Portable Waste Tank

skripo wrote:
Thetford came out with all new models this year. I bought the Smart Tote 2 35 Gallon over the Barker for it's stop flow system and improved wheels. The 4 wheels make hauling and towing to the dump easy.

I mounted it under the belly using a BAL hide a spare. The 4 wheels align with the Bal rack and loading is effortless and it worked out of the box, no "improvements" needed.

While I do like the improvements of the Smart Tote 2. I prefer the pneumatic tires on the Barker.
Is there a valve /cutoff on the Smart Tote? Can you control the discharge flow?

We ended up going with two smaller 15 gallon barker tanks instead of one big one. The weight of one full 15 gallon is 135 lbs, which I can get into the truck bed. Any heavier and it would have to be towed. We usually are pretty far from the dump station at the places where we camp, so I didn't want to limit the drive speed to 4 mph.

We started with one, but having one only allowed me to empty only half of the gray tank. DW and DD both have long hair, so their showers can use a lot of water. After having to setup/dump/load/drive/dump several times in one weekend, I realized that the second tote would have saved me about 20 - 30 minutes of setup and drive time over that weekend. That's a good enough percentage of a camping weekend to justify the second tote.

The Barker 42 gallon now has 4 pneumatic wheels. Anybody used one of those? I can see a real advantage to pneumatic wheels over the plastic wheels.

Thetford came out with all new models this year. I bought the Smart Tote 2 35 Gallon over the Barker for it's stop flow system and improved wheels. The 4 wheels make hauling and towing to the dump easy.

I mounted it under the belly using a BAL hide a spare. The 4 wheels align with the Bal rack and loading is effortless and it worked out of the box, no "improvements" needed.

Mcamper wrote:

Mark and Linda wrote:
Look on Amazon.com....compare prices.

Thank you, and I will do that.

What I am really looking for is people that have actual experience with these tanks.

I bought a 32 gallon one on Amazon. I redid some hoses with the right ends on them to make them easy to use. I set up a plastic container with just these hoses. I have taken it with me on the last two trips...haven't used it yet because at one park it was too far to the dump station.

Mine: http://www.amazon.com/Tote-N-Stor-25609-Portable-Waste-Transport/dp/B0085KGOH0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1434419072&sr=8-1&keywords=rv+waste+water+tank&pebp=1434419080801&perid=C175A24611A24932A659

Mcamper wrote:

Mark and Linda wrote:
Look on Amazon.com....compare prices.

Thank you, and I will do that.

What I am really looking for is people that have actual experience with these tanks.

I bought a 32 gallon one on Amazon. I redid some hoses with the right ends on them to make them easy to use. I set up a plastic container with just these hoses. I have taken it with me on the last two trips...haven't used it yet because at one park it was too far to the dump station.

I bought a 10 gallon model when I had a popup. It was only used for the little amount of gray water generated by the sink. It was easy to handle.

I bought a Barker 22 gallon model for use with our current travel trailer. The waste tanks are 25 gallons, so I can almost fill the storage tank and still be able to completely empty it via the tote.

The downside is the weight. Almost 200 lbs full. To move it from the camper, to the hitch of the truck, it must be tilted upright and rolled. If you have a bad back, this is NOT the tote for you.





This does work very well. Our last camping trip was Fort DeSoto. They not only lacked full hookups, they also didn't have the dumpstation within the pet friendly camping loop. I had to depart the campground, drive on the park's main road, and re-enter the campground to get to the dumpstation. I waited for a break in traffic, and cruised on the main road at 20 MPH. That's fast for those little wheels. I did spray them with WD-40 before rolling. Had to do this a few times during our stay.

If I had it to do over, I'd consider getting a 4 wheeled model that did not have to be tippped up to hitch and dump.

Like you, our camping is mostly full hookup, but I did buy a Barker (18 gal) for about $100 for use in state and Federal parks. Use it for either black or gray tanks, no problem; doesn't handle the full quanity of either tank but 'makes room' and that's good enough. Didn't want to go any larger, because even though I pull it to the dump stationwith the truck, I still have to pick it up off the hitch and roll it to the 'drop zone' and tilt it to dump. 150 lbs full weight is enough for me. Looked at the Thetford, thought it was overpriced and not as well built as the Barker, but that's me.

I have a 32 gal Barker that I bought about 5 years off Amazon. I think I paid about $185.00 with free shipping. Great tote, Thetford makes a good one too.

Easy. Search this Forum for `blue tote' and read on.