Black Tank fill rate...:-)

[jpf]

Been meaning to post this question for a while but didn't get rountoit til now.
We had noted for some time that we were dumping the black tank every four days or so and thought this was a bit often. Discussions with other camping neighbors over the last year (our first year) of fulltiming reaffirmed that their dumping intervals were less frequent.
Now, before this goes to a discussion of quality and quantity of food consumed.....
We discovered a while back by happenstance that our bedroom sink unit drains to the black tank, previously we thought it drained to the grey tank. Our obvious solution was to be a little more water conservative in shaving and brushing teeth, etc.

The question is; has anyone noted that their bedroom sink drains to the black tank.. ? or, are we the only ones..?
We know that our W/D and shower drain to the grey, and, our kitchen sink drains to the galley tank, having double checked that during operation.

jerry






jerry & karen
We are where we are when we are... FullTime 9-15-05
'05 F350, 6.0, Lariat, CC, LB, TCP, dually,
'05 3400RL, Husky 16K
Semper Fi '67-'69

[Parrothead]

Jerry
Yes our bathroom sink drains to the black. Our other two units drained into the gray and we just assumed this one did also. Never thought much about it until a post here on the forum. We checked and sure enough it does. While this may fill up the black tank a little faster, it also has some advantages. You can run water in the sink to fill the tank when you need to dump (like when you are breaking camp) and the tank isn't full. Also I now run my Borax down the bathroom sink instead of the toilet. It is easier. Also we are getting some soap down there and should help to keep it cleaner. We just dump when we need to and don't really monitor how many days it has been.
Happy trails..............................

Sue and Ed Rowe
Hemet California

2005 3400RL

2006 GMC 3500 Dually, D/A, Crew Cab, Long Bed

[jrgwdenner]

We have the same setup as Ed and Sue and like it for the same reasons. The water and soap from the sink would seem to help clean out the black tank.

Judy
http://spaces.msn.com/bamatravelers/
http://bamatravelers.blogspot.com
Traveling with Glen and Greta in our 2004 Dodge dually and Montana 3380 RL

[Gonfishin]

Holy Cow! I never thought to check that. I just figured the bathroom sink drained into the gray tank with the shower. Guess I should look into this a litter more. Thanks for the heads up guys, and gals.
Rick.

2005 Montana 3670
2005 Chevy 2500HD D/A
Pullrite SuperGlide
Prodigy/Intella-Stop
Doran Pressure Pro
Ride Rite air bags
In-cab controller

[wswebster]

They made some changed. Our bathroom sink drains into the gray tank. The washer(which we don't have) will drain into the black tank. Stacy

Bill & Stacy
Three Rivers, MI
04 Chevy 2500HD 8.1/A sb,cc,4x4
Spencer our German shorthair camping/hunting buddy
Prodigy
2006 3400rl spruce

[CountryGuy]

And, Bill & Stacy,

They changed the washer draining into the black tank too, it does not do that any more, or so we have been told.

Running changes, ahhhh, they are so good for the soul! YIKES

Carol


(Thanks Glenn)

Al & Carol Stevens Tipton, Mi.
Retired - Traveling with 4 Yorkies
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Line-X
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[OntMont]

There are so many variations on drainage that you have to figure out what goes where first. Our black tank is toilet waste only, and we can go a week to 10 days, if we are careful.

Our grey tank always fills up first, so sending some drains to the black tank would help balance the load and dilute the black stuff.

OntMont (John and Donna)
2005 Montana 3670RL
2007 Silverado "Classic" 3500 DRW 4x4 CC D/A.
2001 Border Collie to ride herd on us.

[Lstierw]

Just checked ours and it definitely drains into the grey tank which does seem right to me. What I do not understand is why there are so many changes year after year. Just figure out what works best and leave it that way........Les

Our Travels:Lstierw


2005 Big Sky 3670RL
1999 Ford F350, 7.3 Power stroke Diesel

[SKOOBDO]

Well, I check all my drains months ago and I recall another thread was going on at that time about the same subject. My Washer, bathroom sink and shower all drain to the grey tank. The kitchen sink drains to the galley and of course the toliet (black tank). I dump the black tank about once a month usually. Just me...not too much crap The galley tank could go two months, but when it is half full I dump it along with the grey tank when I dump the black tank. I have been surprised that I haven't had any odors all summer long from the black tank until it is pretty much completely full and I try to get another flush out of it and an air pocket from the vent gives a poof of air that don't smell to good

2006 Montana 3500RL, MorRyde Suspension, W/D, 2nd A/C, Fantastic Fans, MaxxAir, Fireplace, RotoChocks, Slide Awnings. 2005 Ford F350 Lariat LE, PSD 4x4 Dually, Long Bed, C-Betr Mirrors, Vortex Spray-In Liner, Access Tonneau Cover, Remote Starter/Alarm, LED Running Board Lights

[Parrothead]

It also depends on the model. On ours the sink is very close to the toilet so it makes sense to take them both to the same tank and takes up less room in the basement. Our washer drains into the gray tank. We are an early 2005 model - manufacture date is like July 2004.
Happy trails.........................

