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Old 02-10-2012, 05:41 AM   #1
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Grey Water On or Off in Park

I have a question:

When staying for a week or more in a RV park with full hookup, do you all leave your grey tank dump valve open or closed?

I have been leaving it closed and dumping it when it fills up. Another person in the park told me to leave it open until I am getting close to dumping the black tank.

I tend to think that even the grey tank should get a good flush when dumped so I leave it closed all the time.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.
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Old 02-10-2012, 05:53 AM   #2
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We leave ours closed until it needs to be dumped. Leaving it open could allow sewer orders to get into the MH especially if you are running your Fantastic fans.
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Old 02-10-2012, 05:57 AM   #3
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Good point. I hadn't thought about possible odors. Thanks
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Old 02-10-2012, 05:59 AM   #4
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I leave mine open all the time, close it night before I dump the black water tank. This has worked for me.
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Old 02-10-2012, 06:13 AM   #5
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Leave mine open too, never know how much water we may use when not boon-docking. Having a flooded room on time will change anyone,s mind.

When I think about it, I too will close some time before dumping black tank to assist with flushing hose.

Never had a sewage smell problem. Shower and all sinks has a trap to keep odors out.
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Old 02-10-2012, 06:49 AM   #6
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I have been full-timing for 9 years and would never leave either valve open. The tanks need to experience the "Whoosh" factor to keep them clean along with keeping the sensors clean unless you have an external sensor system.

I dump the gray tank 3 times more than the black tank when hooked to full services.

If you think the gray tank doesn't get loaded up with crud when you leave the valves open, just remember what your gray water drain pipes look like inside at your S&B house when you need to open them or have a problem. Well that's the same stuff you will have inside your gray tank as well. Between the soap, food scraps, hair, skin, etc. that end up in your gray tank, I want the tank full before it gets emptied. That way, everything gets flushed out leaving nothing behind to mess up your tank.

Just my opinion.

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Old 02-10-2012, 06:56 AM   #7
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I keep mine closed also. About once a year we fill all the sinks full (4) and pull the drains at the same time with the gray tank empty and the valve open to (purge) the grey tank. You might be surprised at the outcome. Hot water is helpful.
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Old 02-10-2012, 07:32 AM   #8
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We keep the grey open at the parks as its required when doing laundry unless you want the shower tub to fill up.
When we know we will be on the road for a while we let her fill and slosh around in hopes to clean better. We will put a little extra dish soap in as well. Never had a problem in 12 yrs.
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Old 02-10-2012, 07:43 AM   #9
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Ours are left open until we get close to ready to dump the black tank. I normally will clost the grey tank valve when the black tank get's to 3/4 full. If your vents are working properly and there is water in the "P" traps of the sink and shower drains I don't know how any odors could back up into your rig by having your fans on or off for that matter. Now if the traps got symphoned out somehow that would be a different story but I really don't know how that would happen by themselves.
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Old 02-10-2012, 07:51 AM   #10
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We leave our grey water valve open until the night before we plan to leave. My DW does a small load of clothes just about every day. She starts the cycle just before we leave for the day and we don't want to take a chance of overflowing the tank. We have done this for many years and have never had a problem.

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Old 02-10-2012, 08:11 AM   #11
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The grey tank valve is left open. The only time it is closed is when filling the grey tank in anticipation of dumping the black tank. I use a macerator so there is no "whoosh". I've been using the macerator for years. I'm not sure how important the "whoosh" is. I clean the black tank once a year and get nothing extra out during the cleaning.
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Old 02-10-2012, 08:27 AM   #12
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I keep it closed and dump it as needed. If I do dump it I make sure I do so in time to get enough gray water in the tanks when I am ready to leave, so I can flush out the hose after the black water gets dumped.
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Old 02-10-2012, 08:28 AM   #13
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I leave only my grey water valve open all the time. When I get ready to leave, I will flush the tank, fill to about 1/4 full and add 1 cup of culligan liquid water softner and 1/2 cup of dawn dish soap. I then drive to my next destination and drain. It's worked well for me.
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Old 02-10-2012, 08:32 AM   #14
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I think a lot of people would be surprised at what they will find still living in their gray tank if they are accustomed to leaving the gray tank valve open when parked. Yes, hot water does wonders to clean up a fairly clean tank.

To answer the gentleman that doesn't know how odors could get past the p-traps, well I was in the shower one morning and I had forgotten to check the gray level tank. More than half way through my shower the shower floor started to fill up so I yelled to my wife to go out and open the gray tank valve. I finished my shower, but in the time it took me to dry off and get dressed, the coach had filled with the worst smelling odors I have ever experienced in a very long time. I quickly went out and closed the valve and filled up ALL of the traps, turned the fans on and sprayed Lysol all over to rid the coach of the rancid smell.

I don't blame my wife as she never handles that responsibility, I do, but she opened the valve and walked away.

The moral is that I NEVER leave either valve open EVER. I open to dump and close.

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