Community Forums

verygoooy · 09-01-2009, 03:45 AM

I have a 2006 31' Class C Sunseeker by Forest River. This unit was new to me in June 2009. In this unit the black tank is on the passenger side of the coach. The gray tank is on the driver's side as is the exterior dump valve. The black tank has to drain all the way across the coach. Without the benefit of being able to use the gray water to rinse out the line (except for the last 6" where the gray connects). I let my relatives borrow the coach earlier this summer for a weekend. They have 3 little kids. Never again. It took me 6 hours to clean out the black tank and the long dump line!

This is a bad design and I will probably always have problems with some type of backup. I have always been very liberal with water and flushing out. I do use laundery detergent in the system and no chemicals.

I am considering a macerating toilet. Grinding everything to liquid BEFORE you put it in the tank leaves nothing to breakdown, no 'concrete bricks' sitting in the bottom of the tank or worse in the drain line. My father claims the only thing he produces is concrete.

I would like to hear from some folks that actually do have or have had macerating toilets in their unit(s). I would like to hear Pros & Cons of first hand experience. Would you do it again?

I am new to posting on iRV2. Hope to hear from you and appreciate your time.
Robert

skipwil · 09-01-2009, 05:55 AM

First Welcome to the FORUM.
Someone will have more info than I have. My houseboat had the moderator toilet and it always worked well. It pumped water from the lake so that wasn't a problem. I don't think you would have enough water on board to use unless you stayed on a utility line. Plus more water to flush means a larger black tank=more weight to move.
Good Luck...

wa8yxm · 09-01-2009, 10:10 AM

My unit is a bath and a half model. So I have one of each when it comes to toilets

The macerator sucks some seriious 12vdc when it kicks in, however it only runs for a few seconds per flush so that's not too bad

it also uses way more water.. So if you are planing on sitting a spell. it is perhaps the better choice.. (For the other option either one works but the "Sea-Land" type uses less water)

Hooked to a park water supply, No problem, Boondocking we use onl the Sea-Land type (Standard RV flusher)

MSgt · 09-01-2009, 10:56 AM

We have a macerating toilet on our new coach. The only downside we have is that the toilet uses much more water and while boondocking that limits its use. We have a 40 gal black tank and get at most three days While boondocking we have had no problems with water supply as the black tank will fill before you have to get water. Overall we are very pleased with the toilet.

GaryKD · 09-01-2009, 01:14 PM

Hi all,
For those who have a macerator toilet, please share the brand and model that has been installed in your RV.
thanks

Serpa69 · 09-01-2009, 03:23 PM

I have a Thetford Tecma Silent Plus.

MonacoMama · 09-01-2009, 03:33 PM

We have a Thetford Techma also. I believe it is the Silent Plus also...We could not understand that name because we thought everyone would know what was happening in the coach

...low & behold...you cannot hear it outside.

We have had problems with the controller-as has Robin_M.

This toilet also uses too much water

. We do have the Sani-Con also. It does a great job. ( I know I am "full of it"

but two macerators are overkill - even for me!)

GaryKD · 09-01-2009, 03:49 PM

Hi MM,
Thanks for the info. I was also thinking of the two macerator system. I knew you had a bit of engineer in you!

MonacoMama · 09-01-2009, 04:01 PM

GaryKD...If I had to choose one.. it would be the Sani-Con ... Hands Down!!

It doesn't bother me to empty the tanks with the Sani-Con.

It is much cleaner to use, along with it being able to pump the tank fluids uphill if needed.

The Techma is a water-waster

...and is not as "friendly" when you need to adjust the water level in the toilet bowl.

We don't dry camp as much as I would like to - but this toilet will also shorten up your time away from the dump stations.

(Sorry....I know - this is such a pleasant topic!

)

Serpa69 · 09-01-2009, 04:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MonacoMama

We have a Thetford Techma also. I believe it is the Silent Plus also...We could not understand that name because we thought everyone would know what was happening in the coach

...low & behold...you cannot hear it outside.

We have had problems with the controller-as has Robin_M.

This toilet also uses too much water

. We do have the Sani-Con also. It does a great job. ( I know I am "full of it"

but two macerators are overkill - even for me!)

Thats funny, but according to my wife I need two macerators, my son, probably 3. They do seem to use alot of water.

Gary RVRoamer · 09-01-2009, 05:50 PM

There shouldn't be anything solid enough in the black tank to require a macerator to move it through the long drain. I suspect the kids were dumping inappropriate stuff down the toilet (paper towels, napkins, tons of paper, etc) or maybe the black drain was left open when attached to a sewer line. That's a bad practice - the water runs out and the solids stay behind.

If you use your toilet and tank properly, you should not need a macerator toilet to avoid drain line problems.

GaryKD · 09-01-2009, 06:00 PM

But Gary, it is a gadget. Something for me to spend $s on, install and then maintain (fix). I'm not sure when I'll buy, but this is on my list of gadgets.

verygoooy · 09-01-2009, 10:42 PM

Thanks to all of you for responding and so quickly. I posted this last night way early in the morning.
As to the kids there was "stuff" that should not have been in there and they left the drain valves open. They and I were very lucky they got home before it backed up in to the unit. Its cleaned out now.

I have always used copious amounts of water in the black system. I have also had the best luck with the black system when we were moving from place to place more so then parking in one spot for along time. The sloshing around solved a bunch of problems. This is the longest run for the black tank I have ever had. I also do not have the benefit of using the gray tank for rinse out. If they had reversed the design inside and made the black tank the short run and the gray tank the long run then no problem. So far I have been told I can't put a flush out system inside the black tank other then a wand down the toilet.

The macerating toilet sounds very appealing except for the amount of water used. We do a lot of music festivals where there are no hookups. I have a bladder I can fill up fresh water with but there ain't no 'honey wagon' to drain the black. I am also concerned about the amount of electricty they require. I don't have the solar panels set up yet.

Nobody has said anything about the "grinder" itself. I would think ithe motor and the impellor would have to be very heavy duty to survive. I guesss I don't understand the process all that well. I assume it is like the garbage disposal at home?

Thanks again for responding.
Robert

Gary RVRoamer · 09-02-2009, 09:20 AM

If there is enough water in the black tank, it will flush itself when it is emptied.

I see no reason why an in-tank sprayer could not be installed, assuming you can get access to the tank somehow.

Or how about teeing a hose fitting into that long drain line? There are saddle tees you can just strap on and then bring a piece of hose out to some convenient point? Or get an ABS clean out fitting (45 degree wye) that you can it into the drain line. Here is one source:
Save at RV Partscenter - RV Parts and Supply