Graywater into rear black tank

[mcolson84]

I was just curious if anybody else has this same problem. We have been living out of our 2014 Road Warrior 415 RW for the last 14 months. We wanted the back half bathroom for the boys to use so they would have their own. The rear black tank was filling up in just a few days, and the front black tank would last at least a week. I thought the boys were just using way to much water. Then when a leak developed from the rear tank are I opened up the belly pan to fix it. That is when I noticed that they had all the gray water, except from the shower, ran into the rear black tank. There is no second gray water tank, even though the panel shows a gauge for one. The way the gray water line was attached at the top of the tank was very poorly done! It almost looks like they forgot to put the second tank in, and then realized just before they were buttoning everything up. I was under the impression this was illegal, not to mention just thoughtless for the customer. Has anyone else had this problem?

 

[danemayer]

Here's a diagram from an RVIA publication showing a common method of combining gray and black waste water into a single tank that will be marked as a black tank.

Most larger Heartland rigs have 2 gray tanks: one for the main bathroom sink/shower and washing machine, and a second for the kitchen sink. If you have a rear shower, it probably drains to one of those gray tanks. The rear sink sounds like it drains into the rear black tank.

 

[cookie]

It's my understanding that the rear bath commode and sink both go into the same black tank. I think 45 gallon.
The kitchen will have its own gray tank, 45 gallon, the main bath sink and shower will have its own tank, 45 gallon and the main bath commode will have its own black tank, also 45 gallon.
But since I do not own a RW I cannot say for sure that I have the correct information.
Hopefully a RW owner will chime in.

Peace
Dave

 

[mcolson84]

It's my understanding that the rear bath commode and sink both go into the same black tank. I think 45 gallon.
The kitchen will have its own gray tank, 45 gallon, the main bath sink and shower will have its own tank, 45 gallon and the main bath commode will have its own black tank, also 45 gallon.
But since I do not own a RW I cannot say for sure that I have the correct information.
Hopefully a RW owner will chime in.

Peace
Dave

Thanks for the reply's! There is supposed to be two gray tanks and two black tanks. That is what was said when the unit was sold. There is a guage for all four tanks. The problem is the mounts is there for the second gray water tank, the guage is there, but there is no tank. They just tied all of it into the rear black tank. We have learned to deal with it by using bowls in the kitchen sink to catch the water instead of letting it go down the drain when dishes are done, and nothing gets poured into the sinks unless it is absolutely necessary. The main thing I want to know I guess is if this is standard procedure for Heartland. I have been full timing a little over eight years, and this has been the most troublesome unit of all of them due to the plumbing. We are looking at a bunkhouse Gateway for the boys due to how much better it will be for them in the winter and because we don't need the garage anymore since we got an HDT tow rig, but I don't want to get another heartland that is going to have the same amount of plumbing problems. I have had to re-plumb the rear toilet, the kitchen sink, and the shower due to leaks filling up the insulation. We like everything else about the unit, just not the plumbing!So if what you guys are describing is standard, that will be great! However, if all the gray water is going to continually fill up the black tank due to the way they design their system, we will look elsewhere. Thanks again for the quick responses.

 

[danemayer]

Thanks for the reply's! There is supposed to be two gray tanks and two black tanks. That is what was said when the unit was sold. There is a guage for all four tanks. The problem is the mounts is there for the second gray water tank, the guage is there, but there is no tank. They just tied all of it into the rear black tank. We have learned to deal with it by using bowls in the kitchen sink to catch the water instead of letting it go down the drain when dishes are done, and nothing gets poured into the sinks unless it is absolutely necessary. The main thing I want to know I guess is if this is standard procedure for Heartland. I have been full timing a little over eight years, and this has been the most troublesome unit of all of them due to the plumbing. We are looking at a bunkhouse Gateway for the boys due to how much better it will be for them in the winter and because we don't need the garage anymore since we got an HDT tow rig, but I don't want to get another heartland that is going to have the same amount of plumbing problems. I have had to re-plumb the rear toilet, the kitchen sink, and the shower due to leaks filling up the insulation. We like everything else about the unit, just not the plumbing!So if what you guys are describing is standard, that will be great! However, if all the gray water is going to continually fill up the black tank due to the way they design their system, we will look elsewhere. Thanks again for the quick responses.

Location of tanks can vary, but it would be pretty extraordinary if you didn't have 2 gray tanks installed. The 1st is usually closer to the front and the 2nd is probably close to mid-ships.

