opinions on after market holding tank monitoring system

I installed the See Level tank monitors as part of our remodel.
Love 'em. Never regretted the decision. If you're planning on keeping your rig for a while, it's probably worth it.

I DO have one issue with them. When it's super wet outside - rainy, snowy, what have you - I can get erroneous readings on the grey and black tanks. They hang under our class B and are exposed to the elements. Once they dry out, they go back to working just fine.

tvfrfireman wrote:

rockhillmanor wrote:
These gauges DO work. It's a matter of how well you clean and maintain your tanks. People seem to think they don't have to put any effort into a black and gray tank other than pulling a lever to dump it!

Use plenty of water in the black tank when flushing. Not enough water and everything WILL stick to the sensors. After EVERY dump fill black tank with water and dump again. Then open gray and dump.

Gray tanks - this is not your home kitchen sink that goes out to a sewer, it's a holding tank. Do NOT put food solids or grease down an RV sink. After 3 or 4 dumps pour a lemon cleaner down the sink fill with water and dump again. Or add the lemon cleaner before each dump. I've watched my friends pour bacon grease right down the drain and then wonder why their gauges don't work. :S

IMHO, JMHO before you think a 'different' brand of gauges will solve the problem, fill both your tanks with water several times and dump. Buy a bottle of Thetford Sensor Cleaner and throw that in both tanks let it sit and dump. Now fill you tanks up with water and be amazed how all the pretty colors of your gauges light up! Then 'maintain' your tanks. :C

I do maintain my tanks. I have been rving for over thirty years. Never had a problem with any of the gauges in the other five trailers. These gauges in this new rv didn't work from the get go. My question was about aftermarket holding tank gauges. One fellow said he doesn't need them and infers that I shouldn't need them. If your fuel gauge in your vehicles don't work you get them fixed. How is this any different? Why do people respond to a post if they can't answer the question?

Sorry, not a mind reader to know that your 'new' RV is not your first.

It was a suggestion/advice as to how one can get them to work to help avoid additional after market purchases.

If they didn't work when you purchased your new RV, then the repair should have been covered under your warranty.

You have basically 3 choices.

So far I'm living with the junk the factory put in (Someone up-thread properly described it as a "Stud" I usually say nail, same thing)

I plan on getting Horst Marcile probes in a month or 2 and trying those on 2 or 3 tanks.

SEE Level.. Those are beyond a doubt the best.

rockhillmanor wrote:
These gauges DO work. It's a matter of how well you clean and maintain your tanks. People seem to think they don't have to put any effort into a black and gray tank other than pulling a lever to dump it!

Use plenty of water in the black tank when flushing. Not enough water and everything WILL stick to the sensors. After EVERY dump fill black tank with water and dump again. Then open gray and dump.

Gray tanks - this is not your home kitchen sink that goes out to a sewer, it's a holding tank. Do NOT put food solids or grease down an RV sink. After 3 or 4 dumps pour a lemon cleaner down the sink fill with water and dump again. Or add the lemon cleaner before each dump. I've watched my friends pour bacon grease right down the drain and then wonder why their gauges don't work. :S

IMHO, JMHO before you think a 'different' brand of gauges will solve the problem, fill both your tanks with water several times and dump. Buy a bottle of Thetford Sensor Cleaner and throw that in both tanks let it sit and dump. Now fill you tanks up with water and be amazed how all the pretty colors of your gauges light up! Then 'maintain' your tanks. :C

I do maintain my tanks. I have been rving for over thirty years. Never had a problem with any of the gauges in the other five trailers. These gauges in this new rv didn't work from the get go. My question was about aftermarket holding tank gauges. One fellow said he doesn't need them and infers that I shouldn't need them. If your fuel gauge in your vehicles don't work you get them fixed. How is this any different? Why do people respond to a post if they can't answer the question?

These gauges DO work. It's a matter of how well you clean and maintain your tanks. People seem to think they don't have to put any effort into a black and gray tank other than pulling a lever to dump it!

Use plenty of water in the black tank when flushing. Not enough water and everything WILL stick to the sensors. After EVERY dump fill black tank with water and dump again. Then open gray and dump.

Gray tanks - this is not your home kitchen sink that goes out to a sewer, it's a holding tank. Do NOT put food solids or grease down an RV sink. After 3 or 4 dumps pour a lemon cleaner down the sink fill with water and dump again. Or add the lemon cleaner before each dump. I've watched my friends pour bacon grease right down the drain and then wonder why their gauges don't work. :S

IMHO, JMHO before you think a 'different' brand of gauges will solve the problem, fill both your tanks with water several times and dump. Buy a bottle of Thetford Sensor Cleaner and throw that in both tanks let it sit and dump. Now fill you tanks up with water and be amazed how all the pretty colors of your gauges light up! Then 'maintain' your tanks. :C

skipnchar wrote:
Not sure why people NEED tank monitors anyway. AFter just a few times out you'll know what your tank levels are simply by what USE they get. As a back up system: When gray is full it backs up into the tub or shower. When black is full you see it when flushing the toilet. When galley is full it backs up into the sink. When FW tank is empty it doesn't pump water and the waste tanks will be XX % full.
Good luck / Skip

I keep an accurate account of my checking account balance and like to know where I stand. It is the same with the holding takes. Just a few weeks ago we were at a place with electricity and no sewer or water. The nearest water was thirty miles away. Having an accurate number helps us to budget and know when to cut back. I understand that some don't care but we do.

I replaced the orig******with See Level. Maybe I didn"t need it but it sure gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling knowing how much water I have down to the gallon. The only complaint I have is the tanks they monitor are so shallow and long and wide. I wish the tanks were deeper but what is Is. I would order that on a new unit or I would not buy it. At a glance I can see exactly how much gray, black or galley or fresh water I have.

Not sure why people NEED tank monitors anyway. AFter just a few times out you'll know what your tank levels are simply by what USE they get. As a back up system: When gray is full it backs up into the tub or shower. When black is full you see it when flushing the toilet. When galley is full it backs up into the sink. When FW tank is empty it doesn't pump water and the waste tanks will be XX % full.
Good luck / Skip

tvfrfireman wrote:
Our new fifth wheel has the worst gauges I have ever encountered. We do some dry camping and go to state parks where we have no sewer and need a more accurate option. I have read of Sea Level brand...is this what you would use? Thanks in advance for any words of wisdom.

We upgraded to See Level II Monitors and are happy campers indeed. Our unit sports an insulated belly so that had to be dealt with. I went from fiberglass bat to 1/2" R-Max board. I did some other mods while in there.

The big deal is to get the tank surface clean and roughed up a bit for the 3M adhesive to stick. I then sprayed with several layers of undercoat to ensure the sensors would stay put.

Now when we go to a storm disaster recovery area we can push our tank maintenance schedule to the max and know exactly when we have to visit a dump station which may be a bit of a trip depending on the level of damage. (This is not exactly camping as we are often amongst the debris in a church or victim's yard & off grid)

Sea Level is a much better option for tank level indication.

The OEM style is just a stud that protrudes into tank and 'stuff', toilet paper or just being wet with cause them to indicate.

For me.....too much extra $$ and the aggravation of installing them just to measure tank level.
As most fresh water tanks run out of water before black & grey tanks are full I don't worry about them.

We (2 of us) can go 1 week......then it's time to refill & dump

Can't even remember the last time I used the monitor panel.