Advice gray/black water tank cleaners

[piconroy]

Just finished a 90 day 11,700 mile jaunt across USA in our Micro Minnie 2106FBS which performed magnificently. I am so pleased with it. She, is a perfect match for our travels. (OOPS! was that sexist?) There is one thing I am trying to figure out. Why do my gray & black sensors never seem to indicate E when drained or hooked up to the camp sewer. Called my dealer and didn't get much help. Was told to get some Level Gauge Cleaner when I got home. I looked it up on Amazon and of course it's not cheap but more importantly the reviews are mediocre at best. Some suggested they had better luck with, as usual, Dawn or PineSol. Can any one shed some light on this "problem" The only thing that goes into the Black are #1's and any paper associated with #1's goes into a bag NOT the tank. The only thing that goes into the Gray is water with either Dawn in it or toothpaste residual. Over the 90 days we probably took no more than 2-3 showers each in the unit.The unit is always leveled. So what gives. Thanks, PIC

[pnichols]

Dennis12 wrote:

I use one of these wands, and have never had an issue with my gauges.

Yup, yup,yup ... right-on for the black tank!!

Whenever I want to make my black tank gauge read accurate for awhile, I use one of those straight down the toilet opening into the tank.

I'm lazy though, so I only use one about every 6 months -> I have to get really fed up with the black tank gauge always reading more than half full right after I've emptied it before I use that excellent cleaning wand shown in the link.

[Westcoasting]

RambleOnNW wrote:
Our tank sensors work great. After the trip I add water to both gray and black tanks while first adding some dishwashing soap to the grey tank. I then drive over to the dump station and dump the black tank and then use the black tank flush attachment with a hose. Then dump the grey. Great to see the last thing that comes out of the sewer hose is soap suds. Both tank sensors read empty then.

While camping we use Walex biopak and portapak tabs in our black tank.

Thank you 🙂

[myredracer]

*IF* your sensors are reading accurately, something is very wrong! The sensors are small metal "buttons" on the inside of the tank at various elevations. The problem is that with all the p@@p, TP and sludge on the tank walls, they get short-circuited and don't indicate properly. False readings are normal. They shouldn't even bother installing them...

There are various cleaners that can be used but false readings will return in no time flat. Our KZ owners manual says to use Liquid Drano. We've used it from time to time and while it does get the tank back to factory original clean condition, false readings are back pdq (sigh). I never look at the level indicator.

After a while, you will simply get to know how long your tank will last before it needs dumping. You can look down the toilet to see how full it is. I installed a shutoff valve at the back of the toilet so I can see clearly into the tank without water spray in the way.

To get the most out of your tank, always add a few gallons of water before each use and don't skimp on water when flushing. Then make sure the tank is filled to, or near full, of water before dumping and rinse well. Trying to skimp on water and rinsing will just make things worse.

I've read of a few cases where owners have found the sensors installed at the wrong elevation or wires connected to the wrong sensors. Then the factories cover up their errors with a sheet of coroplast, pffft.

[mikim]

Use Google and look up the "GEO Method".

[jplante4]

Westcoasting wrote:

Lynnmor wrote:
After having an almost new Camco wand blow apart squirting water everywhere, I made my own.

What did you make it out of?

It's just 1" PVC pipe with a cap on one end and a hose fitting on the other. Drill 4 - 1/8" holes in the end with the cap. A fancy one also has a ball shutoff.

[RambleOnNW]

Our tank sensors work great. After the trip I add water to both gray and black tanks while first adding some dishwashing soap to the grey tank. I then drive over to the dump station and dump the black tank and then use the black tank flush attachment with a hose. Then dump the grey. Great to see the last thing that comes out of the sewer hose is soap suds. Both tank sensors read empty then.

While camping we use Walex biopak and portapak tabs in our black tank.

[Bill_Satellite]

Don't worry too much. Very few folks with standard in tank sensors have accurate working sensors and the ones that say they do are lying (that's a joke folks, get over it!).
As mentioned, the external sensors work much better and then to work very well for many years. However, build up on the inside of the tank can lead to poor readings as well and may require a more aggressive tank cleaning. You can hire a company that cleans tanks and improve your results but this does not last long despite your best efforts. The size of your tank matters. Smaller tanks and those wands can work wonders. Larger tank sensors can't be reached with those short hoses.

[Westcoasting]

Lynnmor wrote:
After having an almost new Camco wand blow apart squirting water everywhere, I made my own.

What did you make it out of?

[Lynnmor]

After having an almost new Camco wand blow apart squirting water everywhere, I made my own.

[jplante4]

Dennis12 wrote:

I use one of these wands, and have never had an issue with my gauges.

I wouldn't get the kind with the whirly gig on the end. The shop at the RV store where I work has seen them come off and get lodged in the dump valves.

[Dave_H_M]

what Dennis posted will get mine clean on a one time basis.

[Sandia_Man]

Tank sensors are tough to keep clean no matter what chemical concoction is used whether homemade or store bought. You could add an internal tank rinser but ours never works very well, mostly just adds water to the tank rather than spraying internal tank walls with any deliberate force.

We know our tanks are empty after dumping, if we want our sensors to indicate the same we will run a tank wand for a couple of minutes to remove residual debris from tank walls where sensors are mounted. Don't do it every time we dump. maybe every third or fourth dump when we have full hookups.

It always astonishes me how much residual waste is still left even after dumping and refilling tank a couple of times. We just use lots of water and regular toilet paper we purchase in bulk from Samsclub, for us using the tank wand occasionally eliminates the need for odor masking concoctions.

[mbopp]

I'm with Dennis12 - I use a home made toilet wand and can always get the black tank to read empty. Even though I have a built-in tank rinser I get a lot more "stuff" out when using the wand.

[ncrowley]

I agree with Old Guy. Get a sensor that mounts to the outside of the tank. We use SeeLevel.