Even if you rent a small campervan without a bathroom, you might be faced with the question of what to do with and where to dispose of your gray water tank, e.g., from your sink. Our first campervan had a sink (which we loved!), and we, therefore, compiled a brief guide for you on how to handle it.
What to do with your campervan's gray water? You need to safely dispose of your gray water into a drainage or dumping station. The most common places to empty your gray water are campgrounds. In popular camping areas, you will also find signage for dump stations in rest areas and in towns.
Depending on the country, the laws for disposal are different. We have therefore compiled our best practices for easy and worry-free campervanning with or without gray water.
Prefer video? Here it goes:
How do you generate gray water with a small campervan?
Before we get further into the disposal of gray water, let's talk about the way it is created. In smaller campervans, the most common way to develop gray water is with a built-in sink. There are two styles. Either the sink is inside the van with a small kitchenette area, or you can find it at the rear of the van, which then serves as your outdoor kitchen.
Either way, the sink works by pumping up the water, so there is no direct running water, which is excellent to avoid water waste. Underneath the sink, you can find two water canisters connected via hoses. One for freshwater and one for the drainage, the gray water.
How to dump gray water from your campervan rental?
Regardless of the different laws and practices around the world, we encourage you always to act environmentally friendly and use your common sense. After all, camping is about appreciating the outdoors and not polluting it.
Use a dump station
Smaller campervans usually do not come with big built-in and fixed water tanks. To make use of a dump station, simply take out your water canister and empty it into the dump station. You should do this minimum every three days for two main reasons:
- confined gray water allows for bacteria to grow, which then becomes smelly and unhealthy
- don't wait to empty your gray water canister until it is full. It becomes quite heavy and, therefore, inconvenient. The heavier it is, the more likely you will be to spill some water, when emptying it over a dump station
- This, of course, only applies when you do not have an evacuation hose to drain and fill your canisters. In the US, we didn't have one. In New Zealand, one is absolutely mandatory.
A rule of thumb is, whenever your campervan rental comes with a gray water system, you will find dump stations at campgrounds and along the roads.
Use a regular drainage
In some campgrounds (we have experienced it mostly in Australia), each campsite has its own freshwater tap and small drainage below. These are very useful to immediately get rid of your gray water, or let's say the water you cooked your pasta in. Be careful though of not spilling on the surrounding grass.
Filling your freshwater tank
Obviously, you should also remember to refill your freshwater tank. Should you have an evacuation hose, connect both ends to the tap and canister and let the water flow.
In the US, where we did not have a hose, we refilled our sink canister from a freshwater canister we bought at Walmart.
Why can a sink in a small campervan be useful?
We loved our sink as it gave us even more freedom and convenience along the way.
We primarily used it for:
- brushing our teeth, when free camping
- cleaning our dishes
- washing our hands and face after a sweaty and sticky hike
As I said before, this is all for convenience only, and you can definitely travel without a sink and still have an enjoyable experience.
How to avoid gray water on your campervan trip?
Friends of ours also had a sink in their campervan; however, they never used it.
Should you prefer to not worry about gray water at all, then here are our best practices.
Use a camp kitchen
Almost every campground offers the amenity of a camp kitchen. We prefer to prepare our meals directly on our campsite unless it is raining. Once we are done eating, we head to the camp kitchen to clean the dishes. It's just a lot more convenient and spacious.
Most camp kitchens also come equipped with general kitchen appliances like pots, pans, soap, sometimes even a fridge, toaster, and coffee maker. We prefer to use our own equipment from our rental and what we brought from home; however, that is, of course, up to your personal preference.
Use baby wipes
Too lazy to walk up to the camp kitchen? Your off-grid campground does not have a camp kitchen, or you are free camping?
Be sure to have packed baby wipes, ideally, actual wet wipes that are disinfecting and bio-degradable. It is super easy to clean your dishes with wet wipes without leaving a trace.
Also, you may use the baby wipes for cleaning your face, neck, and hands after a long sweaty day or hike.
Related questions
How to cook without a sink in your campervan?
That, of course, leads to the question as to what meals to prepare without water should you not have a gray water tank in your van and you do not have a camp kitchen available. There are plenty of options to make a delicious meal without the use of water on your campervan road trip. Such as salads, wraps, quesadillas, fish, chicken, steak, and of course, sandwiches.
If you absolutely need water to cook (e.g., for pasta or rice), we would recommend you buy a canister at a shop beforehand. You can then use it to dispose of your gray water while free camping. Later, you can then throw that water out when you find a dump station or sewer in a campground.
How to keep up personal hygiene without a sink in your campervan?
This question is especially important when not staying at campgrounds.
Jen and I love the outdoors and are absolutely ok with spending a few days without a shower. We keep our hygiene up by using baby wipes.
What about our hair? Well, personally, I tie my long her up in a ponytail, and that works fine for some days without looking too slick. On our outdoor adventure, Jen usually wears a cap anyways to keep her short curls out of her face.
In case you really do not like greasy hair or will not have a shower any time soon, we can recommend using dry shampoo. You spray it to your hair roots and massage it in a bit, and it then works its magic. We do not recommend to use it for a full two-week trip, though.
Usually, you will always find a way to take a shower somewhere, even when free camping. Either at a public pool or a public beach or you chose to carry a solar shower with you. Be sure to use biodegradable shampoo in that case.
Leaving no trace is super essential and enables us to think out of the box sometimes when we spend too much time in our city lifestyle.
How do you brush your teeth if you do not have a sink in your campervan (without leaving a trace)?
The simplest way is to take a plastic bag, sealable bucket, or anything of that sort to spit your toothpaste in. Traveling with a campervan allows you to store that bag or bucket for proper disposal, unlike on a hiking trip.
Do you have any other tips that we might have forgotten or questions we have not answered here? Let us know in the comments below, we would love to hear from you.
If you are new to campervanning, we have a 101 section to answer all of the most common questions first-timers have:
- How Do Campgrounds Work - a Quick Guide on How to Find, Book and Stay
- Do You Need a Toilet in Your Campervan Rental?
- Best Luggage for a Road Trip in a Small Campervan
And much more!
