66 Caravel black water dump valve???

[nwbiggart]

I have a new to me Caravel and am trying to figure out the systems. I have the original owner's manual which says that the black water dump valve is underneath an exterior cap. Got down there, took the cap off - slowly! - and there's is a beige plastic panel. No obvious way to move it. Would appreciate any help - what I am supposed to be looking for, if there is something I should be installing, anything to let the sewer flow! Thanks so much from a newbie.

[68Streamline]

There is a pull lever inside the bumper. You'll see it as you open the bumper cover.

[dbj216]

Hi from Colorado and welcome to Air Forums and the vintage Airstream hobby. There is a lot to learn, and these Forums sure helped me learn.

Maybe your 66 Caravel is like my 66 Trade Wind. Your owner's manual probably talks about the gopher hole waste dump method. That isn't done any more!

Your trailer, if like mine, has a rather inadequate black water tank under the toilet. In fact, the toilet is rather inadequate also. Mine was leaking and thus rotted out the plywood floor under the toilet. And the sewer hose connection process involved getting on your hands and knees, opening the hatch, fishing the hose through, connecting it, and then opening the dump valve. Very unhandy in my view.

And you may find that your black water dump valve is likely shot too. At least mine was. They are 50 year old trailers for goodness sakes.

Here is a photo of the black water tank and dump valve. The tank is so thin it is very likely to clog up. I ended up replacing mine and rebuilding the entire bathroom.

David

[nwbiggart]

Thanks to you and 68streamline I have figured it out! My bumper box was upgraded and while quite nice it hid the valve pull. Now I know where it is

Yes, these are old babies and need a bit of care. Had a number of repairs but if this tank doesn't cooperate its next on the list.

[Beaker63]

Hey Nwbiggart
If you check the vintage Airstream site, in the resources section Colin Hyde has direction for converting your dump valve to modern system. I converted ours and it works great.
Tim

[d-na]

we have been trying to figure out how to dump the tank for a year! (Gross, I know, but we thought it was bad plumbing or something. We had no idea that the bumper opened! Yay! What a relief! Thank you!!!