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Old 06-25-2014, 07:01 PM   #1
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Another Macerator Question..

Trying to drain Grey and Black. Everything was working great (draining), then nothing. Pump works, but tanks won't drain. Could it be I lost the prime? Clog? or? I opened/closed valves multiple times to hopefully help it out, nothing.
I'm not sure what additional info to post, but if it's needed to help out, ask and i will answer.

Thanks...appreciate it all again.
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Old 06-25-2014, 07:31 PM   #2
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Are the tanks empty?
Do the tanks drain normally, not using the macerator?
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Old 06-25-2014, 09:21 PM   #3
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How do you know the tanks arnt empty? It could be false measurements from the sensors. If your sure there is still stuff in the tanks, you can check the flexible hose leading to the macerator to see if there is stuff making it that far, by squeezing or sloshing it a little bit. If there is stuff that far then you know the valves are working and are stuck with a macerator stop up situation. Hope that helps.
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Old 06-25-2014, 09:56 PM   #4
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Vince, Harlee,
The grey tank is partially empty and the black tank is FULL. I know this by looking down the toilet hole and can see the water level. I started draining the black tank, which appeared to be a bit slower than other times, heard the macerator spin up higher after a few minutes so I shut it off, closed the black valve and proceeded on to the grey. When I pulled on the grey lever to open the valve, it pulled out very easily...as if there was no pressure (or empty tank) behind the valve and it registered 2/3 prior to dumping. Nothing came out the grey thru the macerator either when I pulled the valve and turned on the pump. But, that's when it got a bit weird...all of a sudden my black registered full...as if the grey water went into the black. Now, when I pull on the black valve, it's a bit hard to pull as it normally is when there is pressure behind it. But that's when the pump runs, but nothing comes out.
To answer the question "do the tanks drain normally without the macerator", the answer is no because I am not set up to drain them manually. When the valves are left open, nothing drains without the pump turned on. But, trust me, after this experience, I am buying the necessary materials to be able to disconnect the macerator hoses, hook up a slinky and manually drain the tanks.

Hope that all makes some sense.
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Old 06-26-2014, 05:21 AM   #5
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I have been in this exact situation twice. Perhaps you are also a victim of Thor quality control.

I had a chunk of wood left in one of my tanks that eventually made its way down to the macerator. The macerator would make noise like it was running, but the blades were unable to get to any of the water to create suction since the chunk of wood was blocking the blades.

Get a large bucket.. I used a walmart keg cooler with black lawn garbage bag as a liner...and unmount the macerator pump. You should have enough room to pull the pump and slinky hose over your bucket. Crack it open and visually inspect your macerator blades.

Let us know what you find. Oh yeah....close both drain valves BEFORE you disconnect the slinky hose from your macerator!
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Old 06-26-2014, 08:43 AM   #6
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Thanks for that heads up Sanfordturbo....guess I'm gonna be a busy guy today. I gotta do something as the DW doesn't care for the idea of walking to the park restroom at 3 in the morning because the tank is full. Couldn't do much yesterday due to rain...looks nice out there today.

Rubber gloves - check
Bucket - check
tools at hand - check
motivation - DANG knew I forgot something....
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Old 06-26-2014, 12:21 PM   #7
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Good luck D&D. I have thought about this and i have a slinky on hand that i think i could mount where the flexible hose attaches the hard valve pipe to perform a full dump when my macerator dies or some other failure dictates. I haven't had to do this yet but i'm sure eventually it will happen.
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Old 06-26-2014, 12:36 PM   #8
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Don.. sounds like one of two problems.

First, it could be just a simple clog at the junction where the 3" hose connects to the front of the macerator. If this is the case, there is an easy solution. Go down to a hardware store and get a female to female hose adapter. Connect one end to the end of the macerator's sewer connection and then connect a garden hose to the other female end of the adapter. Turn on the water faucet and "back flush" the macerator. This will clean out any clog that may be causing your problem.

Second, the macerator's impeller may have all its vanes broken off and will not pump the water. The motor will run, but there won't be any flow. To correct this problem, you'll have to purchase (probably on-line) a new impeller, remove and disassemble the macerator (might as well clean it out while you're at it) and remove and replace the impeller. Don't confuse the cutting blades with the impeller....two different things.

