Surratt Campout โ€™26
To buy ยท to build ยท to own โ€” FULL hookups at Wallace Creek 16

The Gear Desk

The program: a battery, lights, and running water

The Buy List

โšก Plot twist โ€” Oct 11: the new site has hookups

Wallace Creek 16 has a 50-amp electric pedestal, a water spigot and sewer, right at the pad. That turns most of this page from "required" into "nice backup." What actually changes:

  • Power: plug into the pedestal. Corps pedestals usually include a regular household outlet next to the RV plugs โ€” pack a 50Aโ†’15/20A "dogbone" adapter in case it doesn't, plus a heavy-duty (12-gauge) outdoor extension cord and a power strip for the kitchen table. Air mattresses, string lights, phones and the M18 chargers all run off the wall. The TOP-OFF + batteries become the walk-around and boat-day power.
  • Water: a drinking-water hose (the white/blue kind, 25 ft) to the spigot feeds the sink directly โ€” no pump, no jug refills. Bring a spare hose washer and a Y-splitter so the sink and a rinse hose share it. Keep one purified jug for coffee if anyone's picky.
  • Lights: one site now, not two โ€” one string light on the canopy, one on the tent line, and the strings can stay plugged in instead of on batteries.

Everything below is the original decision log for the no-hookup Oklahoma site โ€” every pick, every pass, and the why. It all still works; it's just optional now. Researched July 2026; prices are street prices.

Dad's shop project ยท one toolbox, running water

The Sink-in-a-Toolbox Build

A self-contained water station: drop it on the table, click in an M18, snap the line onto a jug, flip the glowing switch. Everything wet lives in the tray; everything electric lives below deck.

The box

Any toolbox with a lift-out tray and a flat wall section (the Akro-Mils 09514, 14ร—8ร—8, fits snug โ€” a 19โ€“20" box fits comfy). Pump + dock + buck + wiring below deck; coiled suction line, jug cap and spares ride in the tray.

The electrical chain

M18 dock โ†’ 10A fuse โ†’ buck converter set to 12V (verify with a multimeter before the pump ever sees power) โ†’ big lit 12V rocker switch โ†’ pump. The lit rocker rides after the buck so its lamp sees clean 12V; pulling the battery is master-off. Pump draws its 6A max only at pressure-switch cutoff (~3A flowing).

Wall passthroughs โ€” bulkheads, not grommets

ยพ" GHT bulkhead tank fitting out to the sink hose ยท ยฝ" barbed bulkhead in from the jug. The suction side must be airtight (thread sealant + hose clamps) or it loses prime and machine-guns.

The jug connection

Brass garden-hose quick-connects on the suction line, ending in a dip-tube cap that snaps onto a 5-gal crown top (Flojet-style bottled-water cap kit, ~$18) โ€” no open jug necks at a campsite. For the Aqua-Tainers, the line drops through a drilled spare cap.

Nice touches

Panel-mount SAE charge port wired through its own fuse (charge the box without opening it) ยท pump mounted on its rubber feet to a plywood scrap ยท battery dock oriented so the release button faces the lid.

The driveway test

Full jug, box at tailgate height (self-primes 2โ€“4 ft), open and close the faucet a few times. A clean click-off = done. Rapid cycling = air leak at a suction clamp โ€” a two-minute fix at home, a dinner-dishes crisis at camp.

Shopping links: Milwaukee TOP-OFF โ†— ยท JK-2202 pump @ Lowe's โ†— ยท M18 dock adapter โ†— ยท 12V buck converter โ†— ยท lit rocker switch โ†— ยท jug dip-tube cap โ†— ยท quick-connects โ†— ยท M18โ†’Ryobi adapter โ†— ยท Ryobi inflator โ†— ยท Aqua-Tainers โ†— ยท jug pumps โ†— โ€” running tally โ‰ˆ $755 all-in (power $315 incl. the battery two-pack + inverter ยท mattresses $55 ยท water $155 ยท box build $115 ยท lights $170 incl. D-cells), of which ~$350 keeps working year-round after the trip. Log what we actually spend in the Trip Ledger.