Water on the Road

Water on the Road

Written by Dave Barth, 1974

Introduction
Water is one of the most important considerations when planning a driving trip across the country or to a favorite camping, fishing, or hunting spot. Your supply of water can actually dictate how long you can remain at a certain location without taking time to obtain additional quantities. This article is designed to provide you with some alternative solutions to carrying water for your trip.

It tells how you can build your own handy water containers to fit your travel, camping, fishing, hunting and other outdoor and travel water needs. Drinking, cooking, and shower water ideas are presented here to help you have a pleasant trip. Even if you drive a recreational vehicle or tow a camping trailer, you might be able to use some of these suggestions.

How Much Water Will You Need?
The amount of water needed depends on several factors. When planning your trip, consider how long you will be away from reliable sources of water; to what extent you want to be independent of the local water supplies; how many persons are in your party; what the average water usage will be per person (Eg: will bathing, showers, cooking, and drinking needs be met?); will emergency water supplies be needed? (for example: if the vehicle radiator needs to be refilled); and how much room and carrying capacity you have to transport water.

How Large A Container?
The size of container you select should be based on your water needs. If your needs are simply to have enough water for a hike, then a small container will be suitable. For longer periods, larger containers are needed. At some point, the gallon jug just does not provide enough capacity. There are commercially available water containers that hold more than one or two gallons of water, but they are expensive.

Parts List For Mobile Water Container
The following list describes the parts needed to build an inexpensive five gallon travel water container. Most of these items can be purchased at hardware, garden, or building supply stores. Remember that if there is sufficient water need and carrying space is available, then two or more five gallon containers may be built. Five gallons is used because containers in this size are usually available, and they usually have a handle so that one person can conveniently carry them to a nearby water source for filling.

• One five gallon plastic container.
  A five-gallon plastic bucket with a lid and a handle is usually available from a local supermarket. They often are used to ship bulk icing for bakeries.



• One female garden hose/mail pipe thread connection.
  Get a connector with a female garden hose connection on one end and a three-quarter inch outside-diameter male pipe thread on the opposite end. This connector will be inserted into the bucket, near the bottom, to allow the water to drain out. These are available at most hardware or garden stores.



• A few square inches of rubber sheet.
  A piece of rubber from an automobile or bicycle inner tube will work fine. Many auto service stations and bicycle shops will give away old inner tubes. Two rubber washers will be cut out of the rubber to be used to seal the hose connection to the bucket.



• One threaded pipe nut.
  Get a threaded pipe nut that fits on the male pipe thread of the connector mentioned above. This nut has an inside diameter of approximately three quarters inch and will secure the connector to the bucket. The female hose connection end will be on the outside of the bucket, and this nut will screw onto the pipe threads sticking through the bucket on the inside. These are available at most hardware stores.



• One garden hose shut-off valve.
  A metal or plastic shut-off valve may be used. Metal valves are usually more durable. The male end of the shut-off valve will be screwed to the female end of the hose connection.



• A length of garden hose.
  Get a length of garden hose that will carry the water from the bucket to whatever is to be filled. (For a shower, a shower head will have to be connected to the end of the hose.) The male end of the garden hose will connect to the shut-off valve.

The Bucket
A five gallon plastic bucket with a lid and a carrying handle, may be purchased at a hardware, surplus, or discount store. Many bakeries (including those in major supermarkets) have pastry icing delivered in five gallon buckets with tight fitting lids that work well for water containers. Some bakeries might give you one or two.

The five-gallon size is recommended because when filled with water, it is about the most weight an adult can carry. If five gallons is too heavy for you to carry, then choose a bucket that is smaller or plan to fill the bucket partially instead of completely full.

The lid should fit tightly to keep the water from sloshing out during the road trip and to keep dust and debris from falling into the water.

Mark The Position Of The Drain Hole
Mark the location that you want the drain to be located on the bucket. It should be close to the bottom edge. Check the relationship of the handle to the proposed location of the drain to insure that it will not be in the way when the bucket is carried by hand and that it is well situated when placed in the vehicle during the trip.

Cut The Drain Hole into the side of the bucket
Drill a three quarter inch diameter hole into the side of the bucket at the bottom. An electric drill with a flat three quarter inch drill bit will work on plastic. You may have to trim the hole in a plastic bucket with a knife to round it up after cutting. For a metal bucket, it is better to use a hole cutting drill bit.

