How often and how to clean black tank
We have sani flushed the tank only once in 3 years. Recently I read I should be doing this more often. On the other hand some places say not to empty black too often because then there is an inadequat...
Forum Discussion
rvshrinker wrote:
Thanks for all the info and ideas. I can dump at home, which is convenient, but means I don't empty before leaving camp and therefore don't rinse on the drive home. We often don't have a dump at camp anyway. I think I'll just empty and rinse and maybe try some soap and bleach and water again and see what happens. Doesn't sound like I can hurt it.
Adding bleach to your holding tank means eventually you will be dumping that bleach into a septic system and effectively killing a lot of bacteria that are needed in an actual septic system.
Water, water, water. A holding tank is not a septic system and so there is no need to maintain any level of bacteria. Make sure you use enough water while camped and keep a layer of water in the tank after you've dumped and flushed. Your RV holding tanks are a temporary place to store waste until you can dump - that's it. If your unit does not have a black tank flush, install one. I have a clear elbow on my dump line and after I empty grey, then black, I flush the tank (run the tank flush, close the valve let it fill a bit, dump repeat) until things run clear, then add a little water and close up. Granted this may not be practical in the line at the dump station, but if no line then no problem, otherwise I do it the next time I can.
2 things that will cause smell - not using enough water while camping (can end in the dreaded poo pyramid) or leaving it too dry after you dumped.
