Black/Grey tank - full tank indication

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Fin27

Fin27

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Seems like a stupid question but I haven't read this anywhere yet...

So the fill indicator on the Hurricane basically splits the tank into thirds.  once I see its 2/3 full, how will I know when to stop adding anything to the tanks, just keep watching for the full light to be lit?  When the full light displays do you have a little room still or do you stop right then?

What happens if you keep going? Does the water start backing up into your drains? Not that I want to find out, just curious.
 
Do not depend on the gauges for anything, they are pretty much useless.
 
As referenced, the sensors are commonly useless but...

If the sensors are clean to start with and actually working then "full" probably means pretty close to the top of the tank (just my guess) but this might vary from rig to rig depending on how accurately the sensors are installed. Grey will typically backup into your shower/tub since it's the lowest drain. Black would backup into the toilet if you let it get that far. I imagine this could also cause troubles with the vent and possibly clog the toilet so most of us recommend dumping the black when in gets to 2/3.
 
Just to get my "feet wet" when I got my camper I experimented with the LED light gauges.  Specifically how full is full, and how much below "E" I can go.  So I stuck a garden hose into the toilet and let it run until the "Full" light just came on, then using a bucket and a flashlight (knowing it was just fresh water in there) I added water until I could see it coming up into the drain pipe.  On mine it translated to just over 5 more gallons, which is a fair number of flushes if it comes to that.  With the fresh water I ran it out until "E" then filled buckets to see how much was left before it sucked air and it was almost 10 gallons.  That's a lot, especially if you're boondocking and are good at conserving.  You can buy replacement gauges that are calibrated in gallons which could be useful if you're routinely operating at the limits of your storage but in the grand scheme just having an idea where the limits are can get you by OK.  In my case I can be at "Full" or "E" and know I probably still have enough margin in there for maybe another day.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM
 
You really need to find out if the black tank is full of solids or toilet paper, or if it is just the sensor reading incorrectly.  One question is, did you buy this new or used?  If it was used, there may be gunk that needs to be softened up and flushed out. 

First, using a flashlight, and turning the water off, can you see anything looking down the toilet?  If so, you need to add water, let it set for a few hours, and try to break it up with a metal or plastic rod if you can get one down there.  (Don't use a stick or anything that could break off.)

After a while, you will be able to tell by the sound of the water running into the toilet how full it is.  For example, when my tank is completely empty, and I run water into the toilet, it sounds hollow.  When it is close to being full, the liquids may be at the drain from the toilet, so mine will burp.  It sounds different at different levels of full, in other words. 

And when you store it after your next trip, put an extra 2-3 gallons and some liquid soap in the black tank before you drive home.  That way it can slosh around and break up any solids. 
 
Question about the last paragraph from Judy's post. Is this ok to do if leaving for storage and might sit a while in between camping trips? In other words, don't have a place to dump after the slosh ride home? Also, is this applicable for both black and grey tanks?
Thanks. Still absorbing knowledge and learning. 
 
Yes, you can leave the sloshed stuff in there after the ride home, though you might wish to dump before winterizing, and it's probably even better if you can dump a bit sooner, but it's not something that needs you to hurry. And yes, you can do that to the gray tank too, though it doesn't need it nearly as much. I like to put a couple or three gallons in the gray tank, too (soap optional) just to help keep the seals moist. When winterizing, I like a bit of the pink stuff in each tank, too, to protect the valves.
 
As mentioned above those 1/3,2/3, Full LED's are nearly useless, even in the best of time when they are working correctly, I upgraded to a SeeLevel 709 system for about $250 plus a couple of hours of DIY labor, most of which involved making a cover plate to mount the display in place of the factory 3 level LED  board and could not be happier, 4-5% resolution accurate tank gauges with the SeeLevel 709 are a wonderful thing.
 
Still on the theme of sensor and how accurate they really are..

