Slow grey water dumping?

[gbaglo]

Or, you could spend the time contemplating the virtue of patience.

[Ron in BC]

Originally Posted by Parker

I the head is reduced to almost nothing so the flow drops in proportion.

My thinking is that the flow drops much more than the black water towards the end because the cross-sectional area of the 1 1/2" pipe, at say a 1/2" off the tank bottom, is greatly reduced. The black water drains quickly to the end because it is a bottom drain and the area remains a constant.

But anyway you slice it, it's sort of annoying when you've had a previous trailer that drained better. Annoying, but not enough that I'm going to bother using blocks to tilt the trailer.

Ron

[escape artist]

Hi: All... The older I get... the better I do SLOW!!! Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by ice-breaker

Just bring a block or two of wood to place under your curb side wheels when you dump and it will tilt the grey tank enough to drain more quickly.

'tis what I do when at a dump station. Helps a lot.

[Parker]

Yep. Or ignore it because it's really not that much to bother with (which is what I do). I add toilet chemicals and do all that while the gray water is draining and it works out about right. I guess we've strayed a bit from the question of the 1/3 full indication on the panel. Next chance I get, I want crawl under the Escape and see where the sensor is located. A wide flat tank is going to have the sensor pretty close to the bottom, and I'm guessing it doesn't take much to leave enough water on the side wall to form an electrical path for the indicator to come on.

[JimJ]

Annoying, but not enough that I'm going to bother using blocks to tilt the trailer.

I agree, Ron.

[escape artist]

Originally Posted by Parker

Yep. Or ignore it because it's really not that much to bother with (which is what I do). I add toilet chemicals and do all that while the gray water is draining and it works out about right. I guess we've strayed a bit from the question of the 1/3 full indication on the panel. Next chance I get, I want crawl under the Escape and see where the sensor is located. A wide flat tank is going to have the sensor pretty close to the bottom, and I'm guessing it doesn't take much to leave enough water on the side wall to form an electrical path for the indicator to come on.

Hi: Parker... You'll probably find that soap sludge collects on the screws that pierce the tank. Replacing them with S/S ones might help, but you could cause more problems than it's worth. Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie

[gbaglo]

Pic of sensors on 17B. I don't see how the bottom one could be any lower.

[JimJ]

Perhaps it's the perspective of the photo, but is the bottom sensor really measuring 1/3 of the tank volume?

[Parker]

Isn't that a photo of the fresh water tank? Either way, I think it's the second sensor from the bottom that triggers the 1/3 full light. The bottom one is probably the common one for all the others to complete the circuit(s).

[Parker]

Originally Posted by escape artist

Replacing them with S/S ones might help, but you could cause more problems than it's worth.

Hi Alf,

I don't know if that would help or not. I totally agree that it's probably not worth the effort to try it. I'd like to see how they make the probes. If I were starting with a new design, I would try to electrically insulate the probe until it's an inch or so (sorry Canada, 25 mm!) away from the wall. If I get really bored this summer, I may take that on, just to keep this thread alive as long as possible.

[gbaglo]

It is fresh water tank and I think your are right about the bottom sensor.

[padlin]

FWIW, here's a print from my old trailer.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by Parker

... I think it's the second sensor from the bottom that triggers the 1/3 full light. The bottom one is probably the common one for all the others to complete the circuit(s).

I agree.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by padlin

FWIW, here's a print from my old trailer.

Good info, nicely illustrating typical sensor placement. That drawing shows a minimum distance between sensors, particularly between the reference (ground) sensor and each of the others; Baglo's photo suggests that his reference sensor is very close (too close?) to the 1/3 level sensor. That could make it more susceptible to false 1/3 readings. There are various brands of level gauge systems, but anything using these through-the-wall point sensors likely all work the same way.

Did anyone get the installation manual for the level monitor with their Escape's documentation package?

[gbaglo]

I've had no issue with the monitor reading on the fresh water other than filling it so water is gushing out, and still having it read 2/3 full. Don't know that that would have anything to do with the placement of the 1/3 full sensor.
However, due to popular demand, here is photo of sensors on grey tank.

[Parker]

I just did the same thing....here are a couple of photos of our 19. One shows the layout of the sensors, the shape of the tank, and the drain line. If the 1/3 reading were valid (second probe from bottom) the drain line would be running full, which is not the case after 30 seconds or so of draining. Since they are so close together (in contrast to padlin's drawing) I'm convinced that the wall of the tank is staying wet enough to maintain an electrical pathway. The other photo shows what's beneath the screws. They only connect to whatever probe is factory installed in the side of the tank. I assume those would be really difficult to remove for any kind of modification. Next time I drain the tank, I'm going to knock on the side of the tank a little to see if I can get the water off the wall. Beyond that, I'm pretty well finished with this effort! Sorry Alf, no way to change the contacts.

[LeonW]

For what it is worth, I am having ETI install "Horst Miracle Probes" in the new trailer. I have to send them the probes, and they are expensive. But on the other hand, when I have a gauge or indicator lights, I want them to work -- otherwise why bother with the sensors/monitor at all? After we pick up the trailer in September, I will let you all know how they work.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by Parker

The other photo shows what's beneath the screws. They only connect to whatever probe is factory installed in the side of the tank. I assume those would be really difficult to remove for any kind of modification.

Probes/sensors are apparently routinely installed after the tank is complete and in the trailer. I agree that the original probes would not be easily removed, but an additional set could be installed and the wires moved to them.

[Parker]

I've been looking at the Horst probes, and I can see why LeonW is specifying them. Here is a link to their site: Horst Miracle Probes for Wastewater Tanks in Recreational Vehicles RVs

Here's a link to what appears to be installed in our tanks: Tank Sensor Probe, Spin-In, Fresh Water

As I was speculating, the Horst probe samples further from the wall of the tank, which helps eliminate conduction along the wall. Looks like a no-brainer.

I will likely switch to a set of Horst probes in the near future. It may be possible to twist out the old probes; if not, it would be simple enough to drill new 3?8" holes and start over.