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Old 07-26-2015, 07:06 PM   #1
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Unhappy The story of Poo, and no...Winnie was nowhere to be found.

RVing always seems to be a never ending source of stories and the invention of new words. Today is the story of Poo...and no...there is no Winne with this Poo.

So, we have this wonderful Sanicon maceration pump to help us dispose of the poo. When it works, it is dreadfully slow, but is is less messy tan a conventional stinky slinky hose.

A couple weeks ago we bought a sewer hose for 'just in case'.....well today was one of those moments. After a weekend that was jam packed with things happening every moment, we packed up and headed to the dump area. I pulled out the ole Sanicon hose and placed it in the little stinky hole in the ground and began the duties of pulling valves and turning on a switch. It worked great for a grand total of about 2 ½ minutes; then nothing. Tried all of the normal trouble shooting procedures, still no poo out the business end of the hose. (Bear with me...it gets more exciting)

So I think to myself, “No problem! I have that brand new sewer hose!”. I go and hook the shiny little thing up to the appropriate orifices and get prepared. But that it after disconnecting the hose leading to the Sanicon pump...dumping about ½ to 1 gallon of unmentionably smelling stuff on the ground. Debi gagged...not sure if that was to make me feel better or not (it didn't work BTW). It's about this time that she left...she is glad to have such foresight and clairvoyance now.

I go to pull the valve leading to the black water tank and low and behold...that damned new hose ripped right open! No...not outside the wet bay; but inside it! Yes,, I know! Perfect right??!

Quickly shut it down, invent many new words that we won't repeat. No pressure in the water hose provided to clean up..so my chore was even slower now! Forget dumping the tank at this point. Just put things together and get somewhat cleaned up.

One nice thing about Crocs, they are not made of absorbent material. One not so nice thing about Crocs...they have many holes in them.....

It was a [ moderator edit ]day...then came home to find a flat tire on my daily driver. Poo I say; I'm done.....
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Old 07-26-2015, 09:37 PM   #2
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Two lessons learned?...

1. Have a back up for your Sanicon. (I don't have one and this does not encourage me to get one)
2. Visually inspect sewer hose before pulling valve.

By the way, what brand of sewer hose let you down?

And, thanks for sharing the adventure...
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Old 07-27-2015, 05:37 AM   #3
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The back up was a brand new Camco hose. Didn't see a need to inspect it. I am buying a higher quality one this time.
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Old 07-27-2015, 05:53 AM   #4
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One nice thing about Crocs, they are not made of absorbent material. One not so nice thing about Crocs...they have many holes in them.....
When dumping, holes in hoses and shoes should be avoided. Here are my dump shoes:
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Old 07-27-2015, 10:35 AM   #5
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I read a post a few weeks ago that makes perfect since after reading this post. The poster said he always pulls the grey lever for a few seconds to test his hose before pulling the black. I never really thought it was necessary but I think I will do that from now on.
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Old 07-27-2015, 11:02 AM   #6
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Uh oh!
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Old 07-27-2015, 11:04 AM   #7
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I read a post a few weeks ago that makes perfect since after reading this post. The poster said he always pulls the grey lever for a few seconds to test his hose before pulling the black. I never really thought it was necessary but I think I will do that from now on.

Now that's a great idea that I haven't heard before!
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Old 07-27-2015, 11:55 AM   #8
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Now that's a great idea that I haven't heard before!
+1....common sense....and a great idea.

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Old 07-27-2015, 02:59 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Captjake1 View Post
I pulled out the ole Sanicon hose and placed it in the little stinky hole in the ground and began the duties of pulling valves and turning on a switch. It worked great for a grand total of about 2 ½ minutes; then nothing. Tried all of the normal trouble shooting procedures, still no poo out the business end of the hose. (Bear with me...it gets more exciting)
Was the pump running and churning, but nothing flowing? I've had that happen twice now in 9 years and about 120 dumps with the SaniCon.

Quote:
But that it after disconnecting the hose leading to the Sanicon pump...dumping about ½ to 1 gallon of unmentionably smelling stuff on the ground.
Yes, you do need to be careful when removing that hose! About the only time I do so is when winterizing, and I will open the hatch that is below the connection, and place an old plastic tub underneath to catch the effluent (which at that point is mostly clear water and antifreeze since I flushed tanks well before winterizing.) Open up the collection slowly, and it will drain straight down into the tub.

But back to the clogs: Both times have been while draining the black tank, just after I see a big wad of tissue and other "stuff" go by the clear section. The actual input to the pump is smaller than the 3" hose, so a wad of tissue like that can block the opening.

