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Old 09-05-2017, 10:43 AM   #1
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2018 Pursuit 31SB Toilet Problems

Hi all -

New to the forums (and motorhome ownership, as of July, 2017).

We dove right in on our first motorhome and purchased a 2018 Pursuit 31SB. And while we have enjoyed our new "lifestyle", we have unfortunately had to deal with issues with the toilet/black water tank.

We continually get blocked up, no matter how "delicately" we use the toilet. We have used Camco for RV and the Scott single ply for paper. I have been able to "free" the clogs using a flexible coat hanger or a flexible wand, and a plunger. On our previous trip, I back-filled the tank 12 times, having had two "clear" dumps in a row. Through this I have come to believe that it is just a flawed design. I know that there is at least one 90 bend and I am guessing that it may be two, rather than a straight shot to the tank.

Curious to know if anyone else has had similar issues with a newer Coachmen?
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Old 09-05-2017, 09:53 PM   #2
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When doing #2, we fill the bowl with clear water twice and flush it when we are done. The best thing to avoid problems with the black tank is lots of water.
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Old 09-06-2017, 03:07 PM   #3
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My wife's and I have a 2017 Pursuit 30FW. We also experienced the backing up problem with toilet paper, which happened to us twice on week long trips. Both times I had to plunge the toilet to free the obstruction. Ours also has the sharp bend, which is basically where the obstruction was happening.

We have always used RV tissue, and even that was not dissolving quickly enough. Furthermore, we are religious about going to the bath house for #2. We were told by the dealer who sold the RV to us that the tissue would need to be wetter than it was to dissolve, which is a problem as the tank is quite small, especially compared to our previous Montana fifth wheel where we NEVER had such problems. My wife has since bought a small trash receptacle with a lid, which is where any tissue now goes. That appears to be working as there have been no further problems.
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Old 09-07-2017, 12:32 PM   #4
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Thanks for the responses!

Frustrating that there would be such a design flaw. I am attempting to get the plumbing schematics just to confirm. It would seem that a few simple mods to the floor plan of the bathroom would allow a "straight shot". Lesson Learned to be sure!
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Old 09-07-2017, 01:17 PM   #5
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Not sure on yours, but our toilet is on the curb side of the coach, while the tank is on the other side, so the angle is understandable from that viewpoint. Ours is also complicated by the full wall slide on the road side, so no toilet could be on that side to afford a direct drop to the tank. That is how our Montana was situated, so, like I indicated earlier, we never had any problems with clogs. That said, the tank on the fifth wheel was always slow to drain, while this tank empties in a blink of an eye. Some trade off, but that is the nature of RVs I suppose.
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Old 09-07-2017, 02:45 PM   #6
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Yes - We seriously considered the 30FW (really liked the outdoor kitchen), but decided to go with the 31SB as it had the King Bed (and ... well ... our Brussels and Boxer end up in there ...) - same positioning with the bathroom though ...

The other issue is that all of that plumbing is boxed up ... even underneath ...
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Old 09-07-2017, 04:24 PM   #7
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Thumbs down

Quote:
Originally Posted by CousinEddie View Post
Hi all -

New to the forums (and motorhome ownership, as of July, 2017).

We dove right in on our first motorhome and purchased a 2018 Pursuit 31SB. And while we have enjoyed our new "lifestyle", we have unfortunately had to deal with issues with the toilet/black water tank.

We continually get blocked up, no matter how "delicately" we use the toilet. We have used Camco for RV and the Scott single ply for paper. I have been able to "free" the clogs using a flexible coat hanger or a flexible wand, and a plunger. On our previous trip, I back-filled the tank 12 times, having had two "clear" dumps in a row. Through this I have come to believe that it is just a flawed design. I know that there is at least one 90 bend and I am guessing that it may be two, rather than a straight shot to the tank.

Curious to know if anyone else has had similar issues with a newer Coachmen?
CousineEddie

We have a new (2018) 30FW. Same problem. I believe there is a design problem. There are two 90 deg elbows along with a long run of abs pipe. The "fall" or drop over its length is insufficient to carry the effluance from the toilet to the holding tank. Other than pure liquid you will experience frustration with the system. The small diameter of the drain pipe doesnt help either!
Not sure if there is a simple solution. We are looking at a mascerator toilet to solve the problem. Why they did not put the holding tank directly under the toilet (prefered practice) is beyond me. I would expect all owners are experiencing this problem. I believe the 31SB has the same layout.

