In a bit of a predicament (Black Water tank full and frozen)

[Lunar_Firefly]

I am so in over my head with this problem. Hi, I'm brand new here. I've been living in this RV since the beginning of January, and just in the past week or so, I tried to dump my black water tank.

It has been a weekly thing since I moved in. Had one or two times where it wouldn't properly drain but I was able to sort it out (washing wand works super well to push clogs down).

This time nothing is working. The compartment the holding tanks sit in, is cramped and I could barely fit a reverse flush in there to shoot down this long pipe extending out from the two tanks.

I tried nearly boiling hot water, TechRX unclogging stuff, the regular TechRX formula to keep the system good. I've tried vinegar and pushing the wand into the tank to try to stir it around from the toilet. I was definitely using a lot of water to keep it from piling up too and nothing.. The reverse flush dislodged some stuff, but it barely seemed to do anything so I'm really worried the valve may be malfunctioning.

But it has gone from full to 3/4ths so maybe all that cleaned some of the sensors.

The tanks have frozen at least twice now with the sudden drop in temperature, and I'm in a panic because I'm worried that this is going to rupture the pipes, or the tanks themselves and cause a huge mess.

Can anyone offer any suggestions? Gray water is draining just fine, though I heard it flush a bunch of ice out when I pulled the gate valve open.

I'm at my wits end with this. I'm afraid it's going to end up with a bunch of other problems.

Next step is going to be hooking up a flexible wand to the faucet and running hot water through it to try to dislodge whatever is in there. I have to wait until Thursday for everything though.

Is there anything I can do in the meantime?

Is there any way to test if the gate valve for the black water tank is bad?

As a side note - we had an electrical fire at the main house on the property, so our current source of electricity is super limited. So running space heaters and stuff, isn't going to happen until the electricity out here is fixed.

Thanks for any suggestions or ideas.

[ib516]

Level sensors in any black tank are all but useless after the first use. Ignore them.

[Mike_LeClair]

What DSteiner51 said - when the toilet back burps at you when you flush it means that the fill level of the tank is above the stink pipe in the holding tank and it is time to drain it. Our tank level gauge has not even been looked at in over two years.

Cheers!

Mike

[DSteiner51]

My gauge hasn’t been accurate since first flush. I noticed that when near full the toilet ‘burps’ so I use that as a gauge.

[Lunar_Firefly]

Alright so good news is it's now flushed!

I set up a clamp lamp as recommended with a 75w bulb in the cubby the tanks sit in, and a guy here ended up having a snake so we used that through a hole in the stinky slinky to yank a BUNCH of stuff out that didn't break down right.

So I'm using the Scotts RV faat dissolve TP (I think thats the name of it) from now on, and anything more than that is going into the trash.

The 3/4th full light is stuck on whenever I check the fullness of the tank so I think it's dirty.. or isn't working right. Tank shows 1/2 full now. I dumped a bunch of water in there along with vinegar to help flush everything out.

It's been freezing cold (for this area) the past few days so it took a bit longer to get to this. But it's done now, and hopefully everything will flush properly.

Tomorrow after I get home, I'm probably going to use a wand to spray it out from the top, then do a proper start with that TankTechRX enzyme stuff. See how it goes. A lot of people swear by it, and it was working great until I used the wrong TP.

Thanks everyone for your help. It's been a big help in getting everything resolved. I've learned a valuable lesson.

Quick question --

What's a good way to tell when the tank is ready to be dumped?

[2chiefsRus]

so what happened?

[valhalla360]

There is no need to add enzymes or probiotics to the toilet. Every time you make a deposit, you add some.

[Sandflea28]

RidEx makes an RV solution similar to their septic tank enzime that works well to digest the solids, also a pound or so of bakers yeast and a pound of sugar gets things going to, but it takes a while.
I keep a small barn heater under my 5ver on low, have the unit skirted, and have dumped my tanks at +5 air temp with no problem. I dump both my tanks when the grey water gets full, and use a lot of water into the black water tank, I also have a heat cable running from inside the sewer drop up under the dump line to be sure it doesn't freeze up.
Just some ideas when it gets real cold and at 30 it hasn't even got cold enough to freeze up the water lines much, like stated above, I think you have a solids build up and may need to get a hotsy or pressure washer to brake it up.

[B_O__Plenty]

Are you basing that it is full on the reading you get from the gauge. Maybe it's really empty. Those gauges never work.

B.O.

[mordecai81]

shum02 wrote:

I know what I would do but I'd not recommend it to a rookie.

Now you got me curious...it doesn't involve a snorkle and a hazmat suit, does it?

[shum02]

Clogged.

No way in that temp that the tank is frozen solid. It takes a long, deep freeze to solidify 20+ gallons of waste/water especially if you are using the rig daily.

