silly but dumb question but I need to know

[Brumeiser]

On one of our weekend camping excursions all they had left was one site left and it was water, electric, and sewer. We just used the sewer drain at the end to dump everything. We noticed all the other sites were all hooked up the whole weekend. Do you open your black and gray tank when you have a hook up like this or do you open one of those for the weekend and dump the one you don't used at the end. Thanks for clarifying for me.

 

[Donna]

On one of our weekend camping excursions all they had left was one site left and it was water, electric, and sewer. We just used the sewer drain at the end to dump everything. We noticed all the other sites were all hooked up the whole weekend. Do you open your black and gray tank when you have a hook up like this or do you open one of those for the weekend and dump the one you don't used at the end. Thanks for clarifying for me.

We leave the gray open a little but the black should never be opened when at the campsite. Then a day or so before we're ready to dump the black, we close the gray, dump the black and then dump the built up gray to wash out black residue in the hoses. What you saw was probably gray going in, it builds up so fast with showers/dishes so we let it drain a little til it's dump time.

 

[becky1960]

If you are talking about sewer holding tanks, it is best to dump after they are almost full to give the solids time to break down. If the solids do not have time to break down they will some time clog your valves.
We hook our lines up when we arrive and leave them the whole time, but we only dump when they are almost full.

 

[stacktester]

On one of our weekend camping excursions all they had left was one site left and it was water, electric, and sewer. We just used the sewer drain at the end to dump everything. We noticed all the other sites were all hooked up the whole weekend. Do you open your black and gray tank when you have a hook up like this or do you open one of those for the weekend and dump the one you don't used at the end. Thanks for clarifying for me.

I would never leave either tank open when hooked up to a drain. I did that once at the fort a while back in our old camper and the fumes will come back up in your camper from the gray tank. Had to spray Lysol and wash everything before I felt it was sanitized. Believe me, unless you like sewer smell and all those germs in your camper keep the valves completely closed. I didn't mean to leave it open. My gray tank was full and I pulled the valve and forgot to shut it. I just bought a Tornado to install in my black tank to clean everything out while your dumping. I know it's not 100% but better than not having it at all. I'll still put the deoderizer in and some water to clean it even more.

 

[des1954]

If you are talking about sewer holding tanks, it is best to dump after they are almost full to give the solids time to break down. If the solids do not have time to break down they will some time clog your valves.
We hook our lines up when we arrive and leave them the whole time, but we only dump when they are almost full.

I second that!

Don't forget to put some tank treatment fluid in after every black tank dump! It helps to break down the solid's & has "some" deodorizing effect. The treatment also helps to keep your valves lubricated.

 

[Gatordad]

Actually not a silly or dumb question. I agree with Stacktester on his method and procedure, I dump when they're almost full, as to get the best cleanage.

 

[SteveH]

I don't dump any tank unless its about 1/2 when I'm at a campground. I try to let the black tank fill 3/4 before dumping. No point in flushing the chemicals frequently. Don't leave them open, as mentioned sewer gas can be nasty as well as potentially dangerous. When dumping I always dump black first then gray water, which flushes the hose. Then if I am departing I use a gray water (never fresh water) hose to rinse out the hose before storage.

 

[des1954]

When dumping I always dump black first then gray water, which flushes the hose. Then if I am departing I use a gray water (never fresh water) hose to rinse out the hose before storage.

Yep! That's the way to do it!!

 

[stacktester]

Actually not a silly or dumb question. I agree with Stacktester on his method and procedure, I dump when they're almost full, as to get the best cleanage.

In order to install this tornado device you have to drill a 2"-3" hole in the black tank. Once you empty your tank you have a hose fitting and you turn it on. The water sprays against the walls of the tank therefore cleaning it much better than just adding some water and chemical.

The good part is Gatordad offered to drill said 2"-3" hole to install tornado. I will of course be close by handing him tools and what not. Oh, did you say leave the tank full or empty Pete? I can't remember.

 

[Mr Man]

Actually not a silly or dumb question. I agree with Stacktester on his method and procedure, I dump when they're almost full, as to get the best cleanage.

Yep.

Also, about 1-2 hrs before I get back to Houston, I put 2 bags of ice down the toilet and let them mash around down there for a while.

I then do my last rinse-out at the dump station and am always surprised what the ice pulls off the sides of the tank..... Yuck.

 

[Gatordad]

In order to install this tornado device you have to drill a 2"-3" hole in the black tank. Once you empty your tank you have a hose fitting and you turn it on. The water sprays against the walls of the tank therefore cleaning it much better than just adding some water and chemical.

