Community Forums

Papashap · 09-09-2012, 05:33 PM

just got back from first excursion and will not be using RV for 3 weeks....do i dump tanks -seems like i should ?

RickO · 09-09-2012, 05:35 PM

I would dump and rinse them and then add a few gallons of fresh water to each.

Rick

jzick · 09-09-2012, 06:50 PM

Most people will empty the tanks. I do not worry about ours. We travel for long periods, empty and clean the tanks on the last morning before the final leg to storage. During the day's drive home, we use the tanks normally and then use the tanks for occasional weekends and day trips during the winter. If we do not fill them, we do not dump until starting our long trip the next spring. If it makes you feel good, dump them.

Meandering Retiree · 09-09-2012, 07:19 PM

I suggest that you dump them as we did not one time and had major problems with the black water tank....it took several treatments, bags of ice, and driving to finally break everything up again so it would drain. As DW says, NEVER AGAIN!

SarahW · 09-09-2012, 07:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RickO

I would dump and rinse them and then add a few gallons of fresh water to each.

Rick

This.

Gary RVRoamer · 09-09-2012, 07:29 PM

Some stuff in the tanks is a normal situation and should not cause any problems at all. Like jzick, we usually dump when we leave the last campground and head for home, but do not worry if the tanks get used along the way or while the rig is parked in our yard. It's quite normal for our coach to sit for a couple months with occasional use, e.g. an spare bedroom for guests, and not get dumped.

We don't use chemicals either - just water most of the time.

Bigd9 · 09-09-2012, 07:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RickO

I would dump and rinse them and then add a few gallons of fresh water to each.

Rick

Ron Buckner · 09-09-2012, 07:37 PM

Dump em' ESPECIALLY the black tank! If you let it sit the fluids will evaporate and you'll end up with a paper mache' mass (or mess) resembling concrete that a jack hammer wont touch. Also, for those of you full-timers that might be experiencing bad grey water odors, I would ask you to consider holding your grey water untill your 2/3rds full. By leaving your grey valve open and the tanks dry, the vapors from the park will raise up into your tanks (hot air rises) and every time you turn on a faucet the water seal in your p-traps will be released allowing that methane + into your coach.

historyljc · 09-10-2012, 12:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gary RVRoamer

Some stuff in the tanks is a normal situation and should not cause any problems at all. Like jzick, we usually dump when we leave the last campground and head for home, but do not worry if the tanks get used along the way or while the rig is parked in our yard. It's quite normal for our coach to sit for a couple months with occasional use, e.g. an spare bedroom for guests, and not get dumped.

We don't use chemicals either - just water most of the time.

This is generally the way we work it. The coach is used frequently for an extra bedroom and we also generally keep the fridge and cabinets pretty well stocked (particularly during hurricane season, like right now) in case we feel the need to hook-up and go. I keep around a half tank of water to be for flushing, washing hands, etc. When the black tanks starts getting full, I hook-up the hoses, drain and flush. Works well. As mentioned above-use plenty of water.

RanCarr · 09-10-2012, 03:01 AM

We always dump the tanks before leaving the CGs, or when we get home from a long trip.

Papashap · 09-10-2012, 05:51 AM

for those that developed problems i assume its because you waited weeks or months before dumping...assume a couple of days won't hurt anything-by the way we were dry camping at a college football game or i would have certainly dumped....thanks for all the comments