I would normally do when opening up my trailer after the winter, run it through the lines, and then let it sit overnight, dump and refill.

Sitting overnight is going to be the real problem, because this thing doesn't move unless its going to or from the race track. The best I can hope for is that they dump and refill with potable at a minimum. Maybe I can talk them into letting it sit with bleach at the next race for the 3 or 4 days they are there and then dumping and refilling on the way home.

But the real issue is just finding somewhere to stop to get the potable water. Its not like you can just pop over to the local state park with a semi lol.

[{tpc}]

Are they using the Ohio Turnpike? The newer rest stop around Fremont should have potable water. Also the Pilot TS north of the turnpike on I-280 has potable water at the RV dump station. I frequent this Dump station and it is labeled as potable water and not to use for flushing.

The Wyandot Rest area mile post 76.9 on the Ohio TP has potable water at the RV overnight parking area.

Thank you for the info. This flying J, is it the one off bahnsen rd and 280? And the rest stop near fremont, is that off the turnpike?

Edit: Do you think it would be possible to make use of the RV dump lanes with his semi/trailer? when looking at the google imagery, it seems it could be big enough to accommodate it and enough space to maneuver into it but it also seems as if there is a separate semi dump station.

[Frank G]

Thank you for the info. This flying J, is it the one off bahnsen rd and 280? And the rest stop near fremont, is that off the turnpike?

Edit: Do you think it would be possible to make use of the RV dump lanes with his semi/trailer? when looking at the google imagery, it seems it could be big enough to accommodate it and enough space to maneuver into it but it also seems as if there is a separate semi dump station.


Yes the Flying J is the one off Bahnsen Rd. There are at least 5 additional truck stops within .5 miles. The Fremont Rest stop I referred to is the Wyandot Rest stop on the Ohio turnpike.


Personally I would make some calls and verify accessibility for a big rig.

[{tpc}]

Yes the Flying J is the one off Bahnsen Rd. There are at least 5 additional truck stops within .5 miles. The Fremont Rest stop I referred to is the Wyandot Rest stop on the Ohio turnpike.


Personally I would make some calls and verify accessibility for a big rig.

Ya I told them to call and verify they can use it. I called to verify they had potable and they did, and the lady was really nice on the phone, even put me on hold to go ask the maintenance crew. I just didn't think to ask if they could go into that side.

I think in a pinch, with a long hose, timing, and a bit of effort, they could probably get close enough to the dump station with the rig on the "big rig" side, and hook up. It appears to be close enough. But you never know until you get there.

Now I just need them to figure out the flushing lines part and sanitizing it. In the end they are going to do what they are going to do anyways, the best I can do is arm them with as much knowledge as I can.

[vampress_me]

Worst case, is it a gravity feed? They could always bring out the blue cans for potable water and dump them in. 5 gallons at a time would bite (at least that’s what our blue water cans are), but it would work if needed. Or, they could rig up a water pump (like in our campers, runs off 12V) on a board so they could stick a hose in a blue can (or a water bladder in the back of a truck) and use the pump pressure to get the water in if it’s not gravity fill. We did this in the Big Horns a few summers ago, worked great.

[{tpc}]

Worst case, is it a gravity feed? They could always bring out the blue cans for potable water and dump them in. 5 gallons at a time would bite (at least that’s what our blue water cans are), but it would work if needed. Or, they could rig up a water pump (like in our campers, runs off 12V) on a board so they could stick a hose in a blue can (or a water bladder in the back of a truck) and use the pump pressure to get the water in if it’s not gravity fill. We did this in the Big Horns a few summers ago, worked great.

Not 100% sure if it is gravity feed or not. Seems like we have a plan now with the pilot flying j that Frank G suggested (thanks!) and she says they have been through there before and it should be ok. They just didn't have this rig or the need back then.

I also found on sanidumps.com site that this pilots rv dump lanes are big rig friendly, but she will call and verify anyways. Its a start at least. She is going to make him dump it and sanitize the whole thing at a minimum, so they probably won't get to make use of it at the next race unless they plan on making a trip down there prior to the race.

Or maybe they will roll that trailer home and do it there. No idea. It would be interesting because the streets around us are not really designed for big rigs, but maybe it can be done lol.

[sourdough]

Thanks for the explanation. Sounds like they need to come up with a plan if they are going to use the trailer much and Lynette had an excellent idea. When we dry camped all the time we had what she described; an external water pump (actually 2 - 1 12v/1 120v) to transfer water which worked out great vs trying to dump water containers into the fill port.

As far as what's in it now, I guess you have to hope it's just something that's not too bad. From what I've seen non potable water can be most anything.
Even if they're "going to do what they're going to do" they need to drain the tank. Since acquiring fresh water is an issue maybe they can come up with a way to get at least 1/4 - 1/3 tank filled then add a double dose of chlorine to the water, pump it through all the lines, let it sit a minimum of 4 hours then dump. Most anything is going to be better than nothing. I wouldn't worry about a chlorine smell when all is said and done. The water system where we live routinely has a strong chlorine smell and we use it; we DO use an RO system for drinking water though.

[packnrat]

worst case: semi treated sewer water.

best case: raw un treated non filtered well/ creek water.

or anything between. most can get you sick with just a drop. only good for flush water. bad for any use touching your skin, or getting inside of your body.

both to be avoided at all costs.
disprove of the tank. replace with a new one. and ONLY use proper water.

[flybouy]

Non-potable water can be from several sources but I seriously doubt that it's recycled sewer water, why? It's just too expensive for a truck stop to install. Untreated well water is a possibility as filtering and treating well water to wash a semi isn't cost effective either. Another common reason for the non-potable label is a good water source that is used for things that may contaminate the hose and spigot therefor contaminating the water. Personally I would drain and bleach treat the tanks a few times. If it's a concern have the tank water tested.