Toilet leak

Spent today working on our toilet, therefore I will  refer to it as our Turkey Day Toilet.  Today is Thanksgiving Day, and our big Thanksgiving family get together is not until Sunday, which is when we can all finally converge.

Anyway, we have a Dometic 310 toilet which was leaking from the seam between the china top and the plastic bottom.  Apparently a common problem with these.  I was going to just buy a new one based on quite a few reports I read on-line about the difficulty in getting replacement parts for this particular problem.  No warranty as it has expired.

I decided to take it apart to see if I could do something to stop the leak.  It seems that the leak starts due to a round gasket which is on the bottom side of the plastic piece on which the ball gasket is mounted.  This gasket prevents water & stuff from getting into the plastic bottom/pedestal.  It is sandwiched between the china bowl and the plastic pedestal, and it seems like it is just squashed too much and doesn't seal anymore.  Can't find the part anywhere, so I thought maybe I would just fill the channel that this round gasket sits in with plumber's putty  just to see if it would seal it good enough.  I rolled out a good bead a bit thicker than the original gasket and it fit in the channel pretty well, and even covered the screws that hold the plastic piece/platform/partition(whatever it's called) to the pedestal.

I worked on the toilet in the yard on a stainless roll around table which we use for various jobs like this, so I didn't have to work on my knees and on the ground.  It made it easy to use a water hose to test it after I reassembled it.  It stopped the leak,  so I cleaned it up and put it back in the fiver.  I will closely monitor it for quite a while before I am comfortable that the repair is one that will last.

If it does hold up, it saves me a couple of hundred that we can spend on Christmas instead.  I wish I had taken photos of the job, but I really didn't think it was going to work. 

So if you encounter this problem with your Dometic 310 potty,  you might try this fix before buying a new one.

Did you give it time to cure before you put the water to it?

The jury is still out regarding plumber's putty and whether it should "cure" or dry. 

In this case there is hardly any water pressure in the Dometic 310 application where the seal is there to block any water from seeping from the china bowl into the base.  The only pressure is from the weight of the water that sits in the bowl.  It's very similar to a sink drain application where the toilet bowl is like the sink drain tightened down on the putty to seal the gap. I wish I had taken photos showing how the toilet is constructed, because it's hard to describe with text.

Remember that this is an experiment, and in no way promises to be "the fix" until it has held up for a long time.  If it lasts for 3 or 4 months, that will be good to get us past Christmas, and all that expense.  Then I will either seek another solution or buy a new toilet.  Maybe upgrade to the Dometic 320.  It's an elongated version, which offers advantages to us men.  But I think it is designed the same way with the gasket between the bowl and the base.

Plumbers putty never completely hardens so I think that repeated weight on the bowl will cause it to displace.  A gasket material that conforms to the surfaces might be a better idea.  These 300 series Dometic toilets are simply throw away items with only the water valve and ball seal being replaceable.

If you have to replace it, I would look around at others before going with a Dometic again.

Dometic used to be to be top of  the line stuff, but in years past their quality issue has suffered mightily.

My 25 year old 1992 Holiday Rambler has the original "Traveler" toilet which is still working beautifully. 

https://seacoastservices.com/traveler-toilets/

Rene T said:

Did you give it time to cure before you put the water to it?

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Plumber's putty does not "cure", but it may "dry out", (in 10/15 years).
You can use the fixture immediately after installation with plumbers putty.

mel s said:

Plumber's putty does not "cure", but it may "dry out", (in 10/15 years).
You can use the fixture immediately after installation with plumbers putty.

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If that's the case, you should probably be able to use the butyl tape we use around windows etc.

If the plumbers putty doesn't work, another option is to try using the clear silicone you buy in auto parts stores. I think it is called RTV. It cures to a pliable hardness similar to a rubber gasket. I've used it to make a lot of similar repairs to your toilet situation.

TandC said:

we have a Dometic 310 toilet which was leaking from the seam between the china top and the plastic bottom.  Apparently a common problem with these.

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TandC
IMO the "cure" for a Dometic 310 toilet is a Sealand Traveler 510+ toilet: https://tinyurl.com/ybwrj3uy
(Mine is 22 years old in a 150,000 mile Safari).

Thanks for all the suggestions, and I may try each one of them if the plumber's putty doesn't work out.

It seems like a trouble free rv toilet is something that does not exist.  At least from all the stuff I've been reading.  I might go with the sealand 510, because the reviews for the most part are good.  Still,  I sometimes think "better the devil you know"  is a good rule to follow.  That's one reason we've had this fiver for 13 years.  It's the devil that I know inside and out. I just keep fixin it.

I may just keep trying stuff until I get a working fix on this Dometic toilet.    I hesitate to use a sealer that is going to make the thing very hard to take apart again though.  That's why I am trying the putty, it doesn't stick stuff together like caulk.  I have some of the caulk tape, and that might be my next choice if the putty fails.  It would make it harder to take apart again, but not as tight as silicone caulk in a tube.

I have resigned myself to the fact that stuff is just going to need more maintenance when in the rv.  I also have to take apart my furnace every now and then to get trash out of the jet(burner orifice), and I've gotten pretty efficient at it.  I worked with my dad who was an LP gas service guy for years, so I feel confident and safe working on it.  The next thing I might replace in it is the heat exchanger(combustion chamber)  it's getting pretty rusty, and I don't want any leaks.  Could get to be deadly.

