RE: [A/S] Airstream, PHD

["DT & BW" <dtbw_1999@xxxxxxxxx>]

Judy,Dave
I couple of items on water.  
I would HIGHLY recommend that you purchase a simple whole house water filter
such as the GE model that Home Depot sells.  These are inexpensive and the
sediment filter cartridges are only a few bucks each.  It is amazing all the
stuff that one of the filters will catch in only a few days (peebles, sand,
rust, etc).  I typically just toss the filter cartridge after each trip.  If
you want a taste filter, then just install the appropriate cartridge.  You
can buy similar filters specifically aimed at the RV owner, but you
typically overpay for these.  To hookup the filter you will need to purchase
a few fittings as well as construct a short hose section to go from the
filter to the inlet on the Bambi.  To support for the filter, I purchased a
fiberglass flower pot of the appropriate height, turned it over and but a
hole in the bottom large enough for the filter to slip into.  With the pot
sitting upside down, it is extremely stable and it hides the filter.

On drinking the water from the tank, yes, we do whenever we are on the road
as well as when boondocking. (we have also discovered that our Bambi tows
better with a full water tank).  To prevent any contamination in the fresh
water tank, we take a proactive approach.  As a marine enthusiast you may
already be aware of chlorine dioxide as it has been used in marine fresh and
waste water systems for years.  It is now being adopted by many local water
municipalities to replace straight chlorine as the normal system sanitizer.
It is FDA approved for use in drinking water.  It takes far less chlorine
dioxide compared to straight chlorine since the product specifically targets
only the problems and with two powerful oxidants (chlorine and oxygen).
Whenever I fill the fresh water tank I also give it a dose, which is
odorless and colorless.  It does NOT impart any taste to the water.   It is
also fantastic in the black and wash water tanks.  The chemical bonds
between the chlorine and oxygen atoms break apart in the present of the
smallest amount of acid (bacteria, mold, odors, all give off acids).  The
chlorine as well as the oxygen attack the source of the acid and once
neutralized no additional chlorine dioxide molecules breakdown.  Also it
leaves a slight coating on the walls of tanks and water lines, so should
something attempt to grow there, they don't have a chance.  It works
fantastic in the black and wash water tanks, keeping them clean and odor
free (yes, it is a good idea to treat the wash water tank as it can sour and
smell worse than an untreated black tank).  You only use an ounce or two per
tank, so the cost is low.  I buy the stuff online at
www.billydump.com/3r/3rhome.htm.  As you will see, they appear to offer two
products, one for fresh and another for waste waters, but in reality, it is
the same product, same strength, just different packaging, so we just use
the product packaged as OdorCon for both.  BTW, the levels of released
chlorine are far lower than what would be present if you used liquid bleach
and they are concentrated at the source of problems.  Only enough chlorine
and oxygen (both powerful oxidizers) are released to eliminate problems, so
the system is self regulating and the process of oxidation leaves nothing
that will hurt your water or sewer systems (various salt compounds... at the
molecular level).   

I am delighted to hear that A/S is FINALLY installing metal stems.  I have
been on mission ever since my experience to get the word out.  I wrote A/S
about the problem and they indicated that they were going to start using
metal stems on the higher inflation tires, but even as late as the start of
the 2005 model year, they were shipping rubber stems.   Regardless, I am a
big fan of active tire pressure monitoring.  Knowing that a tire is low
gives you an opportunity to check it out and correct which if left alone
would result in overheating and potentially failing (always make sure that
the Bambi tires have no LESS than 60PSI is that is the absolute minimum
pressure that will support a fully loaded Bambi...per Goodyear).  

david