Turn off the water and have a look down the toilet and stick something down to check depth.

I know what I would do but I'd not recommend it to a rookie.

[maillemaker]

I also suspect you have a clog rather than a freezing problem.

However, I will say that I think a lot of folks spend way to much effort trying to "clean" their black tanks. My RV is going on 30 years old, we have had it for 10, and I never "clean" the black tank.

The trick to the black tank is

1) Use an enzyme treatment every time you use it (have to add more after every dump) and

2) Always dump when the tank is full. If it's not full, I use a little block of wood to hold the toilet flapper open and let the black tank fill up with water before a dump. This way you have a large volume of liquid to carry away any solid waste in the tank.

Also, even if you have full hookups, make sure you leave your black tank valve closed all the time until it is full and you need to dump. In other words, you have to dump it manually when it gets full even though you are hooked up to sewer. If you leave the black valve open then all the liquids will flow out of the tank but you will build a "poop pyramid" on the floor of the tank that will not flush out properly.

If your tank is already gunked up than a hose-out may be in order, but for sure use enzyme in your tank and let those little critters eat all the gunk out of the system.

Steve

[ndrorder]

The drop light will only be effective if you have an incandescent bulb. 75W is still a lot of heat and enough at 30ish degrees. Did you see the clamp lights?

https://www.homedepot.com/p/HDX-150-Watt-8-5-in-Clamp-Light-with-6-ft-Cord-64855301/303870163

I was more thinking a hole in the slinky.

Wishing you luck.
Cliff

[Lunar_Firefly]

Wow thanks EVERYONE for your replies!

I was going by the sensors to flush it. It seemed like a weekly thing give or take and it was always registering as full. Maybe the sensors were just giving me bad readings. Gosh what a hassle this is turning out to be.

I'll be fishing around tomorrow with a proper flexible wand, and making certain it's completely flushed out and cleaned up before starting the enzyme treatment every refill.

Never used the blue stuff I don't think. There was a green product that the guy at the RV shop recommended, but I have since switched over to tanktechRX.

I'll give an update tomorrow after I've gone at it with the flexible tank wand and hot water. Got an anti-siphon valve to attach to the sink faucet as well, just to be extra careful.

Thank you again everyone. Hopefully my next post will be filled with good results.

And I'll be adding the RV anti-freeze as well just as a precautionary measure. It snowed earlier so at least it's a little warmer than it was before.

All your advice is very helpful and I'll definitely be taking it all into account for all future fills and flushes as well.

Edit:

I didn't see there was a page 2 haha.

Most of the lights I was looking at, say they only work for 75 watts and under. Is there one you'd recommend? Maybe if I hang two in there; one on one side, and another at the other, that would be enough and wouldn't overpower the recommended wattage? For those that max at 75.

It was lows of 28-30f overnight. Lots of ice hanging off the compartment door, and the tubing that you flush everything through, had frozen liquid in it. So I was worried the tank had become frozen as well.

I was looking at those propane lamps that have the saucer looking coils that sit on top of the propane tank? Those look pretty good for what I'd need, but are they safe? Can they be left by themselves exposed to the elements?

Stinky... slinky...
Well I now have a new name for the draining tube.

You got me thinking. I wonder if I could cut a hole in the drain pipe just big enough for a hose to fit into, then get a rubber cap and one of those metal rings you see used on a lot of pipes and hoses to keep stuff extra secure, to keep it sealed when not in use.

Push the hose up through that, and try the bladder. Or maybe so the same with a 'stinky slinky'. I found a rip in the one I have now, so it's already getting trashed. Could slice a small hole in it and feed the hose in, then try as you had suggested with the bladder, or jet hose nozzle.

And yes...

There are already stories to be told haha.

Thanks everyone for your help!

[ndrorder]

+1 using 100W drop light. Should be more than enough to thaw a wet bay with the door closed. If you can't close the door because of stinky slinky access, use a piece of cardboard with a hole in it to block most of the door. Using flame based heat in the wet bay of an RV could end up with an undesirable outcome.

A drain bladder from Home Depot inserted up the drain pipe might dislodge anything blocking the drain pipe. Have to be creative to prevent a poop facial like cutting a hole in a stinky slinky to insert a garden hose and still be able to direct the poop to the ground drain. Be aware that once the clog moves, water will be filling the tank and possible the toilet.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-Medium-Drain-Bladder-82-976-111/301879205

If you can get a garden hose up to the clog, a sprinkler nozzle like this may increase the ability erode the clog from the drain end. There is also one available in the sprinkler system department that is plastic and cheaper, but I couldn't find a link.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Sun-Joe-Solid-Brass-Sweeper-Jet-Hose-Nozzle-SJI-1JHN/206383827


Good Luck,
Cliff