RV Dump Station Etiquette: 10 Rules Every RVer Should Know

A dump station is a shared resource. It doesn't matter whether you're using a free public pad at a state rest area or a $15 slot at a campground — the way you use it affects everyone who comes after you. Good dump station behavior keeps facilities open, maintains community goodwill, and ensures that free stations stay free. Here are the ten rules that separate considerate RVers from the ones other travelers quietly complain about at the campfire.

1. Prepare Before You Pull In

Have your gloves on, your hose uncoiled, and your adapters staged before you reach the pad. There is nothing more frustrating than waiting behind an RV while the driver digs through their compartment looking for a cap they put "somewhere in here." Pre-stage everything in your sewer compartment so that from the moment you stop, you're ready to connect and drain. Speed is courtesy.

2. Don't Jump the Line

If rigs are queued up, wait your turn. First in, first served — always. Cutting in because you're "just doing a quick gray tank" doesn't win you any friends, and the RV community has a long memory. More importantly, it's simply rude. Park where you won't block the next person and wait your turn like everyone else.

3. Move Your Rig Before Secondary Tasks

The moment your tanks are empty and your hose is disconnected and capped, pull your rig out of the dump area before doing anything else. Do not refill your fresh water tank on the pad. Do not clean your hose on the pad. Do not reorganize your compartment on the pad. Others are waiting for that physical space. Move first, handle secondary tasks in a nearby parking spot.

4. Never Leave Your Hose Unattended While Draining

Sewer hoses can and do slip out of dump station inlets — especially on older, worn fittings or if your hose elbow isn't seated properly. Stand by your rig and watch the hose for the entire duration of the drain. A blowout is your responsibility. It's messy, it's unpleasant for everyone nearby, and it leaves a pad that the next person has to deal with. Your presence prevents that.

5. Always Rinse the Pad When You're Done

Most dump stations provide a fresh water hose specifically for rinsing. Use it every single time without exception. Rinse the concrete pad, the inlet cover, and any surrounding area that may have been splashed during your drain. This single habit — more than any other — is what keeps free dump stations operational. Facilities that consistently get left dirty get shut down. The ones that are treated well stay open for years.

6. Keep the Rinse Hose for Rinsing Only

The station's water hose is for rinsing sewage — nothing else. Never use it to fill your fresh water tank or your drinking water jugs. This hose has contacted sewage residue. Cross-contaminating your fresh water system with it is a genuine health hazard. Bring a dedicated, clearly labeled potable water hose if you need to top off your water supply separately.

7. Dispose of Trash Appropriately

Dump stations accept liquid and solid sewage waste from holding tanks. They do not accept trash, expired food, used paper towels, dirty gloves, or packaging. If there's a garbage can at the station, use it for your gloves and any paper. If there isn't one, pack it out. Leaving trash at a dump station is littering. It's also a fast way to get the facility shut down or access restricted.

8. Keep Noise Down

Dump stations are often located near campground quiet zones or residential-adjacent areas. Skip the phone call, the extended conversation with your co-pilot shouting from the cab, and the phone speaker on full blast. Arrive, dump, rinse, leave. Efficiency and consideration go together naturally when you're focused on the task.

9. Report Problems Instead of Moving On

If you find a clogged inlet, a broken rinse hose, a missing cap, or any other problem at the station, report it to the campground office or facility manager before you leave. Don't just move on and let it be someone else's problem. The next person in line — and the one after that — will thank you even if they'll never know it was you who called it in.

10. Acknowledge the Operators Who Provide Free Access

If you're dumping for free at a business — a Camping World, a travel plaza, a small independent campground that's choosing not to charge non-guests — take a moment to acknowledge that. A genuine thank-you at the front desk, a five-star review that mentions the dump station, or a small purchase goes a long way. Free dump access is a goodwill offering that can disappear the moment it becomes more trouble than it's worth to the operator. Show them it isn't.

None of these rules require extra time or expense. They require only that you treat a shared resource the way you'd want it treated if you arrived to find it after someone else. The entire culture of free and accessible dump stations depends on each individual RVer doing their part.