Grey water

[camp104]

When camping in full hookups I always keep my grey tank closed until full. When dumping the grey tank it smells worst than the black? Would it be better to keep the tank open or closed?

[dougrainer]

Leaving both Gray and Black valves OPEN, will cause buildup in the tanks. Worse in Black tank, but you will still get buildup in the gray tank because the heavier debris cannot flow out that small slope in the tank. Also, IF you want Tank valve problems, leave the valves OPEN. The cavity between the plastic valve slider and between the 2 seals will slowly fill with slime and debris that will not flush out and then you get valves that will NOT close completely. It is better for gray to fill to full then dump, that gets all the oils and such to flow out. Doug

[gemert]

Google GEO method. For black tanks but works as well for grey! Been doing it for about a year and rarely have any kind of smell out of either system.

[William_B]

Ditto Dennis' method. We leave the gray open and always the black closed. When we get ready to dump the black, every week or so, we close the gray, both shower and we run at least one load through the washer. Then dump the black, when empty, we let some gray in the black 2-3 times and dump again leaving some gray to finally run through the hose to "clean" it all out. And yes the gray can stink as much as the black!

[coolmom42]

Try to keep all the food particles you can out of the sink. Wipe out dishes & pots/pans with a paper towel before washing. Catch anything else in the strainer. NEVER put grease down the sink. That would help.

[ets1996]

As do most I leave both closed till time to dump. Black first then gray to rinse hose then shut. Aside from discussed we have been in two South Florida parks the last year and they have these very pesky sewer flies. Keeping the valves shut between dumps helps to keep them out. The gray tank in my experience can smell as bad as the black could be food stuff etc. from galley sink.

[Executive45]

I leave the grey open and the black closed. Moving day, I close the grey just before our showers. I then empty the black and flush with the shower water. After three flushes, I allow some shower water to fill the black then close it. I then finish draining the grey tank and I'm ready to travel.

My opinion is as you shower, do dishes etc. that water is hot to warm and anything from the shower and/or kitchen sink is still suspended in that water. By allowing it to drain immediately, you're moving those suspended particles into the sewer with the hot water. Same with soap scum. That's hot water being sent thru the sewer hose. By allowing water to sit in your grey tank for days, those suspended particles settle to the bottom of your tank where they mix with any food particles, grease or whatever from your kitchen sink. The water cools and all that mess now gels. When it's time to empty the tank, any clear water must pass over and/or thru that gooey mess before emptying into the sewer. Also, you're now sending cold water thru your hose. Hot water will keep things a lot cleaner than cold water.....Dennis

[Old-Biscuit]

Grey waste water can stink.....worst then black.
Food particles, grease, skin, body oils, soap scum etc.


DON'T leave black OPEN...........grey seems to be a personal choice

Some folks leave grey tank drain valve open until day before then close and let water build up...even add water.

I prefer to leave it closed so that tank gets full and then dump.......that way I know tank is full, don't have to add more water (conserve water usage) and have a full tank that helps carry all the 'stuff' out of tank.

Just like black tank.
I want volume and weight to move the stuff.....
Like a river carrying boulders downstream vs creek bouncing pebbles around :B

[lawrosa]

I keep mine open on full hook ups...

What smells exactly?

I only close mine the day befor I leave to let the tank fill up some to flush it...


Ummm maybe you are not making a trap outside with your hose and/or you have internal trap /vent issues? Maybe its just the smell outside?

Many variables in your post...

[Mr_Mark1]

camp104 wrote:
When camping in full hookups I always keep my grey tank closed until full. When dumping the grey tank it smells worst than the black? Would it be better to keep the tank open or closed?

Not sure why it would smell worse but you are doing it right. Wait until it's full.

The reason being is that when it's time to dump the black tank, the grey water will clean out the hose on the final dump.

You could put something in the grey tank to help with the smell. When we are stopped for a while, I will use the 'blue stuff' to kill the bacteria. If we are stopping at a new place every night, I never add anything.

MM.

[Raist11]

From my understanding you always keep that closed to keep anything from the black tank going in there. Then close the Black valve when you do go to dump the grey tank. Perhaps I'm overly cautious but this is what I understood as proper procedure.