I switched from a Seland to a Tetford. So far no issues worth mentioning but I will switch later to yet another tetford... WHY.. Well the reason for the switch is the seat design. I really need a full "Residential" oval type seat the sealand was a "ROUND" (also a residential design) the tetford I have is half way in between.

I had a Dometic/Sealand toilet that leaked in the same place, mid pedestal seam.  It was out of warranty.  I called the manufacturer and they said it was non repairable and was a defect in one of their runs.  They sent me a new toilet and offered to have it installed free.  I installed it.  About 6 months later that one leaked, same place.  We were on our winter trip and near a Camping World.  I called that in and Sealand...or maybe it was Dometic(?) gave me a phone number for Camping World to call and said I would get a free toilet.  They had checked the CW and there were two in stock...same 310 toilet.  CW called the number and had the new toilet delivered to the back of my truck.  I installed that one 3 years ago and no problems since.  OH, when I went to CW I was told to bring the PN/SN sticker from the back of the toilet.

RVfixer said:

I had a Dometic/Sealand toilet that leaked in the same place, mid pedestal seam.  It was out of warranty.  I called the manufacturer and they said it was non repairable and was a defect in one of their runs.  They sent me a new toilet and offered to have it installed free.  I installed it.  About 6 months later that one leaked, same place.  We were on our winter trip and near a Camping World.  I called that in and Sealand...or maybe it was Dometic(?) gave me a phone number for Camping World to call and said I would get a free toilet.  They had checked the CW and there were two in stock...same 310 toilet.  CW called the number and had the new toilet delivered to the back of my truck.  I installed that one 3 years ago and no problems since.  OH, when I went to CW I was told to bring the PN/SN sticker from the back of the toilet.

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Thanks for the info,
I will call them on Monday.  We've had this toilet over 5 years, not sure the exact age, but I hope they will do this for us.

Do you remember what year you bought your first one?  And did the replacement for that one come from the same batch?
I will also ask them if I could pay the difference and get the 320 instead.

The very first toilet came with the new trailer in 2011.  I have no idea what the run lot numbers were but i assume the second toilet was from the bad lot.  They never asked me for any of the numbers.  I don't know if they know how many bad ones were out there.  This was all done based on my description of the problem (leak at mid pedestal).  I can't remember if it was Sealand or Dometic that I called.  I likely called Dometic and they referred me to the manufacture Sealand.  The on that replaced the toilet the first time suggested I remove various parts like the water valve and toilet seat and keep them as spares.  I did that on both toilets. 

Let us know how you make out.  Good luck, I hope this works for you!

Thanks,

My wife was thinking that our 310 is older than 5 or 6 years(can't find a receipt),  so that would put it in the time range that you had your problems.  I hope they have corrected the issue on the later ones, and from what you say, that must be the case.

Fingers are crossed, and I'm hoping they will send me a new one.  I will do the same as far as keeping usable parts from it.

Update:
Well I guess Dometic has withdrawn any policy of replacing these toilets.  I called this morning and got no sympathy, and no offer of replacing the toilet.

At this point, my Plumber's Putty repair seems to be holding, so I have time to check into other brands of toilets.  The putty is holding, but now the bowl won't hold water. It leaks out slowly even after replacing the ball gasket.  Could be that the spare one I used has gotten hard ,  so I ordered another one(which seems drastically overpriced for what it is).  I'll try replacing it again, but it could be a problem with the actual moving mechanism.

I think I will research Thetford toilets.  I don't know if they make a good one or not, or if anyone makes one that is worth a darn and doesn't cost a fortune.

That is too bad.  Did you tell them that you know someone that got two replaced that were out of warranty?  Did you call both Sealand and Dometic.  I can't remember which replaced my out of warranty toilets.

I don't see where the ball seal has anything to do with the leak at the pedestal.  My understanding was that the plastic and porcelain halves of the pedestal are bonded with a hardening adhesive.  If you pull the toilet and turn it upside down you can see the 4 screws that hold the pedestal halves together.  Apparently the screws are snubbed and after the bonding starts to cure they are tightened.  They told me that on some unknown number of toilets these screws were not tightened and it is only a matted of time before that hard adhesive bond breaks due to the loose screws.  To late to tighten the screws and I couldn't get my leaking pedestals to separate.  If you can get the ball seal fixed and want to keep the toilet.  Pull it out, tape off that joint all around and squeeze in some clear sealant into and over that joint.  That is not a pressure leak so you should be able to seal it.

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Update:
Well, for the time being, the toilet is working as it should. After replacing the ball gasket once more,  the bowl is holding water, and the plumber's putty between the bowl and base is working, no leaks from the seam.  Of course the fiver hasn't been moved since I started the repair of the toilet, so we'll see if it survives all the movement from traveling and normal use.  I'm not sure when we will get back on the road.  Might be springtime.

TandC said:

Update:
Well, for the time being, the toilet is working as it should. After replacing the ball gasket once more,  the bowl is holding water, and the plumber's putty between the bowl and base is working, no leaks from the seam.  Of course the fiver hasn't been moved since I started the repair of the toilet, so we'll see if it survives all the movement from traveling and normal use.

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Keeping my fingers crossed for you.