jimtoo
Moderator
marina5
There are several good products on the market for lubricating the valves, but you may be having problems with the cables also.
I moved your post here to the general forum, so maybe you will get some answers from the folks that actually use the trailers and valves and some good recommendations.
Jim M
There are several good products on the market for lubricating the valves, but you may be having problems with the cables also.
I moved your post here to the general forum, so maybe you will get some answers from the folks that actually use the trailers and valves and some good recommendations.
Jim M
westxsrt10
Perfict Senior Member
I'm not sure where your valves are but mine are installed near the low point of the system and accessable (where they should be). I always flush the valves with clean water, after the intitial dumping open and close the valves several times with clean water. Leave the Black Tank flush ON and sinks faucets on while operating the valves.
jpmorgan37
Well-known member
A lot depends on how you use them. We have been in this Landmark for over three years full time and don't have any problem. When we are stationary, I leave our gray water valves open except when I dump the Black water tank and then I close them. I use Calgon in the black tank each time, after I dump which definitely helps keeping it clean. When we travel, I put about 10 gals of water in each tank with a 1/4 cup of Original Dawn dish washing detergent and 1 cap full of Calgon. It helps keep the tanks clean and the valves operating smoothly.
John
John
ziggy
Retired Oregon HOC
We have found that this method rally works for us too. Clean tanks means a better trip for everyone.
jpmorgan may have something here, which we have yet to try. We have now had 3 units, including our BH, with cable actuated valves, and all have been a PITA. I dumped today and flushed for about 15 minutes before closing the valves. That was in Memphis. Got to New Orleans this afternoon and something over a cup of fluid escaped before I could get the hose in place. We have had no luck using the commercial valve lubrication chemicals. The dealer has lubed the cables on a number of times on our prior units with anything but satisfactory results. In fact, I believe lubing the cables attracts even more road grime leading to further problems. A thread either here or on RV.Net addressed the issue by using a gate valve at the end of the system. A solution posed was to replace the cable system with an electric valve system.. Not a clue what it would cost to replace and install but an intrigueing idea.
JJ
HappyKayakers
Well-known member
jpjulian,
I think this http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/item/twist-on-valve/27868 is the valve you're talking about on the end of the sewer outlet. Mine is always attached.
I think this http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/item/twist-on-valve/27868 is the valve you're talking about on the end of the sewer outlet. Mine is always attached.
westxsrt10
Perfict Senior Member
leftyf
SSG Stumpy-VA Terrorist
katkens
Founding Illinios Chapter Leader-retired
Here is a link to the Geo Method a lot of us use, thought you might be interested.....Kenny http://cbruni.googlepages.com/
Larryheadhunter
X-Rookies Still Luving it
Other than the bleach part, JimBo told me to use the GEO method and its worked for us for 13,000 miles. Probably a good idea to use bleach in fresh water tank on occaision just to be safe. If u ever have had giardia you would not take a chance.
cliffbuilt
Member
If you mean they are sticking open and leaking, my dealer suggested holding pressure against the handle for 5 to 10 seconds to allow the cable to push the valve completely closed. Since I've been doing this there's been no surprise when removing the sewer cap!
Happy Camping
Cliff
imchud
Well-known member
John,
I hope this is not to dumb of a question? Does the Calgon and Dawn libricate the water to keep the valves moving freely
And when you say Calgon, is that the stuff ones DW would use in the tub? Like "Calgon Take Me Away"
jmgratz
Original Owners Club Member
I had electric valves on our Alfa Gold and they were a pain in the ... Some times they would not turn off when closed and several times I had to replace the black valve when the motor quit. I like the manual valves much better. I can actually feel they are opening or closing. I use a spay white grease on them and so far they have worked fine. Just lube them every 6 weeks or so.
ziggy
Retired Oregon HOC
John,
I hope this is not to dumb of a question? Does the Calgon and Dawn libricate the water to keep the valves moving freely
The Calgon is the stuff you use in the laundry to soften the water so soap works better. It comes in a powder which is cheaper, but can be a little harder to find, or as a liquid. The Dawn helps as a soap and has a grease cutter in it too which is really helpful in the gray tanks.
We have zero odor when we use this system and flush the tanks really well every time we go out. We started doing this when the tanks were new so there was no residue to clean out. It might take hotter water and more time if you already have a buildup in the tanks.
Kristy
jpmorgan37
Well-known member
John,
I hope this is not to dumb of a question? Does the Calgon and Dawn libricate the water to keep the valves moving freely
I'm not sure what your DW uses in her tub but the Calgon that I refer to is a water softener. And the Dawn is the "Original" Dawn, not the pink or green or orange with all the foo foo in it. The Original seems to have a better grease cutting formula. I believe that the clean valves have much less tendency to stick than ones that are coated with various "attachments"
John
Hello all....thank you for this information. We just got back from our camping trip and I took on the dumping task. No problem there. Thanks for asking for clarification on the Calgon product as I thought it was the bath stuff too. Where to find Calgon water softner? And...does the Original Dawn Dish Detergent suds up alot?
Where would I pour the Calgon...kitchen sink drains, bathroom sink drain, or shower drain, or...okay I am still learning.
Dawn would go down the toilet.
I noticed after dumping the waste tank I was still showing 2/3 full..I figured something with the probes so I used the sani-flush (with the blue hose not the white) for might have been 15 min and the panel adjusted and showed empty. There is Tank 1 and Tank 2, I am thinking the bathroom sink and shower goes to a tank and the kitchen sink goes to the other tank?
Let's see what else could I come up with......I'll wait. Thanks.
katkens-DW
Founding Illinios Chapter Leader-retired
We have a 3055RL and we use calgon and laundry soap( surf) I put it down the toilet after Kenny is done cleaning it and I put about 10 gallons in the tank to help clean it even more. we have never had a smell of any kind. I also use bleach to clean my sink so the drains get cleaned too this is the way we do it every time we leave a campground. Hope this helps-----Kathy
-----KathySimilar threads
