Community Forums

Cat320 · 06-19-2022, 05:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryStone

.....I have both, and leave the macerator at home. It's inconvenient to use, at least for me. And takes a lot longer to empty the tanks.... .

Same here, my macerator is home in storage.

Dutch Star Don · 06-19-2022, 05:54 PM

Macerator pumps are like convection ovens, no one uses them to their full potential because they're not what they are used to. Some on here are talking about the old SaniCon or the kind you hook a garden hose to. I've been using a SaniCon since 2005 as they came standard on Monaco coaches.

The first generation (old SaniCon) used a small pump and a 1" drain hose. Yes, it was slower than a 3" hose, but overall, it was faster. Macerator hoses are left on the pump at all times. They don't need to be pulled out of storage, connected, used, disconnected, flushed and then stored again. All you do is dump your black tank, dump your grey tank and then put the cap back on the end of the macerator hose and stuff it into the wet bay.

The other fallacy.... people will say you have to have the "swoosh" from a 3" hose to get the tank clean. In 17 years of using the SaniCon, I've never had never an issue.

Fast forward to the new Turbo SaniCon with the 1.5" hose. It can empty a black and grey tank in under a minute. Both the old and new models come with a 20' hose, so you will rarely fall short. Once you dump, grab the hose near the wet bay, "walk" it down to the drain, remove the connection and install the cap. You're done.

The SaniCon is one of those devices that once you get one and use it as designed, you'll never go back to a 3" hose. With the SaniCon, you NEVER have to touch any wet or dirty hose.

Nwcid · 06-19-2022, 07:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dutch Star Don

Macerator hoses are left on the pump at all times. They don't need to be pulled out of storage, connected, used, disconnected, flushed and then stored again. All you do is dump your black tank, dump your grey tank and then put the cap back on the end of the macerator hose and stuff it into the wet bay.

This may be true for your motorhome or even most Class A's but it is not true for most trailers.

If I left my macerator hanging off the end of my septic pipe the weight bouncing would likely damage the pipe and hangers. That is assuming that it does not hit the ground first due to low clearance and the fact it sticks out past the body of my trailer.

Mine is a 12v version not water power, Flowjet and comes in a "travel" case.

Here is the 10 step instructions for the Sani-Con turbo:
https://www.thetford.com/product/san...le-tank-buddy/

Where to install it?

Sani-Con® Turbo 300 is designed to work on all RV types, but will be especially useful on travel trailers where a permanent installation on the sewer outlet is not possible.

Campers in this category have sewer outlets mounted under the body but have no room for a permanent installation of the macerating pump. The "Tank Buddy" comes with its own handy storage box, allowing users to safely store it after use.

How does it work?

Model 300 requires minimal set-up time, it hooks to any 12 V power supply and reduces the risk of messy discharges. The "Tank Buddy" comes fully assembled, only requiring a few steps to get the waste evacuation process started:

Step 1: Remove the system from storage box

Step 2: Remove the cap and connect the pump to the sewer outlet

Step 3: Make sure the switch on the pump is set to "off" and connect the wires to a power source

Step 4: Remove the cap and connect the nozzle to the dumping station

Step 5: Open the black water valve

Step 6: Turn on the macerating pump

Step 7: When the black water tank is empty the pump will start sounding different

Step 8: Turn off the pump and close the black water tank valve

Step 9: Empty the grey water tank to help rinse the system

Step 10: Disconnect the nozzle from the dumping station and the pump from the sewer outlet, replace the caps and return the Sani-Con® Turbo in its Storage Box.

Gary RVRoamer · 06-20-2022, 10:12 AM

LOL! Everybody is an evangelist when it comes to their preferred method or tool.

petrel · 06-20-2022, 10:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gary RVRoamer

LOL! Everybody is an evangelist when it comes to their preferred method or tool.

Amen!

TXiceman · 06-20-2022, 10:37 AM

We carry a SaniCon, poop grinder and use it on some occasions. For the most part, it is much simpler to use the old stinky slinky. But for that weird set up where you have to pump up hill or a long distance, The grinder/pump does it job. You still wind up with a stinky hose to seal up and haul.

Ken

jondrew55 · 06-20-2022, 10:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gary RVRoamer

LOL! Everybody is an evangelist when it comes to their preferred method or tool.

