Storage tanks sensors
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URL: http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=14492
Printed Date: 29 Apr 2024 at 7:12am
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Topic: Storage tanks sensors
Posted By: rawest50
Subject: Storage tanks sensors
Date Posted: 26 Mar 2021 at 10:02am
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I do not think my Gray and black tank sensors are working. Is there any way to check the tanks visually or another method? ------------- 2017.5 RPod 179 2017 Jeep Unlimited Wrangler 2017 Chevy Colorado Z71 Off Road Crew Cab 2 Weiner dogs Great wife puts up with my BS ❤️ Thoroughbred Racing. 
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Replies:
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 26 Mar 2021 at 11:35am
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Those sensors are notoriously inaccurate. You can open the flapper valve and look in the toilet and see if the black tank is full. If you don’t want water to run while you’re doing that disconnect city water and leave your water pump off.
If water comes up the shower drain then the gray tank is full. Don’t want to wait till the tanks are completely full? Neither do I. I fill the fresh tank (I don’t use the city water connection even if city water is available). Drain the gray and black tanks. Since all 3 tanks are 30 gal it’s impossible to fill the gray and black tanks before the fresh tank is empty. The fresh tank is translucent so you can see how much water is left. When it gets low I drain and refill. Problem solved and no need for the sensors. ------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
Posted By: rawest50
Date Posted: 26 Mar 2021 at 1:08pm
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That is good to know. I did not want black tank water backing up into the RV. ------------- 2017.5 RPod 179 2017 Jeep Unlimited Wrangler 2017 Chevy Colorado Z71 Off Road Crew Cab 2 Weiner dogs Great wife puts up with my BS ❤️ Thoroughbred Racing.
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Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 26 Mar 2021 at 2:34pm
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Not to worry. You will typically put much more water into the gray tank than the black tank. I estimate that out of a 30 gallon fresh tank fill we put about 20-25 gallons in the gray tank and only 5-10 at most in the black tank. Even conserving water very aggressively (we can go a week plus on 30 gallons) a lot more goes to dish washing and showers than to flushing. ------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
Posted By: rawest50
Date Posted: 26 Mar 2021 at 9:31pm
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I dumped this morning since we had another week camping. I added a lot of water before I dumped. When we had the black water tank hose hooked up I turned on the black water sprayer. I left it on through the entire process that follows. I partially filled the tank 3 times after closing the valve. This was after the initial dump. I then rocked the Pod pretty good. You could hear the water sloshing in the tank. We had placed everything in the floor. Each time a few more pieces of paper came out. The 3rd time nothing but clear water. Checked the status on the sensor and it showed it was empty. I will let you know if that was a solution or just a sensor messing up. Gray water seems to be working fine. ------------- 2017.5 RPod 179 2017 Jeep Unlimited Wrangler 2017 Chevy Colorado Z71 Off Road Crew Cab 2 Weiner dogs Great wife puts up with my BS ❤️ Thoroughbred Racing.
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Posted By: Tars Tarkas
Date Posted: 27 Mar 2021 at 1:25am
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Really, you should never count on those sensors to be accurate. At best, they might be like the clock that's stopped: even that's correct twice a day. You're cleaning and rinsing routine is great, but you know you're empty without looking a the lights.... and because they're right doesn't mean they'll stay right as the tank fills. The sensors seem like a good idea, maybe even an essential, but they're not. They are a cruel joke and totally unnecessary with a little experience and common sense. Learn to live without them! I haven't even looked at mine in years. TT ------------- 2010 176 FJ Cruiser |
Posted By: jato
Date Posted: 27 Mar 2021 at 7:08pm
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I have to agree about the sensors for both gray and black water but mine for some odd reason reads quite accurately for the FW tank. Must have been a mistake at FR to have one that actually reads correctly. ------------- God's pod '11 model 177 '17 Ford F-150 4WD 3.5 Ecoboost Jim and Diane by beautiful Torch Lake "...and you will know the Truth and the Truth will set you free." |
Posted By: StephenH
Date Posted: 27 Mar 2021 at 7:20pm
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My FW tank is also accurate. The gray is more accurate than the black for sure. Even after a thorough treatment and rinse which gets the black tank sensors working, it does not last because the first few days of use, especially when we are moving, ends up with the black tank sensors not working properly again. ------------- StephenH Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,... http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=7712 - ouR escaPOD mods Former RPod 179 Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS |
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 27 Mar 2021 at 7:54pm
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Yep the sensors on the freshwater tank work the best too bad that you really don't need them there because the tank is translucent and you can see the water level. Oh well... ------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
Posted By: rawest50
Date Posted: 27 Mar 2021 at 8:41pm
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Fresh is translucent but gray and black are not. Not sure if you understand my question. ------------- 2017.5 RPod 179 2017 Jeep Unlimited Wrangler 2017 Chevy Colorado Z71 Off Road Crew Cab 2 Weiner dogs Great wife puts up with my BS ❤️ Thoroughbred Racing.
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Posted By: Tars Tarkas
Date Posted: 27 Mar 2021 at 9:18pm
Is there another way to check the tanks? That's already been answered: look down the toilet for the black and wait for the grey tank to back up in the shower. Perhaps better, if you're using water out of the fresh water tank, when it gets empty and you need to fill it up, drain the black and grey tanks. There is no way either one could be full, although the grey tank will be fairly close. If you're on city water but don't have sewer hook ups, just learn about how long you can go without filling the grey tank. I have a hard time making it a week. Otherwise, watch the shower basin. Tip: if the grey tank starts backing up into the shower, you can drain a few gallons and dump it down the toilet. That will help flush the black tank as well as get the water out of the shower basin. TT ------------- 2010 176 FJ Cruiser |
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 27 Mar 2021 at 10:12pm
Not sure who you are addressing this comment to but I understand perfectly. As I said it is a better to start with empty gray and black tanks and monitor how much water you are transferring to them from the known starting amount in the fwt. If you do that then you can't overfill them and more importantly you won't overload your trailer which would most probably happen if you wound up with 2 full tanks and certainly happen if you had 3 full tanks. That's 750 lbs of water! Rpods are not really designed to have more than one tank full of water onboard. ------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
Posted By: Ben Herman
Date Posted: 27 Mar 2021 at 10:21pm
| Sometimes what I will do is wash our dishes in a basin in the sink, then dump the dish water into the toilet. As others have noted, much more of your water is used for washing than the amount that goes into the blackwater tank. It easy to use several gallons washing dishes, by adding that to the black water tank it better balances the load. The other plus is that as we drive towards home, the extra water in the black tank helps to liquify the solid waste and typically makes it drain better to keep the black tank cleaner. |