Another little device that helps when draining your tanks is a clear connector between the gate outlet and the 3" hose. This allows you to see what is flowing, how much is flowing, and when it is not flowing.

Good luck

Ron
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Old 06-26-2014, 02:17 PM   #9
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In the macerator there are two stages, one is the macerator stage, this is what you see when you rinse it out well, and look down the Throat of the thing.. The other is the pump, below a metal "spacer" I forget what this type of pump is called but its' a rubber "Star" wheel that is offset in the chamber so it creates a bit of vacuum as the chambers formed by the "Radials" of the wheel pass the hole in the aforementioned plate and then compress as the chamber passes the outlet.

It may be broken.

However the "Fix"

First as described above, get it off and rinse it out, No other way around this stage.

Then disconnect the discharge hose, continue rinshing, make sure fulid can pass through the discharge hose (no hose blockage)

Try the pump with water, I'd put like a 10" clear extension on the top of the pump to test, or a length of 3".. Since it is 99.99999 percent clear water you can just let it blast.. if it's now working re-check discharge hose and hook up WITH an extension (5" works best here) so you can SEE if it has anything to pump (Tank blocked) if tank blocked call Pota Potty folks for a pump out and get it cleared.
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Old 06-26-2014, 09:45 PM   #10
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Well guys, loong story short, when I started looking at the system, I found all this black silicone on the outside of the 90 degree elbow coming off the black tank by the macerator pump. When the 3 inch line was removed, there were clobs of it just hanging on the inside of the elbow. Not sure why it was there in such mass except to help prevent seepage? (see pic 1)

When the other end of the 3 inch hose was removed from the pump, this piece of black silicone was wedged TIGHTLY in the blades of the pump. (see pic 2) Apparently it broke loose from the globs of it inside the elbow and found its way to the pump.

The pump runs, but is very slow and has allot of air in the ribbed line, so I am sure the pump is done and I am searching for a replacement. I have been looking at Amazon and other source but does anyone have an average price for a flojet?

The good news, tanks are empty, I am now set up to dump manually if needed, and I learned soooo much today; like I'm in no hurry to do this again anytime soon.

Everyone who took the time to give me insight, hints and what have you...THANKS A TON. I can't tell you how much it means to us (me).

Thank You.
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Old 06-27-2014, 07:04 AM   #11
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Pump

Glad you found your problem. Just a note what I did on mine. The house to the dump site was starting to get small holes in it and leak. I replaced it with a 5/8" garden goes. Every once in awhile when dumping black tank nothing will come out. I just take off the end and attach it to water faucet and back flush the entire system. Of course clean the faucet well after use. I've had to do this three times and it worked every time. Not your problem but might help someone else that is having trouble.

Safe travels
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Old 06-27-2014, 08:11 AM   #12
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Thanks Butch. I will keep that in mind for future possible remedies.

I didn't mention that when I completed the repairs, I cleaned the heck out of the bay area, hoses and everything else used or touched in the repair with a strong dose of bleach and water. You know, I never liked the smell of bleach, but after dealing with black tank "stuff", bleach brought on a whole new "fragrance" that I like quite well now.
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Old 07-02-2014, 09:42 AM   #13
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New pump installed yesterday. There was a huge difference in how the new macerator pump blades looked verses the old blades. The old blades were so distorted it's understandable why it took so long to dump. The difference in how quickly it pumps out the tanks now is amazing. I had only dumped the tanks maybe 4 times before I encountered the failure and thought the time it took was normal. Geez, was I wrong.
We are staying at Scandia RV park in Bend, Oregon. The mobile service we used for the warranty claim was OUTSTANDING. Prompt (both times) and professional in every way. I would HIGHLY recommend and would/will certainly use them again.

Now, if I could get my toilet bowl replacement parts delivered, I'll be in fat city.
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Old 07-02-2014, 08:42 PM   #14
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I bought a backup water pump and macerator to keep in the RV as a spare. It came in handy the first trip this year, when I turned on the macerator, it blew a fuse every time. I swapped in my new one and I was set.

I tore my old one apart and found that long black hair had gotten wrapped around the chopper blade shaft and the rubber impellor was a little worn. I found the parts to rebuild it, super cheap and easy, now this one is my spare.

I keep a clean slinky (20' long) to use as an emergency dump if I need to. The slinky has the caps on each end so I don't have to worry about odor. Even after cleaning it well, the smell is always in that tube.
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