Portable Camping Showers

[Golly Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Golly]

I would like to see if any members have one (of course :mrgreen: ) and what brand, cost and vendor along with any photos you have put in this thread if possible. Some creature comforts are required by the handbrake and if enough water onboard it makes for a pleasant two days away trip haha..
Interested to see what the member here have in this field and setups of course.

Cheers

[adam's prado Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close adam's prado]

Re: Portable Camping Showers

Hi Golly we have a piranha power shower from Piranha in Melbourne cost $600 cost a bit extra in labour because the don't make the brackets for the 90 series so they had to make their own really top job it's been great when camping. You can get 2 models 1: with pump mounted under bonnet or 2: mounted in a sturdy tackle box that's the option we went for a little bit extra $'s of course. I can have a mild (not to hot not to cold) with 10 ltrs of water with decent pressure if you need more pressure get someone to rev the prado more. Hope this helps we love our shower especially camping in Victoria over the colder months.

The heat exchanger.

The pump with filter hose and battery leeds 4mtrs of hose

The sower head that comes out the other side of engine bay 2mtrs of hose.
hope the photos give you a fair idea I can post some more if you like.

[Snaga Wishing I was lost Find all posts View Profile Close Snaga]

Re: Portable Camping Showers

We heat 10 ltrs of water with our Coleman HWOD system and then use a 12v shower head and pump. (shower head cost about $18.00 I think... and use a battery from an old photographic light set.)
You use a lot less water this way as you can turn the flow off in-between needing the water and not. Also, it's much more convenient as the HWOD can stay in the one position in the cooking area rather than having to be moved to where the shower tent is.

[leachy_9 Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close leachy_9]

Re: Portable Camping Showers

Our set up is one step simpler than Snaga's. We just heat some water on the cooker, stick it in a bucket and drop in a 12V pump and shower head which cost about $20.
It's cheap, works well - about 5-6L per shower and packs away very small.

The other thing you will probably want is a shower tent. My advise would be to get one with and external frame. They are better the wind and 1000% less frustrating to pack up than the ones that have the built in flexible frame that you twist into hoops to pack.

Leachy

[adam's prado Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close adam's prado]

Re: Portable Camping Showers

Hi snaga that's is the pain in the ass thing about ours every time you want hot water you have to start the prado up unpack the pump and hoses and set the tent up around the car then disconnect it when you need to go out for a drive. the shower head we have sounds similiar to yours.

[GDS Member Find all posts View Profile Close GDS]

Re: Portable Camping Showers

Second leachy on the shower tent, the external or solid frame ones work well especially if you use a solar shower.

The solar shower bags are also a good option, work better than I initially thought, they heat up in about half hour in summer but take a few hours in winter. You can always fill up the shower with warm water from the kettle.

[Snaga Wishing I was lost Find all posts View Profile Close Snaga]

Re: Portable Camping Showers

Hi snaga that's is the pain in the ass thing about ours every time you want hot water you have to start the prado up unpack the pump and hoses and set the tent up around the car then disconnect it when you need to go out for a drive. the shower head we have sounds similiar to yours.

I almost went down the heat exchange way but after talking to a few people decided that it's not preferable to drink or wash-up with the engine bay mounted hot water systems...
Starting the car up was another issue... I regularly have a shower late at night or early morning and didn't think fellow campers would appreciate the car revving at those hours

[adam's prado Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close adam's prado]

Re: Portable Camping Showers

Another down side especially when you are on fuel rations for the trip. I didn't talk to many people about the options and I had a really good sales man !!!!

[Muddles Member Find all posts View Profile Close Muddles]

Re: Portable Camping Showers

I have 1 of the 12 volt showers like this. Plugs into the cig lighter socket in the Prado. Was able to close the door on the cord without a drama so no water got inside the car.

http://www.shoppingsquare.com.au/p_4824 ... h_12V_Pump

Heated up the water on the camp stove or on a fire then into a bucket. Head has adjustable pressure and can even be easily turned off to conserve water while you are soaping up and good enough pressure to rinse off with ease.


If you want a longer shower buy a bigger bucket.

[Golly Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Golly]

Re: Portable Camping Showers

Thanks guys, yeah we were going down the road of the bucket. I spent 1month in India, hot pot of water mixed into 2 x buckets, one bucket to wet down, then lather, then the other to wash off 10l water used max. External shower frames, check ! excellent, Mrs will love it for sure.

[IRON-PAWW Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close IRON-PAWW]

Re: Portable Camping Showers

I went the Coleman HWOD as well. The whole setup is still shaping up though as I've yet to find a shower tent that I like enough to buy. Impressed with the nice hot water the coleman produces which is way beyond what I was expecting. A certain someone refuses to camp where there are no hot showers. I managed to coax us into a cold shower site once but we both froze to pieces and I'm still paying the price for it now. And no I'm not going to explain it any further...... :lol:

I've also bought a Coleman Blackcat Catalytic Heater to go inside the shower tent or at least in the doorway for additional heat when soaping down without the hot water turned on. With the standard 20L container I measured about 9 minutes of constant hot water which is a pretty decent shower. Just going to get a larger container for sites with a water supply but no shower facilities. Just need a good shower tent now and I'm good to go.

What I did with the HWOD was wait for K-MART to have a sale. Then go to Anaconda who will beat competitors prices by 10% as long as they have stock on the shelf, doesn't matter if the competitor is having a special sale. I got the HWOD at very near 1/2 price from Anaconda this way and I don't think they were impressed. Rules are rules though .......... 8)

[sparksy Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close sparksy]

Re: Portable Camping Showers

I made one of these http://www.zodi.com/web-content/Consume ... hower.html
using stainless tube made into something that looks like a steam train boiler. just place on top of gas cooker ( being stainless dont need to worry about getting to hot and "melting" then use a similar portable shower unit to the others. once its going you get unlimited hot water

[daryl Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close daryl]

Re: Portable Camping Showers

I have made up a shower using an old keg. Simply place a three ring burner underneath, fill keg with about 30lt of water,Drop in 12v pump hooked up to a cheap ( $25 ) shower head which has been modified to stop blocking up. All we do is hook into 12v outlet on Prado.

We have a double ensuite setup which allows shower and keg to be permanently setup.Wife loves the idea of having shower area, one end and change area the other.
The hardest part is having a drink or two while getting water to right temp for kids.Usually this involves sticking finger in water till warm.By the time the kids get in shower the water is just at the right temp.

[dustie Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close dustie]

Re: Portable Camping Showers

I use one of these units. Works well, very portable and powered by a 15AH golf buggy battery.

http://www.4x4store.com.au/Primus-Porta ... 68531.html

Note: they are normally cheaper than the advertised price here (almost 50% less).

[Graz Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Graz]

Re: Portable Camping Showers

You have to go the coleman hwod system with the shower handle we have a double tent and we put the unit in one side and we shower in the other side
you also have the benifit of useing the coleman for cups of tea and the dishes