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Old 07-03-2013, 10:15 AM   #1
nekraus47
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Problems with Dumping Black and Grey tanks

We own a 2010 Montana 3150 RL which we purchased new in the fall of 2009. We have had a problem with the back and grey tanks emptying completely since it has been new. One time it will dump as it should and the next time it runs very slow and will not empty all the way. We have had it back to our dealer twice while under warranty and both time they tell us that they can find nothing wrong, yet the problem continues to happen. Once in awhile it will dump as it should. We have contacted Keystone and they have no solutions. They tell us that they have not had anyone else contact them with this problem. Both the dealer and Keystone tell us that the tank has to be at least 2/3 full for it to dump completely, so we make sure that the gauges show at least 2/3 full, but that does not help either. This past week we went to dump, again it ran slow and the gauge showed 1/3 full so we pulled away from the dump station, turned the trailer around and dumped from the other side of the dump station. It then emptied completely. We even had our local plumber go thru the system with a camera to see if there were any obstructions. He did not find any. We are tired of fighting this, and wonder if any one else out there have this problem. Any ideas would be appreciated.
 
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Old 07-03-2013, 10:37 AM   #2
DQDick
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1st you are extraordinarily lucky your gages work. Many of us have had non-working black tank indicators since day 1. The only thing that I can think of that would cause what you are describing beyond a blockage of some sort (which you seem to have checked for) is that you have a leveling issue with your tanks. Either it's not down hill from your tanks to the outlet or the dump station isn't level to the point where things would flow downhill correctly which could explain why it works right on one side and not the other. Is this happening with both the Grey and the Black tank or mostly just the Black? If it was black tank only then it could be the pyramid of poop situation building up from time to time.
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Old 07-03-2013, 10:38 AM   #3
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A couple of questions to try and help you find a solution. 1. How are you determining the tanks are not dumping properly? 2. When you turned the trailer around and dumped from the other side did that change the side to side slant of the trailer?
Two things that helped us monitor tank dumping was a clear elbow on the discharge pipe and using plenty of water in the tanks. One thing we learned early on is that the gauges are very unreliable and are not indicative of how full or how empty the tanks are. Jim
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Old 07-03-2013, 01:34 PM   #4
nekraus47
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To jimcol and DQDick...
when we turned the trailer around, it did change the side to side slant of the trailer, so we are thinking that the pitch of the holding tanks is not right on the black tank and Grey 1. I know that the tanks did not empty completely because I used a 5 gallon bucket when we got home, and took 15 gallons out of the 2 tanks. We are positive that there are no blockages in the black tank. This problem occurs in both the black and the grey 1 tank. If the black tank does not empty properly, the grey one doesn't drain either. When the black tank drains right, so does the grey tank. The galley grey tank works perfectly every time. We just can't believe that Keystone has never heard of a problem like this. Thanks for your replies. Ray
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Old 07-03-2013, 01:48 PM   #5
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When I pulled the belly pan on my sob 5thwheel I noticed the tank outlets were not on the curb or street side of the black and grey tanks but at the front and back sides then into the main pipe between them. To get a complete flush ,the trailer and tanks have to be level side to side and front to back. Maybe Montanas are built this way too ?
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Old 07-03-2013, 01:53 PM   #6
oldelmer1
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Ray,
I have the same camper as you do, my black tank drains slow if there isn't much water in it. So I always use lots of water and dump every 2 or 3 days. I always turn on the tank sprayer and let it run for a while to add more water.

I would take the underbelly off and look at your tanks to see if they are not level. The black tank is directly below the toilet and the shower tank is directly below the shower. The only thing in common is the pipe coming out to the sewer.

I have noticed that 1 time I raised the front of the camper up and lots more water came out of the 2 tanks.
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Old 07-03-2013, 02:10 PM   #7
simonsrf
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Ray,
You might want to try a digest-it for RV's just in case you might have blockage. We use "Unique" and it works real well for our needs. They advertise that it will liquify solids in holding tanks overnight.

You might also try using a bit of automatic dishwasher soap. It makes the tank real slick. I put dishwasher soap in after dumping if we are going to be driving.
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Old 07-03-2013, 02:10 PM   #8
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This is probably your problem...When the Amish cut holes in your tanks at the factory, they let them fall into the tanks. This means that if you swish them around through movement to a point they restrict the discharge, you have a problem. Then, you move and the cut discs move to another location and you don't have a problem.

The cure? Remove the cut discs which is not easy.
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Old 07-03-2013, 02:43 PM   #9
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Do you have a clear plastic fiting on the outlet? If not that is the first place to start.
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Old 07-03-2013, 03:47 PM   #10
nekraus47
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Thanks everyone for your suggestions. I got more help from this forum then I did from the dealer and the factory! Ray
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Old 07-04-2013, 01:47 AM   #11
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Hi

Not only is that probably your problem Keystone is lying to you. They have been informed many times that they are leaving the plug in the tank when they cut the hole.

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Old 07-04-2013, 03:23 AM   #12
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If it's side to side leveling then just use a couple of pieces of board like we used to use to level before level-up on the side opposite the dump. Simple fix if that's all it is.
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