Community Forums

jkbstingray · 06-12-2020, 10:54 AM

We have been at our current campground for 2 weeks in our 2016 Forest River GT3. I keep the black tank valve closed, and the gray valve open all the time. Everything has drained perfectly until this morning when the kitchen sink backed up. Checked the sewer connection, there was nothing coming out there. Grey valve still open. Pulled the traps in the kitchen and the bathroom sinks, they are clear. Put it back together and it seemed to be draining fine, but took a shower and it's backing up again. We haven't put anything other than dishwater down the sink.

Any ideas of what could cause this sudden lack of drainage?

Thanks!
Jeff

MSHappyCampers · 06-12-2020, 11:22 AM

Jeff, my first thought is that the gray tank valve is not really opening or not opening completely when you pull the handle. Is the valve visible to verify that it's really open? If not, maybe you could push something flexible, like an electrical fish tape, up the drain pipe to check it.

Milford 47 · 06-12-2020, 11:23 AM

Typical drain clog in a horizontal line or a transition pipe

Use a NaOh based product carefully, with a smaller dosage and increased if necessary

followed by a warm/hot water rinse but be careful, hands/eyes

jkbstingray · 06-12-2020, 12:41 PM

Thanks folks. Apparently something had clogged it up at the drain valve. I had worked in open/close several times earlier to no effect. But just tried it again and it dumped an entire gray tank of water. So apparently whatever it was has flushed through the system now!

Fast E · 06-12-2020, 01:26 PM

1/2 cup (dishwasher) liquid down the drain when you're ready to pack up. Add water to help it slosh around.

RKins · 06-12-2020, 03:22 PM

Good example of why you should leave both valves closed until you need to dump them. The force of the dump clears all that stuff usually.

MSHappyCampers · 06-12-2020, 03:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jkbstingray

Thanks folks. Apparently something had clogged it up at the drain valve. I had worked in open/close several times earlier to no effect. But just tried it again and it dumped an entire gray tank of water. So apparently whatever it was has flushed through the system now!

Glad you got the problem cleared! You might want to consider using Happy Camper tank treatment in both the black and gray tanks. We've been using it for a long time with no clogs or odors!