You should call Heartland Customer Service at 877-262-8032 / 574-262-8030. Have your VIN # ready. If you've had the coroplast down and have looked at all the plumbing connections and are missing the mid-ships tank, I'm sure Heartland will make it right.

But perhaps the tanks are not where you expect them to be.

 

[mcolson84]

I have had the entire belly pan out and replaced all insulation and added pipe heat trace and insulation to all lines. I also had to install a new sink drain and tank bung for the rear tank. There are only three of them. Two all the way forward, and one all the way aft under the rear toilet. I spoke with the local Heartland dealer here about it. He said it would take them several weeks of having the unit to correct the problem, but we will only do that if we decide against the bunkhouse. The winters in the area are pretty cold to try and keep that garage warm enough to be a bedroom.

P.S. I saw you live in Pagosa. I am just about 50-60 miles west of you on the state line. Are there any other Heartland Dealers in the area besides Chisholm Trail RV near Farmington?

 

[danemayer]

P.S. I saw you live in Pagosa. I am just about 50-60 miles west of you on the state line. Are there any other Heartland Dealers in the area besides Chisholm Trail RV near Farmington?

Hi Mike. We just moved here so we don't have a good picture of nearby dealers yet.

 

[mcolson84]

Oh ok. Well I guess if you need one, the nearest one I am aware of is in Flora Vista, NM (Chisholm). Welcome to the area!

 

[Bob&Patty]

Mike, are you sure that in the front there are not 2 grey water tanks. Possibly one stacked on top of another. Some times they are hard to see.

 

[mcolson84]

Yes sir, I am sure. I have had to fix the pipes. So I have traced them from their source to the tank. We have learned to live with it. I am not going to lie though, it has been a major annoyance at times. I do love the rest of the trailer though. It does appear to be well built in every other aspect. I am just a little suspect of Heartlands plumbing, and don't know if I want to get into another one if this is the amount of problems others have experienced with their plumbing.

I guess I should also note that I have seen the top and bottom of the front gray tank because I had to do some minor leak repair on the shower drain.

 

[TravelTiger]

Oh ok. Well I guess if you need one, the nearest one I am aware of is in Flora Vista, NM (Chisholm). Welcome to the area!

Check with the RV dealer in Durango, Co., Tarpley. They used to be a Heartland dealer, so they may be authorized to do repairs. Also, you can contact Heartland to get pre authorization for a non-Heartland dealer or service tech to do repairs. It just has to be approved before any work is done.


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[Bones]

If you are looking at the 3650 we have two tanks each. up front I have 1 gray and 1 black. Toilet drains into the black. Shower and front sink drain into gray. We have a washer and dryer prep but never use it. The rear has a black tank for the toilet and a gray tank for the half bath sink and kitchen sink. The kids and the kitchen sink fill the back gray tank quickly. The rear gray sits below our frame rails slightly. You will have two drain points on the Gateway as well.

- - - Updated - - -

I forgot the camp kitchen drains into the rear gray tank

 

[mcolson84]

I don't know how I missed your post. Thanks for the info! Is the 3605 holding up up well? Would you buy it again if you had the chance, or would you look at something else? The only drawback I have heard from most people is the placement of the TV, but we don't really care because we are not TV watchers for the most part. How does the trailer ride, Is it smooth with the suspension soaking up most of the bouncing? Or does it stay pretty stiff and jar the trailer around? Thanks!

 

[Bones]

I don't know how I missed your post. Thanks for the info! Is the 3605 holding up up well? Would you buy it again if you had the chance, or would you look at something else? The only drawback I have heard from most people is the placement of the TV, but we don't really care because we are not TV watchers for the most part. How does the trailer ride, Is it smooth with the suspension soaking up most of the bouncing? Or does it stay pretty stiff and jar the trailer around? Thanks!

The trailer is holding up very well. I have had a few things break and I fixed them with no issues. I'm not quite sure how well the trailer rides but I don't think it is exactly smooth. I find some drawers open on occasion and we make sure everything is secured before we travel. I have some suspension upgrades on my Christmas list. I would buy the camper again and again. It suites our needs very well with the kids and their own room. When The kids move out I would probably buy a BigHorn or a Landmark. The Tv's work. They don't work the best but they get the job done. Two things I wish I could have are the level up and a fireplace. My biggest improvement was a larger truck.

 

[danemayer]

Moved the truck discussion to the Tow Vehicle sub-forum.