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Re: [VAL] black water tank stories



Most of the "Blue Boy", "Gray Boy" etc... Black water portable tanks can be 
towed behind the truck by a handle that drops over the ball on your 
hitch... If you have switched to Hensley, you can carry a little trailer 
ball hookup that will pull the tank ... just go slow...
The bigger tanks are easier to work with due to the addition of valves and 
extra hose connections... just more of a problem to haul along...(take up a 
lot of space)

The paper you buy in the grocery can be easily tested by putting a couple 
of squares in a glass of water and watch for the time to dissolve into 
something less than a sheet... you can compare it with a couple of sheets 
of RV type paper for time to dissolve and if it does not compare , don't 
use it ... it won't dissolve in the chemical much better than it does in 
the water...I have found Scott to be as good as the Camping World stuff....

As to chemical or enzyme... they both work and as I recall, just not 
together... the chemicals kill the enzymes... I used a bottle of the enzyme 
after buying it at an RV show and it worked just fine... when the bottle 
ran out, I switched back to the chemicals because they were available where 
I happened to be...

Among the good advice I have noticed is don't let the tank dry out... and 
don't leave the valve open at the camp site... let the tank fill up and use 
enough water to keep the system working... trying to get a tank flowing 
that has been allowed to cake up is no simple task... lots of physical work 
to break up what ever is keeping the valve plugged and lots of mess when 
you finally break it loose..and you lose a lot of capacity by having a mass 
that doesn't go out the valve in the tank.... much easier to keep the tank 
working ....

You can buy a fitting for the faucet in the bathroom sink that will let you 
use a short piece of hose with a wand attached that is sold at most RV 
stores that will flush out the tank through the foot valve in the base of 
the toilet... keeps from having to take out screens, drag out a big hose 
and find a faucet you can attach the hose to...The convenience is worth 
more than the cost of the wand... I have noticed a lot of the new trailers 
are fitted with a flush fitting that makes the use of a hose on the outside 
more convenient...

As someone pointed out... not a big deal, just part of camper life...

Jim