From: John De Armond
Newsgroups: rec.outdoors.camping
Subject: Re: Camping showers
Date: Fri, 11 May 2001 17:07:04 -0400

Frank Schmidt wrote:
>
> Hi ! I am wanting to go camping this summer as the price of gas is, I am
> afraid going be too high to drive on a traveling vacation. Camping is a
> wonderful way to spend time and enjoy a low cost time in the outback.
> I am looking at camping showers, the propane ones , like Zodi's. Does anyone
> have any experience with this product?  Does it work? I would like a model I
> can attach to a car battery. Is there any problem with the water runoff
> (Gray water) in campgrounds. I heard it is not allowed in many places. both
> private and state parks. Would appreciate any comments

This outfit

http://www.cumberlandgeneral.com

Has one of the neatest portable heated showers I've seen.  The core
piece is a heat exchanger made by placing two pieces of stainless
steel exhaust pipe inside one another and welding the ends.  The
space between the pipes is the water jacket.  A nipple is welded on
the top to receive a low flow shower head.  At the bottom is a
control valve and some flex hose leading to a small 12 volt bilge
pump.  Sticking in the bottom is a propane burner that either
attaches to a camping tank or via a hose to a larger tank.  There is
a spiral draft deflector just like the one in a household gas water
heater in the rest of the length of pipe.  The heat exchanger is
supported vertically by a light weight collapsible tripod.   There
is a plastic bypass tube that leads from the water supply to the
shower head that is used to bypass cold water around the heat
exchanger to temper the water for comfort.

This unit doesn't seem to be on their web site but it was in their
store when I was there a few weeks ago.  I found it to be a bit
overpriced (like everything else there) at about $400 but it is so
simple that one could easily build one.  Even if you can't weld, an
exhaust shop could do the simple tube welds.  Everything else is
off-the-hardware-store-shelf and bolt-together.

The other camp showers you find on the net seem to work but what I
like about this unit is that it is tall enough to stand upright
under the shower.  This inflatable shower stall would work well with
it:

http://www.bivouacbuddy.com/

As far as wash water, well, er, I make sure I camp where no one can
see me and shower late at night.  What busybodies can't see they
can't bitch about.

John