Community Forums

fla tom · 03-04-2019, 07:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wildtoad

Using a garbage disposal with a septic tank is discouraged. Using it in a holding tank can’t be good.

What is your logic behind that? Solids and paper are routinely placed and drained from black tanks. With the same dumping/flushing how is a grey tank different than a black tank?

akeagle · 03-04-2019, 07:17 PM

Another angle to be considered is grease buildup in the holding tank as well as the piping leading to it. That would likely affect fluid level sensors as well adding a gunky deposit to the tank which will be difficult to flush out.

Our Minnie Winnie was a rental before we bought it but it was in exceptionally good condition. Our particular model has a separate pump that drains the grey tank and sends it through a "garden hose" that ends just before the main waste outlet but after the black tank drain valve. Interesting arrangement, but it works under normal conditions.

The first time I attempted to drain the grey tank the pump worked but nothing was pumped out. After trying a few other "fixes", I unscrewed the cleanout between the tank and the pump and encountered a blockage of a soft, white substance which I determined to grease or something like it. After dislodging the blockage and the contents draining out onto the driveway (glad it wasn't the black tank!) I flushed the tank as best I could with a garden hose and after putting it back together and adding water to the tank, it performed as advertised.

That experience tells me adding a garbage disposal to an RV may not be wise.

**Spdracr39** · 03-04-2019, 07:19 PM

Can you imagine the smell from a grey tank full of shredded rotten food? You think the black tank has odors ...

docj · 03-04-2019, 07:28 PM

With all due respect, with two adults living in our MH, doing the dinner dishes takes ~15 minutes without a dishwasher or a disposal and we cook all our meals from scratch. With a single drawer dishwasher, some (most?) of the pots would have to be washed by hand anyway. Breakfast and lunch don't amount to more than a plate or two and get done right after the meals. I don't consider myself "deprived" by having neither dishwasher or disposal. JMO

DebbieMH · 03-04-2019, 07:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by docj

I don't consider myself "deprived" by having neither dishwasher or disposal. JMO

I never said I felt "deprived" ... hell, it was just a thought for discussion. Amazing that people get "flamed" for just thoughts these days. Unbelievable.

fla tom · 03-04-2019, 07:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by docj

With all due respect, with two adults living in our MH, doing the dinner dishes takes ~15 minutes without a dishwasher or a disposal and we cook all our meals from scratch. With a single drawer dishwasher, some (most?) of the pots would have to be washed by hand anyway. Breakfast and lunch don't amount to more than a plate or two and get done right after the meals. I don't consider myself "deprived" by having neither dishwasher or disposal. JMO

It is like any luxury no one really needs it. I am envious of the digital dash and Vega touch on newer coaches but do not consider myself deprived ...how many of us need a motorhome?

mackpeteno · 03-04-2019, 07:57 PM

We have a disposal in our Country Coach,but we use it very little.I don't want solids in my gray tank.

Old-Biscuit · 03-04-2019, 10:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fla tom

What is your logic behind that? Solids and paper are routinely placed and drained from black tanks. With the same dumping/flushing how is a grey tank different than a black tank?

3" drain line on black
1 1/2" on grey

Victory Blue · 03-05-2019, 05:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Old-Biscuit

3" drain line on black
1 1/2" on grey

Entegra has 3" on both sides.

Victory Blue · 03-05-2019, 06:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DebbieMH

I never said I felt "deprived" ... hell, it was just a thought for discussion. Amazing that people get "flamed" for just thoughts these days. Unbelievable.

Lynn,

I agree wholeheartedly. As someone said in another thread, too many forum threads go quickly from "how" to "why". I think it's because "how" requires analytical thought and technical knowledge and "why" just requires an opinion, whether informed or not.

Old-Biscuit · 03-05-2019, 11:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Victory Blue

Lynn,

I agree wholeheartedly. As someone said in another thread, too many forum threads go quickly from "how" to "why". I think it's because "how" requires analytical thought and technical knowledge and "why" just requires an opinion, whether informed or not.

This WAS a 'WHY' thread from OPs first post

Victory Blue · 03-05-2019, 11:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Old-Biscuit

This WAS a 'WHY' thread from OPs first post

Reading comprehension is important. Reread the OP - it’s “why can’t a disposal be put in an RV”, NOT “why shouldn’t I put a disposal in an RV”. She’s asking for technical reasons for why a disposal can’t be installed, not opinions on why she should or shouldn’t want one.

S_Watkins · 03-05-2019, 11:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DebbieMH

I love our dishwasher, use it all the time. I just wish we had a garbage disposal so I don't have to fully scrape all the left over food off our plates, pots, etc. So .... why can't a garbage disposal put in an RV?????

You can have a disposal in the RV! Just the way I can have a disposal in my home out in the country...

It all comes down to remembering one simple fact. Everything you put down the disposal has to come out sometime and one way, or the other, you are going to have to pay for it, unlike disposals on city waste systems.

I have a disposal in my home mainly because it was the easiest way to hook up the drain for a dishwasher. I almost never use it because all I can think of , while scraping food into it, is how much it will cost me to pump all the sludge out of my septic system! On my Coach all I would think of is how much it's going to cost to replace the tank once the sludge hardens and stinks :(

fla tom · 03-05-2019, 12:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by S_Watkins

You can have a disposal in the RV! Just the way I can have a disposal in my home out in the country...

It all comes down to remembering one simple fact. Everything you put down the disposal has to come out sometime and one way, or the other, you are going to have to pay for it, unlike disposals on city waste systems.

I have a disposal in my home mainly because it was the easiest way to hook up the drain for a dishwasher. I almost never use it because all I can think of , while scraping food into it, is how much it will cost me to pump all the sludge out of my septic system! On my Coach all I would think of is how much it's going to cost to replace the tank once the sludge hardens and stinks :(

Why would a little ground up food bits harden and require a tank replacement any more than feces would in the black tank?Do you plan on replacing your black tank?