Cut Two Rubber Washers
To seal the connector into the hole in the bucket, cut two washers out of a tire inner tube. Their center hole should be approximately three quarters inch in diameter, just large enough to fit snugly over the pipe threads on the back end of the female hose connection. The outside diameter of the washers should be about one inch.

Attach The Drain Connection
Slip one of the rubber washers over the male pipe threads on the back of the female garden hose connection. Then push the pipe threads through the drain hole you cut into the bucket. Put the other rubber washer over the pipe threads that are sticking through the bucket, and screw on the pipe nut. Screw the nut tightly on the pipe fitting so that water won't leak past the rubber seal. Make sure that the washers have not deformed and that they are making a good seal.

Chemical sealants such as glues or caulking substances are not recommended to be used to seal the drain connection because they may contain toxic substances that should not be consumed or may deteriorate when in contact with various types or temperatures of liquids.

Attach the Shut-Off Valve To the Hose Connection
Screw a hose shut-off valve to the female hose connection on the bucket. You may wish to attache a length of hose to the shut off to make it easier to fill containers from the bucket. Be sure to use a length of hose with a male fitting that screws into the female end of the shut-off valve. You may purchase special adaptors that have two male or two female ends, if necessary, to adapt to different hose ends.

The Finished Product
Now, the bucket is finished. Painting is not recommended because it may flake into the inside of the bucket, polluting the contents.

Fit the bucket into the location in the vehicle you will be using to transport it to insure it fits. In placing it, consider if you will wish to be able to draw liquids from it enroute. If so, try to make the spout and shut off valve accessible.

If the bucket is to be full during transport, be sure to tie it down tightly so that it will not tip over and spill the contents into the vehicle. Also, be sure that after the liquid is poured into the bucket, the lid is fitted securely. Tying the lid down is also recommended because sloshing liquid and flexing of the side walls of the bucket might pop it off.

Thoroughly cleanse the inside of the bucket, fittings, shut off valve, lid, hose, and all other surfaces that will come into contact with the contents of the bucket prior to each use.

Beverage Selection
The selection of the beverage to be placed in the bucket is limited only by your imagination. Items that are perishable should not be stored in the bucket because it is difficult to refrigerate such a large item. Iced liquids can be kept cool by adding ice to the bucket. If you don't want the contents to be diluted by melting ice, you may pack bags of crushed ice around the outside of the bucket. Be sure to wrap a sheet of plastic around the bucket and ice bags to contain any water that melts from the ice bags or condenses on the outside of the bucket.

Some beverages that you may consider carrying in the bucket are water, Coolaid, iced tea, and lemonade. While it may sound exciting to make five gallons of iced tea or some other beverage, there are some disadvantages:

• Water may be best. When a person is really thirsty, water is the most satisfying drink.



• Satisfy all.
  Perhaps not everyone in the camping party will enjoy one particular type of non-water beverage.



• Beverage discoloration/impregnation.
  Some beverages may discolor or impregnate the bucket with their taste or odor.



• Other uses of extra water.
  There may be cases where water is necessary, and other beverages will not be satisfactory. For example, if the radiator of a vehicle gets low on water, it will be possible to use some from the bucket to fill it. A different beverage will probably not be usable, and may damage the radiator.



• Water for washing.
  You may need water to wash, and if the bucket contains water, it may be used for various washing tasks such as bathing, washing hands, washing utensils and dishes, shaving, and other cleaning chores. Any other beverage may not be suitable.



• Uses of the water.
  It is possible to mix iced tea, Coolaid, and lemonade in smaller quantities using water from the bucket when on the road or after arrival at a camp site.

The Bucket Can Provide A Warm Shower
There is no doubt that a nice warm shower is an unusual treat when you are in the great outdoors, away from a motel or a shower-equipped recreational vehicle. A water bucket can provide a warm shower. A metal bucket can be heated over a fire to warm the water. A plastic bucket should not be heated over a fire because it may result in dangerous fumes, and the bucket may begin to leak. The best way to use warm water from a plastic bucket is to heat the water in a metal container and pour the hot water into the bucket.

