Portable Hot Water System For Camping – Smelly Is Bad!

Image of how to shower when camping

If you go out camping and you intend to spend more than a day there, it is important that you consider carrying a portable hot water system for camping. It is also important to know how to shower when camping. Of course, you will have done your research beforehand and therefore you know where you are going camping. If it is in a place that is well supplied with water, well, who is to say you cannot take along your camping shower?

Or you could make your own homemade shower for camping, if you are very good with your hands. However, why go that route when you can just buy a portable shower for camping, such as the one below:

RinseKit Portable Outdoor Shower – portable hot water system for camping

image of portable shower for camping



There is no doubt that RinseKit portable outdoor shower is one of the very best in the market. After all, you will get a high-pressure spray without pumping, or without using batteries. While it can cost a pretty penny, you will be glad you brought it camping with you.

This portable and pressurized shower system comes with everything you need to clean up. You will fill the bladder with hot or cold water, so you can have the shower of your choice. It is stylish in design, constructed like a beautiful shoulder bag. It also has side pockets to pack a camping or backpacking water filter bottle.

If you really want a hot shower at the campsite, leave the portable shower system outside, but do not let it stay too long as it can get quite hot. Thanks to the dark bluish-blackish color, it absorbs the heat fast, warming the water fast. This is why it does not have batteries.

Lack of a pump can be a problem because you would then have to use it in a campsite that has pressurized water. If you are going to camp in another location where there is no pressurized water, well, you had better look for another option. However, I have read of reviews where someone said they took care of this problem by ordering a bicycle pump with a gauge, which allowed them to add an extra quart of water in the RinseKit portable shower.

For a good and refreshing shower, you will be happy to know that this portable shower system can give you a continuous 4 to 9 minutes of pressurized spray of water. If this does not spray the fatigue out of your muscles and bones when camping, nothing will!

There are many benefits of using this portable shower. Firstly, you can use it for different activities, for camping, scuba diving, snorkeling, car camping and other outdoor activities.

When you are not using it in your outdoor activities, you can use it at home to spray wash your pets. You can also use it to clean your bikes, toys and anything else that you can spray-clean.

There are many ways to maintain personal hygiene when camping, and the easiest one is to wet wipes especially when you are doing dry camping in the most desolate of wildernesses. When you know you will be camping in a place that has water, well, bring along your camping portable shower. When personal hygiene for camping is mentioned, many people think about the cleanliness of the campsite itself, or about portable toilets for camping. However, there is much more to it.

You have to heat the water for this outdoor camping shower. Thankfully, if you will have brought your wood burning camping stove, you can heat water and pour it into the bladder, or you can leave the heater in the sun where it will capture some heat.

Camping hygiene – how to shower when camping

The image of camping that we have in mind is that of pitching our tent, or inflating the inflatable bubble tent and relaxing inside with a nice book to read and a drink. However, if you have been on a camping vacation every now and then, you know very well that there always so many things to do.

You can ride bikes, back your kids hiking backpacks and hit the trails, play funny camping games and do much more. The heat, the scratches, the sand, the grass stains and many more things compel you to take a shower. But alas! This can only be possible if you brought your camping shower along.

You will get dirty at the end of the day due to sweating, you may have dirt on your body due to falling or mud splashing on your person, your clothes may have campfire smoke smell and you will feel thoroughly exhausted.

Because of many healthy reasons, it is important to maintain top-notch personal hygiene and general camp hygiene. For example, if you leave food leftovers lying about, you will invite rodent to your camp. And it doesn’t end there because rodents are food to snakes. Thus, when rodents make your tent their playground at night, you can be sure that in an area like Texas, which is home to copperhead snakes, you will have quite a lot on your plate to worry about.

Maintain good hygiene standards during camping to keep your body healthy and active. When you take a shower, it will help you feel clean, stay fresh during your camping period, and it will make the experience more enjoyable. You know nothing beats that splash of hot water down your back when you have been out all day in the sun.

Why shower with hot water?

Cleaning up when camping is as easy as stripping, and taking a cold dip in the pool. However, not everyone wants to take a cold dip when camping. In any case, hot showers are therapeutic. You will feel better, healed and more refreshed.

However, when looking for information, you will find that it is better to take cold showers because they do not strip the oil layer on your skin away as hot water does. However, you can take lukewarm showers. Besides, if you have been taking hot baths and showers at home, you know you do not want camping to stop you from your daily spoils.

In the evening when you want to have a shower, the water can be extremely cold. Some people have health problems when they shower using cold water. Some just have a phobia for cold water. You may be taking children along with you and it is not good for them to bathe using cold water.

Showering with hot water kills microorganisms that can cause a negative effect on your skin and you can be sure that in your outdoor rendezvous, you will collect a lot of these. The good thing is that there are portable hot water showers available in the market and you can purchase one and carry it with you to enjoy a hot shower.

You have to consider some things before you purchase a portable hot water system for camping. Consider whether you have ready water access in your camping site. To get hot water, you need to have pumps and an additional heating source. Consider the cost, size and weight of the shower you want to purchase.

Here are other types of portable camping showers to take along:

Solar showers for camping

With a flurry of outdoor solar showers for camping that you can use both at home and in the camping sites, you should never go without your hot camping shower. Let’s face it, bathing with hot water is one of the few joys that life has give us almost free of charge.

