Holding tank chemicals

[Scott_85]

I've search this site and read countless reviews on both CW and Amazon and I can't see which one is the best. Which chemical do you think does the best job and why?

[goingnorth]

Question for those using Pine-sol with bath beads, are calgon bath pearls the same thing? I asked my DW to get some beads and only thing she could find was bath pearls but a google search came up with nothing to compare them.
2 of the private CG's we go to specify at check in not to use formaldehyde products and I might start dumping into my own septic field just to be sure I'm empty for longer trips at state parks, I have a couple trips this year that I will be showing up after dark and don't want to dump on arival.
I never get a good dump as my toilet drops into the shallow end. And yes I alway fill to top prier to dumping. 1 ply and use sprayer to break things up, also have a tornado in tank. I know the drive home will pulverize whats left and I have no problem dumping 5 to 10 gal. into my septic tank.

[johnnyrv]

Camco non formaldehyde blue liquid. Most importantly back flush and use a spray wand sometimes. Or fill black tank with a few gallons of water and when you are moving it will agitate the tank clean.

[Crazy4gsds]

We use the orange drop in tabs (Chemco - I believe). We also put a capful of Calgon in the tank before we put some ice in there (once we've dumped/cleaned the tank). The ice melts and sloshes around on the trip home. Our sensors still don't work but we have no odor either.

Someone mentioned the odor from the gray tank...we had a small spill from that tank at the house and it smelled 10x worse than a sewer. Wow!

[2012Coleman]

GaryWT wrote:
I use aqua chem blue liquid because I don't want the trailer smelling like an outhouse. I get it at Wal mart and it is easy. If you flush a lot of water down, the smell will come into the trailer if you don't have a chemical in there.

I use the blue liquid along with drop-ins. No overpowering smells - bad or someones idea of good.

[Ron3rd]

We use Thetford Campa Kem powder packets only because that's what came with the trailer and the wife likes the smell. Other than that, flip a coin, they're all just deodorizers anyway.

[goingnorth]

The difference between those with pyramid problems and those without is where your toilet dumps into tank, mine is on the shallow side, so solids sit untill tank is half full, those that dump into the deep end don't have problems. A 30gal. tank can be 6" deep on one side and 3" on the other. We added a spray flusher like one used for the kitchen sink to spray the paper before dropping into the tank. Helped to solve our pyramid problem. Dump waste first with minimal water, wipe, spray tp and most breaks up untill bowl is full then drop fast to break up solids bellow.

[Jgwoods]

minn camping family wrote:
I've been in RV's where the owners did not use chemicals, and believe me, the smell is in the bathroom. Perhaps those of you who insist that you don't need them have just grown accustomed to the air and don't notice it anymore?

I don't get all the anti-additive sentiment here. We camp without hookups and need something to hold the black tank over for multiple days until we dump & go. I use Thetford Aqua-Kem Toss Ins. They do a great job and I never smell anything funky. Easy as pie.

I like the Thetford Aqua-Kem too. We have a Thetford Cassette toilet in the Northstar TC and it only holds 5-6 gallons of blackwater, and gets dumped daily if possible, every two is a must for us. The Aqua-Kem makes for very quick breakdown of the TP and deals with odors when we dump the cassette into an outhouse or standard toilet.

[opnspaces]

Just water in mine and no smell. No I'm not just used to it either. 🙂 I can walk into my trailer after sitting in the hot sun all summer and there is no smell.

But honestly, do we really care that much? I guarantee you I can walk into any of your bathrooms in your stick and bricks bathroom and at times there will be a smell. :B That's why there is a fan to remove the lingering odors after the bathroom is used.

[minn_camping_fa]

I've been in RV's where the owners did not use chemicals, and believe me, the smell is in the bathroom. Perhaps those of you who insist that you don't need them have just grown accustomed to the air and don't notice it anymore?

I don't get all the anti-additive sentiment here. We camp without hookups and need something to hold the black tank over for multiple days until we dump & go. I use Thetford Aqua-Kem Toss Ins. They do a great job and I never smell anything funky. Easy as pie.

[cjoseph]

Modified GEO method here.

The idea of the softener making the sides of the tank slippery made a lot of sense to me. I treat the tank with softener after a good cleaning a couple of times per year.

The rest of the time it is dump and rinse, rinse and rinse. The only time we have had a smell problem is when we were stuck at home for a while with no place to dump with waste in the tank. After a good cleaning and softener it was back to normal (no smell).

[kennethwooster]

A lot of different ideas. I've had some serious problems with some good old pyramids. I know after my surgery for a doctor running a scope through my colon, the removed 10 inches of colon. No cancer, just screw ups bys the doctor. Anyway it made things more sticky. Finally when Cameo was just about 6 weeks old we went to unique digest it. He also used it overnight to eat down my pyramid. My trade in also had the pyramid. I do leave the black tank valve closed until time to drain, then wash with black tank flush until clear piece of pipe is clean. One critical thing I have learned. Do not let unique or Happy Camper freeze. It seems to kill the ingredients, and pyramid will began again. Maybe some of you do not need anything, but I do. We are all a little different.

[RandACampin]

Ole Man Dan wrote:
I use a little DAWN in the Black tank/ about 3-5 gal. water.
Sloshes the suds while traveling. Everything comes out. No smell.

I've started adding some to the Grey Tank recently. It started to smell and the water was nasty. Cleaned it up. No smell.

You had to add dawn to the grey? What do you wash dishes with?

[RandACampin]

Rollnhome wrote:
You will find many do not use chemicals, nor do they use RV toilet paper. The trick is to use plenty of water when you flush. Your holding tanks are a sealed system. Properly empty and flush your tanks and you will be fine.

Wrong...more use chemicals than do not.

[homefor2]

KISS is my motto. Keep it simple stupid. No fancy chemicals, no RV toilet paper, no smell, so no problem. I don't understand what all the stink is about.