Clogged Toilet

[ktconners]

I am having a problem with my Dometic toilet in half bath clogging up. I have a Dometic Vacu Flush in main bathroom and that toilet is fine. The black tank seems to be normal also. It empties as it should. It seems like maybe paper is clogging this one toilet. As soon as I add water, it fills up. In the morning it lowers back down. I don’t know if they make a chemical to add to that toilet that might help or if there is some sort of RV snake that I might be able to use on that toilet? I was just reading posts about Calvon water softener, so I just added some of that to the toilet hoping it might loosen up whatever seems to be making it slow drain or clog. For now, we have just been using the Vacu Flush toilet but my wife is getting frustrated with the whole thing...lol...Does anyone have any thoughts for me?  Thanks so much!

Ron

[ktconners]

Fingers crossed but we went to Home Depot and bought a bigger plunger. I think we may have gotten whatever was stuck in there to go through to the black tank. It seems fixed for now, or at least we hope it is!!

[jleamont]

Do you have a macerator toilet in the 1/2 bath area?

[ktconners]

No I don’t believe so

[manholt]

If it has 2 buttons & a small green/red light...then you do.

[ktconners]

Thanks Manholt, no it does not. Just a Dometic, sits low on the pedestal with a foot pedal to flush and a spray gun thing on the left. For my information, I have a Dometic in the master, that has an on/off switch. When flushed the red light comes on, when done the green light comes on. Sort of makes an awful noise while flushing. It says Dometic Vacu Flush. Is that a macerator toilet?

 

 

[rayin]

IMO it is the sewage line instead of the toilet that is backing up. It can be 1 or more of 3 things, too much TP being flushed at once, sewage line has inadequate fall, not enough flushing water used, or a combination of the 3.

If you can reach that sewage line, insure coach is level, then use a digital level which had a degree of slope setting, or manually measure fall.

 

[kaypsmith]

Where in relationship is the toilet sitting to the black waste holding tank? If this is not a vacu flush, or macerator toilet, it should be sitting directly above it. If you hold the pedal down and shine a flashlight down the opening, what do you see? I assume that the master bath is near the rear of the coach and the 1/2 bath is just forward of the drive axel.

[ktconners]

Yes that assumption is dead on. When I take a flashlight it goes straight down for maybe a foot, foot and a half, then slopes down just slightly to the left. Everything looks clear now. Maybe some paper was stuck in there, not sure.

[manholt]

kt.

A vacuflush is the same as used on cruise ships, you use very little water & a vacume, basically the toilet sucks the water/solids out of bowl...problem is that too much TP will clog the system!  All depends on how the vacum pump is set. 

A maceration system, grinds the TP/solids & uses a lot of water for that process.   

[kaypsmith]

42 minutes ago, ktconners said:

Maybe some paper was stuck in there,

Sounds like the dreaded TP mound, this is when some people don't keep enough liquid in the black tank and drop TP down the toilet and it builds a mound directly below the toilet. Best solution is to not leave the waste valve open to the black tank, let it accumulate to at least 50% before dumping.

[manholt]

In a RV Park I let mine go to 90% before dumping...same with grey!  We backflush at each black dump!  when traveling, we dump and BF each morning, then add water to black tank & some Dawn or Calgon.

[ktconners]

Thanks Kaypsmith. I know it was a horrible thing to go through. I do keep black valve closed but probably not enough water. Will watch it closely from here on out. Do not want to go through that again!!

[ktconners]

I had back flushed on that dump where the clog happened. My wife blamed that for the clog. Let me ask you this please,  when you back Flush, do you leave your black valve open? I had got the bright idea that if I close the valve when back flushing and let tank fill up with fresh water, say 2/3 full, that it would rinse the black tank well. Is that a stupid thing to do? 

