Community Forums

rivercat49 · 06-07-2011, 09:26 AM

When camping with full hookups should blackwater and greywater valves be left open to drain directly into sewer or wait until tank is full?

melvonnar · 06-07-2011, 09:35 AM

grey water OK
Blackwater no; close valve fill 1/3 full water; flush when it's 2/3 full, then close valve and fill 1/3 then repeat as above.

Go Dawgs · 06-07-2011, 09:53 AM

Actually it won't hurt anything to do it, but you will have a foul odor. I usually don't even hookup until I get ready to leave. I then drain the grey water and then the black water tanks.

Arch Hoagland · 06-07-2011, 10:09 AM

Both closed.
Then when you drain, do the black first. As you drain the gray tank after that it will flush out the sewer hose.

Also keeping both open may allow sewer gases to come up through your vent pipes and exit out on the top of your RV. It can smell pretty bad depending on the wind currents and if you have your roof vents open.

Peacekeeper6 · 06-07-2011, 10:13 AM

Here's what I did this past weekend, my first excursion with my coach:

I hooked up my lines. Ensured that the sewer hose had a downward slope from the RV drain to the CG drain by using logs (which reminds me, I need to buy those bridge thingies). Kept both black water and grey water closed.

Just prior to leaving, I opened the black water drain first. Used those wand thingies to rinse off the inside of the tank. Since our campground restroom facilities was very clean, very close and in great shape, we didn't poo in our rig, which made clean up A LOT easier and less messy, imo.

After rinsing the black water tank, I closed the black water drain valve and opened the grey water drain valve. The reasoning for this is to thoroughly rinse out the sewer line if there were any black water material left on the sewer line, since grey water is only water from the shower and kitchen sink.

I believe this is the method that most experienced RVers use....

RickO · 06-07-2011, 10:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by awarnes

Actually it won't hurt anything to do it, but you will have a foul odor. I usually don't even hookup until I get ready to leave. I then drain the grey water and then the black water tanks.

Actually leaving the black tank valve open for any significant length of time can lead to the "brown tower of doom" where solids pile up can harden in layers. Not a mess you want to clean up. The black tank needs lots of water to keep things clean.

Also, if you dump your gray tank AFTER dumping your black tank it will flush the hose... otherwise you're left to figure out how to clean "gunk" out of your hose after dumping the black tank.

Good luck...

rick

Kablewizard · 06-07-2011, 10:20 AM

I agree I tried that suggestion once and promptly closed the gray because of the smell I was told that not all showers have a p trap thus no way to keep the smell out. Ours is that way. I keep the plug in and tight.

I was told to never keep the black open it can cause a problem with not having water in the bottom that the waste can get hard over time and will need special work to get it cleaned out.

Melmoses · 06-07-2011, 12:27 PM

Agree with others - keep both closed until about 2/3 full. Black emptied first, then grey to wash the hose. Something else I do is to close the black, refill with some water (about 2 minutes worth) and pour in a cup of Pine Power (not Pine Sol or any other pine anything) that I get from Dollar General. We then drive to the next destination and dump when we get there first thing. This has kept our tank clean with no odor. I also add a little Pine Power to the grey water tank when we arrive and that has kept odors from the grey tank from building up (food particles from dishwashing and soap from bathing) go down that drain and man, they can stink too).

cutrell01 · 06-07-2011, 12:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rivercat49

When camping with full hookups should blackwater and greywater valves be left open to drain directly into sewer or wait until tank is full?

We always use packets of cleaner/digester in our black tank (have for grey tanks also) and put some water in black tank. Do not empty until at least 2/3rd full or more. Empty black tank, close black tank valve, then empty grey tank to help clean out hose. If your RV has a built-in black tank sprayer/cleaner, it cleans black tank very well (must have black tank valve open when using sprayer). Sensors on tanks (after some time) usually are not very accurate. Ours have eventually always indicated that tanks were not empty when they actually were.

Go Dawgs · 06-07-2011, 12:54 PM

Sorry I got them backwards. Must be Tuesday

DRosedale · 06-07-2011, 04:10 PM

I leave grey water open and black water closed. I fill black water tank with 5 to 10 gallons of water and the empty when 2/3 full.

bullheaded · 06-07-2011, 04:24 PM

We leave the grey open (for the washing machine and dishwasher). Dump the black at 3/4 full, use the sprayer to clean the tank and rinse the hose. When we leave camp repeat the procedure, leave about 5 gallons of water and dump the ice maker (about 6 lbs) in the toilette to (hopefully) keep the sensors clean.

PNWGirl · 06-07-2011, 04:36 PM

I was taught to leave both closed until ready to dump. Then open black, close black, then open the grey-- as said by others, to clear out the hose from black debris-- then I close the grey.

I, usually, have more grey, than black, so may dump that twice as often.

This has worked out well to keep my black tank in good shape (no build up) and no nasty smells coming into the rig from open valves.

Sheila

Wayne M · 06-07-2011, 04:48 PM

To add:

Many stops at CG's we are 1 or two nights. If I'm using the on-board fresh water, there is no problem with adding weight, but most times I hook up to the city water, So flushing is adding weight. It doesn't mater if we re a one night stand or longer, I dump when we depart the next morning or a few days. Sooner if necessary. I leave the black tank and gray tank closed. The only time I leave the gray tank open is if DW wants to wash, then I close it if I remember and I usually do.

As stated, dump black, then gray to flush the lines out. I also have a backwash built in. Now, something else I will do while watching the clear plastic elbow, is to have DW fill the bowl twice and "power flush." I am amazed at the discolored water that will come out when she does that. It helps in keeping that "tower of doom" down to a minimum. Sometimes I'll even have her do it a third time, but most times only twice is necessary.

It doesn't matter if I'm only going to use the black one night, or more, I always put in one of those "Eco" green deodorizers. I also add two cap fulls of liquid Calgon softener. I was amazed at how clean my back flush is since I started using that method.

Good luck.