sdahmer Report post Posted July 15, 2016 I have a 2001 Monaco Signature RV and the slider valve in the the toilet is electrically operated. Coming out of storage this year the valve appears to be stuck as the motor blows the fuse when activated. Any suggestions? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blakeloke Report post Posted July 15, 2016 Welcome to the forum! Have you tried silicone spray to free it up? I wouldn't use WD as it might degrade the seals. Blake Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wolfe10 Report post Posted July 15, 2016 sdahmer, Yes, welcome to the FMCA Forum. Please tell us what brand and model toilet you have. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jleamont Report post Posted July 15, 2016 sdahmer, Welcome to the FMCA Forum. I'm betting on a Thetford Aria. If so I rebuilt ours in 2014, very simple unit. Parts were a bit pricey. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hermanmullins Report post Posted July 15, 2016 Have to agree on part of your statement Joe. "Very simple unit." Replacing the components was no big deal however getting the unit out and back in wasn't easy. Trying to loosen the nuts was difficult. I am going to contact Thetford and find out if there is and adjustment for the water level. Herman Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rsbilledwards Report post Posted July 15, 2016 Blake I doubt WD would degrade anything as it is mainly fish oil. I have used the stuff for every imagined purpose conceivable and never a problem. Bill Edwards Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tbutler Report post Posted July 16, 2016 I've used silicon spray on ours (Aria) when it is causing problems, seals aren't sealing properly. That works for a while and when it quits working I have the blade unit replaced. Go to a Thetford authorized repair center for best service. It isn't prohibitively expensive and that solves the problem. It is, in my opinion, the workhorse of the toilet and the weakest point. We've had it replaced twice, now 12+ years and 154,000 miles. The rest of the toilet has worked well for us over time, nothing lasts forever but this toilet seems to be quite durable. Regarding the water level, there are two settings, one is for household and the other for "camping." There is a toggle switch to change that setting. Consult your user manual for instructions for that setting. We've had others, the Aria is by far the best. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kaypsmith Report post Posted July 16, 2016 12 hours ago, rsbilledwards said: Blake I doubt WD would degrade anything as it is mainly fish oil. I have used the stuff for every imagined purpose conceivable and never a problem. Bill Edwards Sorry Bill, I ain't eating that stuff, fish oil NOT, that's urban legend. It used to use LP for propellant, but now carbon dioxide. http://www.foodreference.com/html/facts-wd40-fish-oil.html Here is another tidbit of history on how it got it's name http://wd40.com/cool-stuff/history Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blakeloke Report post Posted July 16, 2016 WD40 is an amazing product. I use it on a lot of things but I remember reading instructions on some things that require lubrication to not use WD40 because it could degrade petroleum derived seals (dunno). Brother's toilet took a dump recently. He's installing a new one because he's tired of fiddling with it. Blake Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jleamont Report post Posted July 16, 2016 When mine goes again I will replace it with a foot pedal. I'm not a fan of the electric flush. Hopefully they make toilet with the same foot print with a pedal. It recently has begun to sound like its straining when you push the button. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hermanmullins Report post Posted July 16, 2016 Joe, Straining, who or what? :-) Herman Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jleamont Report post Posted July 16, 2016 When you push the flush button it the motor sounds like its struggling and the flap opens slow. Oddly its intermittent. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
manholt Report post Posted July 16, 2016 Blake. I have newer heard of a toilet taking a "Dump"... Carl Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kaypsmith Report post Posted July 17, 2016 Carl!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It's a secondhand dumper Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jleamont Report post Posted July 17, 2016 Kay...Carl Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blakeloke Report post Posted July 17, 2016 I thought you guys would catch that! I hope this doesn't jinx me but here goes. In the 11 years we've owned this coach we have never had a problem with it and it seems to be working fine at this time. We keep water in the bowl at all times even when it's in the garage. It's an electric flush with two push buttons. One opens the valve and the other allows additional water to be added to the bowl. Oh, funny story here......well it wasn't funny at the time. Several years ago we were dry camping in the High Sierras for a week stay. So, to conserve grey water holding tank capacity, we washed our dishes, pots, pans and silverware in a small tub then dumped that tub into the throne. As Deb was watching the wash water go down she noticed a butter knife go down the toilet also. I won't go into detail but it wasn't fun correcting that boo boo. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rsbilledwards Report post Posted July 17, 2016 I will not make that comment again. It was an interesting article. I was told recently to rub my ankles in the stuff for relief of Arthritic pain, huh? Yup I am still trainable. Thanks Bill Edwards Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sdahmer Report post Posted July 17, 2016 Thanks for the the feedback. Although the Monaco folks say that the VIN number called for Michrophor unit, It does appear that I have a Thretford toilet. The pictures of the Threford Aria look exactly like our toilet, although I don't know where to locate the model number to be certain. The suggestion to deal directly with Thretford authorized dealer sounds good. Any comments on finding one in the Louisville, Kentucky area or boarding states? Thanks, Steve Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
manholt Report post Posted July 17, 2016 Mine is the same as Blake, with a macerator. My model # is inside the toilet lid. The only Thretford dealer in Kentucky that I know...Camping World, Bowling Green, KY. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jleamont Report post Posted July 17, 2016 Steve, I had to unbolt mine unhook the water supply line and flip it over to get the model and serial. When you flip it over there was only a water connection to the toilet bowl jets and the wires. Mostly everything comes as one unit already assembled. If memory serves me right it was 6 Philips screws and it was all apart. The, motor, valve is all one piece very simple to change. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blakeloke Report post Posted October 23, 2016 On 7/17/2016 at 8:22 AM, blakeloke said: I thought you guys would catch that! I hope this doesn't jinx me but here goes. In the 11 years we've owned this coach we have never had a problem with it and it seems to be working fine at this time. We keep water in the bowl at all times even when it's in the garage. It's an electric flush with two push buttons. One opens the valve and the other allows additional water to be added to the bowl. Oh, funny story here......well it wasn't funny at the time. Several years ago we were dry camping in the High Sierras for a week stay. So, to conserve grey water holding tank capacity, we washed our dishes, pots, pans and silverware in a small tub then dumped that tub into the throne. As Deb was watching the wash water go down she noticed a butter knife go down the toilet also. I won't go into detail but it wasn't fun correcting that boo boo. Well, I jinxed myself. Our Thetford Aria went bad and wouldn't flush. It was giving us a "grinding" sound while flushing during it's last days. We are still a few days from getting home so instead of holding off on fixing until I got home we looked for the valve actuator part (CW didn't have in stock but quoted $189!). Instead we bought a Dometic 320 foot pedal flush. I had to re-plumb the line behind the toilet and after a couple of hours we were good to go (figuratively ). The new toilet is much quieter than the electric. The footprint is a bit smaller than the Thetford and I can see some small tile cut marks that caulking would overcome. Not going to do that since Ernie will be putting in new flooring in a few weeks. I'll remove the toilet, install a cap and give him a template to work with for the new flooring. Blake Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jleamont Report post Posted October 23, 2016 Blake, does your new toilet bolt to the floor or the pipe? Our electric always "grinds" there is no quiet potty time in our coach, and it was rebuilt, the noise level didn't change as I hoped. Everyone knows when you flush it. I really, really don't like this toilet. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blakeloke Report post Posted October 23, 2016 Hey Joe, I hear you.....with the old toilet we wouldn't flush at night (#1) just so it wouldn't wake each other up. Monaco built our system with a flange exactly like you would have in your house. Interestingly, they used 5" wood screws to secure the toilet to the floor. I connected the new toilet traditionally using the flange bolts that were supplied. No wax seal but rather a rubber gasket.....was supplied. Foot pedal barely fit with about 1/16" clearance. I didn't clean the grout and caulk since the flooring is gonna be replace in a few weeks. Repair part for old toilet is $189. New Dometic 320 with CW discount was $289. Blake Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jleamont Report post Posted October 23, 2016 Blake, we have the same setup as you. I believe my flange on the floor is spun so the bolts will not align with a flange mounted toilet. I don't want to alter the pipe so I was looking for a foot pedal toilet that mounts to the floor just as the Binford 6100 noisemaker . Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hermanmullins Report post Posted October 23, 2016 On the Thetford electric toilets there is a manual knob in the rear. It can be used to open and close the slider valve. if it is slow one might open the slide lube it and close it. Lube might help a slow unit or even a stuck slide. One might give it a try. Herman Share this post Link to post Share on other sites