Not wanting to deal with removing that hose and experiencing the spill you did, I got a double female hose coupler from the hardware store:



This is an adapter with two sets of female threads back to back. I keep it right there in the water service bay. I screw it to the male threads at the end of the SaniCon, and screw the male threads from my flusher hose to it. Turn on the flush water, and it forces water backwards through the pump system. I run it long enough to see the wad of tissue flow back past the clear section and for the water to start turning clear. Then disconnect it, and continue pumping.

Once I had to do it twice, the other time it worked on the first try. A little bit of a pain to clear the blockage, but much easier and cleaner than disconnecting the input hose! It takes a minute to clear the clog, but it's a lot less time than it takes to clean up a major spill.

Yes, there is always the possibility of a clog or failure, but that doesn't turn me off of the SaniCon, it is such a convenient and clean way to dump (especially when at home where I have to add 75 feet of hose to the output and pump up a foot - you can't do that with the stinky slinky.)

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1. Have a back up for your Sanicon. (I don't have one and this does not encourage me to get one)
Why does it not encourage you? Because there is a chance of clog or failure? As evidenced by the OP's experience using the backup method (traditional stinky slinky) there is always the possiblity of a failure with that as well. I've read many more stinky slinky failure stories than I have SaniCon stories. The slinky is not 100% reliable: a leaking hose, split hose, hose that falls off the coupler, elbow that jumps out of the ground when the flow starts, etc.
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Old 07-27-2015, 10:30 PM   #10
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Shapeshifter, that is a great idea on the double female. I will have to set that up. Yes, it just runs without anything (well...a dribble) coming out. What about backflow prevention when doing this?

And yes, poo happens...even with a new hose!

I am going to take the thing out and relocate it where I can actually see the unit and work on it when that time comes. This whole wet bay on this coach is laid out terrible. Found several good threads that have given me ideas.

The worst part was that this park has extremely high water pressure. When I went to grab the hose at the dump station to rinse off the 'stuff'...a mere trickle...
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Old 07-28-2015, 05:59 AM   #11
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What about backflow prevention when doing this?
Yes, a very good idea!

I have a short grey hose I use for flushing, I connect it between the spigot in the water bay and the blank tank flush insert. The spigot has a back flow preventer permanently attached to it. I use this same hose for the SaniCon back flush when needed.

Quote:
I am going to take the thing out and relocate it where I can actually see the unit and work on it when that time comes.
You can certainly do that, if you're looking to create work for yourself. Or, you could wait until you actually need to work on it. I haven't needed access to it in the 9 years since I've had the coach, and that is using it for every dump except two during that time. When you do need access, it's only a couple screws that need to come out, which will probably add no significant time to the overall operation.

I always use the pump. I tried the stinky slinky a couple times when the coach was new: yes, the actual time that the stuff is flowing is shorter, but when you count the time to get it out, hook it up, unhook it, rinse it out, and stow it, it's not significantly faster than keeping the pump connected all the time and using that. It's just not worth the extra effort compared to the ease and cleanliness of the pump, especially if you are flushing the black tank: when the pump runs dry on the blank tank, pull the grey water valve for about ten seconds or so, and a big slug of grey water will go in the black tank to help flush it out. Close the grey after a few seconds and continue pumping the black, and see how much more stuff comes out. You can't do that with a slinky, it takes much longer to get the same amount of flush water in there with the tank flusher. The grey water flush is essentially free as far as time is concerned (you still have to pump the same amount of grey water, so it doesn't matter if some of that takes a detour through the blank tank.

Can you tell I really like the SaniCon? You just can't beat the convenience and cleanliness: most of the time there is not a single drop of anything spilled on the ground or touching me. The worst I've had in routine use is a drop or two hitting the ground when taking off the drip cap - stinky slinky people can't say that. Lots of holes in Crocs just isn't a problem either, there's not enough risk of spillage to need special waterproof shoes - only a couple times had I wanted special shoes, and that was only when the previous person made a mess of the dump station.
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Old 07-28-2015, 06:48 AM   #12
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Originally Posted by ShapeShifter View Post
Yes, a very good idea!

I have a short grey hose I use for flushing, I connect it between the spigot in the water bay and the blank tank flush insert. The spigot has a back flow preventer permanently attached to it. I use this same hose for the SaniCon back flush when needed.



You can certainly do that, if you're looking to create work for yourself. Or, you could wait until you actually need to work on it. I haven't needed access to it in the 9 years since I've had the coach, and that is using it for every dump except two during that time. When you do need access, it's only a couple screws that need to come out, which will probably add no significant time to the overall operation.

