Before you take off on a great adventure you’ll most likely want to hook water up to your RV. Below I share how to fill your tanks, tools you’ll need along with prices, where to find water on your journey incase you don’t have hook ups and lastly, how to drain your tank once you’re done.

How to hook up and fill an RV with water:

1. Position the RV near enough to a fresh water source you can reach it with a hose.
2. Run a food grade hose through a pressure regulator (and a filter if you’d like)
3. The fresh water inlet is used to fill your tank. If you want to stay connected, attach to the city water inlet.
4. Run all the air through your hot water faucet before turning on the water heater.
5. Place the caps back on.

Keep reading for tips, tricks, safety, tools and prices…

Tip: Turn on your water pump and run your hot water faucet when your tank is partially filled to remove any air from the system. Then top off your fresh water holding tank. This way you can squeeze more water into your tank if you feel the need.

What are RV hookups?

RV hookups are simply a location at a campground where you can hook your RV up to a water source, power outlet or sewer. If all three are available it’s called “full hookups”. Only one or two are offered, it’s referred to as “partial hookups”. Not hooking up to anything is called “dry camping” whether you are in a developed campground or out in the wilderness. “Boondocking” is dry camping done off the grid.

Fresh water vs. city water connection on RV

City water connection

If you are at a campsite with a water hookup or even parked at home, you’ll want to hook the hose up to the city water connection. This bypasses your fresh water holding tank allowing you to use fresh water without fear of emptying your tank. If you happen to be hooked up to a sewer too, you can take a shower as if you were at home since you don’t need to worry about the waste water tanks filling up.

Water pressure regulator

Because city water is pressurized it also poses a potential risk when plugging it in directly to your RV. Don’t blow out your plumbing or spring a leak! A super simple, inexpensive inline water regulator attaches right to your hose. (see below)

Fresh water connection

If you’re planning a stop somewhere without a reliable water source you will simply need to fill your fresh water tank with drinkable (potable) water first. The fresh water connection on your RV feeds into your camper’s fresh water holding tank. Remember that filling this tank adds weight to your RV so fill it up closest to your destination. Too much weight can use more gas and strain your vehicle. Traveling with a partial tank is always nice for pits stops along your route.

Only fill CLEAN tanks. If you are pulling a camper from storage, renting/borrowing one from a questionable source or even want to rinse a brand new tank, read this article for the quickest, easiest way to sanitize your fresh water tank. Should take less than 20 minutes. (Instructions are included for cleaning black and grey tanks too.)

ALWAYS be sure your hot water heater is full before turning it on to prevent damaging your heater. Safety first Mama!

What parts or supplies do I need to fill my RV with fresh or city water?

As all the water in your camper needs to be drinking water safe, there are a few items that are a must. Even if you don’t plan on drinking it, you will be washing dishes and yourself in it.

• Hose specifically designed for drinking water $8-30 (usually blue or white) Collapsable hoses are light weight and save space.
• Inline water regulator about $8
• Water filter, a simple inline filter will do. $25-40 for a two pack

A few things that are nice to have include:

• An elbow so the water line hangs straight down from your RV connection. 2 for $10
• A “V” or “Y” connector, also known as a 2-way faucet splitter, so you can have a faucet and the RV water line in use at the same time. $15-20

Fresh water hose	$8-30
Pressure regulator	$8
Water filter	$15-20
Elbow connecter	$5
2-way splitter	$15-20

Where to fill your RV tank with fresh water, off grid or in town

Be sure the water you use to fill your tank is drinkable (potable) water. Thankfully, at most locations this is clearly marked. I mention dump stations below too because if you are out of water chances are your waste tanks are filling up.

• Home or residence. We always fill a partial tank before we leave the house because it is so handy if we need to make a quick pit stop.
• Campgrounds. Even if they don’t have full hookups or a dump station we find that most have drinking water. Usually if we google a campground they will mention if they have water or not, it’s important! If you are not camping at that particular site there may be a small fee. Check with the camp host, while you’re at it enjoy a friendly chat about the area, fishing spots, or grab some firewood.
• Travel centers and truck stops along the interstate or highway. Could cost a few dollars. A lot of times these will have dump stations too.
• Gas stations. Whenever we have stopped for gas and needed a water refill we pop our heads in and ask the clerk and the’ll point us to the hose. Sometimes there is a small fee but usually not. They appreciate that you are buying gas or road snacks!
• RV parks will usually allow you to fill and dump for a fee. Some are private though, so call ahead if you can.
• Some rest areas have water, even dump stations.
• Local parks may have a water spigot. Remember It’s always polite to ask.
• Check the Local Chamber of Commerce. We found water and a free dump station at a chamber of commerce in a tiny town in Idaho. Awesome!
• In a pinch remember there are water jug refill machines located outside of a lot of grocery stores. Keeping a 5 gallon water jug (or buying one inside) can come in handy.

How do you drain a fresh water tank on an RV

• Turn off your camper’s hot water heater as well as the water pump to prevent damage.
• Once the heater has had time to cool release the pressure valve and remove the plug. Careful, it could be really hot!
• Look underneath near your water tank. at the lowest point there should be two water drains clearly visible. Simply pull the plug or turn the valves.
• Replace all caps and covers when finished.

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You did it! You are successfully full of water and ready to travel… unless you need to hook propane too, I’ve got you covered in this post here.

Are you prepping your RV to hit the road? Has your camper been stored for a while? Here is my quick check list of 10 things I like to check before starting the travel season. Believe me, you’ll be glad you read it.

Happy travels mama! Share pics of your glorious travels @mamas.little.camper on Instagram.