Two Toilets, Two Problems

[lawnspecialties]

I have broken both toilets on our camper. Insert joke here. 😮

At the Fort this past week, we learned of two problems with our toilets. Before I go trying to pull things apart, I'd like to know if anyone has experience with either issue. I'd rather fix them myself as the idea of leaving it at our CW for a month or two to be repaired makes me sad. Its still under warranty but I'm hoping this is an easy fix for me to tackle.

One toilet started leaking toward the end of the trip. When I say leaking, I mean when you release the foot pedal, water still very slowly flows out of the holes around the ring. If left alone, it would slowly fill the bowl and run out all over the floor. At night or when we left the camper, I would just turn off the water outside. Later when I would turn the water back on, it would not leak. But as soon as we flushed a few times, it would start back up again.

The other toiled will not seal when closed. It looks OK from the outside but it will not hold water in the bowl at all. It quickly drains out into the black tank. This is the second half-bath so we didn't use it because the odors were too tough to handle.

Any ideas?

[lawnspecialties]

Update. The toilet in the garage was an easy fix once I "dove right in". This is the one that wouldn't hold water in the bowl. I double gloved my hand and felt around the rubber seal underneath. Smooth all the way around. But then I noticed the "lid" that closes the hole was ever so slightly tilted. It was leaving a small gap allowing all the water to flow out. Deep down in the toilet, that lid is moved by two arms activated by the pedal. The arm on the left side had popped out of its mounting hole. Still with double gloves, I was able to stick my hand down in the toilet and reinsert the arm. Works good as new. Easy fix once I found out what it was.

As for the toilet that likes to run, I tried getting that screw out which holds the foot pedal in place. My sockets are too thick to fit down that long shaft. Oh poo.:(

[Jack_Spratt]

If the one that continues to fill is a Thetford Aqua Magic the valve is not fully returning because of the pedal binding on the plastic shaft. Lifting with your toe may solve the issue temporarily, but won't work indefinitely. I never tried lubricating the plastic shaft.
Replacement with a Dometic 310 was my solution.

[ksg5000]

As others have indicated - both issues are pretty common and definitely not worth waiting for two months for repair --- something you can do if your still able to bend. Doesn't cost much so there isn't much downside.

[TyroneandGladys]

DutchmenSport wrote:
For the one not holding water, try this first.

Get a good toilet brush and brush around the rubber where the slide valve slides into. It's possible a bit of crud is stuck on the rubber not allow a good seal. It's very common for this to happen. Easy fix, just run the brush around the rubber in the hold. See if that help.

No help on the other problem. Good luck.

X2
And on another note "This is the second half-bath so we didn't use it because the odors were too tough to handle" this stuff should be in every bathroom it really does work.
Store bought Hilarious commercial.
Or Home made

[Old-Biscuit]

Sounds like you have Sealand 300 Series Toilets

Both water valve assembly and bowl seal can be EASILY replaced.

Manual

[wa8yxm]

One of the issues I've had is the flush lever binds and does not return to the "At Rest" position... I have to slightly lift it, You remove the cover from the lever and you may be able to observe how it works, Lubrication may help... or not.. there are some other issues as well.. I'm slowly learning about how these things fail.


Also, assuming it is a ball flush valve type.. Cleaning the seals (instructions in the manual) may help... With blade valve types I'm not as sure but.. Well it can't hurt.

[weathershak]

DutchmenSport wrote:
For the one not holding water, try this first.

Get a good toilet brush and brush around the rubber where the slide valve slides into. It's possible a bit of crud is stuck on the rubber not allow a good seal. It's very common for this to happen. Easy fix, just run the brush around the rubber in the hold. See if that help.

No help on the other problem. Good luck.

X2 And oh, throw out the tooth brush. 🙂

[gbopp]

lawnspecialties wrote:
I have broken both toilets on our camper. Insert joke here. 😮

Any ideas?

Too many Breakast Burritos? :B

[BB_TX]

When mine would not hold water, I replaced the seal around the ball. Not difficult, at least on mine. Mine is a two piece bowl, with a metal band around the middle holding the top to the bottom. I loosened a screw and removed the band. Disconnected the water line. And lifted the top portion of the bowl off. Then I could get to the seal. I did notice the seal was not exactly centered over the ball. So when I installed the new seal, I made sure to center it after cleaning the ball and surrounding area well. Put top back on. Replaced metal band. And it holds water fine after several years.

[DutchmenSport]

For the one not holding water, try this first.

Get a good toilet brush and brush around the rubber where the slide valve slides into. It's possible a bit of crud is stuck on the rubber not allow a good seal. It's very common for this to happen. Easy fix, just run the brush around the rubber in the hold. See if that help.

No help on the other problem. Good luck.

[punomatic]

Sounds like you have some leaky seals, one on the pressure side (the one that overfills) and one on the toilet ball valve. Both should be easy to fix. I think it is a good idea to carry a repair kit when you're traveling. It should contain all the seals and perhaps some springs for the toilet mechanism. (Get a repair kit for your brand/model of toilet)

I understand your reticence to take the rig back to the dealer. My new trailer had a piece of particle board supporting the FW tank. The board split lengthwise from the weight of the water while traveling. I could have fixed it in about an hour, but I took it back because it's under warranty. The dealer had it for a month. Arrrghhh...

[westend]

Supply valve on the one toilet and a leaking seal on the other.

If you disassemble the toilet with the valve problem and make sure the vacuum breaker within is working, you might be able to backflush or clean the valve so it operates correctly. Many times, it can just be a bit of debris in the valve causing it not to shut completely.

The seal problem may be cured by cleaning the seal area and then lubricating the seal with a light vegetable oil.

Now would be a good time to install supply line shut off valves so any problems in the future won't mean shutting off the whole water system.

[SoundGuy]

Obviously if the trailer is still under warranty you'd want your dealer to address these issues but in the meantime as a temporary fix I'd simply not use the toilet in the 1/2 bathroom, perhaps stuff an old towel in the bowel to block any odours since it won't hold water, and install a shutoff valve in the fresh water line feeding the main toilet so you can conveniently turn off water feeding the trailer.

From your description it seems you're connected to on-site water under pressure and if so the obvious question is whether you're using a water pressure regulator, as you should. :h Secondly, if you instead draw from the on-board water tank does the toilet in the main bathroom still fill and overflow? If not, that's a pretty good indication that city water pressure feeding the trailer may be excessive.

[MFL]

An annoying problem for sure!

I can't help much, but if you edit in the toilet brand, and model number, others may be able to give more accurate advice.

Jerry