I always use the pump. I tried the stinky slinky a couple times when the coach was new: yes, the actual time that the stuff is flowing is shorter, but when you count the time to get it out, hook it up, unhook it, rinse it out, and stow it, it's not significantly faster than keeping the pump connected all the time and using that. It's just not worth the extra effort compared to the ease and cleanliness of the pump, especially if you are flushing the black tank: when the pump runs dry on the blank tank, pull the grey water valve for about ten seconds or so, and a big slug of grey water will go in the black tank to help flush it out. Close the grey after a few seconds and continue pumping the black, and see how much more stuff comes out. You can't do that with a slinky, it takes much longer to get the same amount of flush water in there with the tank flusher. The grey water flush is essentially free as far as time is concerned (you still have to pump the same amount of grey water, so it doesn't matter if some of that takes a detour through the blank tank.

Can you tell I really like the SaniCon? You just can't beat the convenience and cleanliness: most of the time there is not a single drop of anything spilled on the ground or touching me. The worst I've had in routine use is a drop or two hitting the ground when taking off the drip cap - stinky slinky people can't say that. Lots of holes in Crocs just isn't a problem either, there's not enough risk of spillage to need special waterproof shoes - only a couple times had I wanted special shoes, and that was only when the previous person made a mess of the dump station.
totally agree!!
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Old 07-28-2015, 07:31 AM   #13
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I have a short grey hose I use for flushing, I connect it between the spigot in the water bay and the blank tank flush insert. The spigot has a back flow preventer permanently attached to it. I use this same hose for the SaniCon back flush when needed.
Mine does not have a provision for that. I will have to think about a way of incorporating some means of backflow prevention there to set this up. There is a permanent input for backflush that has backflow and an inti-siphon; but no means of tapping into it down line. Great idea though! I will have to look into it further.

As far as the relocation; Monaco did a terrible job of providing access to anything in the wet bay for service. I had to turn the hose reel around to pull the other direction because of the poor installation. Reaching under the panel and doing it blindly took me several hours. The Sani Con pump is also behind and actually mounted up on a wall so the poo has to travel uphill to get to the pump. relocating it to a lower, and more accessible location would help it evacuate more efficiently and wouldn't allow as much 'stuff' to be trapped in the 4" when I do need to detach that short section.

Don't get me wrong, we love the coach; I just wish they would have thought out placement and access a little bit more. I don't like adding work that isn't needed.
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Old 07-28-2015, 09:19 AM   #14
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I will have to think about a way of incorporating some means of backflow prevention there to set this up.
It should be easy to find a backflow preventer at most hardware and home improvement stores:



Screw that on the water source spigot, and screw the hose onto it. If you really want to be sure, and are a belt and suspenders type of guy, you can get two and put one on each end of the hose - highly unlikely that anything will get through that!

To be extra sure, you can leave the water supply on as a trickle while disconnecting the backflush hose: a little fresh water will leak out, but nothing will travel back up the hose.

Quote:
The Sani Con pump is also behind and actually mounted up on a wall so the poo has to travel uphill to get to the pump. relocating it to a lower, and more accessible location would help it evacuate more efficiently and wouldn't allow as much 'stuff' to be trapped in the 4" when I do need to detach that short section.
That sounds quite different from mine, I can see why you are concerned about the layout. Mine is mounted flat to the floor of the water bay, in the back corner, with a small white panel covering it. That panel is only held on by a couple easy to reach screws. That arrangement still leaves some liquid in the hose after dumping, but the hose is only about half to two thirds full, there is air space at the top of the hose through the whole length.

This is not my water bay, but it's very close (I have no hose reel so items 1 and 4 aren't there, the monitor panel item 8 is mounted there instead.)



In this picture, the 3" hose to the dump valve (#10) is not connected, but I leave mine on all the time. The actual pump is mounted behind the lower right panel (#9) directly to the floor of the compartment, although it is on the higher portion of the compartment floor, not the recessed area below the dump valves and exterior hatch. The small outlet hose easily stuffs into the space behind panel #9. Some people have removed that panel and turned the pump around so the 3" hose goes to the back of the compartment, I was thinking that was your plan. I actually like the extra panel there, as it gives a neat way to store the outlet house without it always sitting on the bottom of the compartment.

In this picture, you can see the spigot #3 that I mentioned, and if you look closely you can see it has a backflow preventer permanently attached, the same style as shown above. To flush the tank, I have to manually connect a hose from spigot to flush inlet #5. The tank flusher has it's own backflow preventer/vacuum breaker in the line, so in reality I have double protection when flushing.
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