Probes

[Crows Nest]

Are there any better quality probes than the ones installed by ETI? We were going to order the See Level but ETI stopped using them due to complaints. If I do change probes how accessible are the ones for black tank on 21NE?

 

[MVA]

IMO, the installed probes are fine. On our 2017 E19, they are flat on the inside of the tank. The longer probes on the market (think like a 10p nail) can be more problematic in that material can hang up on them. Our experience in maintaining accurate level indicators for the black tank is to dump, re-fill the tank with fresh water and redump. Level indicator reads correctly.

For the gray tank, only use detergents, not soaps (i.e., use hand liquid soaps not bar soaps). Detergents are chemically formulated to stay in solution in harder water. Dawn Powerwash works great for dishes. This combination has resulted in maintaining accurate gray tank level indicators. If your indicators are not reading correctly (e.g., reading 1/3 full after dumping), you can restore the tank and indicators, but it is a bit of work (few hours).

 

[hugh]

Another option to consider is one of the Mopeka sensors:


https://mopeka.com/product/mopeka-pro-check-universal-aluminum-plastic-composite-and-poly-tanks


I've installed them on all my tanks (propane x2, fresh, gray, black) and have had good luck so far.

 

[MVA]

Another option to consider is one of the Mopeka sensors:


https://mopeka.com/product/mopeka-pro-check-universal-aluminum-plastic-composite-and-poly-tanks


I've installed them on all my tanks (propane x2, fresh, gray, black) and have had good luck so far.

Interesting. How do they work? I could not find on their website if they are acoustic, conductance, etc.

thanks

 

[Centex]

Another option to consider is one of the Mopeka sensors:

https://mopeka.com/product/mopeka-pro-check-universal-aluminum-plastic-composite-and-poly-tanks

I've installed them on all my tanks (propane x2, fresh, gray, black) and have had good luck so far.

Where / how did you install the Mopeka sensor on your black tank (noting instructions say it must be on the bottom at least 3-diameters from an edge)?

I researched a bit but could not find how the App provides calibration for different thickness (depth) tanks? Are each of yours displaying 0% (when empty) to 100% (when full) span for the different tanks?

Interesting. How do they work? I could not find on their website if they are acoustic, conductance, etc.

Somewhere on the website it mentions "sonar".

 

[oldwave]

I’ve had the Sealevel system on my trailer for the last 18months. Works flawlessly.

 

[hugh]

Where / how did you install the Mopeka sensor on your black tank (noting instructions say it must be on the bottom at least 3-diameters from an edge)?

I researched a bit but could not find how the App provides calibration for different thickness (depth) tanks? Are each of yours displaying 0% (when empty) to 100% (when full) span for the different tanks?


Somewhere on the website it mentions "sonar".

For the black tank, I ended up pushing it underneath the tank from the side, with a piece of open cell foam between the sensor and the tank to keep it pushed against the tank. It's not 3 diameters from the edge of the tank, but seems to work fine.


The sensors are ultrasonic, and the "raw measurement" returned by the sensor is in microseconds. I'm guessing the sensor measures the time it takes to get back an echo / reflection of the sound from the top of the fluid. In the app, you provide the depth of the tank when 100% full (e.g. 8 inches), and the type of fluid (propane, water, diesel, etc.), and the tank capacity. The app will then report the amount of fluid that remains.


Once nice feature of the sensors is that they are directly supported by Victron, so my tank levels show up in my Victron energy display.

 

[Crows Nest]

A bit pricey for me.

 

[Crows Nest]

Ok. The other member of our household says it’s not too pricey. I don’t know if I can even get to the bottom of the black tank of our 21NE but I’ll take a look.

 

[hugh]

Ok. The other member of our household says it’s not too pricey. I don’t know if I can even get to the bottom of the black tank of our 21NE but I’ll take a look.

They certainly aren't cheap, but they have some bundles on Amazon and they seem to come on sale occasionally too.


Not sure where the black tank is on the 21NE. On the 21C, I had to crawl underneath the bed which involved some challenging body contortions.


BTW, if you decide to use them on the propane tanks, you'll probably need some spacers underneath the tanks to have room for the sensors. On my 21C, the "propane tank tray" (or whatever you call that thing) has bolt heads that stick up from the tray right where you'd want to have the sensors positioned underneath the tank.

 

[hugh]

Here's how the tank sensors appear in the Victron console

 

[Centex]

Thanks for the Mopeka info and explanation hugh. It's an interesting alternative in the tank-monitoring arena, with its own pros and cons as with others. Your setup with the Victron console display looks nifty.

In the case of my 5.0 I think placing a sensor under the black tank would be a significant challenge but admit I haven't really put effort into studying that in detail.

I replaced the ETI standard (KI monitor with a DIY installed SeeLevel system and that's working well for me. I completely abandoned (removed) the ETI tank monitor system wiring, installing new for the SeeLevel throughout. No propane tank monitoring but I'm OK with that.

 

[Crows Nest]

Not sure where the black tank is on the 21NE. On the 21C, I had to crawl underneath the bed which involved some challenging body contortions.

As far as I can tell the black tank comes from underneath the toilet into the dinette bench where it is covered with a plywood box. I think the tank sits directly on the trailer floor so there’s no access to the underside without cutting through the floor (yikes!)