[kaypsmith]

I can't that say backflushing is a bad idea, as I have never done before,  just in over 30 years of camping. I do as you said let both the black and grey tank valves remain closed even on a sewer until they both reach about 75%, then release black first until empty, I leave the black valve open and release the grey tank, I don't really consider this backflushing because to backflush I feel that I would need to cap the drain exit, release the grey into the black, then put up with the mess of uncapping and rehooking the drain hose. But nonetheless I feel that I am washing the drain hose well the way that I do it. When I disconnect the drain hose at the coach end, I do have both valves closed at this time and the drain end of the hose still in the sewer drain, I raise the coach end high enough that no waste water can come back onto me or the campsite, then start to coil the drain hose and continue to coil until I reach the sewer end and remove the elbow then connect the drain end to the fill end, this keeps any smell inside the hose and varmits out.  Like Carl, I add about half an ounce of Dawn dish detergent to a gallon of hot water poured into each toilet, then travel. I flush a couple ounces of Calgon down about once a month along with an ounce of baking soda, best odor elimination that I have found yet. Haven't had a clogged toilet in three different MH's over 30+ years, may happen tomorrow, but I hope not. Oh, just reread your last post and want to add this little tidbit. I was in Pigeon Forge a few years back, a good looking coach parked right beside us and with the owner of the same I became acquainted, very nice people visiting from Florida and they were the CG host of a park that I am very familiar with. He had four daughters with soninlaws and seven grandchildren visiting these poor people, not all stayed in the coach at night but in and out all day. Well the third day, he came over with near tears in his eyes asking for help, we flushed that black tank for a looooooooooooong period of time before getting all the TP out of there. He did tell me that he would not leave the valve open while on sewer again.  Sorry, just couldn't resist. 

[ktconners]

Lol....I hear you! Thanks much for the info...

[ktconners]

Oh I just re-read your last post. I did not notice that you empty black tank, leave black valve open, then open the gray valve until empty, then close both valves. I have always opened black, drain until empty, close black valve, then open and drain grey. I have never had both black and grey valve open at same time. Is this a mistake?

[jleamont]

22 minutes ago, ktconners said:

Oh I just re-read your last post. I did not notice that you empty black tank, leave black valve open, then open the gray valve until empty, then close both valves. I have always opened black, drain until empty, close black valve, then open and drain grey. I have never had both black and grey valve open at same time. Is this a mistake?

You should leave both closed until its time to empty them. 

[ktconners]

Right but what I meant was do you leave the black valve open, after you empty the black tank and then open and empty the grey tank. I always opened black, emptied tank, then closed the black valve before opening the grey to empty that tank. Sounded like kaypsmith left the black opened while emptying grey tank?

[elkhartjim]

This link provides comprehensive steps for draining your holding tanks.

https://www.sanidumps.com/howtoemptyyourtanks.php

[rayin]

On 9/12/2019 at 7:20 AM, ktconners said:

Yes that assumption is dead on. When I take a flashlight it goes straight down for maybe a foot, foot and a half, then slopes down just slightly to the left. Everything looks clear now. Maybe some paper was stuck in there, not sure.

Do you have 2 black tanks or the full bath's toilet ran to the tank underneath the half-bath? I assumed the half-bath was the long run to the black tank.

[jleamont]

13 hours ago, ktconners said:

 

Right but what I meant was do you leave the black valve open, after you empty the black tank and then open and empty the grey tank. I

 

I do it either way. If the black tank is left open while emptying the gray all you would be doing is aerating the gray water as you introduce air from the black tank. 

Most of the time I pull the gray valve and while it’s draining I close the black. 

[ktconners]

No Ray, only have the 1 black tank. Down in the back by full bath I believe, and thx elkhart that is an excellent “step by step” Appreciate everyone’s help with this!

[rayin]

Take note, the ice cube "trick" does not work to clean a tank, sensors-perhaps, as ice floats. When one thinks about it, dumping 20# of ice cubes into 20G of tap water(1/2 tank) pretty much insures the ice will quickly melt. 

http://forum.prevostownersgroup.com/showthread.php?8173-Will-Ice-Cubes-Really-Clean-Your-Black-Water-Tank

[ktconners]

Good reading, thank you!