ATF: Cyclone - Kitchen sink

[Jim_Mary_Lou]

The kitchen sink in my NEW 3800 has been working fine but suddenly stopped up. Plumbers friend was no use.

 

[cookie]

Silly question,but did you drain the gray tank.
When the water fails to drain on ours, I know its's time to dump the tank.

Peace
Dave

 

[Bob&Patty]

I agree with Dave. The gray tanks fill up quickly when washing dishes. Some people will leave the gray tanks open while camping. I don't for this reason. If the tanks are always empty, then all the creeping crud will stick to bottom of the tanks. We use the GOE method in all OUR tanks, Borax and Dawn dish washing soap. Some people use Calgon and Dawn. We always leave 5-6 gals of water in ALL the tanks while traveling with the Borax and Dawn. Either way you are not buying the blue stuff. We never have a smell and the tanks drain clean. BTW, do you have a "clear plastic" adapter on your drain hose so you can see if the BLACK is flushed out clean?

 

[TXTiger]

I have tried to buy Calgon but haven't been able to find it in. Looked at WalMart, Home Depot, etc. Would like to try the GEO way and leave the blue stuff behind.

 

[Tool958]

I have tried to buy Calgon but haven't been able to find it in. Looked at WalMart, Home Depot, etc. Would like to try the GEO way and leave the blue stuff behind.

The Calgon we found at Walmart was a liquid. So far we've found it at every one we've been in. I also did a search and found powdered on Amazon fairly cheap. Ordered some and we're stocked up for a while. We've been using the GEO method for a while and really like it. It works just like it's advertised to.

 

[Jim_Mary_Lou]

We went from my sink will not drain to where can we buy Calgon????? The 4 drain valves are open.

 

[Jim_Mary_Lou]

If the vent pipe is clogged will the sink stop draining?

 

[Tool958]

We went from my sink will not drain to where can we buy Calgon????? The 4 drain valves are open.

What do you mean by the 4 drain valves are open? Are you leaving them open while in use or do you mean they are clear? The idea behind mentioning the GEO method is to use it to keep your drains clear and not plug up. Not a real nice way to reply for someone wanting help. We are all willing to try to help solve a problem. Your original post did not give much information to even begin to figure out where the problem is. As to the question about the vent pipe, it will still drain but will be slow. It's doubtful it's plugged. It's more than likely if the pipe is plugged, it's in the trap under the sink. The trap may have to be taken loose to be cleared.

 

[Jim_Mary_Lou]

Sorry did not mean to be rude. All four drain valves are open when i am in the RV. We have used the sink on several outings with no problems. A clogged drain will generally drain slowly, this on does not drain period. Is there a 3rd grey water drain valve? P trap was removed and clear.

 

[Jim_Mary_Lou]

I am truly sorry about your loss. My oldest was in Desert Storm but came home. My wife and I ride Harley's 2008 Road King.

 

[cookie]

I'm not sure exactly what you have going on but...........if you leave all of your valves open while you are using the camper you may have created a bigger problem.
You cannot leave the black tank valves open. If you do, there is not enough force of water to move things out of the tank or pipes.
If you are doing what I think you are it may be that having the black tank open created a clog in the pipes.
Have you been leaving all the drain valves open?

Peace
Dave

 

[Bksvo]

There are only 2 grey tanks in the 3800. It may be possible that your valve is still closed, if the cable became disconnected. I would try to move it and try to feel if it feels freer than the other tank.

I wouldn't recommend leaving the valves open all the time. That leaves an open path for sewer gas to get into the rig. Also, solid waste will tend to stay in the bottom of the black tanks and build up until you have a real problem. You need to have a lot of liquid in the black tanks when you drain them to provide the force to expel the solids.

 

[Bksvo]

Great minds think alike

 

[jbeletti]

Wondering if you have a sewer hose with a shut-off valve at the end of it. Mine is that way.

Also, if what cookie said turns out to be your case, then an item such as this might help:

Product link

You'll connect a garden hose to it to blast up into your sewer pipes/system to dislodge the clog. May be worth a shot. Use a hose other than your fresh water hose as there is likely no back flow preventer on the device.

 

[Jim_Mary_Lou]

I used to get the valves closed and drain every 2 or 3 days until a foot valve on the toilet stuck and overflowed into the coach messing up the control boards on the 2 furnaces. I have since (2001) been leaving the valves open all the time. I have some new ideas now to bounce off around. When do the factories guys get involved?

 

[Jim_Mary_Lou]

I forgot to mention that the sink and the shower in the front bathroom drain just fine, which probably means the blockage is between the sink and the holding tank.

 

[Bksvo]

I forgot to mention that the sink and the shower in the front bathroom drain just fine, which probably means the blockage is between the sink and the holding tank.

I'm pretty sure the bath is on the front gray tank, the kitchen is on the rear tank.

 

[Bksvo]

I used to get the valves closed and drain every 2 or 3 days until a foot valve on the toilet stuck and overflowed into the coach messing up the control boards on the 2 furnaces. I have since (2001) been leaving the valves open all the time. I have some new ideas now to bounce off around. When do the factories guys get involved?

