No black water tank

paddykernahan wrote:
Watched a very comprehensive video on someone that converted to a composting system.

No way would I do that.
To much fussing.
Separate liquid from solids, stir, ventilate, deal with poo not hitting the hole perfectly. Use lots of gloves. smell problems.
Nope, not for me.

There is no perfect system but apparently the video you watched was someone who built/operated something they didn't understand.
- A composter handles the separation of the liquids with no effort on your part.
- Ventilation is needed for any sewage system (you do realize the standard unit has a vent right?)
- Standard RV toilets have the same issue of poo smearing the sides.
- Why would you use lots of gloves? The one on our boat had the solids emptied once a month on average and if you put a large trash bag over the top and flip it over, you don't come into contact with anything.
- If there is a smell other than a slight earthy smell when you open the solids compartment, you are doing something horribly wrong. On boats, the most common reason to switch to a composter is the elimination of smells (not as big of an issue in RV's)

I still think for most typical RV's, the standard holding tank makes more sense but your points against composters are way off base.

Try selling a rig with no black tank.

Almot wrote:

shum02 wrote:

You guys over think these things. The same P traps and vents protect the gray tanks from smelling up the place as well. Go ahead and let the tanks blend, same difference.

Not being a plumber, I still disagree. Inside the trailer the black tank is only open to the toilet blade valve. No p-traps.

Gray tank is protected with P-traps, and the one under the bathtub (I hope there is one there) is really low, it won't take much to back it up.

I back up my gray tank all the time into the tub. Only way I know the gray tank is full ;)

Get a Flojet macerator and portable tank and quit worrying about filling your tanks. This has worked for myself for 10 years. Easy peasy.

Watched a very comprehensive video on someone that converted to a composting system.

No way would I do that.
To much fussing.
Separate liquid from solids, stir, ventilate, deal with poo not hitting the hole perfectly. Use lots of gloves. smell problems.
Nope, not for me.

shum02 wrote:

You guys over think these things. The same P traps and vents protect the gray tanks from smelling up the place as well. Go ahead and let the tanks blend, same difference.

Not being a plumber, I still disagree. Inside the trailer the black tank is only open to the toilet blade valve. No p-traps.

Gray tank is protected with P-traps, and the one under the bathtub (I hope there is one there) is really low, it won't take much to back it up.

valhalla360 wrote:
Portapotti and casset are different.

Porta pottis and cassette toilets function exactly the same - with the former the waste tank is the bottom half of the toilet and separates from the top so waste in the lower tank can be disposed, with the latter the waste tank simply pulls out from the lower half of the toilet so waste in it can be disposed - same difference. I've previously owned both types and the most significant advantage to the CP is realized when the toilet is oriented inside the rig such that the waste tank can be accessed by simply opening an exterior hatch and pulling the tank out.

Almot wrote:

RedRocket204 wrote:
Another who would say why remove the black tank... but for a completely different reason. With a Valterra T58 Twist-On Waste Valve, you can greatly increase the size for gray holding if you're not using the black tank for black tank duties.

Smart idea, but this is only if you don't use the black tank. Because if you do, the gray tank also becomes an overflow storage for black tank, not sure what the consequences could be - more smell, sewage backup all the way to kitchen etc.

I wonder if there is some way to plumb gray tank to black tank downstream of gray tank but upstream of black tank pipe, preferably directly to black tank. To dilute black sewage with gray water. To make emptying black tank easier and dilute the smell.

You guys over think these things. The same P traps and vents protect the gray tanks from smelling up the place as well. Go ahead and let the tanks blend, same difference.

RedRocket204 wrote:
Another who would say why remove the black tank... but for a completely different reason. With a Valterra T58 Twist-On Waste Valve, you can greatly increase the size for gray holding if you're not using the black tank for black tank duties.

Smart idea, but this is only if you don't use the black tank. Because if you do, the gray tank also becomes an overflow storage for black tank, not sure what the consequences could be - more smell, sewage backup all the way to kitchen etc.

I wonder if there is some way to plumb gray tank to black tank downstream of gray tank but upstream of black tank pipe, preferably directly to black tank. To dilute black sewage with gray water. To make emptying black tank easier and dilute the smell.

Almot wrote:

I wish there was some option to replace RV toilet with a household toilet hooked directly to sewer pipe, bypassing the tank - for those who are always on hookups. Emergency trips to toilet (without black tank) could be dealt with in several different ways.

It seems to me that a typical RV sewer hose would be liable to clog if connected between a standard residential toilet and an RV sewer connection. It generally is neither smooth (like sewer pipes ought to be) nor at the proper angle. I suppose if your RV were connected to the sewer with a permanent pipe rather than a hose it could work...but that's starting to sound more like a mobile home (or at least a park model trailer) than a standard RV.

SoundGuy wrote:

valhalla360 wrote:
I've used a casset toilet a few times, another no thanks...the size is drastically smaller so you have remove it and carry it to a dump station daily.

Back in our popup days when we were a family of 4 I installed a Thetford 585 electric flush porta potti with a 5 gal waste tank in our Santa Fe and it would easily get us through a typical weekend - i.e. arrive Friday, leave Sunday. Only if I knew we were going to stay longer would I take the waste tank over to the dump station, usually early Sunday morning when no one else was around. These days there are just the 2 of us so I have little doubt one of these toilets, whether porta potti or cassette toilet with a similar size waste tank, would easily get us through at least 4 days of camping without emptying. I've got a waste macerator setup here at the house so I can service travel trailer waste tanks at home and ignore campground dump stations entirely but given the choice I'd rather have a cassette toilet with a 5 gal waste tank that can be accessed from outside the trailer ... no question about it. It's just no biggie at all to take just the waste tank over to the dump station when the place is otherwise empty - certainly far superior to having to drag your trailer into a long dump station line up on a Sun afternoon. :R

Portapotti and casset are different.

We had a 5 gal tank on our first boat. If you severely ration toilet use...sure you can get away with it...but then why not take it to the logical conclusion and not have a toilet at all.

Casset's make sense in truck campers due to space and weight limitations...that also might be a place where I would consider composter.