The weatherman hasn’t said anything about showers in the future but I predict there will be several in my immediate future. Before I left Pendleton I visited Walmart for the last time soon and purchased a Coleman Solar Shower. It was only about $8. so I thought I might as well give it a try. Just like any normal man I did not read the instructions: How tough can it be? You fill it with water; put it in the sun; wait a few hours; and, enjoy a hot shower.
When I first used it I was a little disappointed in the time it took to heat up and also in the less than hot shower. However, when I took the pictures for the blog I just happened to read the instructions. You are supposed to put the bag on a flat surface (I had done that) with the black side down and the clear side up. As long as I can remember, black is the color that absorbs more energy from the Sun so I had the black side up!
The next morning the clear side was up and in about 3 hours the temperature had risen to an estimated 90 degrees and just perfect for a shower. I’m sure most of you know the drill for a shower in an RV. You get wet; turn off the water; soap up; turn on the water and rinse off. You complete all the steps as quickly as possible to conserve hot water. It works the same here except you are outdoors. I get three showers from one 5 gallon fill up.
My shower area is at the rear, right side of Dod. I hang the solar shower on Dod’s roof rack; place a canopy chair nearby both for privacy and for a handy shower table. I absolutely love showering in the great outdoors. I wait until the sun is shining on my shower area and then go natural. After the shower I put on a pair of swim trunks and just let the sun and air dry me. If ever there are people nearby, I will of course shower in my swim trunks!
note to self..read the directions!..those solar showers are pretty handy dandy!!!
ReplyDeleteSo cool.
ReplyDeleteI've never used one, but glad to hear you can get three showers from one bag. I would get less - (washing/conditioning hair and shaving legs) - and it sounds like it's easy to use. I would have thought the black side would be up, too. Weird.
ReplyDeleteI've never used one, but glad to hear you can get three showers from one bag. I would get less - (washing/conditioning hair and shaving legs) - and it sounds like it's easy to use. I would have thought the black side would be up, too. Weird.
ReplyDeleteGood idea..
ReplyDeletePretty neat-o! That's good to have if you are doing a lot of boon-docking especially.
ReplyDeleteA large, old style, pressurized fire extinguisher painted black also works well. Hung upside down you get a pressurized shower. But I've used the bags too and they fold up nice and small.
ReplyDeleteDave, I used one of these outside of Hereford AZ and it worked wonderfully. It only took about 45 mins for it to be heated enough for a shower. And you are right an outdoor shower is great.
ReplyDeleteWe made the same mistake with our shower. We also read that by placing it clear side up the suns ultraviolet rays help to kill any bacteria that might be in the water. We use our hot water bag lots in Mexico for doing the dishes, more than for showers.
ReplyDeleteKevin and Ruth
www.travelwithkevinandruth.com