Don't walk away..

[kakampers]

Just pulled into Gettysburg Battlefield Resort and discovered we were parked next to another Bighorn...nice surprise! But what happened next wasn't...

Talking to DW while my DH was hooking up the utilities...all of sudden water starts to pour out from the belly of the neighbor's Bighorn, just about in the middle...I said, "are you flushing tanks?". She called to her DH who was across the street, who promptly ran over, and admitted, that, YES, he was flushing the black tank and walked over to talk to the other neighbor...THIRTY MINUTES EARLIER!!!!

Long story short, after checking the toilet...nothing there, checking the back flow preventer behind the shower access...nothing there, we finally started pulling down the cargo bay panels. All the while water continues to run out of the belly. Took awhile to discover that the sewer drain coming down from the toilet, angles to one side under their laundry storage area, then disappears down thru the cargo floor into the belly. Looked closely and discovered that right at the top of the 45 degree bend, where it connects to the straight drain...apparently from allowing the tank to fill beyond capacity, basically pressurizing it, the water had sought the weakest point and has been spewing water out at that connection and then running down into the belly.

Worst part, this has been going on awhile, as he admitted he quite often forgot it and let it run for fifteen minutes or more...The up side, according to DW...they finally know where the sewer smell has been coming from for close to A YEAR!!! I guess this is the first time he let it run long enough for water to actually pour out...Oh, My!!

Can't believe they got this lucky...virtually no damage, other than some wet reflectix in the belly...should be fine now that it's drained and can finally dry out!!

Lesson learned...DO NOT WALK AWAY WHEN FLUSHING YOUR TANK!! Or at least, leave the valve open....JMHO...

 

[dieselsweetheart]

Those folks were LUCKY to have you guys as neighbors!!!! Oh my gosh what a mess!!! Yes that is a lesson learned..... BTW, are they members? If not, they should be NOW knowing the goodness of other Heartland owners!!!!

 

[Geodude]

That must be why there's a sticker in mine saying not to run the rinser without the valve open. Still, I bet more people get caught or near-caught on this trick at least once!

 

[jbeletti]

Good story to share Kathy. I almost think this is one of those "only a matter of when, not if" things. Been there - done that. Not in a long time though. Do not allow yourself to become distracted when flushing your holding tank while the tank valve is closed.

Jim

 

[noobee]

Been there... did that! The GOOD NEWS was that it was towards the end of the flushing cycle so the water was fairly clean.... The BAD NEWS was the water leaked down from the toilet bowl & ruined the converter.

CS

 

[kakampers]

Hopefully we've seen it happen to others enough times, we have engrained it into our heads..."don't walk away..." Along with seeing so many "dropped on trucks", hopefully that's something else we also will never do....here's keeping our fingers crossed!!

 

[Ray LeTourneau]

Way to go good neighbor! Like a few others, been there done that, once...

 

[davebennington]

I did not walk away but I did get distracted by someone who came up to talk while I was flushing the black tank. I did not realize anything was wrong until the DW started shouting that there was brown water cascading down the stairs, Most embarrassing. We laugh about it now but not then.

I no longer talk and try to flush the black tank anymore.

dave

 

[dprince99]

Where is the Black water tank valve???

 

[jdfishing]

That's exactly why I prefer not to become involved in a discussion with a "friendly neighbor" when I'm setting up or taking down. I don't know how many times someone has come over to "talk" when I'm going through my mental checklist, after he's been parked next to me for a week and barely said two words. There are many things that can go wrong in a hurry, as we all know, as we prepare our rigs for travel. And those things can be very costly.

 

[Sandie]

That's exactly why I prefer not to become involved in a discussion with a "friendly neighbor" when I'm setting up or taking down. I don't know how many times someone has come over to "talk" when I'm going through my mental checklist, after he's been parked next to me for a week and barely said two words. There are many things that can go wrong in a hurry, as we all know, as we prepare our rigs for travel. And those things can be very costly.

I couldn't agree more...

 

[boatto5er]

Where is the Black water tank valve???

You know, the T-handle in the UDC you pull to drain the tank.

 

[traveler44]

I have never had that happen but I have ran the tank wash with the handle closed for a few minutes after the tank failed to drain completely, to try to loosen a build up. I found that what works best is to start draining with the tank wash turned on and the valve open. If that doesn't get it, and after letting it drain for awhile, I dump buckets of water down the toilet then use the tank wash again. If you have a clear fitting on your drain you will see it clear out this way. A neat trick I learned was to open the grey water valve and let some grey water run through the first time you dump to check the slinky and your fittings before you run the stinky stuff through. Tom

 

[donr827]

That's exactly why I prefer not to become involved in a discussion with a "friendly neighbor" when I'm setting up or taking down. I don't know how many times someone has come over to "talk" when I'm going through my mental checklist, after he's been parked next to me for a week and barely said two words. There are many things that can go wrong in a hurry, as we all know, as we prepare our rigs for travel. And those things can be very costly.

X2. I do not set up or take down while someone is around and wants to talk.
Don

 

[JohnDar]

If you invest in one of these adapters, you won't have much trouble knocking log jams out of the black tank. Back fills the tank faster than the flusher and moves anything stuck at the valve. No need to haul buckets into the rig.

View attachment 17594

 

[traveler44]

I don't haul buckets into the rig I set one bucket in the kitchen sink and turn the water on and then go into the bathroom and hold my foot part way down on the foot pedal until the bowl is nearly full. I go get the bucket from the kitchen and flush the water down the bowl. Then I hold the bucket up about waist high so I get good splash pressure and dump it straight down the open hole. You can see how this directs water to the problem area because that is where the solids go when you flush normally. As soon as I go back outside I turn the tank flush on and I can see the coffee colored stuff come out. I have a back wash adapter too but this works very well for loosening up the deadly pyramid in my case. I don't mind the extra work it takes to empty the tank completely as a matter of fact I think I am becoming quite a flushologist.

 

[JohnDar]

If you're building a pyramid down there, maybe you need to add more water after you dump. My technique after dumping and flushing is to add 5 gallons of water into the closed tank via the black tank flush (I can regulate the amount with my water meter). Then I dump another 2 gallon bucket in via the toilet that has a cup of Calgon dissolved in it. When we use the "facility," we flush with plenty of water. Easier to dump more often than risk invoking the Pharoah's Curse down there.

 

[PeternLiane]

If you invest in one of these adapters, you won't have much trouble knocking log jams out of the black tank. Back fills the tank faster than the flusher and moves anything stuck at the valve. No need to haul buckets into the rig.

View attachment 17594

The Flush King its a wonderful thing. I've used mine for two years now. I use it at the dump station and when we're on full hook ups too. It really works and has cut down on the time taking to dump. I think that its a must have. They are well with the money.

 

[danemayer]

JohnDar, I notice in your picture that you have an external gate valve attached after the flush king. I'm guessing you close that valve when pumping water through the flush king so the water backs up into the black tank, moving the clog.

 

[JohnDar]

JohnDar, I notice in your picture that you have an external gate valve attached after the flush king. I'm guessing you close that valve when pumping water through the flush king so the water backs up into the black tank, moving the clog.

Dan, that is correct. And you'll know right away if you left the tank valve closed when you start pumping water since it will pressurize and spray out of the connection. Don't have your face close to the fitting to view the action. DAMHIKT. Unless we need to move the rig, the fittings and sewer hose stays attached all summer. I keep a length of old brown garden hose in a tote with spare fittings for backflushing. A gated wye on the pedestal with backflow preventer is also the rest of the set-up.