Holding tank- systems monitor

[Fran Jasiura]

Doug and I are soooo happy to
Call ourselves New Escapees. We are on our first virginal trip in our 15’ a-Nd loving it- from BC to Arizona. And something is wrong w the systems monitor. The fresh, grey and battery measures all
Seem to be in real time and responsive- ie. when we filled the fresh water tank it showed full. Not so w the black water tank ( yikes. That’s scary). Even when we’ e Just emptied it it show full

Can just one of the 4 panels malfunction? Is there a reset button we can push? How do tell when the black water tank NEEDS emptying ( before disaster that is)
Thanks so much for this community, and for any and all responses.
Fran Jasiura

[tdf-texas]

Originally Posted by Fran Jasiura

Doug and I are soooo happy to
Call ourselves New Escapees. We are on our first virginal trip in our 15’ a-Nd loving it- from BC to Arizona. And something is wrong w the systems monitor. The fresh, grey and battery measures all
Seem to be in real time and responsive- ie. when we filled the fresh water tank it showed full. Not so w the black water tank ( yikes. That’s scary). Even when we’ e Just emptied it it show full

Can just one of the 4 panels malfunction? Is there a reset button we can push? How do tell when the black water tank NEEDS emptying ( before disaster that is)
Thanks so much for this community, and for any and all responses.
Fran Jasiura

That the black tank system monitor indicates full when it's not happens to a lot of us. The black tank sensors get "crud" on them and that causes them to read a false full condition.

The good thing is that the black tank indicator isn't critical as you can just look down the toilet after opening the flush valve and see if it's time to empty the tank.

The backup way to tell if the grey tank needs emptying is when you notice that the shower pan is filling up with water. Hopefully this happens when you are taking a shower vs washing dishes in the sink. If it's the latter, the first indication will be water flowing out under the bathroom door if you left the shower drain plug open unless you installed a Hepvo valve for the shower drain.

[PGDriver]

This is a common occurrence Fran, what you can try is after dumping fill the black tank half full (you can add dish soap if you want) and drive around for awhile the sloshing action should help clean the tank sensors.
There are also spray wands that you can put down the toilet that use water pressure to clean the tank and sensors.

[NW Cat Owner]

The monitors are a PITA as they never register correctly, even after we had the so-called better monitors installed by ETI during build (Horst). As you've noted, you'll get it registering full even after emptying the tanks. Happens to me all the time. Driving around will sometimes get it to register properly, but not always. So will flushing it and using a wand inside the toilet, but not always.



Have a flashlight handy that has a strap you can put over your wrist as you don't want it falling down the toilet when you check to see how full it is.



I've learned over time how long I can go before I need to dump the tanks. You'll learn it with time, as well. And ways to save water, if need be. I can take showers, wash dishes, hands and my teeth for 3 days before I need to start dumping the grey tank. If I need to go a bit longer, I'll wash my hands over a small bucket in the kitchen sink and use it to flush the toilet (thanks to PatandLinda for that tip!). Wipe off the dishes with a paper towel and finish cleaning with a soapy towel and wet towel to rinse. Saves lots of water from going down the grey tank that way. The bucket is grey plastic with a metal handle that I found in the paint dept of Lowe's. Fits perfectly inside the sink.

[cpaharley2008]

I had a mounting screw that pierced one of the wires in the rear, I removed the gauge, taped the wire and reinstalled, no more problems.

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by tdf-texas

The backup way to tell if the grey tank needs emptying is when you notice that the shower pan is filling up with water. Hopefully this happens when you are taking a shower vs washing dishes in the sink. If it's the latter, the first indication will be water flowing out under the bathroom door if you left the shower drain plug open unless you installed a Hepvo valve for the shower drain.

I think this depends on the year and model of the trailer. Our gray tank has an exterior overflow in the passenger side wheel well.

[gbaglo]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

I think this depends on the year and model of the trailer. Our gray tank has an exterior overflow in the passenger side wheel well.

An overflow or a vent? More likely a vent. Mine is on the passenger side, with a circular grill.

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by gbaglo

An overflow or a vent? More likely a vent. Mine is on the passenger side, with a circular grill.

Good point. Technically a vent, but low enough that it also works as an overflow. To be honest though I don’t think I ever overfilled the gray tank with the shower drain stopper removed. Maybe if I did I would get water in the shower pan before it came out the vent?

[gbaglo]

I've always had to empty the black before getting close to filling the grey or running out of fresh water ( I keep a 5-gallon container at the picnic table kitchen ).

I'm sure somebody could offer a comment...

[Steve Clark]

Originally Posted by gbaglo

I've always had to empty the black before getting close to filling the grey or running out of fresh water ( I keep a 5-gallon container at the picnic table kitchen ).

I'm sure somebody could offer a comment...

Glenn, I just muttered something to myself.....all positive of course

[cpaharley2008]

I think that vent is higher than the shower floor, so the floor should flood first before any liquids come from the vent. Now the vent is located on the roof, so the shower will definitely be first to show liquid.

[Mike Lewis]

My constraint is the gray water tank; for me it fills first. In the past I would let it fill until the shower pan started to flood, then empty it and the black tank. If I showered every other day I could go about eight days before needing to empty the tanks.

I was able to improve this range on my last trip by using an engine oil drain pan, the type that is built into the side of a jug. With that and a drain cap that has a small hose fitting on it I can drain off the gray tank a few gallons at a time when it fills. This lets me extend my stay to two weeks, which is my goal since that is the limit in many parks.

[kstock11]

I went the route of a 6 gallon tote-n-stor. This is a small enough size to be able to pick up and carry (or throw in the back of the car) You can drain the grey tank of 6 gallons every other day for an extended period. Most go the route of the towable tanks that are too big for my purposes. This is small enough to keep under the bed in the 19 and always have available when needed.

[Mike Lewis]

Originally Posted by kstock11

I went the route of a 6 gallon tote-n-stor.

I also thought the towable things were too big; I don't mind draining off a few gallons of gray water every couple of days for a while. I didn't see a tote-n-stor that small so I went with the drain pan.

[JStelly]

I do something similar with a 5 gallon container. It comes in handy when we want to drain off a few gallons instead of moving the trailer just to dump the tanks.

[JStelly]

Originally Posted by JStelly

I do something similar with a 5 gallon container. It comes in handy when we want to drain off a few gallons instead of moving the trailer just to dump the tanks.

Oh yea...gray water only. [emoji6]