creative plumbing help?

[Anson9110]

I was wondering if anyone could help me figure out how to hook up a "toilet wand" to flush out the black tank? The only 2 connections are the toilet and the shower head. Has anyone dealt with this before or did I waste $15 on this wand? Any suggestions would really be appreciated.... Thanks, Anson.

[f6bits]

I just researched and bought a wand. I was thinking the same as you, but tap into my sink's hot water. You *could* cut the toilet feed, then put some SharkBite pieces in. Or onto the shower feed (remove the shower hose). The opinions I read were that the inside plumbing just didn't have enough power for the wand. Better off feeding your grey hose in through the window.

[Festus2]

I've never used one of these wands but any that I have seen usually have a female garden hose connection on one end that you attach to a garden hose. Run an old hose (one not used for drinking out of or for filling your potable RV FW tank) from your outside house water tap into the RV.
Open the toilet valve, insert the wand into the toilet and turn the wand to "ON".

Unless your wand is something more complicated than this, it isn't all that difficult to hook up.

[Anson9110]

I totally forgot to mention that I don't have a city water hook up and will have to rely on either the built-in water pump or figure something else out. I didn't even think of using the plumbing under the sink, that would be way easier to cut into as it more accessible. I hope that there will be enough water pressure... Thanks again

[JRTJH]

I would urge you NOT to cut into or modify the plumbing system in the trailer. Simply drag a garden hose into the trailer through the door and connect the wand to the end of the garden hose, step on the toilet flush, put the wand down the toilet and turn on the faucet outside.

Honestly, you won't get anywhere near enough water pressure from your 12 volt water pump to clean the inside walls of your black tank, so anything you "modify" will be a disappointment once you try to use it.

[Anson9110]

Perfect.. thanks, I'm not going to cut into the system then. Thanks for saving me a lot of time and frustration! As I'm going to be getting the water I'm using from my lake (small/spring fed and tested) I think the way to go will be to get a decent water pump in order to get the type of pressure I'll need to clean the tank(s). Thanks again, Anson.

[GaryWT]

Good choice getting a pump. If anything ever backed up in the hose you could end up with sewer in your water system.

[Anson9110]

That totally didn't cross my mind...haha!! thanks

[Festus2]

Something else to ponder............If you are concerned about keeping your black tank "clean" and worried about buildup of solids, you can prevent this by ensuring that you always have plenty of water in the tank. Flushing it out with a wand or using the black tank flushing system isn't always necessary provided there is sufficient liquid (water) in the tank at all times.
I sometimes keep a 2 gallon bucket with some Calgon or water softener mixed in and dump some of the water down the toilet either during or instead of the normal flushing.
Not sure about your FW supply but you could use water from the lake in the bucket.

This way, you don't have to bother with a pump and the wand. You can still utilize the wand and pump upon occasion but the majority of the cleansing would be by the use of lots of water and chemicals/Calgon/Water softener/detergent --- whatever mix you prefer.

[hankaye]

Anson9110, Howdy;

When you go to hook you hose u to the pump place one of these between the
two.

http://www.irrigationdirect.com/ch-b...FepAMgodTHcAUQ

it will prevent any contaminated water for getting any further, protecting the water supply and the pump as well.

hankaye

[Anson9110]

Thanks guys... I like the idea of the back-flow preventer and I'm going to look into in further.
The Calgon is now on my list to pick up tomorrow! I ordered the wand during the long winter months but now think it may have been a cheap lesson to have learned... I'll just keep water and calgon on hand and in the tank. Thanks again, Anson