Grey water, black water: how to empty the waste water from the camper van?
For greater comfort during your campervan trip, it is advisable to empty your waste water every three days or so. But this should not be done haphazardly! Find out in this article how to empty the waste water from your campervan.
First of all, you should know that you cannot improvise emptying the waste water from your camper van anywhere in nature. Indeed, the law (article R*116-2 of the Highway Code) prohibits spreading substances on public roads that are likely to harm public health. To avoid a category 5 fine (or even the confiscation of your vehicle in the event of a repeat offence), it is therefore important to empty the waste water from your camper van in an appropriate place. This will often cost you only a few euros.
The emptying of waste water (grey water and black water) must therefore be planned in advance by identifying the various legal emptying areas.
Emptying your camper van will then require two steps:
- emptying of grey water;
- and the drainage of black water.
You can first start by emptying the grey water stored in the floor of the camper van: this is the waste water coming from your shower and sinks.
Each service area usually has concrete drain areas where you will find a drain plate (similar to a manhole cover) on which you will have to park your camper. Align the drain of your camper above the hatch and simply turn the valve on the water tank. The grey water contained in your camper tank will be drained in about ten minutes.
If you own a motorhome, chances are you have a chemical toilet. The wastewater from chemical toilets is called black water. It contains chemicals that should not be dumped anywhere. Detach the tank from your chemical toilet containing your black water and empty it in the area provided for this purpose. Take the opportunity to clean your chemical toilet to minimize bad odors and for better maintenance.
Once you have finished emptying the waste water from your camper van, be sure to check that all the valves are properly closed before setting off again on the road.
When emptying the waste water from your camper van, you can also take the opportunity to stock up on clean water to ensure your autonomy for the rest of your trip.