DIY campervan plumbing: complete conversion guide

Whatever you plan to use your campervan for – quick weekend trips or months on the road – it makes sense to have a water system installed. Cleaning your teeth in pub toilets, washing your dishes in a river and carting around heavy containers of extra water will get old very quickly – its much easier to have your own system.

And it’s much easier to install your own. DIY campervan plumbing is easier than you’d think and can be done on most budgets. Read on for our comprehensive guide on installing a DIY water system for campervan conversions.

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Burstner 744 TD Harmony Line Limited Edition, Camplify

DIY campervan plumbing – what to consider

You’ll use the water in your van several times a day, so it’s vital to pick a system that will suit your needs and stick to your budget. You might be happy with a basic system for washing your hands and brushing your teeth; something a bit more powerful so you can do dishes and have plenty of water for showers; or something high-tech for luxurious steamy showers.

Obviously, the more elaborate and involved you want your campervan plumbing system to be, the more expensive and complicated it’ll be to install. However, the same basic components are in pretty much all built-in water systems:

• Sink and tap

• Fresh water tank

• Grey water tank

• Water pump

• Tubes/hoses/piping

From there, your campervan plumbing kit can be as fancy or as simple as you like. Make sure you know all the basics first – read on for details.

Sinks and taps

Adding a sink and tap to your campervan is one of the easiest “luxury” things you can do, and will be handy in bad weather when you want to freshen up and do the dishes without having to go outside.

As with other items on the campervan plumbing list, your sink can be as budget or as fancy as you like, from stainless steel to high-quality plastic. It’s the same with taps: pick what you like and what your budget can afford. Remember to buy a sink strainer too, to keep solid leftovers out of your drain.

Whatever material you pick for your sink, it’s easiest to opt for a square or rectangular sink bowl rather than a curved or rounded one, as curved sinks are harder to fit. Look for angles that are easy to cut around, so you can install your sink without any hassle.

Fresh water tank

This tank will give you all your fresh water for drinking, cooking and washing up. The most important thing here is to buy a tank made out of food-safe material, so that harmful chemicals don’t seep into your clean water.

Next, think about size. You’ll need to calculate how much fresh water you’ll need for at least a couple of days (more if you’re going off the beaten track). This includes drinking water for staying hydrated, water for washing up and water for tea and coffee, as well as water for showers if you have one installed.

A good rule of thumb is to allow for 10 litres of water per day for basic needs, excluding showers. If you’re adding shower water as well, an average shower uses 35 litres of water.

We recommend buying as big a tank as you can fit comfortably under your sink. The following materials work well for a manual pump system:

Refillable plastic water containers

This is the simplest and most budget-friendly way to store fresh water for your campervan. Look for classic tanks, jerry cans or cooler jugs to fit your cabinet dimensions.

Casper on Camplify

Refillable plastic water containers are easy to install – just lead the outlet hose from your water pump directly down into the container until it reaches the bottom. Refilling is easy too – take the tank out, fill it up and replace it back inside. (Remember to think about weight if you’re using a tank you’ll have to lift out and carry; each litre of water weighs 1kg.)

If space allows and you’re camping out far from civilisation, you can bring several full water tanks with you. When one runs out, just swap it with the next.

For hygiene and maintenance reasons, empty and wash out your water tank between uses and in winter so the water doesn’t freeze. (Not using your campervan in winter? Make money by renting it out.)

Polyethylene water tanks

Coming in a range of styles, shapes and prices, polyethylene water tanks are standard for caravans and motorhomes. You can also get one custom-made for your van’s dimensions and connector locations.

However, polyethylene water tanks are more complicated to install than portable ones. Poly tanks are fixed inside your can, so you’ll have to figure out how to fill it. This will likely be via a remote water inlet and a filler hose, which we’ll cover below.

Lenny on Camplify

Grey water tank

Next up is the grey water tank, used for waste water. This doesn’t need to be elaborate or expensive as any kind of plastic container will do – just make sure it can fit under your sink.

Grey water tanks work by attaching its opening directly to the drainage hose. Once the tank is full (or once you’re at a motorhome park and want to empty it), disconnect the tank, lift it out and use the park’s grey water disposal station.

As with other items in a DIY plumbing kit, buy a grey water tank according to your budget. An excellent option is a water roll tank, so you can wheel your tank when it needs to be emptied.

Water pump

Next up is your water pump. Campervan water pumps are needed to compensate for the lack of mains pressure, to ensure that water flows through the pipes and that the correct pressure is maintained.

You can opt for a manual pump or an electric one:

Manual water pumps

These are easiest to use and are cheaper than electric pumps as they don’t use electricity, as well as more efficient in conserving water.

Use a hand pump or a foot pump – we recommend a foot pump as you can use it while keeping your hands free. To install, simply mount the pump and pedal to your floor then clamp on some food-grade tubing. The first tube connects to the tap and the second leads straight into the fresh water tank.

