Flushing holding tanks

Flushing the black holding tank is important to remove excess solids from the inside of the tank, and to help keep the tank level sensors clean and operational. The easiest way to do this is by installing holding tank rinsers.

How to keep toilet paper from unraveling while your RV moves

RVtravel.com contributor Adrienne Kristine explains an old RVer trick that keeps toilet paper from unraveling as the RV rolls down the road. This is so simple you might say, "Why didn't I think of this?" But maybe you already did. Click the video to play.

Avoid yucky problems with this RV sewer dumping technique

When you have full hookups, leave both the black and gray water valves closed. This allows solids and tissues to start breaking down and liquefying so they will flow better.

When your black tank is about half full, empty it followed by a good flush from your gray tank. The gray water will thoroughly clean out your dump hose.

When you leave the valves open you are likely to have bad odors, create a build-up just below your toilet discharge valve, accumulated waste will collect in your dump hose causing even more odors, and un-flushed matter will collect on the bottom of your holding tank and harden becoming almost impossible to clean out.

Use a board or commercial product (like the Slinky shown in the photo) to lay your hose on that will maintain a slant between your hose outlet and the dump station to create a better gravity flow and no low spots where waste will collect.

Help needed: "How do I fix my plugged black water tank?

A question to the RV Doctor, Gary Bunzer

Dear RV Doc,
Our black tank in the RV is plugged up by the toilet. We bought one of those Flush Kings and back-washed the tank several times. We took a snake and ran it as far as it would go from the toilet side and still it did not drain. The snake seemed to just coil up. Is there something else we could try? --Randall Peters

Dear Randall,
The subject of those dreaded holding tank blockages surfaces from time to time. It's further compounded when the holding tank is not positioned directly under the toilet.

The optimum set-up finds the toilet drainpipe going straight down and into the holding tank without the use of elbows. Unfortunately some manufacturers, because of the floor plan design, are forced to use elbows to connect the toilet to the black water holding tank, which I'm guessing is the situation on your coach. Additionally, toilet tank blockages often occur when tank valves are left in the open position while in the campground allowing all the liquid to drain out leaving the solids behind to dry out and stick in the drain piping or coagulate at the tank outlet.

Always keep the tank termination valves fully closed until each tank is above 3/4 full before evacuating. In most cases, an almost full tank will provide enough force to completely drain all the solids along with the liquids. This, of course, is assuming the slope of the drain piping, including the sewer hose, is adequate and the tank vents are fully functioning. You might want to inspect your entire waste system design and look for deficiencies. For severe blockages, it may be necessary to use a powered snake down through the toilet; a simple, manual twist snake may not suffice.

ANOTHER OPTION is to disassemble the termination fittings on the outlet of the tank. The termination valve is bolted in place using four bolts. After all the liquid stops flowing, remove the bolts and the valve and see if you can gain access with a snake from that end. It may be messy and it certainly is undesirable, but a handy do-it-yourselfer can easily accomplish this task. Make a funnel out of a large plastic water jug -- you see them upside down on common water coolers. Cut off the neck including down about four inches of the widest circumference. Position the coach with the termination valve directly over a sewer dump site. Insert the new funnel into the sewer inlet and then take off the valve. Be sure to wear rubber gloves and long sleeves! This will allow you access at both ends of the system.

If you still cannot remove the blockage, perhaps it's time to contact All-Pro Water Flow (www.allprowaterflow.com). Their specialty is hydro-cleaning holding tanks and drain assemblies by using very high water pressure and a special nozzle that allows cleaning of the entire tank interior. I recommend this procedure at least once a year anyway to keep the tank probes clean and to eliminate false readings on the monitor panel. Back-flushing with typical city water pressure will not adequately clean or clear stubborn blockages.

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Where do you go, when you gotta go?

When we take on the RV lifestyle, we also put on some new "hats" for the roles we assume. What kind of hat does a "sanitary engineer" wear? I dunno, the only part of my uniform in that role is a pair of good, thick, rubber gloves.

Getting out the sewage becomes our "problem," and that can really BE a problem if we’re not sure of where to ‘get rid of the goods.’ When set up in an RV park, it’s not a problem, but on the road, or when boondocking, it gets a bit more complicated. Here are some possible places to dump your tanks:

Highway rest areas

State, National, and Federal Parks (often dump stations located outside of the campground, but where not, you may be "stuck" paying a small fee. Better than eating it.)

Local government sewage treatment plants (check out the phone book, call the main number and ask for the treatment plant)

Truck stops. We point in particular to those catering to RVers, like Flying J. The "J" has instituted what some RVers think is a dreadful arrangement: An electronically controlled dump station, meaning you pay to convince the electronics to let you dump. If you have a Flying J RV customer loyalty card, the price is $5 to dump, and $10 without. We've found some Love's Travel Stops have free RV dump stations--they're a little harder to find.

DON’T think you can sneak over beside the road and off-load your tanks. The "Midnight Dumper" only creates image problems for RVers, and if you get caught, there can be a really stinky fine associated with such behavior.

If finding dump stations is near and dear to your heart, then check out The RVers Guide to Dump Stations, a comprehensive guidebook to public dump stations across the US. Available from the RV Bookstore, follow this link for more information.

Happy dumping!

Choosing the right toilet: Thetford

Choosing the right toilet, whether replacing upgrading, is an important decision. This video, by Thetford Norcold, talks about their particular products, and the decision process for selecting the right toilet for you. Some of the information presented here is universal, and applicable to whatever brand of toilet you choose.

How to keep sewer odors from venting into the air conditioning system

Gary Bunzer, the RV Doctor, answers a question during a recent live RVtravel.com webcast from an RVer who wonders how he can prevent the smell from his RV sewer vent from getting pulled into his air conditioner.

What's best? Special RV toilet paper or regular stuff from the supermarket?

By Chuck Woodbury
RVtravel.com

That's a question we posed to the readers of the RVtravel.com newsletter. Is it really worth it to pay a bundle for special paper from an RV dealer or RV accessories store? It'll cost you three times as much as a cheap brand at your favorite supermarket.

Well, more than 3,300 RVtravel.com readers responded, and nearly 60 percent reported they use "the regular brand from the supermarket." Most of the others said they purchased a "brand made specifically for RVs." Fifty-nine RVers clicked our third choice "I prefer to use a corn cob," but we're pretty sure they were kidding.

By the way, most RV experts agree that plain ol' one-ply white toilet paper is just as good as the high priced stuff made specifically for RVs.

Reader Pete Hilton left a comment on our survey, that pretty much sums up how to determine a suitable brand. He wrote: "We own and operate Mid GA RV Service, a Mobile RV Service business in Middle, Georgia. I get asked quite often about whether to use "RV toilet paper" or to use a name brand. I explain to customers to take a sheet and place it in your hand. Run water on it and see if it basically falls apart in your fingertips. If you try this and it passes the test, it usually will be approved for septic use and this should be ok for use in your RV."

If you would like to read the survey, you can do so here.