Shower backup in my Mini

[ffrick]

My minuet 20 has a problem with grey water backing up into the shower. Can anyone tell me if there is a valve that's failing or is my tank filling up faster than I think it is. It seems to me that I read somewhere that you need to be hooked up to sewage to use the shower. That doesn't seem right. Can anyone help me with this?

[overlander63]

You only have a 10 gallon or so grey tank, so it won't take long to fill it.

[moosetags]

Usually, if water backs up into your shower, it means that the gray tank is full. If all you have is a 10 gallon gray tank, it is going to fill up pretty quickly. Wash a few dishes, brush your teeth, take a shower, and it's full.

Brian

[Argonaut20]

There is no connection of the shower to a gray water tank. In fact, if the '77 is like the '78, the gray water tank is above the floor in the closet next to the wash stand. Yes, you do have to have the outlet for the plumbing connected to a dump or a blue boy tank to use the shower.
If you are having the shower fill with gray water when the outlet is capped and you are using the sink or wash stand (not the shower), then the valve for the gray water tank is leaking into the outlet pipe. When the pipe gets full, you get water backed up into the shower. You can usually tell when the valve is leaking by running water into the sink or wash stand drain, letting it sit for a while, then uncapping the outlet. If there is water that flows out of the outlet (more than just a little water), then the valve is probably leaking. Putting a rebuild kit into the gray water valve is not a big deal.

If you fill up the gray tank, you will see the wash stand or sink drain fill up.

[overlander63]

Originally Posted by Argonaut20

There is no connection of the shower to a gray water tank. In fact, if the '77 is like the '78, the gray water tank is above the floor in the closet next to the wash stand. Yes, you do have to have the outlet for the plumbing connected to a dump or a blue boy tank to use the shower.

I'd forgotten that. That is...inconvenient... I think that model is the only one like it, luckily.

[mutcth]

We have the same trailer. Another warning: be careful when dumping. We've had waste water back up into the shower pan when dumping at dump stations that are raised (rather than just a hole in the ground.) Waste water backs up in the "stinky slinky" and into the shower. Slow dumping and occasional lifting/draining of the 3" hose help.

I'll admit to using a collapsable open bucket below the drain outlet while taking a quick shower, and then dumping it into the black tank. But we usually just use the campground showers.

Tom

[ffrick]

Thanks for all the good tips. I've owned this camper for just over a year. We put a lot of work into the interior such as curtains, cushions, some plumbing, etc. I have not however messed much with the waste aspect of it. I plan on crawling underneath it this winter and checking the things you recommended. ffrick