Kitchen Sink Won't Drain - Sandpiper 372LOK

[charbaugh]

I have a 2020 Sandpiper 372LOK, and the kitchen and outdoor kitchen drain to a separate galley tank. Only had the rig out twice (short, 1 night trips), and everything worked fine. Last trip, dumped all 3 tanks no problem. This trip, the kitchen sinks won't drain. Ran a 25' snake - no blocks no change. As a test, I opened up the galley dump (very little drained, less than a gallon), then turned on my outdoor kitchen sink. It drained with no problem. Could there really be more then 25' of pipe between the p-trap and the hiding tank? What am I missing?

[Skip12]

Donyou know if you have an elbow trap or waterless trap?

Waterless traps wont work if installed backwards, I believe. Also, a snake can destroy them.

If elbow, are you level or on a angle? Someone on here was.so far out of level, the water wouldn't drain.

Is your snake coming out dry or wet? Maybe knowing that will help with more ideas.

[charbaugh]

Appreciate the reply.

It has an elbow trap, but I totally removed the trap before snaking. When removing the trap, the water is all the way backed up to the 'Y' connector that joins the down pipe with the p-trap and the vent. The snake is wet. Trailer is level, using both the auto level system and a 3' level to confirm). I should also note that after several hours it will drain, so it has to be clogged. I just have a hard time believing there is more than 25' of pipe.

[5picker]

Originally Posted by charbaugh

I have a 2020 Sandpiper 372LOK, and the kitchen and outdoor kitchen drain to a separate galley tank. Only had the rig out twice (short, 1 night trips), and everything worked fine. Last trip, dumped all 3 tanks no problem. This trip, the kitchen sinks won't drain. Ran a 25' snake - no blocks no change. As a test, I opened up the galley dump (very little drained, less than a gallon), then turned on my outdoor kitchen sink. It drained with no problem. Could there really be more then 25' of pipe between the p-trap and the hiding tank? What am I missing?

So are you saying neither kitchen sink will drain? (outdoor AND indoor)

If so, I'm guessing you have an issue where the drain pipe enters the tank.

If one drains and the other doesn't then I'd suspect the drain pipe.
It may be 25' from one or the other of the sinks but they way you've described has me confused.

[charbaugh]

The outdoor sink drains fine to the tank, and the tank drains fine to the sewer. The indoor kitchen sink is the one not draining.

[5picker]

Originally Posted by charbaugh

The outdoor sink drains fine to the tank, and the tank drains fine to the sewer. The indoor kitchen sink is the one not draining.

OK thanks that clears it up.

Sounds like you are going to need to do some investigating of the indoor kitchen sink drain pipe. Plumbers have bore scopes that will give you a visual.
I've seen ones that connect to a cell phone that were 15' long but not 25'.

Since it is a 2020 model you probably have warranty.

[nomad297]

Originally Posted by charbaugh

I just have a hard time believing there is more than 25' of pipe.

I doubt it is more than 25’. Just because you ran 25’ of cable and it didn’t start draining doesn’t mean the pipe is longer than your cable — your cable just continued through the pipe and went into your tank — which is a very risky thing to do. You never want a snake cable to enter a tank more than about a foot because you risk the cable knotting-up at the head end, making it impossible to pull it back.

Snaking drains isn’t as simple as many non-plumbers like to think it is. I own numerous different sizes of machines with cables varying in size from 3/16” up to 1-1/4”, and too many different heads to count for different purposes and pipe sizes.

It is a luxury to know how long a particular pipe is prior to deciding what equipment needs to be used and how far you intend to run the cable. More often than not, an experienced judgement needs to be made because most pipes are concealed. Many people think that the farther you go, the better, but that’s not true at all — especially when there is any type of tank, backwater valve, sewer main and, with RVs — HepvO “traps” involved. In these cases, time needs to be taken to determine exactly how far you should need to run a cable to get the job done without causing damage to the plumbing and your equipment. Careful consideration also needs to be given to the size of the cable you need to use and the size and type of head needed for every different situation.

You very well may have a stoppage in your pipe, and you may be running your head and cable right through it and it won’t clear. One of the most common kitchen stoppages that I run across where this happens is when too much spaghetti has been shoved down the drain. Even using the most aggressive heads and the largest cable I can fit into a 1-1/2” or 2” kitchen drain, I can still have problems getting the stoppage cleared — the head and cable push right on through the spaghetti, but the spaghetti likes to stick to the pipe and stay where it is when the head and cable pass through it, so I pull the cable back, put the plumbing back together and run water down the drain, only to find that the pipe isn’t clear. It can take several times doing this before the drain is cleared. I’m sure you didn’t shove a ton of spaghetti down your drain, but my point is, it can take several attempts before you clear a stoppage, especially if all you are using is a 3/8” cable with a corkscrew retrieving head, which is what most non-plumbers seem to have on-hand.

