how to fill water tank under gaucho

[Davidboco]

2016 Sprinter sportsmobile

I have a 17 gal fresh water tank under my gaucho and at times while camping I'll need to refill my tank. 99% of the time I don't have any hook ups near by.
I don't want to move the van but instead fill it from say a 5 or 3 gal water container - whats the best way to do this? My tank has a male garden hose type connector.
I've tried a funnel but water goes everywhere
There's got to be a clever solution but it's eluding my simple mind
Thanks

[Sporkchop]

What about a small 12 V transfer pump or https://www.temu.com/subject/n9/goog...01099514220479

[BrianW]

Officially SMB recommends using a funnel, which is a PITA the few times I’ve done it. I’ve thought of making up some sort of hose, but the problem is you’d need a dedicated water transfer container to know what threading to put on the hose coupler. Maybe a one gallon water jug?

[marret]

I keep a 3 ft section of clear tubing (actually the kind with reinforcement in the vinyl) with a brass hose female fitting on one end to screw on and a funnel under the gaucho for filling my water. Attach the hose, the funnel fits in the other end snugly, keep the funnel above the tank, and pour water into the funnel. The tubing lays between the tank and door for storage. I always have water containers and gallon jugs with me. Also carry a 5 gallon fabric bucket.

Like this:
https://www.lowes.com/pd/EZ-FLO-3-4-...ing/1000365049

[Twoxentrix]

Install a Marine deck plate (4,5, or 6”) on the top of the tank…simplifies everything from filling, cleaning, to winterizing. Couple threads around on how to do this (easy mod).

[doublevan2]

Felix -- did you use a drill/hole saw for opening - how did you keep plastic particles from dropping into water tank ? PITA to get particles out - could plug up the water lines/pump I'm guessing. Silicone the deck plate - plus screws ?

[Twoxentrix]

Russ - Yes, Yes, and Yes.
Hole saw to drill the big hole (but first emptied the tank so shaving fall to the bottom, and used a wet-vac to remove all debris). Then, put the top plate in place as a template to drill the bolt holes. Used all marine grade bolts/washers/& lock-nuts, so no rust. Apply marine grade Silicone product (make sure you get enough in the bolt holes & both sides of the gasket).
***Once the large hole has been drilled, its very easy to get to the underside of the top to secure the washers & lock-nuts as you go through the application process.

EDIT: As noted earlier there are several threads available, but Post #10 on this thread has a good picture (a 5" or 6" deck plate is large enough...4" is certainly doable);
https://www.sportsmobileforum.com/fo...ter-28793.html

[1der]

Definitely recommend the threaded lid ports. The ones that snap in are not advised.
We have 3" ports on our (non SMB) tanks that work well. 4" would be good, too. Main issue may be the amount of accessible surface area atop the tank, especially in the 50 layouts. We do not even have an external water fill point.

Personally I have never understood the decision to not incorporate a rapid interior fill via bottles vs the pressurized hose connected to the city water port on side of the rig for a Sportsmobile that is primarily used dispersed.

[AndrewInSeattle]

Our solution is jury-rigged from other useful items we already carry:
1) a 3-gallon water jug with a reversible lid that converts to a spout.
2) a 3-foot garden hose, useful for when we leave the grey water tank draining for a long shower but want the water to not pool under the van
3) a "water bandit", frequently needed for doing an exterior water fill from a source with no hose threading

Connect them all together and you've got a straightforward way to fill that's significantly less messy than a funnel, although it still helps to have a towel handy for when you lose your grip on the water bandit. I think there's also a male/male or female/female hose adapter in the mix, but I'm too lazy to check right now!

[jrobe]

Here is my simple, easy and cheap siphon system. SMB should probably install this in every van.

Under my rear couch, there is a short PEX tubing that comes out of the bottom of my freshwater tank and goes directly to my Shurflo water pump. I simply cut this tubing and installed a "T" fitting. Then I installed a new 3 foot section of poly tubing (my new siphon hose) onto one side of the 'T". Then I installed two simple lever valves on each input side of the "T'" so I can separately control whether water comes from the freshwater tank or from my new siphon hose before it leads to the water pump.

To add 5 (or 10 gal) of water to my freshwater tank, I carry a portable 5 gal jug of water into the van, stick the siphon hose into the jug, open the valve to the siphon hose and close the valve from the freshwater tank. Then I reach around and open the main SMB water fill valve that SMB installed. Now I can simply turn on my water pump and the pump will siphon water from the portable jug into my freshwater tank. It takes about 30 seconds to transfer 5 gal. When I am done I reverse the valves and tuck the siphon hose away under the couch.

The nice thing about this is that I can also use this siphon hose to easily winterize my water lines in the fall. I drain my freshwater tank and then shut off the valve to isolate it from my water system so I don't get any antifreeze into the tank (which is a pain to remove in the spring). Then I blow out all my lines with compressed air. Then I stick my siphon hose into a 1 gal jug of antifreeze, flip the valves and let my water pump siphon antifreeze into each water line as i open each faucet. I probably only use 1/2 gal of antifreeze to fully protect the whole system which is then easy to flush out in the spring.