Black Tank and Toilet Paper disposal...

[Ray Eklund]

Geez... why spend more money for something you can take care of easily.

WHY even dump toilet paper down your stool in the first place? It is asking for future problems no matter what kind you are using.

We have a plastic waste can with a small inexpensive plastic trash bag that ALL toilet paper goes into the bag. Anything that does not come out of your physical body... goes into this trashcan, not the toilet.

If you have a pet(s) and do not pick up after them... you may be unable to do the smart option or understand the concept. IF you pick up after your pet... this is a no brainer. If you do not care, go ahead... it is something that you can avoid problems in the future. If you have never had a problem with your black water system... hurrah! I can guarantee you we will NEVER have an issue, ever.

We have a septic system at home. We use similar rules but for toilet paper that is not used for 'butt wiping' goes into the trash can with the plastic bag insert. IF you have ever watched a three stage septic tank of 1250 gallons being pumped... the toilet paper is the biggest issue, not the solids you have flushed into the system. It is a floating island. Even then... this is even not 100% with toilet paper disposal or septic approved whatever paper.

Women use more toilet paper in a day, than men use in a WEEK.

No, I am not a Neanderthal living in a filthy cockroach infested shack next to the city dump. When toilet paper was a luxury... Sears and Wards catalogs were in high demand for out houses. After the pit was filling up the out house was moved... and the former pit buried. Paper takes decades to break down... in a dry climate. Many ignorant campers use toilet paper, drop it under the bush and leave the area not caring. You see this very often along hiking trails frequented by tourist hikers and tent campers.

Well look at it this way. Anyone who buys our trailer will be getting a black water system that has no issues. Without going into any further details... to comfort those who are trying to figure all of these things out... even your pets want to go out to use the restroom.

We boondock and try to use the National Forest Service PIT restroom, when available. Always. Modern pit restrooms are well vented and smell better than your trailer reeking of hot black and grey water odors.

Someone posted they 'SMELL' their black tank in their trailer. Probably still hauling the last three years of solids around, held together by pounds of toilet paper hardened with the minimal amount of water on each flush.

How many even know HOW to clean their grey and black tanks properly?

I see people at the dump station handling their grey and black water disposal as if it is waste from a Nuclear Power Plant.

You use dump station, rinse everything, wash your hands with soap and dry with clean paper towels. Maybe using then disposable rubber gloves for the best option. Take the sewer flush connection and rinse out the black water tank. Then, add four or five gallons of clean water, some chemical to break down whatever was not flushed out... and drive home, sloshing it back and forth. It will be CLEAN when you drain the tank into a five gallon bucket and toss it into your toilet or onto a bush in the yard.

This is not a new idea. If you have ever lived in a log cabin deep in the forest... you know. We as a modern society have forgotten how things 'use to be'. Not like dumping sewage into the rivers as in the 19th century... as that was even acceptable at one time. Those who know... understand. Those who persist in living a germ fearing life... will not understand.

[Ray Eklund]

Six days Boondocking in New Mexico.

No toilet paper issues. No clogged Black Water System. No foul odors. No issues.

Greenhorn Boondockers also know that Black and Grey Water is heavier than Fresh Water... if Black Water Tank is full of Toilet Paper and Fecal matter.

Imagine you are tent camping in the Mohave Desert. Short handled shovel and roll out a heavy boulder as a reminder of the Wild Frontier. Issue solved and toilet paper is easy to carry out or start a campfire.

IF you are broken down in an isolated area awaiting help to find you, some day... you do not want the choice between Black Water or Grey Water for survival, do you? Just tossed that in as an afterthought. But the point may be made in some cases.

Yep. Haul out your toilet tissue. Problem solved.

Plan your bowel movements in advance. Use your camping friend's Airstream as your personal Septic Tank... Use the local facilities is another, option. You are not a Cave Bat, but your Black Tank is as close to a Guano mound as you can get. Just fewer insects to discover, but wonderful for nitrates and plants.

Reduce the Septic Tank syndrome within a trailer and just discover that some bodily functions are natural. It is the disposal that concerns those that find this as an issue.

Of course, I am making an extreme comparison of the plight of some unfortunate Airstream Owners who find comfort of clogging up their Black Tank with no foresight and insight.

Do what a Bear in the forest does. Not the Bear Family you follow on the toilet tissue commercials, although you will not see an Airstream or a NFS Dry Pit in the scene.

If you still use your Toilet at an RV Park... step up to a higher caliber RV Park with clean restrooms. We bought our trailer to shelter ourselves from the elements, not to haul the elements to our shelter.

Make a compromise and take all of this in the manner intended. A reminder that we are all different in our experiences and a healthy sense of humor will prevent a future heart attack, if not... chronic constipation among those who dread the possibility of not using the proper, being Green, RV Toilet Tissue.

[xrvr]

That's some of the funniest stuff I've ever read here. You're joking aren't you? We use the rv toilet as we use the home one, never had a problem.