I have a Winnebago and The LCD Panel started, out of the blue,  showing 2 Black and 2 Gray. 

I was asking myself??? 

Santa and the Black and Gray Tank elves? 

BTW: I dont know alot about RVn but I knew for sure I had only one of both in my Class C Winnebago. ;D

Reality hit and those dreams faded quick.

My remedy was a software reset. 

I was to dumb to know that and the Fine Folks At Winnebago Customer Support Emailed me the answers to the "3 Finger Reset" Test eXamination

I see my TaNk Register Sensors Glued on the outside of my tanks. 

Supposed to be sonar I guess Like a Submarine, but this is pinging for Turds.

Quick 3 finger Depress the buttons to reset to relearn the system and Wha-La back in business.

I err on the side of frequent clean out but am aware you need some fullness in the black to get the Water Woooosh during when you Give the Knife Valve a Rip at the service bay door.

Dont want to constuct Adobe Brown Pyramids in my Black...If you can read between my lines?

I could only imagine the nightmare of letting the black fill out to the point of Overflow / Wrecking your RV permanently.....In my Far Less than Humble opinion.

That would be some PTSD images that you could never erase out of your Head...OH Weeeeee! No-LOL!  :-X

John
 
The most important thing is to figure out what your indicators are telling you.

I was shocked that the water tank (IMO) on my RV is biased towards empty. The green light is about 90% full, the yellow light is about 50% full and the red light is about 33% full. Now that I am used to it I find it OK.  TBH I still pull the bed up Saturday night when the red light is on to make sure we'll make it through Sunday - we spend a lot of time with only electrical hook ups. We are learning how to make water last 5 days and hope to be able to go a week eventually.

The grey and black tanks are biased towards empty. It seems like the grey and black tanks turn red with at least 33% capacity left. The yellow on the tanks seems to come on after 2 days and red comes on at the end of day 3.  My toilet has a straight shot to the tank and looking with a flashlight it has never appeared to be "near" the top.

Next time I am at a full hookup site I am going to experiment filling grey and black very full and seeing how it stacks up from yellow light to red light.

 
I?ve blown two tanks because I overfilled them In the RV I have now. I was always use to filling them until they read full and just left filling until it either the water backed up into the shower  or the black tank level was visible just a Few inches below the flange of the toilet. That was on a King of the Road fifth wheel I had.
I tried doing the same thing with the RV I have now and I?ve ruptured two tanks. The way the tanks are made is there is a flange on the top of the sides of the tank. Then they vulcanize a flat cover to that flange. That?s where it let?s go.
I contacted the manufacture of the tanks and they said they only pressurize them to 1 psi to test them. So if I overfill the tank just a little and the pressure against the flange is greater than 1 psi then there?s great chance of the flange opening and then you got a big issue.
Right now one of my gray tanks has that problem (it leaks at that flange) so I watch the lights closely and when the full light comes on, I immediately drain the tank. So If you own a RV made by Keystone be  very cautious if you have tanks made made by the same manufacturer as mine. I can try to find their name if anyone wants it.
 
Ex-Calif said:
1. The most important thing is to figure out what your indicators are telling you.

I was shocked that the water tank (IMO) on my RV is biased towards empty. The green light is about 90% full, the yellow light is about 50% full and the red light is about 33% full. Now that I am used to it I find it OK. 

2. My toilet has a straight shot to the tank and looking with a flashlight it has never appeared to be "near" the top.
Click to expand...

1.  Agreed 100%, Know "your" Corporation (RV)!

2.  If you flashlight batteries fail you can take the road less traveled, and Roll up you Shirt Sleeve.

Just Pointing out the obvious.

Good Points.

JD
 
NY_Dutch said:
I'll second Isaac on the SeeLevel II 709 system. Installing it is one of the first upgrades I've done on each RV I've owned.
Click to expand...

I'll third that -- the SeeLevel is great, giving readouts to the nearest 4%-5%, depending where on the scale.
 
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