Community Forums

jondrew55 · 03-08-2015, 11:47 AM

In a previous post I had mentioned that my grey water tank gauge was very inaccurate. It reads 1/3 full right after draining and indicates full after hardly any usage.

I decided to do an experiment: I made sure the tank was fully drained. I checked the gauge and it said 1/3 full. I brought a hose and a 5 gallon pail inside and started putting water in the shower 5 gallons at a time. The tank level gauge showed full after 4 pails (20 gallons). It remained indicating full till I stopped adding water

The good news is that I got 11 pails in (55 gallons in what is supposed to be a 60 gallon tank). When I drained the grey water tank, I filled up 11 pails on the way out. Goesinto = comesoutof, which is good.

The bad news is the shower drain was incredibly slow. At least 10 minutes for each 5 gallons to go in. At first it drained quickly, with a little vortex at the drain. then is slowed so much I was wondering if it was full after 10 gallons went in. I tried snaking the drain with a piece of wire, then a couple of large zip ties clipped together. Nothing happened. I knew the MH wasn't completely level, so I dropped the leveling legs and releveled. As soon as I did that the drain burped and drained normally. But after a little while, it went back to very slow draining for the last pails.

Any ideas? Im thinking maybe this is some sort of vent issue? I just got this MH a in January and have not had much time to get under/into it. Eventually I'll take it back to the dealer for a warranty look, but it such a pain to do that I'd rather fix it myself if I can find whats going on.

Ray,IN · 03-10-2015, 08:23 PM

Are the drains for the sinks slow too-at the same time as the shower? It all are slow, it sounds as if the vent is plugged and the draining water creates enough pressure in the tank to cause slow flow. Naturally this can mean if the shower drain is the only one slow, it has a blockage.
The OEM tank level gauges are notoriously inaccurate after a short period of use. IMO the easiest and most effective thing to do is use a tank rinser wand. It comes with a short plastic piece to hold the toilet valve open while using the rinse wand.
This allows you to direct a strong water stream all around the tank walls and blow any debris off the sensors.
The wand is available in many stores, I think WalMart sells them, as well as RV supply stores. If your plumbing is not straight from toilet to tank, this Valterra model will work.
Matter of fact, I just made my own because that Valterra wand is too short(I required one 4' long) for my MH plumbing. If you also choose to make your own, I posted how I made mine in the General Discussion forum.

mojoracing · 03-13-2015, 11:16 AM

The wand will work great for the black tank but he is having a problem with the grey tank. I just bought some digester type stuff at camping world. The label said it works for black tank as well as grey and will clear traps of grease ect. Directions said to put a 50/50 mix of the liquid with water and let stand in the trap overnight. If you don't have a drain problem, I would suspect a vent problem as others have suggested.

jondrew55 · 03-14-2015, 06:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ray,IN

Are the drains for the sinks slow too-at the same time as the shower? It all are slow, it sounds as if the vent is plugged and the draining water creates enough pressure in the tank to cause slow flow. Naturally this can mean if the shower drain is the only one slow, it has a blockage.
The OEM tank level gauges are notoriously inaccurate after a short period of use. IMO the easiest and most effective thing to do is use a tank rinser wand. It comes with a short plastic piece to hold the toilet valve open while using the rinse wand.
This allows you to direct a strong water stream all around the tank walls and blow any debris off the sensors.
The wand is available in many stores, I think WalMart sells them, as well as RV supply stores. If your plumbing is not straight from toilet to tank, this Valterra model will work.
Matter of fact, I just made my own because that Valterra wand is too short(I required one 4' long) for my MH plumbing. If you also choose to make your own, I posted how I made mine in the General Discussion forum.

Not sure if that will work for me. I have some sort of vacuum system toilet.