Anyone know what to do with black macerator hose

[tdemeyer1]

I have no idea on our 2018 Dynamax DX3 what to do with this black hose. I just know it fills up with the black tank, no switch, and has to be dumped along with the regular septic tank dumping or it smells in that compartment. What is is for? Just a pain in the neck to me?

[rskeans]

I don't fully understand the situation.
The black hose is just like a sewer hose. Keep your dump valves closed all of the time. It should not fill up with the black tank unless you have an open dump valve.
When you black tank is full insert the black hose fitting into the RV park dump. Make sure that the gray water tank is at least 1/4 full. Locate the pump switch on the right side of the sewer compartment. Pull the black water valve and turn on the switch starting the motor. Let the black tank empty. Then use the black tank fllush system to rinse the inside of the black tank. Run water in there for several minutes. Then pull the valve for the gray water to flush out the sewer hose.
Look for somebody at the RV park to help you.

[tdemeyer1]

Well the main hose to dump (orange just for reference) is for both black and grey tanks. The black hose is very small, maybe 2" and short, wouldn't reach to most connections. I also don't see any switch on the wall. If I pull the black handle it will dump the whole black tank. The small black hose is just there with an end to put into a sewer connection but again so short and small what good is it?

[rskeans]

I've never had a connection that I couldn't reach. The hose does stretch.
I'm not near my rig at the moment, but if I recall correctly there are two switches on the right panel. one is a light switch, the other is the macerator switch. Maybe some other member can take a photo and attach it to this thread.

[hook47]

That small hose is the primary dump hose. If you open either dump valve it will fill up. You now have a mess on your hands because to empty the small hose you have to take the screw on cap off.
The way it should work is you take the big cap off and place the end of the hose in the RV Parks dump hole, secure it and then if you want you can leave the gray tank open and the grey water will empty as you use water. When it is time to dump the black tank, open the valve and turn on the macerator pump; it will be a black rocker switch on the panel that has the monitor panel and valves for low water drain. Once you turn on the macerator pump the small black hose will look like a snake squirming around and it lengthens, too. As soon as you hear the pump spin without any resistance, turn it off. You are empty and don't want to overheat the pump. With valve closed, I lift the small hose to drain out what is left and then cap the end and stow away.
This is the method I use for our DX3. Other's may not like leaving the grey tank open, but in decades of RV'ing and more than a dozen RVs I've never had a problem.
Might also check the documentation/owner's manuals for more precise info.

[caseymyers]

Post some photos?

[dlfishing]

Why use a macerator to begin with? That hose would need to be flushed out as well. I’ve never had one so please enlighten me.

[LegacyFB38]

Originally Posted by dlfishing

Why use a macerator to begin with? That hose would need to be flushed out as well. I’ve never had one so please enlighten me.

If at a location where the 3" stinky-slinky can be used it would be preferable over the macerator.

If the waste needs to be pumped up, or over a long distance, the macerator would be the best/only choice.

[FOURWHL]

Black hose is your dump hose. It’ll expand to like 3x in length when pressurized. Don’t be afraid to stretch it to get it where it needs to go. Also 2” is plenty when putting it under pressure.

As to why use macerator, I do it because it’s so fast. Definitely faster than a gravity drain. I don’t bother flushing it because you can just throw the cap on and it stays water tight. Other than flushing with the grey that is.

I find the whole process way cleaner/contained than using a traditional drain. So much so that I have yet to hook up my rhino hose.

[KRedburn]

What FOURWHL said.

Personally I hold all water/sewage till tanks are near full then dump.
I also run the macerator during the grey water dump to clean out the pump. After the grey dump leave the valve open to help drain the 2" black hose out before capping and stowing then close the valve.

[bclemens]

I'm more confused after reading this thread.

I wil say, I ran into a customer in Tampa who owned a Sprinter. They had just traded in on a DX3 and made the trip from Wisconsin. Good thing they didn't "use it use it"...cause he had no idea what the macerator was. He was asking me where the dump hose was and I pointed to the 2" gray hose. I said, that's it. Put it in like you normally would and hit this switch. Then he asked how to put water in it, how the heater worked and.....wait "did you steal this in the middle of the night?". Older guy...glad we met because I don't think they had any idea what they just bought.

[FOURWHL]

Originally Posted by KRedburn

After the grey dump leave the valve open to help drain the 2" black hose out before capping and stowing then close the valve.

Heh this is a constant battle between more grey leaking out and sealing things so well that the hose won’t drain. I usually end up closing the valves then go through picking the hose up and jiggling it. Eventually the vacuum will break and it’ll drain. Always amazes me though how long it holds.

[hook47]

is this is this age discrimination from on high? And just exactly what is older? I know that as I've gained age I have gained wisdom except I just never can find it when I need it!

[RV Randy]

Its all sort of been answered already, but the reason for a macerator is it grinds up any solids and then it pumps out the contents under pressure. The larger hose everyone is accustomed to is a simple gravity drain that lets everything just pass through.

Either way works at most RV dump sites. The benefit of the macerator is you can hook it to a smaller hose that can then be run a much larger distance to where you are dumping, and since it provides some pressure it doesn't have to be 100% downhill.

Example - If you have an access port at your house for either sewer or septic tank, you may not be able to get the rig close enough to it to use the larger gravity drain hookup. But you can use a smaller diameter hose (I think the fitting accepts a garden hose style connector) due to the macerator and pump out to your sewer/septic.

[bclemens]

Originally Posted by hook47

is this is this age discrimination from on high? And just exactly what is older? I know that as I've gained age I have gained wisdom except I just never can find it when I need it!

I'm talking late 80's. Possibly early 90's.

[tdemeyer1]

Originally Posted by dlfishing

Why use a macerator to begin with? That hose would need to be flushed out as well. I’ve never had one so please enlighten me.

That is my thought exactly, why use it, and there is no way to completely rinse it out. We empty the grey tank last and it rinses it out pretty good but if you open the black tank and it swirls around like a snake, well that seems like an accident waiting to happen. I've thought about capping it off completely but then it would stink for the short tube that was left.

[bclemens]

Sani-Con® | Products | Thetford

They have a video and I'm sure you can find a lot more videos on the benefits of a sani-con system. Most high end units will have them as they are just faster and cleaner than a normal 3" system.

Your coach, your call...but 99% of the time, people are trying to figure how to get one on, not take it off.

[tdemeyer1]

OK, I took some pictures but don't know how to download them to send? But I think I am starting to understand all of this. My question is even if the mas hose stretches, it still is too short for our permanent lot we own so show do I extend it? Do they sell an attachment?

[tdemeyer1]

OK, here are the pictures, you can see how far it is from connection. Let me know what you think?

[rlh1957]

I cap or screw ends together of all hoses after rinsing and before stow. Even the fresh water hoses I drain out and cap the ends together to keep any seepage when stowed. Outside water filter I don't cap, but lay in a plastic bin so it can breath and seep out any water. I you don't cap off or close off any hose you might get some odors in the bin.