Black Water Tank Valve Sealing (Landmark)

Does anyone have any ideas on how to make sure the black water tank valve shuts/seals completely. I empty the tank completely before we move, however I can feel and tell the valve does not completely seal. When we arrive, wherever, I have to crack open the cap and allow, yucky goo...to empty before taking the cap completely off. I have looked behind the storage wall and the line just flexes to much from what I can tell. I can not get to the valve from that side either. Any ideas?

I suggest taking the easy route. Get a Valterra twist on valve.
Around $25, twist it on and leave it on.


Peace
Dave

The twist on valve is a great fix. Then there is no hurry to spend the time and money fixing the internal (in the underbelly) valve.


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Twist on valve was the first thing I bought for mine after I got the infamous "poop shower" the first time I dumped. It should be standard equipment on a trailer from the factory. I will never be without it....Don

busted2341...

Agree with the twist on valve. I would also consider getting your issue diagnosed and addressed while under warranty. My parent's Landmark (2015) had a similar issue as you described (gate would not completely open or close). It progressively got worse. Then one day, the black tank gate valve stopped working (while mostly shut).... and the the black tank was full!!! The issue turned out to be the cable that actuates the gate valve was too long and did not allow positive engagement (opening or closing).

Jay

X6 on the gate valve. Toilet paper can keep the valve open. That is why you need to flush the tank many times when you dump.

I have the twist on value as well, more of a safety value than anything else. Three tanks dumping into that single three inch pipe and you want to have no leaks from any of those tanks. That could be quite a mess.

There is a proper way to fix your existing valves that doesn't require an external valve hanging out in the way. Easily done in a day. When your finished you can open and close the valve with one finger and no leaks. If you interested in fixing it, instead of jury rigging, Pm me and I'll send you the write up.

Our first year I had a pretty bad leak from the black tank gate valve. When I spoke with the dealer warranty coordinator, she explained that is very often caused by closing the gate valve while there's waste material lying across the valve opening. The material gets jammed into the valve slide track preventing it from closing fully. She added that until they took the valve apart to determine what was wrong, they couldn't tell me who would be paying to fix it.

Soooo, I spent a lot of time flushing and cleaning to try and fix the problem. Then I took it to the dealer and they determined that the small remaining leakage was a defective valve assembly, covered under warranty.

JanAndBill said:

There is a proper way to fix your existing valves that doesn't require an external valve hanging out in the way. Easily done in a day. When your finished you can open and close the valve with one finger and no leaks. If you interested in fixing it, instead of jury rigging, Pm me and I'll send you the write up.

Click to expand...

Rather than doing the PM bit, why not post the answer here? This isn't an unusual issue and since Heartland does not use the old standard straight gate valve, it's pricey to replace them.

I use the twist on last gasp valve and it works great. Only problem is I have to dump every couple of days because the grey tank fills up much faster than the grey does. No amount of flushing the black tank has been able to solve the leaky black tank valve in over 2 months.

OldTanker said:

Rather than doing the PM bit, why not post the answer here? This isn't an unusual issue and since Heartland does not use the old standard straight gate valve, it's pricey to replace them.

I use the twist on last gasp valve and it works great. Only problem is I have to dump every couple of days because the grey tank fills up much faster than the grey does. No amount of flushing the black tank has been able to solve the leaky black tank valve in over 2 months.

Click to expand...

Already posted in other threads, just thought it would be easier for those interested. View attachment Maintaining And Adjusting Cable Operated Tank Valves BH 3260EL.pdf

Great write up, thank you

OldTanker said:

Rather than doing the PM bit, why not post the answer here? This isn't an unusual issue and since Heartland does not use the old standard straight gate valve, it's pricey to replace them.

I use the twist on last gasp valve and it works great. Only problem is I have to dump every couple of days because the grey tank fills up much faster than the grey does. No amount of flushing the black tank has been able to solve the leaky black tank valve in over 2 months.

Click to expand...

After installing the Valterra external valve, I have tried working the black tank valve repeatedly AS I dump and flush the black tank to try to possibly eject any "stuff" IN the black tank valve. I follow that up with a treatment of the Camco valve lubricant (coconut oil) and even work the valve quickly with that in the tank while dumping the other grey tanks. I think the valve is now better, but not perfect. But with the Valterra external valve in place I can keep working with the black tank valve as long as I want to.

BTW, the Camco valve lubricant is heavier than water - you can see this when you put it in a toilet bowl full of water.

Just reading several posts about black tank issues, seems like there are several, i started a thread 5 months after we bought our Gateway myself, i was having, still are having trouble with my black tank valave not closing, or leaking when closed, i noticed it first when we were staying in sub zero temps out of necessity, not because we wanted to, anyway, since then,Feb of 2014, i have had trouble on and off, now all the time, i hve tried everything, including having the dealership look at the problem, all to no avail, using calgon and detergent, regular tank deodorizers, lubricateing cables, nothing works. I had to install an extra valve on the end of the sewer line just so i don't get a suprise shower when removing the cap to install the sewer hose.
We recently sold our home so are staying in the fw until we close on our new home next month, so, i flush the tank daily, using the external hose hookup and running a hose down the toilet, i can get the tank to drain with no problem but the valve will not close at all, i can flush the tank with it closed, solids and waste will drain, the bad deal, with the external valve shut, waste backs up and into the drain pipes for the 2 grey tanks, now my galley tank will not drain completly, shows a quarter tank all the time, i have run the calgon and soap down that tank as well as the bathroom grey tank, it works fine, just the other 2 giving me trouble. If i could find a diagram of tank locatoons i would cut the ccoroplast and check the valves and cables, one thing i forgot to mention is the black tank cable has a grinding feel when opening or closing and is very hard to open, it takes all i hve to pull the handle out and close.
Since my warrenty is way past the experiation date and the dealership said they couldn't find any problems it is on me to try and fix, along with a few other things they couldn't repair or didn't want to. If anyone has a diagram of tank locations for a Gateway 3500RE, please let me know.
Thanks