first time rv - Itasca Navion

Beccaanne, Welcome!

The answer you want depends a whole lot on the year, make & model of your RV.

If you could put that in your signature it would help. Or, for now, put in a Reply here.

Example: older RVs have in tank level sensors that are problematic. Many/most newer and up end models have external ultrasonic level gauges that do not "futz" up like the old school sensors.

So answers depend a lot on what you have....

Not sure what year yours is but my sensors are pretty accurate and I've had only one erroneous issue which resolved itself (read more than reality) They system on the View/Navion is pretty resistant to fouling. I use no chemicals at all.

BTW, you just missed a rally in New York where about 30 of these things showed up. They had clinics on the View/Navion and everything.

The best place for all knowledge View/Navion is here: LINK

This is great stuff to use in your black tank from the very beginning and you shouldn't have a lot of the challenges that can occur with black tanks and sensors: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007S0H5DU/ref=cm_sw_r_taa_lMcxxb1FQD0HR

Get some of the enzyme stuff that breaks up the poop and use it.

Find rubber/neoprene/similar gloves with the longest gauntlets up the arms that you can. Keep them, a roll of paper towels, and some waterless hand cleaner in the area - I found room in the "electrical closet" behind the water supply/tank dump closet.

Stand where you won't get wet.

When you hear the last of the liquid from each tank, give it a few more minutes, because it's still draining.

If possible, drain the tanks before you start for home. Nothing makes you quite so popular at roadside restaurants as the aroma of a black tank venting out the top of your rig.

Don't worry about the tank stuff. I don't find it nearly as daunting as it seemed at first. Have a decent hose--ours stores in the bumper but the Navion may have a different storage system. We don't use an adapter for the end of the hose, just dump into the pit with the hose itself. Always sewage first--it probably says so on the waste door, then gray water from the sink and shower. I don't fill the black tank with water but do rinse it with an extra toilet full of water before we close the sewer valve. Then after closing the valve I put in the RV tank deodorizer in the closed toilet and then rinse it down into the tank. Then we do the gray and I put calgon in that tank through the kitchen sink drain but not every time. We have had zero issues in more than 5 years with the waste system and don't mind dumping at all. Some people wear disposable gloves but we just wash our hands in the bathroom sink afterwards. That puts a bit more water into the black tank too.
If your tank has built up gunk in it, you can put ice cubes down the toilet--a couple of bags and drive around. That breaks up old solidified stuff they say. I never had to do it so I don't know. I think you put calgon water softener in when you use the ice cubes too.
Good luck learning the ropes. Before long you'll be a pro.

See no signature second post, but it will help immensely to tell us what year, exact model, etc.

Charles

Put info in your signature, make, model, year, etc. It will help everyone with answers.

See my signature below. I have noticed that when you make a second post in a thread, the signature will not appear, even though the box is checked. Hmmm.

Charles

If you are not dry camping and are connected to a sewer hook up, then lots and lots of water in the black tank, including left over soapy water from washing the dishes. When I get ready to dump the tanks, I run water into the black tank until the gauge says full. In my Via, the bathroom sink drains into the black tank and that is probably the same with your NAVION. Once the tanks are empty, I put two capfuls of Calgon down the black tank, and 1 ounce of the TST Orange RV Tank Treatment. I used the same method with my previous rvs and have never had a problem with odor from the black tank.

midnightsadie wrote:
yes,, NEVER rely on the gauges, there very few that are accurate. dump blk first ,then gray. and put extra water in the blk before you dump . you want to get all the poo out.flushing the gray last helps clean the sewer hose.

It's usually safe to rely on the gauges to not read lower than they should. That is, if they show a third of a tank, you are almost certainly not full. The opposite is not always true; junk on the sensors can make them read higher than they should.

My tank gauges seem pretty consistently operational, for what it's worth. Their overall accuracy is naturally limited by the very low precision. I find them to be handy, but your mileage may vary.

yes,, NEVER rely on the gauges, there very few that are accurate. dump blk first ,then gray. and put extra water in the blk before you dump . you want to get all the poo out.flushing the gray last helps clean the sewer hose.