black tank chemicals

[yeabuddy]

So I recently posted about leaving the black tank full while I was gone form our seasonal to help in tank digestion before I return to dump it. I received a lot of replies (on here and another forum) from folks who say these chemicals don't do anything but maybe help with odor.
Now I know you can't believe everything you read and I doubt any of these folks are scientists or have ever really tested this theory... but maybe.
So my question is, has anyone ever really tested this? These products advertise "break down solids", "enzymes digest waste", "liquefies waste" etc. etc.
Not that you'd $#!* in a jar, pour some chemicals over it and watch what it does but... there sure are a lot of companies out there promoting these chemicals so I thought I'd ask.
Maybe someone has some scientific evidence we could all learn from.

[2012Coleman]

Well, if you dumped it and cleaned it out before you left you would not have to worry about adding chemicals to digest your poop.

[kennethwooster]

I let 2 different chemicals that have enzymes, freeze. That killed the enzymes. I found that we were building a pyramid since chemical was dead . Added fresh rv digest and got rid of pyramid and also removed the odor. I cannot get by without chemical as well as plenty of water.

[imgoin4it]

I drain and flush my black water tank after every use. I always add clean water to the black tank. If is not to be used for some length of time I just put more fresh water in it. I do not wantto leave it dry for much time. Never a problem and never a smell.

[paulcardoza]

yeabuddy.......

Easy test for you.... Buy a cheap, clear plastic fitting for your dump connection, so you can see what flows by when you dump. After a few days sitting in your tank, when you dump, you'll see few, if any solids going through the hose. Sufficient amounts of water in the tank really does get everything to liquefy quite well. Seeing is believing.

We use the cheapest Campa-Chem from Walmart. $1 per bottle and we dump about once per week, so for $4 per month it makes me happy to use it, even though it probably does nothing for me.

[sem1]

I'm sure that is probably illegal

[JJBIRISH]

You should have the local health Dept. inspect you septic system to see where the waste might of ended up… I’m sure they would be more than happy to help you…:)

[the_bear_II]

Real world example-
A place we often stay is on my Dad's property in the desert. We poured a concrete pad and park the 5th wheel next to it. I buried a 50 gallon drum upright with the bottom cutout of it. I installed a PVC sewer hose connection in the top of the drum. We would park the 5th wheel at this spot during our many weekend stays. Plus we would bring the 5th wheel for one to two weeks long stays a couple of times during the year.

I would run the black tank sewer hose to the 50 gallon drum and dump the tank each time it was nearly full.

We used Thetfords chemical with the enzymes to digest waste in the tank each time.

After 10 years the lid on the drum was eaten through with rust. I looked inside and there was about 2 feetof toilet paper crumbs in the bottom. No signs of bodily waste. I would have thought it would have been full or nearly full of toilet paper and dried bodily waste.

It seems to me the enzymes worked.

[CincyGus]

Agreed. Most people don't use them because overall, leaving your black tank full instead of dumping at the end of your camping trip is described as a bad idea. I'd venture to say 95% of the people on this forum dump at the end of their trip or within a few days. They are afraid of buildup, smell, causing other problems since thats the advice of 95% of the people when this question is posted.

If your not going to dump the tank in after a few days of camping, it doesn't need the breakdown stuff. Expense flushed down the toilet basically. Plenty of water keeps the dreaded pyramid of poop from building up and also helps break down everything.

SOme that use the chemicals do so for smell control, some do it because the place they bought their camper told them to, some do it because someone on here advised them to.

It's a personal choice which advice we all take to heart and try. I have not seen anything scientific in any post concerning black tanks. Most of the posts are strickly opinion.

And you know the opinions we agree with are the truth, the ones we don't are just propaganda 😉

[ksg5000]

Few would suggest that your black water tank is a septic tank where solids need to be digested before release - that's why many don't use any chemicals in their tanks and those that do are doing so primarily for odor.

If your goal is "digestion" and you have a long time where your rigs going to sit without use then adding a septic tank cleaner should help eliminate any accumulated solids within the tank.

[Trackrig]

Yeabuddy - part of your post said:

"So my question is, has anyone ever really tested this? These products advertise "break down solids", "enzymes digest waste", "liquefies waste" etc. etc."

Were you refering to a specific chemical or additive or was it a general question?

I don't know if anyone has taken the time to do a real scientific study of the chemicals being able to break down solids because they would have to remain in the tank longer than the vast majority of people would go without emptying their tanks. Therefore there's probably not enough of a market for it.

If poop realy liquified in three days, no one should ever have a clogged black tank?

Bill

[2oldman]

yeabuddy wrote:
Not that you'd $#!* in a jar, pour some chemicals over it and watch what it does but... .

Why not? All you'll get here is a bunch of opinions. Such as....

I've used chemicals rarely if ever, and I never have a problem dumping. Poop liquifies in about 3 days in plain water.