Types of hoses

Hi Ian,
I would buy the good quality drinking water hose from a caravan sales yard. Friends bought the Nylex stuff from Bunnings and still got a plastic taste from it.
It doesn't bother some folks though.

Most parks have the screw threaded taps in 20 and 25 mm size and these fittings, cheap or dear all seem to leak a little bit.

It pays to have a Y or Tee in the kit as some places don't have enough taps.

This mob sell good gear.
http://www.hoselink.com.au/

A blue coloured drinking water hose. You can get them from Bunnings or similar. The taps in van parks are just standard garden taps but may have different size threads. Take a few spare adapters and tap connections for if/when you leave yours behind. Click on fittings seem the most popular. Of course make sure you have a fitting for the van, most van water connections are American thread not the standard Ausie one. Again available from Bunnings or caravan shop.
To save on long unwieldy lengths of hose cut it into half or thirds and take click joiners for longer distances. Mine are 1/3, 2/3.
Don't forget a couple of lengths of sullage hose and connectors.

Hi Ian,
I use the "Lay Flat" hose which comes with its own reel and can be purchased from many caravan outlets. A mate has the other type similar to a garden hose but food grade of course but I always think it is a fair bit cumbersome compared to my setup.
But to each their own I guess.

While some have reported minor problems with the Lay Flat such as scuffing I have never had a problem and it is as good as the day I got it in 2006, don't drive over it and it will be perfect.
I always use it and only it to fill the van with water.
They also take up much less space than the conventional type hoses and certainly no problems with taste. They also come with the required fittings to fit most situations.

Hose cocks come in 2 sizes,
the smaller one is what is called 1/2" inch and is actually a 3/4" BSP thread where the hose connects.
The other size is what is called a 3/4 Hose cock and it is actually 1" BSP where the hose connects.

This is why most hoses come with one hose to tap fitting to fit a 3/4 tap (the big one) and an adapter (1" X 3/4" Bush) to adapt to the smaller tap.
This is the general rule and I cannot recall seeing any tap in a caravan park vary from that rule, as a retired plumber I notice these things usually.

The other thing to know is that most caravan tanks take a while to fill as they gurgle back a lot if filled too quickly. There are always exceptions of course.

Happy travels,
Cheers, Bruce.