[CRH]

I am not as seasoned as some of you, but have been crapping in a RV toilet for over 40 years and don't recall a single clogged tank. We never have bought any special toilet paper.

[xrvr]

Maybe AS should offer a bathroom delete option on new models. Just a bucket and a trash can next to it, in aluminum of course! This would be for people who either boondock, who never have to get up at night to go, can control their bowell movements keeping the toxic stuff inside their bodies, or who are always very close to the campground toilets. Me thinks some of us are out of contact with the majority of rv users and what they require. Too much time in the boonies. To each his own!!

[Lily&Me]

Ray is the king of boondocking, and knows tricks that many of us do not.

I have only had a problem with toilet paper this past winters' two weeks at Edisto Beach, when I was trying to avoid having to dump my tanks during that time period.

Not a good idea, as I didn't use enough water and toilet paper clogged my tank. It took a couple of empty-ings and flushings out with a hose stuck down the toilet to get rid of it.

Proper toilet paper is crucial, also adequate water, and I plan to embark on a new strategy, bagging toilet paper for separate disposal. I'm going to look for small, scented bags, as I don't have room in my tiny wet bath for a separate garbage can.

A lot of what one needs water for is to flush the paper down, so bagging separately will also save water and tank space.


Maggie

[OTRA15]

Oh joy another TP thread!

[eubank]

I think different designs do make a difference in how well TP and solids flow into the tank. Our black tank is not a problem in this regard: The toilet is right on top of the tank, and the outflow is directly from the side of the tank. No extra piping anywhere. (There is a LOT of piping for gray water, but we don't have a gray tank.)

That said, we do much like others: TP goes into a trash bag. No use adding extra semi-viscous stuff to a small tank, especially since the low height of the tank from the ground does not leave a lot for gravity to deal with at dumping time. (And then there are those occasions when you go to a dump station that is carefully designed so that the stuff has to flow uphill. )

And, of course, we never have to bother with selecting any kind of special TP.

[Ray Eklund]

During a natural disaster the store shelves are cleaned out of:

1- Toilet Paper, Napkins, Paper Towels and Free Magazines
2- Milk
3- Bread
4- TV Guide
5- Bottled Water
6- Beer
7- Fly Fishing Accessories
8- Ammunition

Can you tell which item(s) MEN purchase during an emergency situation?

This is the lighter side of the serious TP Threads. Common Sense. To the point and no need to pick the secured, pad locked 2000 foot single ply roll, 3" wide Forest Service TP for your Airstream.

We do use the in house Airstream toilet for #1, TP in the basket and the 4 ounce flush. If above 25 degrees, I prefer the fresh air and those camped too close to my Off the Grid campsite... will move the next day.

Two gallons of 'priming' fresh water added to the Black Water System and using the dumping at a 'FREE' truck stop along most Interstate Highways. A flush and wash system that works perfectly.

Personally. Myself and Blue Heelers do not care what options you manage to do in or out of your trailer. It is yours to keep and maintain.

Anyone in Viet Nam riding First Class in a helicopter for a long... expense paid trip? Tell everyone about the facilities in a $250,000 aluminum rotary distribution system. Bombs... away or Sunny Side Up?

I have been in the Jungles of Panama and western Nebraska. The grass is shorter in Nebraska.

[westcoastas]

When boondocking, keep it simple:

1. Always use single-ply toilet paper;
2. Husband buys a small gardening or hiking trowel, goes not gently into that cold, dark night (don't forget the headlamp), and digs a cat hole leaving the black tank for the wife. You should get about two weeks (MMV).
3. Keep a garden hose with a sprayer in the bumper or storage. Flush black tank well at the toilet upon the next sewage disposal station visit.
4. Remind wife of past chivalry and say thank you upon receiving a wonderful two-egg omelet at breakfast (again, MMV).

[Foiled Again]

During a crisis we rue the internet -

Which has wiped out (pun intended) the Sears catalog and the phone book as alternate pre-portioned sheets.

Let's face it Glossy paper for advertising makes it virtually impossible for any traditional second use of outdated material - it's bad even in the bottom of a birdcage because the colored inks are toxic.

Of course if you think anything current is yucky - the Roman army was grouped in 10's and multiples of 10's. The smallest group or decade of ten soldiers was actually 8 soldiers and 2 slaves to care for the men, mules and equipment. One piece of "equipment" that required care was a long stick with a sponge soaked in vinegar and wrung out. It was used to wipe one's bottom... and the worst job in the world fell to the slave who had to maintain the "------- end of the stick".


Paula

[eubank]

Come on up to the Moreno Valley, where lots of mullein grows. One of its several traditional uses is ... as toilet paper. But only in the summer when the leaves are as soft as Charmin.




Lynn

Originally Posted by Foiled Again

During a crisis we rue the internet -

Which has wiped out (pun intended) the Sears catalog and the phone book as alternate pre-portioned sheets.

Let's face it Glossy paper for advertising makes it virtually impossible for any traditional second use of outdated material - it's bad even in the bottom of a birdcage because the colored inks are toxic.

