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dflowboys
09-03-2018, 12:11 PM
No matter how much chemicals we put in holding tank when we travel it smells up the whole trailer. Any body else have this problem.

ctbruce
09-03-2018, 12:14 PM
Just to be clear, this happens when you are going down the road?

dflowboys
09-03-2018, 12:39 PM
Yes more so after using.

ctbruce
09-03-2018, 01:07 PM
Do you have your vent fan on and the lid up?

JRTJH
09-03-2018, 01:08 PM
Do you travel with the roof vents open?

EDIT: OOPS: I'll let Chip finish this one :)

ctbruce
09-03-2018, 01:33 PM
Do you travel with the roof vents open?

EDIT: OOPS: I'll let Chip finish this one :)Great minds think alike. Feel free to add in.

JRTJH
09-03-2018, 02:55 PM
Let's see, several things come to mind, all involve the roof vent in the bathroom (and the other's when towing).

First, if the fan in the bathroom roof vent is on when the toilet foot pedal is pushed down, the fan will draw air from inside the black tank (through the tank roof vent). That is the easiest way to "introduce the smell"....

Second, if the bathroom roof vent is behind the bedroom air conditioner, the A/C blows air across the vent, creating a "venturi effect" which pulls black tank air into the trailer when the foot pedal is pushed.

Third, if the black tank vent pipe is behind the air conditioner, it will blow air across the vent stack, pulling air out of the black tank and pushing it across the bathroom roof vent. Depending on the "pressures in the trailer" it may pull that "smelly air" down into the bathroom if the fan is turned off.

So, if the fan is on and you flush, expect a gush of "smell". If the bedroom A/C is on and the fan is off when you flush, expect a gush of "smell". If the A/C is on and blowing evaporator air across the black tank vent stack, expect a gush of "smell".

If you're towing and have the bathroom roof vent open, you may pull "smell" into the trailer from the black tank vent stack if it is forward of the bathroom roof vent. Even if the bathroom roof vent is closed, if any other roof vent is open, it will create a negative pressure and pull air into the trailer through the toilet if it is flushed.

Sounds like you've got one or more potential sources to consider.

As a final thought, no matter what you add to the toilet, it's still going to smell like sewer, maybe with a "fresh, flowery scent" but "poo is poo and smells like poo" So the objective is to avoid pulling the black tank air back into the trailer.

travelin texans
09-03-2018, 03:43 PM
It could also be the kitchen/galley tank, while traveling the P trap could drain leaving no barrier from that tanks odor, which from my experiences can at times smell worse than the black tank. Are you adding chemicals to the galley tank?

{tpc}
09-04-2018, 04:26 AM
I was going to suggest that with the gray tank too (chemicals). Thetford makes a gray tank chemical which is worth trying. We try hard not to let any "food" past the sink traps, but at some point, something is getting in there no matter how hard you try. That could cause a smell. A friend of ours was emptying his gray into a bucket for removal during a trip one time and the smell was terrible. A little bit of that stuff and it cleared most if not all of it up for future trips.

A couple of suggestions for the black. First, next time you dump the tank, clean it out really good. Blank tank flush, wand in the toilet, etc etc. Hopefully you can do this at a time not to back up a dump lane, but take your time and do it right. After you feel it is as clean as your going to get it, assuming you use a "scented packet", I would put two scented packets in the tank (make sure the valve is closed lol), and I would carefully tear them open when putting them in through the toilet. Then put about 4-5 gallons of water back in, more maybe if you have a tank bigger than 30 gallons, and leave it like that until your next trip. Driving after doing this should help dissolve all the chemical into the water while it sloshes around in there. Be sure to leave some clean water in the bowl so the seal doesn't dry out which could let out smells as well.

IF that fixes it, then you know what to do for the next time. You might not need to open the packet the next time or use a wand when cleaning, but just depends. You can probably just use one packet then as well.

Also be sure your running enough water into the tank after you use the toilet. I think I tell the kids count to 6 after #1 and 12 after #2 while keeping the pedal pressed down.

flybouy
09-04-2018, 05:31 AM
I don't know what your floorplan is as there is no listing in your post but if you have a outside kitchen or forward shower you may have a sanicon trap instead of a traditional P trap. They can evaporate water and leak fumes. Our outside kitchen drains into the blank tank and if we are not going to use it for more than a week I'll dump a cup of vegetable or olive oil down the drain to seal it off. Also one other thought...you say you are using chemicals are you mixing that with with a few gallons of water?

