The Great On Board Shower Debate

[Beowulf]

The Great On Board Shower Debate

If money were not object, what is the best on onboard shower unit?

I am looking for something that of course heats the water and can work from both an open water source or an aux water tank. I figure just about any unit could be plumbed to do both open/aux water sources.

Maybe this could be a good Overland Journal Shoot Out.

Who makes the best heat exchanger?
Best pump for the job? Either from the heat exchanger manufacturer or bought separately.
Most rugged or usable Head Unit?
Easiest mounting option?

Options:

Glind: Aussie’s Darling
http://www.glind.com.au/

Has anyone used the Glind Showers?


Brown Church: Safari proven
http://www.brownchurch.co.uk/water.html

I don’t see a heat exchanger, but why couldn’t you add one from the other manufacturers?


R&M Products: Home grown unit
http://www.hotcampshowers.com/index.html

I’m sure there are others.

 

[lowenbrau]

Its a loaded question that begs more questions...

Do you generally have easy access to a water source (i.e. can you drive to within a few feet of the water's edge?) or will you be packing water along for showers?

Do you mind having the truck idling for hours while everybody showers?

Do you have pack a large propane bottle around that can be used for a heater?

Do you sometimes use different vehicles where it would be nice to take the shower from one rig to another?

Are you interested in having a hot water tank on board that heats water while you drive?

 

[Beowulf]

All great questions. I will modify the original post.

 

[TheGillz]

Its a loaded question that begs more questions...

Do you generally have easy access to a water source (i.e. can you drive to within a few feet of the water's edge?
We like to camp near water whenever possible definately.
or will you be packing water along for showers?
We would do that if we happened to be camping where there wasn't a close water source.
Do you mind having the truck idling for hours while everybody showers?
I think this is quite an exaggeration, unless you have more than 4 people I think less than an hour is more realistic. Showers can be very fast if you want them to.
Do you have pack a large propane bottle around that can be used for a heater?
Probably, but I wouldn't want to get a bigger one.
Do you sometimes use different vehicles where it would be nice to take the shower from one rig to another?
No.
Are you interested in having a hot water tank on board that heats water while you drive?
No.

Good questions, I think based on this the Helton system is what I have been thinking will meet our needs best.

 

[the dude]

We have two vehicles that we like like to drive and sometimes pull the M101 trailer.

It opens up a lot of variables for sure. I don't mind hauling water with the trailer but don't want it in the truck. I don't want to buy two complete systems for each rig either... I like the concept of the Zodi shower system but it take up a fair amount of space and uses more propane then I would typically carry.

I "think" that I am going to install heat exchangers on both vehicles and have the pumps and hoses portable so that I can switch between trucks. I don't know how big the pump and shower board will have to be but I think it will work.

I went with a SEC plate heat exchanger based off a recommendation off of IH8MUD. It is not installed yet. Ran about $150cad

I think with a big group (8-10 trucks is typical with us) my rig will be idling for hours...

 

[lowenbrau]

I think with a big group (8-10 trucks is typical with us) my rig will be idling for hours...

Yeah Brad a few of those Whipsaw trips found one rig set up for shower duty and a big line up of people using it. The good news is my diesel really sips fuel at idle. On large multi-day trips like that I charge people one cold beer per shower and it keeps me from being thirsty. I use the space that would normally take a cooler for an extra can of diesel. Only the most dedicated alcoholics think that's anything but a great deal. (they roast me a hot dog instead)

I prefer the R & M type only because I've had it for ten years. The biggest hassle of a heat exchanger is the suction hose. It can't be too long and has to be of sufficient quality to not end up kinked and has to be stored rolled nicely. etc etc. I'm wondering about a cloth style discharge hose with two runs of #14 wire attached to it feeding a small submersible bilge pump that gets tossed in the lake. If I have a voltage drop problem, I'll connect it to 24Volts at the truck and it should be with in range at the pump. That should allow for 50 or more feet from the truck to the lake which is much more reasonable and should roll up very tightly. 12V bilge pumps start at $20.

 

[RHINO]

i made a heat exchanger shower and it worked great, used alot of water and the truck idling on an otherwise nice quiet mother nature experience,,, i have gone back to sponge baths.

 

[Bergger]

I prefer a wash rag and a pot of hot soapy water.

 

[Willman]

Didn't know their was a Debate on the shower thing....

SS Spray can pump with a Paha Qué Tepee Privacy Tent does the trick!


Great thread about doing it your self!

http://expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3261&highlight=shower

:elkgrin:

 

[the dude]

Bruce, the Whipsaw trip was one of the dustiest trails I have been on. No top and no doors and I was a mess from head to toe. I can't remember if it was your rig or a gas 40 that I washed down in, but it was glorious!!

I really like the idea of a bilge pump/submersible. I wonder how big a unit you would need to push enough water through. I am going to investigate this further...

 

[spressomon]

Ok...I've had the HH (Helton Heat Exchanger) for a couple years; have used a couple different Zodi's; own and use the Coleman water heater; and boiled water in a large pot before any of these for shower/clean up.