Sewage and evangelism together again! Who'd have thunk it?

TXiceman · 06-20-2022, 11:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jondrew55

Sewage and evangelism together again! Who'd have thunk it?

Someone's opinion always stinks.

Ken

Craig1960 · 06-20-2022, 12:58 PM

I only use my macerator at home to dump if I couldn't do it on the road. The rest of the time I don't mind using the slinky.

wjl7727 · 06-20-2022, 04:46 PM

I had the original SaniCon on my old coach and it was SLOW. I have the new Turbo SaniCon on my current coach and it is much faster. I have no interest in switching to the 3" hose.

FL420 · 06-20-2022, 06:27 PM

The first few years we were full-timing we always were able to find a dump station at no extra cost to our campsite fee so we never had a reason to have a macerator or a floater toter. The stinky slinky used with a third removable 3" waste valve allowing us to dump the black tank then backwash the 40 gallon black tank several times with the contents of the 60 gallon grey tank. That left us with 2 empty and relatively clean waste tanks and a well-rinsed sewer hose in minimum time with minimum effort.
UNTIL, circumstances beyond our control required us to spend the last few years in Colorado where it has been known to snow. The first winter our site was only a couple of hundred yards away but pulling in 4 slides, disconnecting water and electricity, shoveling snow and driving over a muddy or icy road to the dump station every week was no fun. Doing the reverse was even less fun.
The necessary solution was a 37 gallon floater toter filled through the stinky slinky then hitched to the hitch ball on the toad. It was then pulled to the dump station, drained, pulled back to the coach. Fill, pull, dump, repeat. Fill, pull, dump, repeat. Fill, pull, dump, repeat 3 times next week.
We spent last spring, summer and fall in 2 different USFS campgrounds. Neither one had electric, site water, sewer hookups or a dump station. The nearest dump station was a 40 mile RT costing $35 to dump and 5 gallons of fuel. The only other dump station was an 80 mile RT costing $10 to dump and 10 gallons of diesel fuel.
With our beautiful forested campground at 8,200' only costing us $11.50/ night with our old fart's card we could well afford the financial costs but hated the considerable wasted time and effort.
Our solution for the waste dump problem was to buy a portable macerator pump to drain the contents of the floater toter through a garden hose into one of the vault toilets in the campground. I dragged the very heavy floater toter behind the toad and hooked the pump up to the toad's battery. Worked great.
The best part was we never had to break camp to dump the tanks. The only time we had to move was to change campgrounds every 14 days. We had other hacks to solve the electricity, water, propane and fuel issues.
In conclusion, at last, depending on our situation at the moment we use the method most suited at the time to our needs given our different camping styles and conditions.
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UTTransplant · 06-21-2022, 02:43 PM

We have had a Sanicon turbo 600 system for probably 3 years now. It is permanently installed, and it has a wider hose than many systems. DH loves it! He says the entire process is as fast as it ever was, maybe faster since he doesn’t have to wrestle with hoses as much. The one with the Sanicon is smaller and easier to store. I can see that it would be a pain to hook up a portable one each time, and some macerator products use very small hoses which makes the process slow. So a lot depends on how often you use it. We do a lot of traveling instead of staying put. The longest we have ever been at a FHU campground is 2 weeks, and that was for a very special occasion. Most of the time we stay 3-5 days so we experience a LOT of dumping situations. We also used the traditional sewer hose for 15 years with various trailers, so we do have a frame of reference. Still prefer the installed Sanicon.

twogypsies · 06-21-2022, 03:43 PM

I successfully used the Slinky years ago when traveling with two other couples in Alaska. All 3 of us rented a Class C. When time to dump I got out the sewer hose and dumped ours. The next party drove up to me & I dumped theirs and the same with the 3rd party. Everyone but me stayed in the RV. Super easy.

16 years of full-timing after that and we used a Slinky. It's a simple process.

thenovaks · 06-23-2022, 03:21 PM

Our coach is prone to clogs in the internal plumbing when dumping with the slinky. On those occasions, I kick in the macerator and the clog disappears. My only wish for the macerator is that the hose could be emptied when finished dumping - there is still quite a bit of fluid in it that will not come out.