Outdoor solar showers make water warm by using solar energy. Today, you will find outdoor camping showers that have been made with heat locking material that collects heat even on the cool days.

When you are out biking, hiking, canoeing or doing other activities that you love when camping, ensure that you don’t leave your water bag in the shade. Leave it in the sun so that it will absorb as much sunlight rays as possible. Lay your bag on a table, rock or on your car’s roof.

Solar camping showers are actually bags that are made with heat retaining PVC material/. Consider for example the Coleman 5-Gallon Solar Shower, which can heat up water to be used by about three people, considering that it is a 5-gallon capacity shower.

Image of how to shower when camping


So how do you use the solar showers for camping? It is very simple. These bags are designed with a nice handle for carrying. They may be made of PVC, but they are also designed to last a long time.

The solar showers for camping have also been designed to be suspended on a tree. If there are no trees where you are camping, you can design a makeshift post where you can suspend the shower. They have a small hose that acts as a showerhead, which is detachable when you are not using it. You can find solar showers with different features depending on the manufacturer.

Battery powered portable shower

For a camping enthusiast who likes to stay refreshed and rejuvenated before hitting the sleeping bag for camping, well the battery powered portable shower is a godsend. This shower needs a battery to heat water. It is also sold with showerheads and necessary hoses.

They battery powered portable shower delivers pressurized hot water. It provides water with a good flow and it can be used for showering, cleaning utensils and cleaning the camp. Depending on the manufacturer, these showers use batteries that can be found easily in the market.

Suaoki Outdoor Portable battery powered portable shower

Image of how to shower when camping


One of the most popular portable hot water shower for camping that is battery-powered is the Suaoki Outdoor Portable battery powered camping shower. It comes with a 2200mAh battery, a water pump as well as a water filtration system. Frankly, they do not come any better than this. When you order this portable camping shower, you will enjoy the very best camping experience, and it is sold with all the accessories that you need to shower.

Some of the items it comes with include a showerhead, a pump, a long hose – all of 1.8 meters which is very flexible for easy packing and transportation. The rechargeable battery of this portable shower for camping can do an impressive one hour of ceaseless use of hot water before it requires to be recharged.

You can use the Suaoki battery powered portable shower for tent camping, car camping and even at home to clean your pets. You may also use it to clean your car, bikes and even furniture. With a high flow rate of 4.5 liters per minute, you know you can get a lot done with this shower.

How to buy portable hot water shower for camping

Now that we have looked at the reasons why you would need to bring the best hot water camping shower, how do you get the best one? Remember, the few varieties that we have looked at here are just a few of the most popular ones. There are many more, like car camping showers that are attached to the car for heating. There are also the homemade showers that you can make with certain material that you will buy locally.

Here are the factors to consider for the best hot water shower for camping:

Shower reservoir

Mostly, the hot water camping shower comes with a reservoir. This can be big, it can also be small. It all depends on how many people you are taking along with you for the camping trip. The Coleman 5 Gallon Shower can serve three people. It is a PVC reservoir, it is affordable and yet so effective.

Some reservoirs are small, made to serve just one person, or heat just enough water to do the dishes. If you want a camping shower that can heat enough water for your shower in the evening as well as for doing the dishes, you should buy a big one.

Some reservoirs do not heat water, and so you would have to heat water from another source and pour it in. The RinseKit portable camping shower does not heat water, so you have to heat and pour it in before you can shower.

Shower accessories

It is meant to come with a pump, it should come with a pump. Other accessories include the hose, which should be long enough, you know, in such a way that you can still use it even when you suspend your shower on a high tree. Mostly, we figure that a length of 1.5 meters is good enough, but some come even longer, about 1.8 meters.

Some camping showers do not have a pump. Thus, you would need to fill them with water under pressure from the campsite. Do your due diligence on your camping location before you know which shower to pack.


Camping involves bringing a lot of stuff with you. Therefore, the more lightweight your portable camping shower is, the better. Thankfully, all portable camping showers are made for portability, to be carried from one place to another easily. You also need to consider the fact that they come with many accessories, which also means you need a carry bag. That way, you can pack the camping shower and its accessories into one compact load.

Brand name

Honestly, when you are not sure what you want, you should just get the next best thing, based on reviews left by other users. For example, it would be better to buy a trusted brand name than a new entrant into the market. Some names, for example, Coleman is one of the most renowned brand names in the outdoor recreation scene. I always say it would be better to pay more money and get more features than pay less and get fewer features.

Materials and design

The materials used in the construction of the camping showers determines how long one is going to last. Remember, you will have to use this shower outdoors, in the exposure of the elements. Thus, it must be made of materials that will not crack in the sun and that can take a beating when you packing, unpacking and can also withstand accidental drops.

Return policy and warranty

This is very important in the outdoor items because if you buy a hot water camping shower and it happens to have some manufacturing defects, you can return it.

Many people do not think of this as important, but it really is. No matter how cheap the shower was, it is still your money and it is important that you get good value for it. A fair warranty would assure you that the manufacturer is confident in their product.

As you have seen here, how to shower when camping is not hard at all. You just need to find the best portable hot water system for camping to buy and order it online. Setting these showers up is so easy, you could do it with one hand tied behind your back. However, do follow the user manual to get the accessories fixed just right.


Hey! What do you think? Tell us here