Of course if you think anything current is yucky - the Roman army was grouped in 10's and multiples of 10's. The smallest group or decade of ten soldiers was actually 8 soldiers and 2 slaves to care for the men, mules and equipment. One piece of "equipment" that required care was a long stick with a sponge soaked in vinegar and wrung out. It was used to wipe one's bottom... and the worst job in the world fell to the slave who had to maintain the "------- end of the stick".


Paula

[Caffeinated]

Twenty five years plus of trailer camping, and never, none, 0 issues with tp down the toilet.

That's enough evidence for me.

Mike

[rmkrum]

Originally Posted by westcoastas

When boondocking, keep it simple:



----------------snip------------.

4. Remind wife past chivalry and say thank you upon receiving a wonderful two-egg omelet at breakfast (again, MMV).

Very nice looking breakfast!

Now back to our 'interesting' discussion.


Sent from my pocket Internet using Airstream Forums

[Ray Eklund]

Originally Posted by Caffeinated

Twenty five years plus of trailer camping, and never, none, 0 issues with tp down the toilet.

That's enough evidence for me.

Mike

*******

Mike.... it is not the toilet paper that is the issue. You are correct. Your observations down the 'observation hatch' agree with our extensive research. I also have ZERO toilet paper issues.

I also have ZERO everything else issues to mention.

A scientific survey has shown that Dometic toilets:

1- Flushes with too little water to assist gravity and hydraulic stool softening.
2- Trailers parked at one location for more than four days, under normal occupancy and consistent use of toilet will create an uneven distribution of solids within the tank.
3- Adding Toilet Paper is no different than adding cement to sand, and with a little water to create 'magic mountain' once chemically bonded.
4- Twenty-five years of research is two months short of being accurate and acceptable. You need to retest and not waver from accepted toilet testing methods. You may restart your study today.

This scientific survey was tested at various Forest Service Campsites and new Airstreams on display on dealer's lots and RV Shows using a strict code of silence by experienced testers representing Moe TP and Not Moe TP testers.

Would other 'silent TP Testers' please come forward and explain your technical observations of correct TP, PP and PooPoo techniques? Your assistance is needed to demonstrate that many Airstream owners are being mislead to believe that Toilet Paper, aka Toilet Tissue is at fault for all Black Water complaints.

Your fellow Airstream owners depend on accurate and detailed observations. Myself... excluded.

[J. Morgan]

We don't dookie in our trailer when not hooked to a sewer connection unless it is a dire emergency.

There will be no storage of used dookie paper... It is going down the tubes.

My trailer was built using a residential toilet that is plumbed directly to the discharge connection and also to the tank, not directly into the tank.

There will be no mountain of poop under my toilet, and no dry flushes that will cause cement like conglomerations.

I frequently add chlorine bleach to my black tank, which pretty much obliterates the Scott single ply paper as well as all odor.

My black tank fills after 8 full flushes... Which works for my usage.


Superat stultitia.

[Ray Eklund]

Vintage Airstream Owner testing options - pre 1980 models:

1- Newsprint, aka newspaper, TV Guides and newspaper sale inserts are considered 'standard TP for PP and PooPoo' testing.
2- You must have 20:20 vision in one eye to qualify as a Quality Control Advisor. This is required for 'down the hatch observations'. Photos are not acceptable, only eye witness reporting.
3- Any Airstream without a grey water tank is deemed unqualified to meet the TP, PP and PooPoo standards of testing.
4- Modern TP made after 1980 is not permitted as a test material as older Airstreams are made to support harsher options as reported earlier.

Don't I have other more pressing issues to keep busy?

No. My job is to keep all my and your options open to serious discussion. Now I can go work on my Equal-i-zer Hitch washer adjustment which is a minor distraction from my Scientific Work and grease removal from my white 'I Love Vegas' tee shirt.

I get all excited when finding more Toilet Paper threads. It gets me all rolled up, double ply with flower print... happy.

As you can tell, we do take all toilet tissue issues under consideration as these discussions appear frequently on these Forums. I am more concerned more with 'Barbed vs. Barbless Fishing Hooks' and will discuss those as a substitute on THIS thread for serious discussion towards solving dental issues among large Brown Trout in Idaho.

[Lily&Me]

I don't know the exact configuration of the tank in the Interstate, tho it seems to have two levels, and the one that is immediately beneath the emptying valve is where things...ahem...can accumulate.

I have ordered small, lavender scented trash bags, which will be hung inconspicuously in my tiny wet bath, and used to deposit dry materials for later disposal.


Maggie

[FCStreamer]

This is what we use. And it was mostly to keep my dog out of the wastebasket, which he had a nasty habit of getting into. It keeps the odors in check also. And it matches the outside skin of my AS. Perfection.

http://www.amazon.com/simplehuman-Ro...h+can+with+lid

[Lily&Me]

That's what I would use....if I had room.

These bags I ordered are small, thin, and inexpensive....$3.30 for 75 bags at Home Depot.


Maggie