Plumbing, Tanks, Toilets & Showers

Caravan Showers, Plumbing, Toilets, Tanks

Arguably, one of the most important systems in your caravan or motorhome will be its ability to sufficiently move, heat and dispose of water. Water is the most essential element to travelling and living on the road. Whether it’s your caravan hot water system, a motorhome bathroom sink, a portable caravan shower, caravan water tank, grey water tank, 12v water pump or your caravan water hose. Installing quality accessories and water systems will ensure your time on the road is effortless and comfortable. The bare minimum requirements of a caravan water system consist of several components: 

• Food grade fresh water external hose 

• Mains water pressure valve inlet 

• Water tanks 

• John guest piping 

• Non return valves 

• Caravan water filter 

• 12v water pump 

• Accumulator  

• Caravan hot water system 

• Shower/toilet/water filter 

• Tap 

• Sink 

• Grey water hose 

• Grey water tank 

Hoses and Piping: What is grey water hose? 

It is a 25mm – 32mm corrugated sullage hose with a smooth bore internal to prevent water pooling and waste build-up which will prolong the life of your grey water tanks and grey water hose. This smooth bore grey water hose is designed to limit odour and bacteria from building up over time. It connects your sink and shower fittings to your grey water tank. We also stock grey water hose carriers to keep it tidy if it needs to be dissconnected. 

What is food grade fresh water hose? 

Food grade caravan freshwater hose is used to fill the van from a tap, into a mains water inlet. It is made from high quality food grade components approved by the FDA. It is non-toxic and will leave no taste, even when left in the sun. Generally being 12mm, the same size of your garden hose and will often come in several versions. I.e., length can range from 10m – 30m and often come in blue to indicate that it is fresh water safe. We also stock the flat-out drinking hose for caravans that are low on storage space and hose carriers.

What is black water hose? 

For bigger imported motorhomes like the Winnebagos, a black waste tank is already pre-installed so if you are looking to replace the black water hose, then look at the standard sullage hoses from Camco. 

What is John Guest piping? 

The water rated pressure piping that run hot and cold water from and to your water devices. It is typically 12mm in overall diameter to contain the pressure from your 12v water pump. At Outback Equipment we stock all the essential hose clamps and hose fittings needed to either replace old or worn items, or if you are renovating. You can find all the water directors, elbows, T fittings, push on and threaded fittings and joiners.  

Water Tanks and Accessories: 

Caravan water tanks come in all shapes and sizes, they will food grade PVC plastic. Depending on how much space you have inside or underneath your chassis will determine how much water you can legally carry. How many people that are traveling in the caravan will determine how much water you will need per day. For instant the average person needs to drink minimum 4 litres of water per day. A 1 minute shower will use 9.5 litres of water per minute. Doing the dishes will use between 10-20 litres of water. Already for two people that is roughly 30 litres per person, per day. Using this as a rough guide, if you don’t want to have to fill your caravan water tanks up every day, for two people 180L of fresh water will comfortably last 3 days. Grey water tanks should be larger than a standard freshwater tank, so that you do not have to continually dump wastewater. Most grey nomads will isolate one fresh water tank purely for drinking, by filling up that water inlet with a inline water purifier, which means that even if you are stuck somewhere in the outback, you will have fresh drinking water on hand.  

At outback equipment, we stock all the best fresh water tanks and grey water tank accessories to make life on the road easy and functional. This includes water gauges, sender probes, mains pressure, water inlets, water valves, adaptors and one way check valves. All of these components are essential to running a water system smoothly and without issues.  

Sinks, Basins and Taps: 

Installing the right caravan sink is essential to the functionality of your kitchen. What are the benefits of a 12v water pump vs a hand pump? Manual sink pumps are good for a basic set up, if you don’t have a shower or toilet this is great for saving weight and are easy to install. They use slightly less water, however they take a little more getting use to as you do have to wash dishes one handed. This is where foot manual pumps are really helpful. Due to the design of some caravans, you can’t fit a hand pump behind the basin, so we highly recommend a foot pump for space saving purposes. A motorhome bathroom sink is a great addition to any caravan toilet. They are designed to fit in tight corners to save on space.  

Pumps and Filters: 

The most common caravan water pump is the Shurflo 4009 12v water pump, followed closely by the Seaflow RV supreme 12v pump. We also stock other popular brands name such as flow jet. Depending on the size of your caravan and the amount of appliances you have using water it is important to take into consideration not only the placement of your 12v water pump but the size. Sometimes bigger is not better, it’s not all about size! The higher the flow rate or LPM it will mean the more water you will waste if you are not careful. Another thing to take into consideration is the installation of a quality water filter. There are now significant advances in the technology that can filter out bacteria and other heavy metals in water you will come across in parts of Australia. We highly recommend the Thirsty Nomad water purifier to be installed under the sink or inline after the pump, for the best possible results.  

Toilets and Showers:

Dealing with your own waste does not have to be a hassle. At Outback Equipment we are dedicated to finding the best products to make sure going to the toilet on the road is a pleasant experience for everyone. We stock a range of different caravan toilets that can be either a fixed cassette or portable camp toilet. Both have the benefits of storing waste without having to install a black water tank. Most, if not all caravan toilets will require you to cut a hole for a service door, which makes emptying at a dump point much easier. Some of the best fixed caravan cassette toilets are manufactured by Thetford and Dometic. We also highly recommend the Fiamma or Thetford Porta Potti portable camp toilets for smaller vans. A hot water system is a luxury feature to have whilst travelling on the road. Hot water makes doing dishes, laundry and showering much more enjoyable, so be sure to pick up something reliable like the Truma Ultra Rapid.  

Why shop with Outback Equipment?  

• We’re Australian owned and operated – We’re based right here in the south of Brisbane. If you ever need help with an order or a product, you can call straight through to our friendly local team.  

• Plenty of payment options – You can pay via PayPal, MasterCard, Visa, zipMoney, Afterpay, and direct deposit – whichever is most convenient for you.      

• Delivered to your door – You don’t have to worry about darting across town to grab your order. We deliver your goods straight to your door to save you time and energy.  

Order Your Caravan Plumbing, Toilets and Showers Today 

Stay in complete control of your caravan with our range of caravan plumbing, toilets and showers. For the best caravan toilets, water hoses and fittings, shop online to find the finishing touches for your recreational vehicle today.