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Old 07-30-2013, 08:54 AM   #1
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Black water tank level confusion

I have a 2013 Flagstaff 30WFKSS. On two occasions we have been setup for an extended period and started with empty gray and black tanks. During normal usage for two people I would think we could go for a week or more but the second day the gauge indicated 2/3 and the third day it registered full. Looking down the toilet it appears there is a pipe from floor level going down about 12 inches and the water level looked to be at pipe level. We were at a primitive camping area so no dump nearby. On day four we decided to head home and after hooking up to the TV I rechecked level and it indicated 1/3 full. So after getting home and dumping tanks I again checked the toilet and it appears the bottom of the tank is about 3" +/- below the pipe. Is this correct? Is this some sort of splash feature and somehow impedes flow until it gets jostled around some? I am confused.

However the camping in upper Spearfish Canyon was amazing, by Monday afternoon the motor cycles started rolling in in advance of Sturgis bike week so was a good time to get home and parked with the camper.

Rick
in the beautiful Black Hills of South Dakota
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Old 07-30-2013, 09:03 AM   #2
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3 inches give or take seems about right. It does not take much to throw the reader off maybe some toilet paper or something stuck. Can you give it a good clean out. Even if you have the connection to flush the black tank I still use my manual one hooked to the garden hose, a 2 foot pipe with four small holes in the cap, you stick this in your holding tank. My guess is something is stuck in there throwing the measurement off, we can go 7 to 8 days with our black tank. One thing that bugs me with ours is the outside kitchen sink is connected to our black tank...
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Old 07-30-2013, 09:09 AM   #3
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Similar Situation

We have a 2013 Flagstaff V-Lite 30WIKSS and have had it out twice for a total of four nights. We also encountered a 2/3 full reading on the black water tank and knew that the two of us were physically incapable of such productivity. We had TT at dealer for another problem caused entirely by us. They dumped the tank and it still read 2/3 full. They then added quite a bit of water and took it for a spin around the yard to shake thinks up a bit. After that manuever they did a second dump and the gage read empty. We are leaving soon on a longer trip so will have a chance to see if there is a problem that needs corrected or it was just a fluke (pun intended).
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Old 07-30-2013, 09:38 AM   #4
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The black tank usually reads empty after dumping. One time it still read 1/3 full but the next day read empty, so I assume there was sludge/slime on the probe and it slowly slid down. I usually use the flush hook up and filled up the tank several times and believe I got a good flush. Just can't figure out why it jumps to full so quickly.
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Old 07-30-2013, 10:48 AM   #5
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With a TT you can look directly into the black tank through the toilet and see the level...on our 5th there's a couple of 45 elbows so that's not possible. I follow the GEO method and use the black tank flush every time the tank is dumped and the monitor read empty but soon read 2/3 after a few days.

After camping with it for a while you'll figure out the # of days camping before it's full as in up the pipe to the toilet. We typically can go 12 days before dumping the 38 gal tank and it starts with 5 gal of water with calgon and detergent. YMMV.

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Old 07-30-2013, 11:07 AM   #6
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Use the tank level monitor as a guide only.
Rarely is it correct.
After camping for 20 odd years you get to know what water usage you normally use.

Also use the geo-method to help keep sensors clean.

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Old 07-30-2013, 12:46 PM   #7
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Yup, we've had several campers before this one and none of them were very accurate. I do visually check the level in the toilet and will do a fresh water fill and dump several time this afternoon to get an idea how full I can get. I assume if the level is below the floor flange an inch or so, that is full. We got the trailer in October of last year and camped in it 4 nights pulling it home from Iowa to South Dakota. Flushed out all tanks 3 or 4 times and then winterized. We have camped in it about 30 days so far this year and really haven't had extended stays over 2/3 days more than 1 or 2 times.
Our other campers (all Airstreams) had the tank top closer to floor level and didn't appear to have a long section of pipe from the floor flange down into the tank. That was the reason for my original question about a "splash guard" because the pipe seems longer than it needs to be, actually in to the tank a ways.
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Old 07-30-2013, 01:02 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rick R View Post
Yup, we've had several campers before this one and none of them were very accurate. I do visually check the level in the toilet and will do a fresh water fill and dump several time this afternoon to get an idea how full I can get. I assume if the level is below the floor flange an inch or so, that is full. We got the trailer in October of last year and camped in it 4 nights pulling it home from Iowa to South Dakota. Flushed out all tanks 3 or 4 times and then winterized. We have camped in it about 30 days so far this year and really haven't had extended stays over 2/3 days more than 1 or 2 times.
Our other campers (all Airstreams) had the tank top closer to floor level and didn't appear to have a long section of pipe from the floor flange down into the tank. That was the reason for my original question about a "splash guard" because the pipe seems longer than it needs to be, actually in to the tank a ways.
Did u buy at Cheyenne?
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Old 07-30-2013, 02:08 PM   #9
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Yes,we did.
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Old 07-30-2013, 03:03 PM   #10
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We have a 2012 30 WFKSS, and since our 1st trip our black tank has never registered less than 1/3 full no matter how we cleann it. However we can go about 2 weeks before dumping black tank.
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Old 07-30-2013, 04:35 PM   #11
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3 inches give or take seems about right. It does not take much to throw the reader off maybe some toilet paper or something stuck. Can you give it a good clean out. Even if you have the connection to flush the black tank I still use my manual one hooked to the garden hose, a 2 foot pipe with four small holes in the cap, you stick this in your holding tank. My guess is something is stuck in there throwing the measurement off, we can go 7 to 8 days with our black tank. One thing that bugs me with ours is the outside kitchen sink is connected to our black tank...
Sorry maybe I will clarify a bit. I use the geo method as well but I have also the benefit to clean out at home. I set it up so I can hook up to my sewer clean out. No matter where I empty once home I will flush as you call geo method and then use my manual method as I feel it hits with pressure in the corners much better, and then I once again follow with the trailer setup to flush. In my mind can never be to clean down there..
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