We turn the water off if we leave for any length of time.

 

[Tool958]

Since you had the trap off and the rest of the system is draining, I would take the trap back off and run a sewer tape through it to see if it's actually clear to the tank. Be sure to re-install the trap before you try the next step. If it is clear, then it has to be in the drain off of the gray water tank itself. If that's the case, shut all of your drains and use the valve that jbeletti had in his post. I have one and use it all of the time just so I can see how the tanks are draining. I have had to use it once or twice to clear the black water drain. I used to use it to refill the black water tank when I was clearing it during a dump. I keep a water hose with duct tape on each end to mark it as sewer hose use only. That way I don't get it mixed up with the fresh water hoses. Since we got the Cyclone, it has the tank cleaner in it so don't have to use the sewer hose valve to add water. Just open your gray water tank drain that is plugged only. Once you hook up to it to clear the drain and open the water up, don't let it run but a second after you see it break through. Otherwise you may really have a mess in the kitchen. Good luck with it. Sounds like you are headed in the right direction. Once you get it unplugged, I would keep all of the drains closed unless dumping, especially the black water drain. That drain being open along with the rest may be what caused the clog to begin with.

 

[porthole]

I used to get the valves closed and drain every 2 or 3 days until a foot valve on the toilet stuck and overflowed into the coach messing up the control boards on the 2 furnaces.

The toilet overflowed or the valve was open and filled the black tank? Either way, unless kids were involved how was that missed by the "operator"?

I have since (2001) been leaving the valves open all the time.

Personally, take it for it is worth, you have caused your problem with this line of thinking. And you limit your options when you actually y do have a clogged or slow discharge.

When do the factories guys get involved?

There is no doubt the sewage engineers on this forum have way more experience and use of the sanitation systems then the blokes at Indy. And your best bets are going to be right here.

Every marine chemical product has a note about adding the product and then adding 5-10 gallons of water in the tank. By leaving that black valve open you will never get the benefit of the chems.

All right, time to get a "visual picture". The description has more to do with travel trailers because the bowl usually sits right on top of the black tank with a direct shot. 5th wheels, because the bowl is frequently on another level or some distance away usually involves some 3" plumbing to get to the tank.

But this thought is common to both. When you leave the black tank valve open all the time solids don't get to soften or break up with either chemical action alone or just the constant movement of the the water being flushed. So you get what we affectionately call a "s*it teepee". Get the picture? it will not drain properly and it is gross. Black tank flushing works best when the tank is nearly full. Obviously solids being heavier will be near the bottom with lots of water to help push things out.

Granted you don't have the same solids in a gray tank as you do with the black. But you do have some as well as a build of of soap scum, hair whatever.

By keeping your black and gray tanks open you can where it will be a problem. But by also keeping your gray tanks open you lose a potential plumbers aid with the black.
There have times I have noticed my black tank drain slow down sooner then I expected. Sometimes with the tank flusher running and closing the main drain for a minute or two allows enough additional water to help push out any blockages.

But I also use the buildup in gray tanks to help. Using the "flush king" valve mentioned above (highly recommend you get one), I can close off the that valve and with the black tank open then open my nearly full gray tank. This inrush of gray water rushing into the black tank helps move things around really good. Close the gray, let the black dump. I will usually do this twice, sometimes twice with both gray tanks.

OK, back to our regularly scheduled program - since you didn't ask about black tanks.

And as a side note, there have been a couple of instances where the hole was drilled in the tank for the drains and the piece was allowed to fall into the tank. That can cause some problems, but will usually still allow water to drain, albeit very slowly.

I forgot to mention that the sink and the shower in the front bathroom drain just fine, which probably means the blockage is between the sink and the holding tank.

Does your kitchen tank drain at all, even slowly? Try opening and closing the drain valve multiple time, that may help.
Are you sure that the valve is even moving when you pull the handle? Drop some screws holding the underbelly somewhere within a foot or two of where the drain valve is a and then follow the cable to the valve.
If you can get some water to drain, or you have a portable sump pump you could try filling both sink basins with water and then pull both sink drains, try and get some water movement.

I would be hesitant about using one of the "air or volume blaster" devices available at the the big box stores on an RV. And being all PVC with no where near the water flow of house hold systems I would be careful about using a snake in the pipes. Too much of a chance of damaging or scratching the pipes.

But, you could remove the roof vent over your sink area and possible see quite a ways down. Maybe use your snake there.
A less intrusive snake would one of the versions that you attach to a garden hose and use household water pressure. The I referring too has a bullet shaped end and several small jets that spin as water flows.

What ever snaking method, be aware that under your sink you have a vacuum breaker device that could fail and allow the slop to spill over under the cabinets. Get a flashlight and look up towards the back and high under the cabinet.

You could try a snake through the outlet pipe back to the tank, although you might to think that out before you try it.

Hope something here helps.

We went from my sink will not drain to where can we buy Calgon????? The 4 drain valves are open.

If any of the ideas above are helpful - then you need to go find the Calgon, do some through cleaning and maybe rethink your Sanitation device operations.