The RV Waste Water Tanks
Are you aware of what comprises the RV waste water tanks? After being full time motor home residents for nine years, my wife and I have learned several important lessons about RV waste water tanks. Recreational Vehicle waste tanks are closed systems, meaning the grey water holds sink and shower waste and have traps to contain the odors. The black water tank holds toilet waste and the water in the toilet bowl keeps odors from wafting into the living areas. The dump valves on RV waste water tanks are to remain closed even when you are hooked up to a Full Hook Up (FHU) site. These tanks comprise the waste water system in an RV, a problem in these systems can result in waste build-ups which will cause foul odors and clogged pipes.
Grey Water Waste Tank
The grey water tank is connected to your sinks and shower, the water in this tank can create some heavy-duty sewage odors. My wife keeps an empty coffee can on the kitchen counter for bacon grease and wipes the excess grease off with a paper towel, but as she washes the skillet, some of that grease ends up in the grey water tank. Our body oils, hand soap, dish soap, food waste, and shampoos also go into the tank, this combination of waste products can congeal into a cakey sediment in the grey water waste tank. If the tank valve is left open and there is no liquid in the tank, no amount of break solution, organic or store bought, can prevent sediment build up on the bottom of the tank or in the pipes that lead to the waste valve. Since I am speaking of my experience, I learned the hard way. My wife and I were working at a lake in Southern California, we were in a workamper site with Full Hook Ups (FHU). I left the valves open on my grey water tank as was recommended by a dealer we bought the motor home from. A summer day came with record heat, 105 degrees and the stench in the motor home was unbearable. I had to dismantle the waste valve and flush the tank with a garden hose that had a bladder attached to it. It took about fifteen blow out attempts to clean out the tank. I learned to keep the valve closed and empty the grey waste tank when it gets to 2/3 full. Then to add a product like Camco TST Lemon Scent or Happy Camper in the RV’s sink to control odors.
Black Water Waste Tank
The black water waste tank is connected to your toilet, we all know the odors that can come from this tank. I had a camper come to me one day, he said that his black water was so stopped up that nothing would come out. I found out that he keeps the valve open on the black water tank, well the result was a ‘cone of shame’ that clogged the tank completely. I suggested that he use an RV toilet spray wand on the end of a garden hose through the toilet into the tank to break up some of the cone of shame, then use a product like the Camco RV Dual Flush RV Holding Tank Rinser with the garden hose attached to continue to rinse the tank. Keep the valve closed when on a FHU site, and empty the tank when it gets 3/4 full, then add two drop in odor packets with at least a gallon of water.
When We Are on the Road
We all know that a gallon of water weighs 8.34 pounds and a gallon of gas weighs about the same 8.4 gallons, you can Google it. When you are on a road trip, gas is a necessity, my tank is 50 gallons, so I am carrying 420 pounds when I fill up. If I am going RV Park to RV Park, I do not carry a full fresh water tank, I keep it less than 1/4 full (so we can use the bathroom), and keep as little liquid as possible in the waste tanks. Having said that, RV waste tanks are meant to have liquid in them, so I do keep 2 gallons of water with Drop-ins in the tanks, this allows the solution in the tanks to clean our tanks for us.
Conclusion
The Grey and Black water waste tanks in an RV are meant to hold liquid, a dry tank can result in expensive tank sanitizing, it is best to keep the valves closed and empty them before they are full. Always remember to dump the black water first and then the grey water. That way the cleaner grey water will rinse your sewer hose. There are many products on the market that help to keep your RV tank smelling fresh and clean or you can Google the non-chemical methods of tank cleaning, like the GEO Method.