I just installed an Aquajet pump that is capable of pushing up to 75psi. Typically 45psi or less seems to be the max output psi of most of the RV/Marine type 12V pumps. I was trying to get a low flow/high pressure similar to the same at home, etc. The best I could do is .75gpm...but was trying to get to .5gpm which would probably require something in the 90psi range.

I haven't found one yet but I think the perfect solution for all hot water needs might be an instant hydronic/water heater fueled by propane (or gas/petrol). Espar makes one but I don't know anyone who has actually used one for this purpose. It would be nice to get near instant hot water for any reason...camp dishes, dirty hand washing, showers, etc.

The Coleman sort of works like that but takes up alot of space IMO and without modifying its electronics you can only use it when the battery is charged. If you have the battery charger connected it will not flow water...

Pasquale has an interesting water heater. Isotherm...heats approximately 4-gallons...operates with 110V (need a good sized inverter)...but isn't capable of providing instant hot water. The way he has it mounted however allows him to have 160-ish degrees of water available given enough time to heat its 4-gallons; he has it somewhat insulated so the water stays hot for sometime after he stops his rig.

In summary: If there isn't a viable instant type hydronic heater available and if I had to do it all over again I think I'd save all the hassle and expense and just use a SS bug sprayer over a burner (Zodi)...with a lower flow shower head attached.

Just my $.02 from the last 3-years of searching for the 'hot water holy grail'.

 

[lowenbrau]

I haven't found one yet but I think the perfect solution for all hot water needs might be an instant hydronic/water heater fueled by propane (or gas/petrol). Espar makes one but I don't know anyone who has actually used one for this purpose. It would be nice to get near instant hot water for any reason...camp dishes, dirty hand washing, showers, etc.

I have had a Webasto TSL17 (diesel powered) in each of my rigs for many years and before that I had a ProHeat. None are able to give instant hot water. They can warm it up about 20F per pass though so if you had a holding tank of some description you could get 150 degree water pretty quick. We used my Pro Heat to heat a hot tub at Rubicon back in the day. It took about 8-10 hours to get probably 800 gals up to 110F.

 

[Robert Bills]

I, too, have had and used many different types of camp showers: solar, Zodi battery powered unit, heat exchanger, pot of hot water, etc.

All have pros and cons.

The "debate" reminds me of the simple, effective and no cost shower method we used when I was a Boy Scout:

1. Heat some water in a pot.

2. Stand next to the pot in your skivvies and wash down as far as Possible.

3. Then wash up as far as Possible.

4. When no one is looking, drop your skivvies and wash Possible.

 

[lowenbrau]

Bruce, the Whipsaw trip was one of the dustiest trails I have been on. No top and no doors and I was a mess from head to toe. I can't remember if it was your rig or a gas 40 that I washed down in, but it was glorious!!

I really like the idea of a bilge pump/submersible. I wonder how big a unit you would need to push enough water through. I am going to investigate this further...

That Whipsaw dust is largely comprised of pulverized cow patties which adds to the grimy feeling.

The bilge needs to move 1-2 gal/min to match the consuption of the shower head. I'd still use a shurflow or similar RV pump to provide the pressure. It will take some experimentation to figure if the hose can be connected directly to the rv pump or if it'll need a intermediate holding tank ( rubbermade bin). I don't mind if it does because if you are pulling glacier water on a 50 degree F day my system doesn't warm the water enough for a comfortable shower, even in the shower tent. I simply pre heat a bin of water and then pull the feed hose out of the lake and draw from the pre-heated water. I can then get a really hot shower to warm up before bunking down on a cold rainy night.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

I'm far from unbiased, but I really have been satisfied with my Helton unit, its been installed for 3-4 years now without a hitch. The units themselves come in a handful of different configurations, some providing more hear than others, different fitting setups, etc. I'll be the first to say their pump system is a bit on the light duty end, though amazingly there are alot of them in service without problems (I have had a few come back dead though). For someone that will be using the shower on a regular basiw, I recommend the Helton exchanger (pick your flavor) and a different pump setup, easy to plumb, easy to mount, set it and forget it. For me it is one less thing to load and one less thing to forget

To the comment on "your motor will be idling for hours", well thats a bit deceptive. Do you plans ALL your vehicle mods around your entire group? Do you carry their spare parts? spare fuel? food? Thats like buying the 80 Qt Engel because your the only one that carries a fridge If your going to need that much hot water, easy, pre-heat a container of water. You can turn the pump on, drop the shower head back into your source and cycle the closed loop to preheat the entire bucket or container of water, takes a couple of minutes and your set.

My wife and I can shower twice each on 5 gallons of water, so for a 4-5 day trip we shower every other day. Thats a pretty conservative shower, get wet, soap up, quick rinse. When we are close to water, we get some nice leisure 100* showers . There are truthfully very few places (at least in my locals) that you can park within 10' of a good water source, so I've been packing a 5 gallon bucket in the trailer, easy to stow (fill it with other stuff) and you can ferry a bucket at a time from a nearby river or lake and take a nice leisure shower without using your fresh water. I've done the same using a Scepter can, unscrew the lid and sink it for a minute... I stopped doing this as I was worried about contaminating my cans (giardia, etc). I've even used the water out of my cooler for a quick rinse