Black water holding tank repair

[Montana_259]

Of all problems to have, we have a leak in the black water holding tank, and it "appears" to be coming from a seam. What material do we use to repair this? Our unit is out of warranty.
Thanks for any help you can give.

[HamRad]

What a terrible problem to have. I wish you the best in trying to fix it...... if it were me and going to the trouble of getting to it.... I think I'd replace the whole tank. I believe the cost is rather modest but I'm not sure just how much. They do make some stuff that is just for repairing the tanks.... I'm sure CW carries it.

Again good luck.

HamRad

[Montana_593]

Drill a 1/16 hole at each end of crack then fill with silicone caulk or the stuff Hamrad mentions from camping world.

Good Luck

[Montana_259]

Thanks alot. I'll look into that in CW.

[bob n pam]

We experienced a leaking black water tank a couple of years ago. It was from a seal leak at the pipe entry into the tank due to flexing. Bob tried all of the RV fixes, none of which worked, and finally used two marine products, Marine-Tex and 5200 (a 3-M product). He cleaned the area, applied the Marine-Tex, let it set up overnight, then applied the 5200 on top of that. He also put tapered wooden braces (2x2) under the tank, attaching them to the frame with screws, to prevent further flexing. So far, and after many miles, no more leaking. Hope this helps.

[Montana_259]

Thanks so much, Bob and Pam. I appreciate all of the suggestions. Flexing never crossed our minds, but we will address that also.
Wishing all a safe trip, wherever the roads may take you.
Betty & Harry

[DrivesBGM]

Don't they have a way of "welding" the plastic to seal and repair crack? I don't know anything about it but always envisioned that it involved melting a plastic rod into the damaged surface.

Let us know how you repair yours.

Craig

[CountryGuy]

DRIVES BGM

Yes, they do have something called plastic welding, had it done to a prior unit, MANY years ago, in Knoxville TN. The repair held till we sold the unit, 3, maybe 4 years.

Best I remember, it was something like you describe, a plastic rod melted into the damaged surface.

At that time, at that repair facility (have no idea where or names or anything), the cost was VERY reasonable, saved our vacation, and the trip to Disney in Florida was great for the kids!!

Good luck goldenbetty with your repair!

[Montana_259]

UPDATE!
I have called several RV dealers and they all say something different. I know, that shouldn't really surprise any of us.
1. Use a clear self-adhesive caulking to fill in the crack.
2. Use Versa Chem - fiberglass mesh and epoxy.
3. Eternabond aluminum tape. As mentioned by ya'll, drill 2 holes to stop the crack from running. Rub tape firmly and wait 1 hr before using tank. That is all there is to it. This is our choice.

I'll keep you posted about whether we were successful with this approach.
Thanks everyone for your input and suggestions.

[ttanous]

I had a gray water tank split at Easter time 2004. I took the trailer to my RV specialist that is very resonable. He spent 3 weeks trying to get the right tank from Keystone. Once he got the tank he had to remove the basement floor in order to get to the tank that has a lip on it. so this was not an easy task. Also the tank comes with no cut outs and must have holes drilled. The total cost was around $800. So this is not a cheap fix. If you can repair the tank you may want to try that first. Otherwise you are looking at a huge task to get the tank out and back in.