Msuboy200
09-11-2018, 05:23 PM
Check the seals to your toilet and sinks. Just fixed a similar problem, the seal to my toilet was worn. Got a new one and replaced it. No more smell

slow
09-12-2018, 02:41 AM
If your toilet is a Dometic, check out this thread: http://www.keystoneforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29289

itat
09-12-2018, 09:03 AM
Here is something else to check.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=151&v=m0SIN71seig

LuvsPalmTrees
09-12-2018, 10:23 AM
Slow - we had that happen but it was the upper and lower section of the toilet that had the leak. I just contacted them and they sent one to me, overnight new toilet and DH replaced it.

n1282x
09-16-2018, 07:44 AM
If your rig has a black water flush fitting on the outside and your smell seems to be coming from inside the bathroom. Look under the bathroom sink you may have to take off a wooden panel, there is a vacuum breaker fitting that frequently sticks open allowing black water smell to come in. Underneath your bathroom vanity you will find a vacuum breaker in the black tank flush hose. You can search this forum for other inputs on this. You can go to Home Depot and replace that fitting with a threaded PVC elbow in your problem will be gone and also your black flush will work much better in the future

Rubicon100
09-16-2018, 08:32 AM
Our Passport has always had the stinkys too. We finally figured out it was the grey tank. Now we put a little bit of dish soap down each drain and then keep the drain plug closed unless using of course. We do all of them including the tub and bathroom sink. We've had the problem talked about earlier with the vents open and someone uses the toilet and wow that is really a lesson learned quickly.. Good luck and don't give up you'll find the culprit. Dan

BadmanRick
09-16-2018, 08:40 AM
We had a similar problem. Here is what we did to stop it.
1- Changed the black tank outside roof vent with a Siphon 360 roof pipe vent cover. Check this link. https://youtu.be/CVcwc28PinQ
Also the install video https://youtu.be/fgcO1gJE1so
I checked the other vent covers like the Camco Cyclone sewer vent cover but it needs a substantial amount of wind to work correctly and they need a lot of maintenance to have them work properly . The Siphon 360 works even in very light wind from any direction no moving parts.
The original cap vent cover had no clearance on the vent pipe and would not vent.
Also change the gray water vent if it is a separate pipe. Mine is under the refrigerator roof vent so it is protected.
2- Use Odorloss tank treatment in both tanks. Best tank treatment I have found.
3- Make sure all your roof vents and windows are CLOSED while you are traveling on the road.
4- Check the toilet base. Make sure it is not loose. Mine came loose and smelled from there.
This has helped us no more smell.

SoGaDually
09-16-2018, 10:27 AM
We had the same issue with the sewer smell and it was real bad after traveling down the road for awhile. If you look on top of your roof you may fine that you that you have a sewer vent located behind a A/C unit. In our case we had two directly behind the A/C. When traveling down the road the air flowing across the top on the A/C unit will cause an air turbulence forcing air back down the sewer vent pipe causing the sewer odor inside the RV.
I fixed our problem by installing two Camco 40595 White Cyclone Sewer Plumbing Vent. The Cyclone fixed the issue with ours. No more sewer smell in the RV.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggfDRpCRKJc

Crookedread
09-16-2018, 01:25 PM
I had a neighbor complain to me that his toilet really stunk. I was new to living in a trailer full time and so was he so I couldn't really help him. After reading the forums, I realized that he was leaving the black water open all of the time so the solids fell out of the fluids and were retained on the bottom of the tank. After flushing a few times the smell went away, or at least was reduced to expected levels. This is pretty basic but thought I would add to the forum for any newbies.

Rubicon100
09-16-2018, 02:29 PM
BadmanRick, I think I'll check out the roof vent and make sure the toilet is tight enough. Thanks for the info on the vent I'll probably change it just to be sure. Dan

x96mnn
09-16-2018, 03:02 PM
Our Passport has always had the stinkys too. We finally figured out it was the grey tank. Now we put a little bit of dish soap down each drain and then keep the drain plug closed unless using of course. We do all of them including the tub and bathroom sink. We've had the problem talked about earlier with the vents open and someone uses the toilet and wow that is really a lesson learned quickly.. Good luck and don't give up you'll find the culprit. Dan

Same happened to us, I must have spent 2 months an $100 learning that lesson!

pitman44
09-16-2018, 06:11 PM
I had a neighbor complain to me that his toilet really stunk. I was new to living in a trailer full time and so was he so I couldn't really help him. After reading the forums, I realized that he was leaving the black water open all of the time so the solids fell out of the fluids and were retained on the bottom of the tank. After flushing a few times the smell went away, or at least was reduced to expected levels. This is pretty basic but thought I would add to the forum for any newbies.


