Forum Discussion
Executive45
Mar 16, 2020Explorer III
Nothing like a frazzled new dad with a plugged up toilet. First off, welcome to the forum. Next, think about what you've got. A simple plugged up toilet. Augers, hammers, chisels etc. are NOT going to 'fix' it. Accept the fact that it's going to be a messy and stinky job. Get some gloves and some old clothes, send the wife and kid to the store or to her mom's. They don't need to see or hear what you're doing. You'll most likely need to have some bleach solution nearby for cleanup.
The ONLY way you're going to be able to fix it is by disassembling the gate valve. Start with the cabling system and remove that. Simple to do. Next, there are four screws that hold the gate valve together. When you remove those screws the slide will be exposed. Most likely the rod has broken or come unscrewed. Either way you can then manually move everything out of the way to allow the tanks' contents to spill out. If there is a diaper or some other item in there you should be able to clear that out as well. If there was some foreign item causing the blockage then you should be able to reassemble the gate valve and you'll be good to go. That is, unless you've damaged it with the hammer etc. Reassemble in the reverse order. Once everything is back in order, you'll have to give the tank a really good cleaning. From what you've posted, it sounds like most of the liquid waste has been drained so a lot of what's left is going to be solids. Hot water will be your friend, and lots of it will be necessary to clean it out correctly. Never use chemicals in an RV toilet. Lots of water is all that's necessary. Stuff like Rid-X is not for RV toilets..waste isn't in there long enough for it to do it's thing. I would attempt to fix this asap as the longer the solid waste sits there, the more difficult it's going to be to remove. A wet diaper is easier to move than one that's molded to the tank and dried there. Best of luck...you might want to have a friend videotape the 'event' and post it on youtube.....Dennis
The ONLY way you're going to be able to fix it is by disassembling the gate valve. Start with the cabling system and remove that. Simple to do. Next, there are four screws that hold the gate valve together. When you remove those screws the slide will be exposed. Most likely the rod has broken or come unscrewed. Either way you can then manually move everything out of the way to allow the tanks' contents to spill out. If there is a diaper or some other item in there you should be able to clear that out as well. If there was some foreign item causing the blockage then you should be able to reassemble the gate valve and you'll be good to go. That is, unless you've damaged it with the hammer etc. Reassemble in the reverse order. Once everything is back in order, you'll have to give the tank a really good cleaning. From what you've posted, it sounds like most of the liquid waste has been drained so a lot of what's left is going to be solids. Hot water will be your friend, and lots of it will be necessary to clean it out correctly. Never use chemicals in an RV toilet. Lots of water is all that's necessary. Stuff like Rid-X is not for RV toilets..waste isn't in there long enough for it to do it's thing. I would attempt to fix this asap as the longer the solid waste sits there, the more difficult it's going to be to remove. A wet diaper is easier to move than one that's molded to the tank and dried there. Best of luck...you might want to have a friend videotape the 'event' and post it on youtube.....Dennis
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