Black Tank Filling Too Fast

[WNY Bullet]

We finally got out fo the first time in our "New To Us" 2015 Bullet Premier and found out the black tank filled up way too fast, so I did some investigating. It seems our bathroom sink also dumps into the black tank. I'm not sure way they plumbed it that way, since I have two gray tanks, one for the kitchen and one for the shower. Wondering why they couldn't have plumbed it into one of them?

Anyone else have this problem? On day two, I had a full black tank!

[t_dogg80]

We had the same problem the first time out. It seemed to me that the tank was almost 1/3 full when we got it. Somehow.

[SummitPond]

... It seems our bathroom sink also dumps into the black tank. ...

Our bathroom sink is also plumbed into our black tank (we only have one black and one gray). I suspect it is to help with the recommendations elsewhere on the forum - the more water the better.

[chuckster57]

Often times it’s the only available “route” for the waste water to go. Depending on placement of the gray tank, it might not be feasible to route the drain for adequate flow.

[travelin texans]

If your basing the tank being full from the sensors/gauges, then DON'T.
They are notoriously so inaccurate to the point of being useless & not much you can do to make them better.

[WNY Bullet]

If your basing the tank being full from the sensors/gauges, then DON'T.
They are notoriously so inaccurate to the point of being useless & not much you can do to make them better.

Nope, I based it on draining around 20 gallons into a tote to drag to to dump station and it still showed 1/3rd full.

We found a brand new 25 gallon tote on Craigslist for a decent price, so we drove out to get it. Saved us from having to pull camp to dump early.

[chuckster57]

If your basing the tank being full from the sensors/gauges, then DON'T.

They are notoriously so inaccurate to the point of being useless & not much you can do to make them better.

Actually they are accurate if you do the proper maintenance. EVERY RV that I have owned or worked on has ended up with working accurate sensors.

[Northofu1]

getting the same trailer Tuesday, we take it out Saturday for our maiden voyage, Will let you know if the same thing happens,

[Alpine]

Actually they are accurate if you do the proper maintenance. EVERY RV that I have owned or worked on has ended up with working accurate sensors.

Do tell your maintenance procedure? Thank you!

[chuckster57]

As stated numerous times, lots of water. Using toilet paper that dissolves and complete rinsing when dumping. Gray tanks: Dawn Ultra Blue and hot water.

[flybouy]

Must be that west coast water. Over here on the east coast I'm not aware of anyone that I've talked to, nor my personal experience owning campers for the past 20+ years of one that works. Even my fresh water tank reads 3/4 full when the water is spilling out the vent line.

[travelin texans]

[QUOTE=flybouy;285567]Must be that west coast water. Over here on the east coast I'm not aware of anyone that I've talked to, nor my personal experience owning campers for the past 20+ years of one that works. Even my fresh water tank reads 3/4 full when the water is spilling out the vent line.[/QUOT

Same here! Had rvs for 40 years & have yet to have one that the sensors worked after the 1st fill. Yes, I rinse thoroughly, use soap, have tried sensor cleaners (waste of $$), bags of ice (waste of ice), if it's been mentioned I've tried it. I will agree they do work, if by work you mean the lights light up, but to be anywhere near accurate, NO. This 5er was ordered by us, picked up new, the dealer had water in all the tanks, 1 FW, 2 greys, 1 black, the fresh & black read 1/3 that day & the greys read 2/3 & 5 years later they read the same or at least they did the last time I bothered to even look at them.
If there's something magical your doing, please pass it on, but if it's just cleaning/rinsing after dumping that doesn't/hasn't worked for me.

[chuckster57]

Must be!! Have owned a fiver since ‘89, been across the country a couple of times, used water from many different areas and still work. Oh well YMMV.

[SAABDOCTOR]

HEY CHUCKSTER I've been on the east coast and i have done you maintance routine. dang mine work just fine too!:whistling:

[sconner]

I'd say mine work about half the time. :-) Lots of water is certainly the key to keeping tanks clean. When I'm packing up I always run a bunch of water into the black and gray tanks before dumping. Usually I'll turn off the HW heater and run hot water into the gray tank. Also cools it off so I can pull the plug on it. (I drain my HW heater between camps. I know you don't have to, but I do.) At the same time, run water into the black tank until it has a bunch. Dump black, then gray. Refill the black with at LEAST two bowls of water with treatment chemicals. I use this: https://www.amazon.com/Kronen-KHT003-Handle-Holding-Treatment/dp/B00BFTZC3A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1526399275&sr=8-1&keywords=Kronen

[larryflew]

Most don't work well and it's really sad. Being in the industrial control business I know they could spend just a bit more on the sensors they buy and none of us would have a problem. IE I sold a grain sensor for $8 that would do fine on corn drier bins etc but nothing light. $12 sensor would do both corn and small grains and goes on from there. AND these sense THROUGH the tank so they never get dirty.

[mhbell]

When we bought our 2016 Cougar Used, back in November. None of the sensors were reading correctly. The black tank showed full when empty and the gray tanks showed full and 3/4th full. When we got back from Arizona in April, (We wintered there for a couple of months). I filled all tanks with water and dumped again. I then bought some sensor cleaner called "Caravan" on Amazon. I put the cleaner in all of the tanks except the fresh water tank, and filled with water. The directions said to leave overnight or longer if possible. I left the tanks for a full week before dumping and flushing the black tank several times and using a swivel swisher stick down the toilet. Ureka The sensors are working like the should.

[Northofu1]

I have the same unit, my greys fill faster than black.

[jertour]

We have had a 2017 Cougar Xlite for over a year now and been in it about
5 months with no trouble with sensors. They do what they are supposed to.
Have always used the geo system on the black tank on the last two units.
When we get ready to move I flush out the black tank 2 or 3 times, then put the geo treatment in with some water and let the road help clean.

[villui]

i’ve had same blk tank monitor problem since day 3. we just keep an eye for floaties. 😎

[tanglemoose]

We have a black and two grays in our 2017 Keystone 21rbswe, Cougar. Don't think our goes into the black?? Do you have three exterior handles outside to dump? for three tanks?


Thanks, Donna and Mark

[WNY Bullet]

We have a black and two grays in our 2017 Keystone 21rbswe, Cougar. Don't think our goes into the black?? Do you have three exterior handles outside to dump? for three tanks?

Yes we have three exterior handles for our three tanks. (two gray an one black)

We are on day 3 of our 5 day holiday weekend and Black is 2/3 full, Bath Gray is 1/3 (after several showers), and kitchen gray 1/3.

[JRTJH]

Yes we have three exterior handles for our three tanks. (two gray an one black)

We are on day 3 of our 5 day holiday weekend and Black is 2/3 full, Bath Gray is 1/3 (after several showers), and kitchen gray 1/3.

Are you measuring your tank levels using the "LED gauges" or some other method? The gauges are notoriously known for not being accurate. Most of us don't rely on them and just resort to listening to the sound of effluent in the tank, as the sound changes, we've learned to judge how full the black tank is based on the sounds when flushing.

As an example, when I dump my black tank, rinse it well and close the valve (on a known empty tank) sometimes the gauges will read empty, sometimes 2/3 full, sometimes 1/3 full, and sometimes 3/3 full. It all depends on what is hanging on the ends of the sensors inside the tank.

So, if you're relying on the gauges to tell you the tank status, you might be "following Dorothy down the rabbit hole"......