Travel Shower Ideas

Fans of hikes and trips lasting more than a day will face the need for a daily shower. When hiking, long transitions are so exhausting that a person sweats several times a day, especially in the warm and hot season. The same can be said about long hauls when traveling by bike. Washing up at the end of the day, shortly before bedtime, is vital in such cases. The shower will also work as a camping option in places where a shared shower is not provided.

A camping shower works according to one of three widely used schemes.

• Due to the height greater than the height of a person, the water flows by gravity. The tank or canister of water is raised so that its bottom is above the level of the top of the head. A hole is drilled at the top of the tank to draw in air. At the bottom there is a hole for draining water, into which a hose with a shower head is inserted. The canister or tank is filled with preheated water, for convenience, a valve is placed on the shower head - this will save water.The advantage of such a shower is energy independence, no power supply is required. Since the water flows down due to gravity, no pump is required. The disadvantage is that a person needs at least 2 buckets of water (20–25 l) to wash himself well, and it is difficult to hang such a tank on a tree branch or a pole alone, because it weighs like a 30-year-old TV or air conditioner.
• Shower-stomper consists of superchargers built into the rubber mat, driven by human feet. In the process of washing, a person tramples on the rug, and blowers pump water from the tank to the shower head. The mat itself is connected to the tank and shower head with hoses. Advantages of the design - work without a source of electricity, there is no need to raise a tank of water. The disadvantage is that in order for the water to flow more or less stably, it is required to shift from foot to foot while standing on the rug during washing.
• Electric design option contains an electric pump powered by a battery charged by a solar panel or a bicycle generator. The pump inlet communicates with the tank by means of a hose, the outlet - with a shower dispenser. For ease of use, the pump is turned on using a switch button or toggle switch, this button is most often located on the shower head. The advantages of this design are saving both water and the working life of the pump, the ability to organize water heating in the tank itself. The advantages also include the availability of devices and materials - the simplest pump for a windscreen washer for cars will cost a maximum of 200 rubles. It can be powered from any portable power source, such as those used to charge laptops. The disadvantage is the need for a powerful battery with a capacity of at least a few tens of watt-hours.The pump itself, when a voltage of 12 volts is applied, consumes at least 3 amperes - to raise water to a height of human growth.

If the shower is installed on the banks of a river or lake, where there is a beach where a lot of people often gather, then you will also need shower cabin. It is necessary both in the conditions of a hike in which several people participate, and when camping. Camping showers in their design are vaguely similar to tents, and in height and occupied area they resemble a summer toilet in the country. In the simplest case, you can use a screen, which will fit a bath curtain or a curtain that does not let water through. This accessory is sold separately.

Tourist shops and sports hypermarkets supply ready-made, complete shower kits, which include both the cabin and the shower unit itself. Designs are provided for summer (without heating) and winter (with built-in electric heating) conditions.

In an electric shower device, the length of the retractable hose allows a tourist or hiker to pump water directly from a canal, river, lake or sea using an external or submersible pump. At the same time, a person does not need to carry and pour water in several steps - he uses as much water as he wants, already at the place of washing. You can also quickly and efficiently wash used clothes in the shower.

8 liter black tank with solar water heating. After 3 hours, the water heats up from 24 to 37.5 degrees, this temperature is comfortable.But on a hot summer day, the water can heat up to 80 degrees, this can be useful when diluting the same amount of cold water with this amount. The disadvantage is that with such heating of the water, the wear of the tank will increase. The container itself is tightly closed, this allows you to heat the water as quickly as possible when the cylinder is lying.

Allows you to both swim and wash things in field conditions. The device is equipped with an electric pump, the power for which can be taken from the car battery terminals. Materials: thermoplastic polyurethane, polyester, polypropylene, polyamide. When washing clothes, do not use washing powder and bleaches - they destroy the material from which the balloon is made.

Portable shower with a 20 l bag. Weight without packaging and collected water - 400 g. There is no motor-blower. A black container is hung on a tree, pole or other support. The set also includes a shower diffuser, a tube with a closing valve, a hose and a hanging hook. Materials: PVC, plastic and textile.

Outventure Camping Shower (IE80699) - this is a 10 liter container with water outlet from a hose, there is no water divider and pump. It is hung on a tree or pole with a loop in the upper part, there is a valve for air supply, water flows down by gravity, without pumping. Nothing could be simpler than this model.

The Niagara CW submersible shower combines USB charging and water resistance. Equipped with a built-in battery, provides continuous operation for an hour, designed to pump water directly from a lake or river.

The same simple shower as the Outventure, but rated at 20 liters. The complete set coincides with products from the company Outventure - extremely simple assembly.

Similar to the previous device, suspended by a separate hook.

Its main block looks like a flashlight, it is immersed in any body of water and works up to 45 minutes on a single charge. The kit, in addition to the battery pack with the pump, includes a water diffuser, a hose, a suction cup with hooks, adapters, a USB cable for recharging and a detachable module with a start-stop button that is put on the hose. The submersible pump is completely waterproof, which allows the device to work without failure at shallow depths.

If you don’t have the patience to wait until a shower unit is sent to you from China, and a suitable model is not found in the stores in your region, then it makes sense to make a camp shower yourself. Ideas for a homemade installation are limited only by the availability of components.

In the simplest version, you will need:

• tank for 10 l;
• hose and gasket set;
• shower divider;
• mini valve or gate valve;
• a piece of wire or twine.

To make such a setup, do the following:

• we make a hole in the tank lid along the diameter of the hose;
• we insert the hose into it, if necessary, securing it with an additional rubber gasket, screw the cover into place;
• attach a shower divider to the other end of the hose;
• at a short distance from the divider, we cut the hose and attach the valve;
• cut off the bottom of the tank;
• we make two side holes opposite each other at a short distance from the cut line;
• we insert twine or wire into the holes, fix the ends and hang the tank on a tree or pole.

The shower is ready to use, it remains to bring water.

If you can't find the splitter, you can use detergent dispenser lid. A hose and valve may also not be needed. But the use of such a shower will be limited to a small trickle.

The tank can not be suspended if you use a hand garden sprayer as a supercharger or a gasoline pump, an aquarium aerator, or a mini-pump for other purposes that you can find. Most miniature electric pumps are not designed for many hours of continuous operation.

For an overview of the Chinese 12 volt mobile shower, see the following video.