Sue and Ed Rowe
Hemet California

2005 3400RL

2006 GMC 3500 Dually, D/A, Crew Cab, Long Bed

[sreigle]

Well, that's another thing I need to check. We are planning a week in Amana Colonies after the rally, without sewer connection. I had planned on using the external dump valve to let the gray tanks share so we maybe could do the week without making a trip to the dump station. If the sink drains to the black tank then we probably won't make it a week. I guess we need to figure this out before that trip.

Anybody know of something I can put down that drain that will turn the water bright yellow without hurting anything? Then I could pull one dump valve at a time and see which is yellow.

See another Montana or Mountaineer on the road? Flash lights twice, it might be one of us!
Steve Reigle (pronounced Regal)
Fulltiming since 3/21/03
'07 3400RL
'05 Ford F250 SD Lariat CC SB 6.0L PSD/TS FX4 4x4

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[jrgwdenner]

When we are out during the tourist thing we've gone as long as eleven days without needing to dump, being careful, of course. And that's with our bathroom sink draining into the black tank.

Judy
http://spaces.msn.com/bamatravelers/
http://bamatravelers.blogspot.com
Traveling with Glen and Greta in our 2004 Dodge dually and Montana 3380 RL

[Parrothead]

Steve
In late 2005 models and I assume from then on, they changed the position of the toilet on the 3400 so your toilet drain is close to the basement wall. Your toilet probably faces toward the bedroom. Ours faces toward the living room.
Why don't you use blue instead - use dye that you use for clothes - I think the brand is Rit - been a long time since I've done that. We used it for tie dye way back when.
Happy trails...........................

Sue and Ed Rowe
Hemet California

2005 3400RL

2006 GMC 3500 Dually, D/A, Crew Cab, Long Bed

[Montana Sky]

My bathroom sink also drains into the black tank. I found this out thanks to the MOC.

Steve,
I found out what tank the sink drains into while I was dumping the black tank. When the tank is finished dumpging, go back in and turn on your cold water in the bathroom sink. If the tank starts to drain again, your is in the black tank. If not, your dumps into the grey. I heard that Keystone changed the sink drain to empty into the gray tank now instead of the black. My bet is yours is in the grey tank.


2004 Chevy Silverado LT 2500HD CrewCab Duramax
2004 Montana 3400RL

[mfoss]

Steve, another suggestion would be to use a bottle of food coloring.....the kind they use to tint frostings. There just little bottles.

[skypilot]

Steve: I used food coloring -- the red and yellow colors work best, green and blue tended to be too light to see / differentiate if much water was added to the tank.

Ceara and Mia Osa

06 Dodge 3500 DRW;

[Army Guy]

I never thought to check that also. I also assumed the sink went into the gray along with the shower. You know what assumed does......

Rick & Jana with our
4 legged kids, Domino & Puck
2006 Montana 3400RL
2006 Ford F350, CC, 6.0 PSD, 2WD, DRW

[sreigle]

M.S., that's just about the same as I did awhile ago after draining tanks. I just dumped tanks and then closed all valves, opened the faucet in the bathroom and then sat down on the step and kept pushing the gauge buttons until one of them showed 1/3 full. I then went out and pulled the indicated dump valve and, sure enough, I got about a third of a tank of clear water. Ours drains into the gray tank. That's good because when we have no sewer hookup I can set up the two gray tanks to share capacity but I was worried about filling that black tank with water from the sink plus the usual contents too quickly.

By the way, our washer drains direct to the dump valve. It does not go into any tank. We can see the drain pipe under the rig where it is plumbed into the dump pipe.

Yes, Army Guy, I know what you mean. I used to preach that same thing to my staff.

See another Montana or Mountaineer on the road? Flash lights twice, it might be one of us!
Steve Reigle (pronounced Regal)
Fulltiming since 3/21/03
'07 3400RL
'05 Ford F250 SD Lariat CC SB 6.0L PSD/TS FX4 4x4

Our RV Travels (now Firefox-compatible)

[rickety]

Guess I bertter check mine, I don't really know, I just dump every 4 days whether I'm full or not, gets me out fo the house
I mean whether the tanks are full or not, not me, the tanks I think

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Rick and Phyllis Trent,
2004 Chevrolet 2500HD/Duramax/Allison,exhaust brake.
2004 Monty 3280RL/slide toppers,sleep comfort bed. Full Timers since January 2006!
Gizmo the dog who thinks he's a Great Dane

[Old GI]

I'm going to bring a mechanic's creeper with me when I go to PDI my 07 3400 so I can figure out rhe plumbing while it's parked on cement. Ah yes I remember the saying well, not preparing can make an ass-u-me.

Pete, Waltraud (Wally), Brian(Grandson) and Hannah (Big German Shepherd).
2005 Ford F-350 Lariat DRW FX4 Crew Cab 6.0 Turbo Diesel, w/tow boss package, dual batteries and alternators. Reese 16K fifth wheel and a 2005 Montana 2955RL.
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