I have not contacted the plant and i cannot rely on the dealer to help other than sympathize with our problem...... Grrrrrrr.

Bottom line? -- Crappy design--

Bob
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Old 10-14-2017, 01:50 PM   #8
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+1 on toilet situation with Pursuit 30fw

We have the same issue, and the solution is lots of water in bowl, make sure the paper is fully soaked before flush, and keep the plunger handy because neither of the previous two work all the time. i was told by my dealer that there was a black tank cleanout wand arrangement, which of course there was not, so I decided to install a campco tornado in the black tank shortly after we purchased. When I went to put it in, i realized the tank depth on the curb side looked to be no more than a couple inches, and that is the side the toilet drops into. You can see both tanks on the curb side inside the main storage area under the outdoor tv. The bulk of the tank capacity is on the opposite side. To take matters worse, on my unit, the toilet does not drop down directly into the tank, but via a "slide" going forward, limiting the flow even more. The good news, is the plunger is very effective at moving the blockage into the main part of the tank, and the tornado mounted on the toilet side of the tank is a direct hit for the point where the toilet drop meets the tank, it clears a clog easily. Bottom line a very poorly designed toilet/tank combination.
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Old 12-13-2018, 08:51 PM   #9
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Coachman Class A toilet clogging

Have a friend that experienced the toilet clogging almost every flush.
With much research and complaining he identified the problem as being the toilet was located right over a chassi cross beam . There apparently was not enough room to install a 90 degree pipe ( to clear the beam ) between the toilet and the tank without elevating the toilet so The tank was fabricated with a shallow extension that goes horizontal and fits flat between the beam and underside of the toilet. The result was that a flush dumped onto the flat bottomed extension of the tank and sat there . He got the problem resolved by having a separate flush line installed into the side of the flat extension to push the waste over where it drops into the main tank . Yikes !
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Old 01-11-2019, 11:12 PM   #10
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We purchased a coachmen pursuit 31sb and had the same toilet flushing problem and found out that it was a common problem and coachmen installed a new macerating toilet under warranty for free. We no longer have problems with our holding tank. I even asked them to put a tank flush in and the did that too at no cost.
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Old 03-22-2019, 06:48 PM   #11
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Toilet plugs up

Coachmen Pursuit 29SS Second day very first trip. I had to find a campground maintenance person and borrow a plunger. Third day plunger again. Fourth day my neighbor bought me a souvenir plunger from the Florida gulf coast. After numerous complaints, it was decided by Tim Buss, the Coachmen customer service rep that we needed a macerator toilet. We took it in for the installation and they could not install it because the bathroom lower cabinet doors would not open. They installed it on the second trip. It has been working perfectly ever since. The unit was still under warranty so the replacement was covered. It's my understanding that the holding tank just below the toilet is tapered and the waste would build up there.
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Old 03-22-2019, 07:33 PM   #12
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This issue comes up all the time and most of the time it is operator error. NOT ENOUGHT WATER. The toilet works no different than the one at home. The bowl must be full or water just like at home. Poo floats and water moves it along. There is no conserving water when it comes to the toilet. I haven't seen any 90 degree turns from the toilet to the tank. 2 45's yes but no 90's but I'm sure there are some. When the tank emptied, you must put at least 5 gal of water back in. if you don't you will build a poo pyramid in the bottom. Putting the paper in a trashcan is just wrong! Any type paper will work. We use WM single ply.
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Old 04-19-2019, 02:13 PM   #13
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Macerator toilet model??

Quote:
Originally Posted by DaveandChris View Post
We purchased a coachmen pursuit 31sb and had the same toilet flushing problem and found out that it was a common problem and coachmen installed a new macerating toilet under warranty for free. We no longer have problems with our holding tank. I even asked them to put a tank flush in and the did that too at no cost.
Would you mind sharing which make and model macerator toilet they installed?? Would like to add that to my upgrade list.