A less satisfactory method of warming the water is to place the bucket in the sun to allow it to warm by solar heating. If the outside of the bucket is a dark color or black, it will heat faster because darker colors absorbe heat more readily than light colors. However, the temperature will not rise very much, and the ambient air temperature may keep the bucket cool.

Materials Needed To Make A Camp Shower

• A shower head (optional).
  A shower head can be used for the end of the hose that is attached to the bucket. You may purchase the necessary hose-to-pipe adaptors so that you can screw a standard shower head onto the hose. A more simple solution is to purchase one of the flexible hoses with a shower end, designed to be fitted onto the tub faucet with a flexible, funnel-type end. This item is available in many stores like Walgreens and Woolworths. It can be attached directly to the hose shut off valve or to the hose itself.



• A rope.
  A strong, long rope of 20 or 30 feet length is needed to hoist the bucket high enough so that you can get beneath the shower head and have enough rope left to securely tie it off to keep the bucket from falling. Some persons will prefer to have the bucket high enough to stand under, while others will be satisfied to merely sit or kneel beneath the shower. In any case, you must choose a tree limb or other support high enough to raise the bucket to the desired height. Water will not run out of the shower head or hose end if it is lifted above the level of the water in the bucket.
  
  Warning: Stay away from any type of power, telephone, high tension poles or supports. Even if a direct electrical path is not possible, static electricity from the vicinity of electrical lines or equipment may cause a shock.



• A substitute for a tree limb is to place the bucket on the roof of a vehicle, with the hose and shower head lying off the edge of the roof. A large rock or a picnic table can be used in the same way.



• In the event that there is no support for the bucket, and there is more than one person at the site, one person can hold the bucket over the person taking the shower, but this requires a lot of strength from the bucket holder.



• Assuming that a suitable tree limb is located to hang the bucket, the rope may be thrown over the limb, the end of the rope tied to the bucket handle, and the bucket hoisted to the desired height. There are several things to consider when hoisting a bucket. In the best situation, a block and tackle (pulley) is the most desirable method of hoisting the bucket because it can make it much easier to lift the weight of the bucket, there will be little or no damage to the bark on the tree limb, and it causes minimal wear to the rope. A bucket containing five gallons of water weighs about 30 pounds.



• The pulley can be hoisted up by using a separate rope thrown over the limb and tied off securely. The bucket rope must be threaded through the pulley before hoisting the pulley. Since the pulley rope is pulled over the limb only when the pulley is put up and taken down, little damage is done to the bark, and rope wear is kept to a minimum.



• An alternative to a pulley is a two-foot length of sheet metal or half of a six-inch diameter PVC pipe cut along its length to form a half-pipe that can be placed on the limb. Place the sheet metal or the cut pipe on the limb so the rope lays across the sheet metal instead of the raw bark of the limb. This method will reduce the friction between the rope and bark, but it doesn't provide the mechanical advantage of a pulley, and it also has to be carried up the tree and secured in place to the appropriate limb so that it will not slip off.



• The method of attaching the rope to the bucket is of special importance because it must not fall onto someone underneath it. Unless the bucket has a strong handle or hook built into it so there is no doubt that it can carry the load of the bucket, a suitable rope or chain should be wrapped around the bucket and the suspending rope attached to the it. A chain may be more desirable because it can withstand heat, especially if the bucket is to be lowered over a fire to heat the water (this would require a metal bucket - never heat a plastic bucket). Before using the water, ensure that it is not too hot so that it will not cause burns to the person showering.



• A ground cloth or tarp.
  The ground beneath the shower should be prepared before the shower is used, otherwise a muddy puddle can be the result. The best solution might be a large, flat, non-slip surface. A piece of plywood, plastic mat, or tarpaulin might work. The surface should keep the person's feet off the slippery mud or grass and provide a non-slip surface. You should test various surfaces at home before using them at your camping spot to insure that they are safe and satisfactory.

Using The Shower
In theory, if the bucket is filled with five gallons of hot water, and one person uses one gallon of water, then five persons can shower on one filling of the bucket. However, it takes water conservation to limit the water usage to one gallon per person. One method is to turn on the shower, wet the body, turn off the shower, soap up, then turn on the shower to rinse. This won't result in as comfortable a shower as that in a hotel or at home, but it works.

