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07 Dec 2009 | Where does the responsibility lie?

In the January edition of Caravan World magazine, Malcolm Street in Street Talk discusses grey water and caravans.

"There are plenty of places where draining grey water that contains assorted chemicals isn't the appropriate thing to do. However, thatit is difficult not to do if there is no grey water tank," writes Malcolm.

Should manufacturers install grey water tanks in vans as a matter of course, or does the responsibility for proper grey water disposal rest elsewhere? How would having a grey water tank affect your van’s payload? Tell us what you think.
COMMENTS (9)
Comment by Unknown
posted 3 years ago
We are currently having one fitted, we stayed at a well known holiday resort van park in Tassie recently and upon asking where the sullage point was for our site, was told by the operator "just let it out on the ground" i was horrified. As the weather was quite warm the smell in the evening was dreadful from the combined vans doing the same thing,what happened to health regulations
Comment by Unknown
posted 3 years ago
While holidaying in NZ we found that caravans had tanks with wheels (k/a Tote tanks in Australia) and these were located underneath the van and they collected the grey water drainage. These tanks are also available in Australia and we have recently purchased one which is used when sullage isn't available e.g. free camping.
Comment by Unknown
posted 3 years ago
In New Zealand, campervans are not compelled to have grey water tanks, although most new ones have them and many older ones are getting them fitted.
Comment by Unknown
posted 3 years ago
I am in the process of fitting one to my Coromal but am concerned as the one in a motor home I had in NZ, the drain was blocked and on talking to other people it was not uncommon on hired vehicles. Proper care mustyt be taken in what went into the tank
Comment by Unknown
posted 3 years ago
I worry that collecting and driving off with all grey water in another tank will adversely affect the balance of the caravan, which can be hard enough to get just right anyway. Not the same issue with a motorhome! In most caravan parks in Australia grey water is passed straight into the drainage system provided, or if directed, onto the grass. I expect that as part of the service, and so should park operators, because we pay a reasonable enough rate to allow grey water to stay at the park, and to have access to a dump site, for that matter. Free camping is another matter, and too many caravanners abuse the privelige by leaving a soggy and contaminated hole where they were parked. At least use a bucket and empty it near a tree close by ... and NEVER leave any rubbish or toilet refuse at the site, or we will end up losing access to all sorts of free camping.

Ralph Jordan
Comment by Unknown
posted 3 years ago
The responsibility lies with the owner of the van. If a park does not have disposal facilities then the owner should carry the grey/black water until he can find a dump point. I do not have the problem as my van does not have a bathroom/toilet. The only grey water I have is the kitchen sink and that always goes down the sullage drain at the site I am allocated unlesss the park owner says put it on the grass. If neither of these happen, grey water is collected in a bucket and disposed of responsibly.
John Hodges
Comment by Unknown
posted 3 years ago
i believe that if a caravan has a water tank then it should have a grey tank of at least the same capacity ,this way they can free camp and be resposible for the grey water.This is what motorhomes have to do.
Comment by Unknown
posted 3 years ago
Most sites in Australia currently allow or facilitate discharge of grey water at the site, thus grey water tanks are not generally needed. If parks did not allow for discharge of waste at the site as is done by most people now, then the drawback is emptying the grey water tank. This requires that a van with an inbuilt tank would need to be taken to a dump point every few days to empty the tank; or with no inbuilt tank then a suitable wheeled 'external tank' would need to be carried in the van and emptied every day or so. In NZ caravan parks (in March 2009), waste drainage points were not provided at each site - they usually had a single disposal point somewhere around the park. This worked OK because by NZ law all motorhomes (which appear to be about 90% to 95% of all camping vehicles) had to have a grey water tank. The few caravans that we saw either had a bucket (which was emptied several times a day) or a (approximately) 20 litre tank on wheels which was emptied about every second day.
Comment by Unknown
posted 3 years ago
I had one fitted to my Roma when purchased. Should be fairly easy to fit in most cases, and should not add too much to price ( hopefully) P THOMPSON

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