Considering that you have only used your new RV a couple of times, I wouldn’t expect your stoppage to be due to any type of organic matter. If you aren’t going to have the dealer fix it under warranty, you should start looking for some type of foreign object that got into the pipe during construction. Wait long enough for any water to drain from the pipe, then rent a small drain camera with a cable long enough to make it from your sink/s to the tank. You have to wait for the water to drain because you can’t see much, if anything, with the camera when there is water in the pipe.

If it ends up not being a stoppage, venting problems will be your next thing to look for.

Bruce

[charbaugh]

Thanks, Bruce. Appreciate the inight. Fear of doing damage is why I stopped with the snake. I don't think it is an organic block either and was hoping I would feel the snake hit something. It slid through the pipe with absolutely no resistance. I didn't crank it at all, again for fear of damaging something. I just pushed the snake in and out a couple of times to see if I felt something. I also took the vent cap off all the way to make sure a vacuum wasn't the source of my issues.

Since it is not clearing with any simple method, my plan is to have it fixed under warranty after we get back from this trip. I was just hoping someone might jump in here with a suggestion I haven't thought about (you know, the 'not seeing the forest for the trees problem'...).

[CedarCreekWoody]

I know this sounds unlikely but some people with new campers have found there is a drain valve, or even a grey water tank they were not aware of and the tank is full.

[nomad297]

Originally Posted by CedarCreekWoody

I know this sounds unlikely but some people with new campers have found there is a drain valve, or even a grey water tank they were not aware of and the tank is full.

That doesn’t sound unlikely at all, considering the Sandpiper 372LOK boasts a 134 gallon gray water capacity in its specifications.

Bruce

[nomad297]

Maybe this old thread will help:

http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...ve-136896.html

Bruce

[charbaugh]

Originally Posted by nomad297

Maybe this old thread will help:

http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...ve-136896.html

Bruce

Winner!!
So, I knew I had 2 grey tanks from my walk through at the dealer. There is indeed a 3rd grey tank with a tactfully hidden valve way up underneath the skirting, and not in the vicinity of either other valves. I feel like an idiot! That means I've been pulling a bunch of extra weight I didn't need to be pulling.

Thank you guys for the input!

[Iwannacamp]

Originally Posted by CedarCreekWoody

I know this sounds unlikely but some people with new campers have found there is a drain valve, or even a grey water tank they were not aware of and the tank is full.

Originally Posted by nomad297

That doesn’t sound unlikely at all, considering the Sandpiper 372LOK boasts a 134 gallon gray water capacity in its specifications.

Bruce

X3 I have hear of this...

Another idea if you think you have a clog. Get your least favorite shop vac and vacuum the drain temporarly.

[nomad297]

Originally Posted by charbaugh

I feel like an idiot!

Don’t feel like an idiot. If you were an idiot, you wouldn’t have come here to get answers for something you couldn’t work out and you would have made an unnecessary trip to your dealer...carrying excess weight.

Bruce

[Larry-NC]

Originally Posted by nomad297

Considering that you have only used your new RV a couple of times, I wouldn’t expect your stoppage to be due to any type of organic matter. If you aren’t going to have the dealer fix it under warranty, you should start looking for some type of foreign object that got into the pipe during construction. Wait long enough for any water to drain from the pipe, then rent a small drain camera with a cable long enough to make it from your sink/s to the tank. You have to wait for the water to drain because you can’t see much, if anything, with the camera when there is water in the pipe.

Bruce

Why rent when you can buy one this cheaply?
https://www.ebay.com/itm/6LED-2-in-1...%21-1&LH_BIN=1

Larry

[Lineman53]

I'm having the same issue.. I have two gray tank valves one next to the black and by the water port on the drivers side and a 2nd in the rear maybe 5 feet in on the driver side. Where is the 3rd tank at? Help




[/B][/I][/B]QUOTE=charbaugh;2123148]Winner!!
So, I knew I had 2 grey tanks from my walk through at the dealer. There is indeed a 3rd grey tank with a tactfully hidden valve way up underneath the skirting, and not in the vicinity of either other valves. I feel like an idiot! That means I've been pulling a bunch of extra weight I didn't need to be pulling.

Thank you guys for the input![/QUOTE]

[Lineman53]

I'm having the same issue. I know there are two values one by the black and next to the water hook up and one in the rear on the driver side about 5 feet in.. where is the 3rd valve? Our kitchen sink is full.

[Txtroop]

This thread just saved me a lot of heartache with the linked thread and all about the hidden valve handle under the slide out. And now I know not to snake it as well. I’ve been trying everything I could think of but I bought my trailer used and never would’ve thought they would’ve hidden another handle under the sldieout