Moto moto on Camplify

Electric water pumps

Electric water pumps start automatically when the pressure inside your campervan water system drops, meaning you’ll have a constant water flow when needed without having to do anything manually. Their disadvantage is that a constant stream of running water uses more water, which means you’ll need bigger tanks for fresh water and grey water.

Electric pumps (normally using 12V) can be noisy when running, so should be switched off when you can; this will conserve power too. If the pump has an accumulator, this will hold a little water when the pump is turned off, so you can still fill the kettle or a glass. Accumulators also steady the water stream to avoid oscillating water flow (your pump will sometimes produce this because of its reliance on pressure levels).

As well as the pump, you need three pieces of equipment for an electric water pump: a strainer at the inlet point to avoid debris getting inside the system; a filter on or in front of the pump to keep the water clean; and a power switch so you can turn the motor off when required.

Tubes, hosing and piping – connecting your campervan water system

You have all the parts – now it’s time to connect them using the right tubes, hosing and piping. But what type should you use to connect your campervan’s water tanks, pump and sink?

One option is PEX (cross-linked polyethylene) piping, popular because of its flexibility, its lack of corrosion over time and its durability in withstanding high temperatures and freezing. PEX pipes are also colour coded for ease of use, using red for hot and blue for cold.

PEX piping is popular for household plumbing, but isn’t the best option for campervans. It can’t be installed anywhere it might be in the sun as it isn’t UV resistant, plus it needs specific tools and fittings which will push your costs up. It’s also difficult to fit as its sizes are slightly different from the recommended dimensions for caravan pumps and taps.

(Pablo) the Spacious on Camplify

So what pipes should you use for your campervan plumbing kit? Look for clear vinyl tubing – it’s cheap, durable, easy to source, quick to install and comes in several sizing options. Also ensure that any tubing you buy conforms to UK food safety standards

You should also:

• use plastic fitting (not metal), so the threads don’t damage the tubing

• use plastic thread sealant (not lubricant) to seal threads

• use hose clips on top of the tubes to clamp everything together

Next, how to put all these together.

Water inlet and filler hose

If you have a portable water tank, you won’t need a water inlet and filler hose. But if your water tank is fixed, you’ll have to set up tubing to allow you to refill it easily. This means installing a remote water tank filler, mounted to a convenient surface so you can access it easily.

The filler can be attached to the outside of your van or on the side of your counter fixture inside the tank entrance. The latter option is easiest and avoids cutting a hole in the side of your van.

Use a filler hose to connect the water inlet to your freshwater tank, connected by hose clamps on either end. Make sure you place the hose so it slopes towards the tank and avoids air locks when filling.

When looking for a filler hose (or tubing for pipes), ensure that it’s of food-quality.

Outlet hose

This links your fresh water tank to the water pump. Set it up by connecting it to a manual pump with a hose clamp at both ends, taking care there are no kinks in the pipe that could block water flow.

If you’re using an electric pump, add a flexible hose before and after the outlet hose to minimise vibrations and therefore noise. As with a manual pump, ensure there are no kinks in the pipe when you install it.

You might also need a non-return valve to prevent water flowing back into the outlet hose.

Drainage hose

The drainage hose connects the sink bowl to the grey water tank. Any kind of tubing will do here; we recommend a corrugated drainage hose to prevent kinking.

It’s essential that any hose you use is self-draining, as any undrained water trapped inside will start to smell.

Pic credit: MemoryCatcher on Pixabay

Taking it further – installing a water heating system

If you’re installing a campervan plumbing system, why not go the whole way and make sure you have hot water when you want it to? Hot water on demand for steamy showers and sparkling dishes is a tempting prospect for many van owners, who want everything handy onboard without having to rely on a motorhome park or campervan stopover.

The type of water heating system you install on your campervan will depend on how you want to use it. Do you want on-demand hot water like at home, or are you happy without that but would like hot showers at the turn of a tap?

If you only want a hot shower, things are simple. Buy a portable water heater with its own water pump, tap and shower head. These are easy to set up, install and maintain, making them a great option for van owners who don’t want to install anything complicated.

But you might however want to take things up a step and add hot water to your existing 12V sink setup. Unfortunately, it’s not easy (or sometimes not possible) to add a portable water heater to a sink system. So if you want to add hot water to your already-installed setup, it’s time to consider buying a caravan water heater and installing a gas hot water system in your campervan.

This of course will make your van more attractive if you’re renting it out. You can make up to £10,00 a year renting out your campervan out on Camplify – more details here.

What next?

You might decide that you’re fine with a portable water tank and cold water… or you might realise that hot showers and hot running water are essential for your van.

To help you decide, why not hire a campervan to try before you buy? We have heaps of vans available to hire on Camplify: have a browse here.