Portable waste tank question

IndyCamp wrote:
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I guess this offer also goes for anyone who is in the Indianapolis area, or who wants to drive to Indianapolis to get it.

Hey "Indy", you're my kind of fellow camper! Thanks! From our original camping equipment to what we have now, we've given everything discarded away to fellow campers .... except the Blue Tote. I think that's the only thing we've kept since our first camper.

I really appreciate another camping family that's willing to "give" away unwanted or unused old camping stuff... Kudos to you!

.I think Soundguy has a good setup with the macerator pump and Aquatainers.
I saw an article of how to make a macerator pump with a conventional residential garbage disposal. That would save a bit of $$. Need of 120V and sourcing a working disposal that had been pulled are two of the drawbacks.

DIY garbage disposal macerator

Well designed DIY macerator

WISH i WAS IN yOUR AREA... IF YOU CAN TELL ME FOR SHIPPING TO 07731 i WOULD PAY YOU..... tHANK YOU

OMMG caps locks was on sorry

I don't know where you are located, but I have a 32-gallon Tote-N-Stor that you can have for free. It's only been used about five times (only for grey water) and is just taking up room in the garage.

We just ordered a new Grand Design Reflection that has 118-gallon grey tank, so we don't need it any more. We are stepping up from a rig that had a 37-gallon grey water capacity, and we only used the tote about five times, so we'll be good.

Here is a link to the tote we have:

https://www.amazon.com/Tote-N-Stor-25609-Portable-Waste-Transport/dp/B0085KGOH0/ref=sr_1_10?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1517029072&sr=1-10&keywords=rv+tote


I guess this offer also goes for anyone who is in the Indianapolis area, or who wants to drive to Indianapolis to get it.

Go big or go home. I don't use my 42 a lot, but when I need it, it really shines. One trip and done for another couple days. One more reason I like 8' truck beds. I always have room for it.

Love my old Barker 32 gal tote. Lifesaver on long stays. I've got the 2 wheel, top discharge model. As others have said, get the biggest you can afford and if you get a big one, get a 4 wheel model with side discharge

Some interesting ideas for waste and water management. Thanks for sharing all! :C

I have a 25 and 42 gallon barker. I bought the 42 gallon first for $100 and then a couple years later the 25 gallon for $25. Both came with the hard plastic wheels. I called Barker to order the rubber wheels and they sent them for free. I bought them from Craigslist. You can't beat that customer service.

Now my use - I take showers every day, boon-docking or not. With our family, we fill the regular 35 gallon grey tank nearly everyday, depending on how many showers get taken. The 42 gallon gets taken for long trips.

My thought was I would use the 25 gallon more often and have more room in the back of my truck and it would be easier to move it around, but I haven't even used it once. It's just been sitting in my garage for over a year.

I can empty the trailer tank after showers on the second day camping and then take a shower the third day (just me) and fill the rest of the 42 gallon, then dump the tote tank either that day or then next. So I get three or four days before I really need to dump anything with the 42 gallon tote.

The 27 gallon would need to be dumped everyday for us.

Ok, now with all that said, go with the 4 wheel version of whatever you buy. Water is generally 8 pounds per gallon. So, that 15 = 120lbs, 25 = 200, 30 = 240, 35 = 280 and 42 = 336lbs. All of which you won't want to drag in mud, soft dirt or lift more than a few times. If your using it for black water, that will be even heavier. I have had a few times when I had to pull it in the sand at the beach for 6 feet. It is heavy when full. The only real problem I have had is the 42 gallon is a little to high to connect the trailer (another thing I thought the 25 gallon would solve) so I use a 18" section of hose and just let it dump into the tank from one of those adapters. It's slower but works for me.

If you have the choice, buy something with pneumatic tires. It will last longer and everyone won't turn their head when you pull it past them going to the dump station.

If you are going to get something to put in the bed of your truck, you might as well order a macerator pump with it.

lawrosa wrote:
Ive been looking at them too. But no way a 30 gallon.

maybe a 15 gallon the most for me.. If I can get 15 gal out of the 30 gal black tank that will extend days for sure.

Grey im not worried as it matches my fresh water of 50 gallon.

A different take on waste tank management ... ;)

I never stop at a campground dump station and instead service my tanks at home at my convenience with a FloJet Waste Macerator. :B



When not in use I store it in the trailer's front pass through cargo compartment so that means I always have it on hand while camping should it ever be needed. Our trailer has 30 gal tanks so it's rare that with just my wife & I camping that we'd ever fully fill the black water tank BUT should that ever occur the FloJet allows me to off load macerated black water into a set of grey water Aquatainers that are already sitting in the back of the truck. What I do off load daily is grey water since we make full use of the trailer's facilities, including the shower. Grey water is easy - I just gravity drain into 7 gal Aquatainers sitting at the back of the truck - easy to lift into the truck for trip to the dump station, easy to lower to the ground at the dump station, easy to clean, easy to store, and inexpensive, far less than any tote tank. :B



For those without a waste macerator I'd agree with choosing a smaller 15 gal tote tank for off loading black water as it's much easier to handle, easier to store, and less costly than a large 4 wheel tote. And FWIW, yes - I did once years ago make the mistake of buying an expensive 22 gal tote tank and after just a few uses couldn't wait to get rid of it. :W

I might add one more thing ... get the biggest tote you can afford. Many folks don't. They say they get too heavy, and yes they do if you try to lift them. On wheels, a 32 gallon and a 42 gallon doesn't make much difference.

If you are on sand or loose dirt, you can always attach a rope to the tote and tie the other end to the bumper of your truck and pull it up to the campground road. A 2 wheeled version, you'll have to not only lift one end, but you'll also have drag it by hand through that same loose sand or dirt, and that's almost impossible sometimes. 4 wheels is easier in my opinion.

Why the largest you can afford? Because if your tanks are 50 gallon and your tote is 30 gallon and the tanks are full, it's very, very easy to over fill the tote. Now you have black water in the dump hose caught between the tote and your camper. You know where that goes once you disconnect the hose? yep... all over your shoes and the ground.

Even if your tanks are smaller, if the holding tank on the camper is bigger in capacity than the tote capacity, you run the risk of over spilling, and that just ain't pretty!

If your tote is bigger than your tanks, you will never overfill.

My current camper has 30 gallon holding tanks, my Barker is 32 gallons. As long as I dump one tank at a time, I'll never spill on the ground with an overflow.

I dump mine every day. Black first, then the shower grey, which I always back flow into the black tank to rinse it better, and if I do this every day, it never overfills the tote. My third tank is the kitchen galley. It's also 30 gallons, but during Summer camping, it may take 2 weeks to actually fill it as we do dishes and cooking outside and wash them outside.

Edit:

About the height and actually attaching to the hitch of your tow vehicle to transport it to the dump station.

Below are a few photos of mine. The first photo is NOT the good way to do it. I have had the handle pop off the hitch ball and the tote end up in the ditch. So, the second photo shows how I over came that, and it's NEVER separated from the hitch again. The third photo shows how I transport it in my truck. It really is not very tall, and empty, not heavy at all. It affords stuff to be stacked on top of it when I need to (in the bed of the truck).





You can see the tote at the front the truck bed.