TIA

Scott
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Old 04-19-2019, 04:50 PM   #14
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Holland Rv in San Marcos California installed a Thetford TECMA east fit premium plus toilet. We had heard from someone else that Coachmen would replace the toilet if asked, Coachmen knows that there was problem with the tank design. I did take over a month to get it installed but it was definitely worth it. It never plugs anymore and is much easier to clean.. Make sure you ask them to install a flush kit or else there is no way to clean the tank. they did that at no charge also. The toilet is a little smaller but I can live with that. Good Luck, I know how difficult working with the RV dealers can be..
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Old 05-02-2019, 05:04 PM   #15
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Toilet flush

Quote:
Originally Posted by CousinEddie View Post
Hi all -

New to the forums (and motorhome ownership, as of July, 2017).

We dove right in on our first motorhome and purchased a 2018 Pursuit 31SB. And while we have enjoyed our new "lifestyle", we have unfortunately had to deal with issues with the toilet/black water tank.

We continually get blocked up, no matter how "delicately" we use the toilet. We have used Camco for RV and the Scott single ply for paper. I have been able to "free" the clogs using a flexible coat hanger or a flexible wand, and a plunger. On our previous trip, I back-filled the tank 12 times, having had two "clear" dumps in a row. Through this I have come to believe that it is just a flawed design. I know that there is at least one 90 bend and I am guessing that it may be two, rather than a straight shot to the tank.

Curious to know if anyone else has had similar issues with a newer Coachmen?
I had the same problem with a 2017 Pursuit 30FW.
I think toilet paper if not completely flushed dries in pipe and sets up a blockage. We ran repeatedly a lot of hot water in a container from the bathroom sink. Eventually the blockage subsided with the help of a flexible short sewer snake. Problem solved. Good luck
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Old 05-07-2019, 10:28 AM   #16
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So the problem really wasn't solved. you just unclogged the problem. The tank design is the problem.
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Old 05-07-2019, 02:14 PM   #17
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Clogged toilet drain

Dave and Chris
Talked to customer service in Tucson and San Diego and they said it is a design problem by the manufacturer. They were no help at all. The rep from Forest river never returned my multiple requests for help on two different problems?
Gave up on any help from them and bought snake to correct issue at the time. That worked fine. Also bought a flexible flush stick, but haven't had to use it yet.
Bytesponge
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Old 05-07-2019, 07:08 PM   #18
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That's sad to hear. My dealer told me that they had installed one before mine and that coachmen was installing macerating toilets to fix the problem on request and they didn't seem to have a problem installing mine under warranty. I haven't had it clog since and the holding tank is a breeze to clean. they did have to install the flush kit on the cleanout side of the tank due to the fact that the tank was so thin across the frame of the RV but it seems to work.
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Old 05-28-2019, 12:28 PM   #19
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Dave and Chris, excited to read your post. We just purchased a 2016 30fw Pursuit with platinum extended warranty. hank you for the info. I wondered how I was going to get them to fix this after all the horrible stories I have read about people's experiences with this stupid design. So glad to hear there is an answer! Can hardly believe they would have such a design flaw on something as crucial as the toilet! Love the "new to us" rig and will be fighting for a toilet upgrade!
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Old 07-15-2019, 03:20 PM   #20
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Thetford premium plus install

Quote:
Originally Posted by DaveandChris View Post
Holland Rv in San Marcos California installed a Thetford TECMA east fit premium plus toilet. We had heard from someone else that Coachmen would replace the toilet if asked, Coachmen knows that there was problem with the tank design. I did take over a month to get it installed but it was definitely worth it. It never plugs anymore and is much easier to clean.. Make sure you ask them to install a flush kit or else there is no way to clean the tank. they did that at no charge also. The toilet is a little smaller but I can live with that. Good Luck, I know how difficult working with the RV dealers can be..
Don’t mean to hijack the thread, but I have a specific question. Did Holland RV tell you how they hooked up power for the premium plus toilet?? I have mine going in tomorrow (camping world next door, Holland wouldn’t talk to me because I didn’t buy from them) for install and I looked at the specs from Thetford website, they recommend a 10 gauge 12v line with a 30 amp fuse for this thing! I don’t think there is a single 12volt circuit in the RV that big! I assumed this thing had a macerating pump in it, not an industrial grade wood chipper! The only thing I can think of is to run straight off of the batteries with romex and the 30amp fuse in line. Any insight you can give would be appreciated.

Scott
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