Galley Tank Question? - Montana Owners Club

prariepoodle · 06-23-2004, 12:26 PM

Did a search and could not find anything about this so here it is. We have been parked for a year now and I just noticed that when I push the button for the galley tank it shows 1/3 full. We keep all tanks open except the black tank and it stays closed. I bought some stuff at walmart for gray tanks and have used it twice and it still shows 1/3 full. I don't know maybe it is suppose to do that. Anyone have any ideas???? Thank you for all information.

Montana_70 · 06-23-2004, 12:43 PM

Forget about it! The tank level indicator is not reliable at all. You can work very hard to get it there when the tank is empty and do this or that to "make" it finally show "empty" and then as soon as you start using the drain again, it will not show empty. As it has been said before, things just get stuck or adhere to the sensor and you get a false reading.

I think I'm doing OK with the drains as long as they don't back up. I just try to be careful about what I send down the drain. The hoses are pretty small and could get gunked up being careless. I also send down a mix of baking soda and vinegar once a month.

DrivesBGM · 06-23-2004, 12:50 PM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by fla native
... I also send down a mix of baking soda and vinegar once a month.

Sounds terrible! What are you trying to make??

(Just kidding!)

Craig

prariepoodle · 06-23-2004, 12:54 PM

Sounds like a good mix to me going to do that right now.

Thanks fla native.

Montana_70 · 06-23-2004, 01:10 PM

Linda,

No need to really "mix it". Just dump some baking soda in the sink and pour vinegar over it.

NJHillbilly,

I call it "RV Drain-0-Foam".

prariepoodle · 06-23-2004, 01:19 PM

fla native, I did just that and that is a good name for it, with all that foam it should clean out everything.

Thunderman · 06-23-2004, 01:47 PM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by fla native

Forget about it! The tank level indicator is not reliable at all. You can work very hard to get it there when the tank is empty and do this or that to "make" it finally show "empty" and then as soon as you start using the drain again, it will not show empty. As it has been said before, things just get stuck or adhere to the sensor and you get a false reading.

I think I'm doing OK with the drains as long as they don't back up. I just try to be careful about what I send down the drain. The hoses are pretty small and could get gunked up being careless. I also send down a mix of baking soda and vinegar once a month.
================================================== ================

Fla native, how much baking powder do you mix with what quantity of vinegar? I have heard of this mix before but never knew how to mix.
Thanks!

Joyce H · 06-23-2004, 02:07 PM

I agree the indicators are not accurate. No matter how much flushing etc we do can't seem to get "E" readings. Gonna try the bag of ice in the black tank before we start out on our next trip. About the only reading that seems accurate is the fresh water tank reading.

prariepoodle · 06-23-2004, 02:13 PM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by Joyce H

I agree the indicators are not accurate. No matter how much flushing etc we do can't seem to get "E" readings. Gonna try the bag of ice in the black tank before we start out on our next trip. About the only reading that seems accurate is the fresh water tank reading.

Joyce, What is this about a bag of Ice in the black tank?? I have not heard of this. Is it suppose to do a good job cleaning it out too??

Joyce H · 06-23-2004, 04:18 PM

We have discussed this on the forum before...how the indicators never seem to read empty even after dumping the black water followed by the gray. One of our members suggested adding a bag or two of ice to the black tank with a few gallons of liquid just before hitting the road. The ice will "jiggle" around and knock any solids loose. Dump when you arrive at your next destination. I am sorry I cannot remember who suggested this but maybe someone who has tried it will jump in here and explain it a little better. I keep meaning to try it, but always forget to buy the extra ice when we head for the fiver.

Joyce H · 06-23-2004, 04:28 PM

Found the post through SEARCH
Was posted by NJHillbilly
" have done the ice cube trick. Add 1/2 bottle of NON-ULTRA Dawn dish detergent(non-ultra dissolves better in cold water), 1/4 tank of water and 2 or 3 bags of ice. The ice bangs around and scrubs the tank, all is melted and drains away when you dump at the campsite. I dump when I arrive when I do this."

NJ Hillbilly · 06-23-2004, 05:07 PM

I read on another site (have not had time to try it yet) to add liquid water softener to the tanks. The softner makes the water "slick or slimy feeling". This loosens things inside the tanks and keeps them from getting anything stuck to them. This will probably only work if You allow the tanks to fill. I plan to do this 4th of July since we will be camping without a sewer hokup for the weekend.

John

RC and Samantha · 06-23-2004, 08:59 PM

Ours actually do work. Only once did I have a problem with the black tank reading E after dumping and using the Black Tank Wash system installed on the coach. After that I made sure that I black tank flushed by closing the valve on and off for short periods of time and now ours works each and every time. During our winter camping they even worked.

We do make sure that we use quite a bit of water when flushing the commode after each use. That seems to be really important in helping the contents to break down.

Like someone else has mentioned before it takes very little for the black tank to measure 1/3 full especially following directions and putting in the chemical and the five gallons or so of water it recommends. Between each level though it seems to take an awful lot of water/waste to get to the next level and even when it first reads full it has quite a ways to go before actually being full.

The suggestions here are very much appreciated though in case we do run into a problem again.

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