We recently bought a 2013 Montana after owning a 2006 Outback for 5 years. And that tank was rank. With the Outback we'd flush the toilet and there was little to no smell. We never used any chemicals in the Outback. The Montana though was just nasty. I had an awful time getting the tank to drain the first couple of times. I put a clear fitting in so I could see what's happening. The second time it didn't drain at all after maybe 30 seconds so I closed it and closed the grey tank valve. I had visions of having to replace the black valve with a full tank.



I waited a couple days to get the grey tank fairly full and then opened the black valve and then the grey. I was trying to backflush the black tank a little to get the blockage moving. And it worked.



The Montana has a black tank back wash system. So after the tank was drained I put 10 gallons of water in it, valve closed and let it sit for 20 minutes. When I opened it, it was like what dumping a black tank is usually like as far as the solids that came out of it.


So I did it again with 15 gallons this time and another 20 minute wait. Dumped it and it still had a lot of solids and toilet paper. Then I put 20 gallons in and waited the 20 minutes and this time less solids, but still a pretty brown water. Did it one more time with 20 gallons and the water looked more like what you see coming out of the grey tank.


After all that I dumped the "geo mix" in the black tank and now no smell at all unless you leave the fan on when flushing. Huge improvement. Only thing I can think of is the previous owner must not have let enough water into the black tank or perhaps left the tank valve open when they were set up.

Badlands Dog
09-16-2018, 07:32 PM
Our Cougar 5er had the issues. We'd use the toilet and it would stink the downstairs. When we moved it after camping, the basement and downstairs stank real bad. I was winterizing it and found a joint in the vent pipe came apart, and was never installed properly-thus the reason for the failure. I cut the two ends so I could fit a flexible rubber collar for repairs such as this, available from about any hardware store. Problem fixed!

Ccrew
09-17-2018, 02:21 AM
I throw this out there because short of one post I haven't seen a simple issue listed.

Our Bullet had the issue, brand new unit. Seems that the toilet seal at the flapper had been installed upside down. As a result water couldn't stand in the bowl and got a bad sewer smell going down the road. Flipped the seal, toilet now holds water, we always make sure that there's an inch or in it, problem solved. Sometimes the easiest fixes are the least obvious.

judia
09-17-2018, 03:09 AM
Had the same problem in my new 243BHS, after one day it would start to smell. We have owned a TT before and never a problem. We don't poop in our TT and use Happy Camper. Back to dealer, they ran something down the vent to be sure it wasn't blocked, filled the black tank to check for leaks. Suggested a Cyclone vent if the problem persisted. It persisted and I brought it back for the vent. In the meantime, found out from my previous Forest River Owners forum that Dometic had problems with some #300 toilets, something faulty inside that allowed fumes to escape and that they would replace under warranty. Brought that info to my dealer and they contacted Dometic with my serial number. Toilet was replaced under warranty and NO MORE PROBLEMS!

Gizmo2
09-17-2018, 08:13 AM
I have a new Passport 2520 and I had to replace the plastic Dometic toilet. Apparently there has been a return of an old problem with these toilets. It looks like a seal leaks allowing effluent to leak into the inside of the toilet which is vented to the inside of the trailer. On mine Dometic acknowledged the problem and sent me a new one. Long term I worry about the plastic construction holding its shape with many temperature cycles.

travelin texans
09-17-2018, 08:22 AM
We don't poop in our TT and use Happy Camper.
Other than we couldn't get up from sleeping on the ground anymore, the bathroom facilities in a rv are one of the major reasons for getting our 1st rv, NO MORE nasty campground bathrooms. Since going fulltime we got a washer/dryer in the rv so NO MORE rv laundries either.
In our travels we've met several folks that don't use the shower or go #2 in the toilet, only #1 at night, it totally baffles me as to why not!!
They still wash dishes, brush their teeth, wash their hands all of which goes into tanks & from my experiences the kitchen grey tank most times smells as gross, if not worse, than the black.