The good part is Gatordad offered to drill said 2"-3" hole to install tornado. I will of course be close by handing him tools and what not. Oh, did you say leave the tank full or empty Pete? I can't remember.

It's ok, I'm an engineer. If it doesn't work, get a bigger hammer.

 

[stacktester]

Yep.

Also, about 1-2 hrs before I get back to Houston, I put 2 bags of ice down the toilet and let them mash around down there for a while.

I then do my last rinse-out at the dump station and am always surprised what the ice pulls off the sides of the tank..... Yuck.

I don't like the bagged ice theory. Why would you waste precious ice on poop? I mean where I come from we use ice to make beer cold. I think BigDisneyDaddy would agree too lol.

I like the hammer idea Pete. A crowbar also comes to mind. I'm an environmental engineer that tests smokestacks for pollution. Most stacks I do are 100 or so feet above the ground. If something makes me mad I just throw it to the ground. If it works when I come down then great, I've solved the problem. If not it's time to buy a new one.

I see where you traded the Class A for a 5'er. What did you get? I take it it's a toy hauler.

 

[Mr Man]

I don't like the bagged ice theory. Why would you waste precious ice on poop? I mean where I come from we use ice to make beer cold. I think BigDisneyDaddy would agree too lol.

.

But this is Texas. We buy ice by the ton and it keeps the beer cold for at least an hour at a time.

 

[Gatordad]

I don't like the bagged ice theory. Why would you waste precious ice on poop? I mean where I come from we use ice to make beer cold. I think BigDisneyDaddy would agree too lol.

I like the hammer idea Pete. A crowbar also comes to mind. I'm an environmental engineer that tests smokestacks for pollution. Most stacks I do are 100 or so feet above the ground. If something makes me mad I just throw it to the ground. If it works when I come down then great, I've solved the problem. If not it's time to buy a new one.

I see where you traded the Class A for a 5'er. What did you get? I take it it's a toy hauler.

I catch any of you mugs pouring ice down the hole, you'll hear it from me, see!!!

I'd be a great stacktester, if they were only 5 feet off the ground... maybe i'd be a holetester.

We traded the Georgie Boy for a Weekend Warrior SL3005. It's a 5er toy hauler (which is why it took almost an hour to park it last time) and almost cost me my marriage. If she throws me out, at least i can live in the trailer, lol

 

[Shorty82]

I like the hammer idea Pete. A crowbar also comes to mind. I'm an environmental engineer that tests smokestacks for pollution. Most stacks I do are 100 or so feet above the ground. If something makes me mad I just throw it to the ground. If it works when I come down then great, I've solved the problem. If not it's time to buy a new one.

100 or so feet up in the air on a smokestack?

I could never do it. I HATE heights. I'm not as bad as some people but I prefer to be on solid ground.

 

[stacktester]

100 or so feet up in the air on a smokestack?

I could never do it. I HATE heights. I'm not as bad as some people but I prefer to be on solid ground.

I love it. I test a power plant in Titusville directly across from the Kennedy Space Center. It's about 200 feet up. I've seen a lot of good launches while up there.

 

[Shorty82]

I love it. I test a power plant in Titusville directly across from the Kennedy Space Center. It's about 200 feet up. I've seen a lot of good launches while up there.

I could see that it would have a wonderful view but I'd probably be so scared that I couldn't enjoy it.

The first time I rode Soarin' a scene got my phobia going and I had to close my eyes and tell myself that I was perfectly safe and that I wasn't that high off the ground. On a later ride I was cazy enough to look down (top row both times) and I saw I was a good bit higher than I thought and freaked me out a little bit. Won't stop me from riding top row but I won't look down again that is for sure.

 

[bradisgoofy]

....Also, about 1-2 hrs before I get back to Houston, I put 2 bags of ice down the toilet and let them mash around down there for a while.

I then do my last rinse-out at the dump station and am always surprised what the ice pulls off the sides of the tank..... Yuck.

Sorry, guys but this is a very well known practice and is highly recommended by full time RVers.

I have one of the instant ice makers so I can have more cubes in eight minutes.

 

[lisa8200]

What we do is,,,,,,,,man, work late one night and miss a whole thread, all my answers were already given. I'd put up something clever and witty( at least to me ) but,I've only been up 15 min. Maybe when I get home.

 

[mamaloya]

Here are a couple of links on the GEO method, very informative:

http://cbruni.googlepages.com/

http://www.rvecafe.com/bwater.html

Happy Dumping!!