Showers At A Winter Camp?
Yes, it is possible to shower outdoors in the winter. However, it takes more materials and preparation. A tent with a small hole in the roof for the bucket rope to pass through is needed. A hole must be cut in the floor at the lowest corner so that the water will drain out of the tent.

If a camp heater is available, then it may be used to warm up the tent prior to filling the bucket with hot water. (Never start an open fire in a tent.) In the absence of any kind of heater, several rocks can be heated in the camp fire and then wrapped in cloth and placed in the shower tent to help reduce the chill. In very cold weather, it will be impossible to raise the temperature in the shower tent more than a few degrees. One or more towels should be ready when the person has rinsed off to reduce chill from water evaporating off the body. In addition, dry clothing should be ready to be put on imediately after the person has used the towels.

The shower tent must be large enough so that the person taking the shower can change clothes in it to reduce his or her exposure to the cold. The shower bucket should be filled when the person to take the shower is in the shower tent, ready to disrobe. As soon as the bucket is filled with hot water and the tent shut, the person can disrobe, quickly wash, rinse, dry off, and dress. The less time that bare skin is exposed to cold air, the better. This type of shower tent will work any other time of year where privacy is desired.

Showers taken in cold weather are not recommended for young, elderly, or persons who are in poor health. In very cold conditions, it is better not to shower, but to take a "sponge bath" from the bucket of hot water by baring only small portion of the body at a time, sponging and drying, and covering it. This method will reduce the body surface that is exposed to cold air at any one time. If there are any questions or concerns regarding cold weather washing, you should consult a physician or sports medicine expert before engaging in outdoor activities of this type.

Cold Weather Considerations
In cold weather where the temperature drops below freezing, precautions must be taken to protect the bucket. If water is left in it during a freeze, then the ice may expand and split the bucket. To prevent this, pour the water out of the bucket when it is not in use. If the temperature is below freezing during use, try to keep the temperature of the water in the bucket above freezing by adding warm water to it periodically. Carrying a thermometer that can be suspended in the bucket and checked periodically will let you know when the water is getting too cold. Keeping the temperature around 40 degrees Fahrenheit should be suitable for most applications. 40 degrees is the normal temperature of home refrigerators.

Water For General Use At The Campsite
A ready supply of drinking and washing water is usually desirable at a campsite. A bucket may be set on the table with the hose extending over the edge for ease in filling containers. If table space is unavailable, then the supply bucket may be suspended over the table or cooking area with a rope and pulley as described above for the shower bucket.

For rinsing dishes after they have been washed, the shower head can be used to reduce the flow of water from the bucket and to distribute the water more widely. The shower head is also better than the solid stream from the hose end when washing hands for the same reasons.

Additional Tips
If a lid is kept on the bucket during use to prevent debris from entering it, when the bucket is ready to be used, loosening the lid will help the liquid flow more easily. In fact, with the lid on tight, there may be a vacuum formed in the bucket, preventing any flow at all.

If a metal bucket is to be placed directly over the stove or camp fire to heat the water, all parts used on it should be metal. Be sure to disconnect the hose, or it may melt. Many garden hose valves are metal on the outside, but they have a plastic ball valve inside which could be destroyed by heat, causing the valve to fail open or shut. Consider the alternative to heating the bucket directly: heat water in another container designed to sit over an open flame, and then transfer hot water from it to the bucket.

Before placing the bucket over the fire to heat the water, be sure to loosen the lid. As the water heats up, it will generate steam and if the lid is on tight, pressure will build up in the bucket until the lid or the hose connection blow off. This could be a dangerous situation because steam under pressure has a great force, and any pieces flying off the bucket can do much damage and inflict severe wounds.

Conclusion
It is hoped that these ideas will help you to be able to provide water in a more convenient way on your outdoor trips.

Disclaimer
These comments in no way suggest that you will save money or time, be safe, or find convenience following any of the above suggestions. Before changing any living patterns, consult a physician to ensure there will be no detrimental effects on family members, friends, and guests. The contents of this article reflect the author's experience and results through research. The author is not engaged in rendering any legal or professional advice. The services of a professional person are recommended if advice or assistance is needed. The author disclaims any personal loss or liability caused by utilization of any information presented herein.