Black tank. Whew.... it stinks.

[pamu]

We have a new-to-us 2012 FC.

We have had other AS trailers and have never had any issue with black tank odor. (No TP, use bath houses when convenient, dump, flush tank, Happy Camper- good to go.)

We picked this unit up several states away and camped our way home. I have no idea what the PO did in terms of black tank habits/maintenance. At pick up there was no odor. Shortly after arriving at our first campsite and connecting to city water, the odor almost took my head off. (Is there a body decomposing down there?!) Before heading out the next day, we added about a cup of Dawn and some extra water. Upon arriving at the next campground, we dumped and added chemicals.

The odor has never been as bad as that first day, but I still get wafts of it. Today I took a water hose in and sprayed down the hole. (Did I damage my sensors? Maybe. They don’t seem to be working now.) I added a different- Thetford chemical.

I plan to replace the seal- although it does hold water. The step mechanism appears to be a little sticky. You really have to pop the step lever for it to close completely and we absolutely want that valve to close completely!

Questions:
Is there any way to get in there to lubricate the step mechanism?

What else needs to be checked? Vent stack? How is this accomplished?

Too late to add a water softener? I am not sure when our next outing (chance to dump) will be.

Any help is appreciated!

[GCinSC2]

SWAG, any chance it's the grey tank air admittance valve?

Sorry, I don't know your trailer setup but why not look under lav sink for a black cap thingy on the sink drain line somewhere near the high point. It's to let air in and not let stinky out from grey tank. Mine unscrews, inspect check etc.

You can search air admittance valve to see what it might look like.

Gary

[uncle_bob]

Hi

If the trailer has been in storage for a while, who knows what may be in the tank. The same is true of a critter building a nest in the tank vent up on the roof .....

Bob

[pamu]

Good thought. I'll check. Thanks!

Bob[/QUOTE]

[pamu]

Would explain why I get odor when there's water in the toilet. Thanks!

[Reeltimer]

Here’s the link-
https://youtu.be/FyzGKE6ZPIU

[Reeltimer]

Here’s the link to The Bio-Geo Method on YouTube
https://youtu.be/FyzGKE6ZPIU

[Tbeck11931]

Great YouTube videos and I can attest that the Borax / Dawn seems to work.
If your sitting static for awhile fill both black and grey tanks with the Borax / Dawn mix. Then fill both tanks to the full mark and allow them to sit for days. Use this method for sitting in storage then dump the tanks before using.
Do the Borax Dawn solution only partially filling the tanks for travel.
This may take several times before it really has long lasting effects. Of course if your roof vents are blocked that needs to be addressed first.
Good luck and keep us posted.