How to dump tanks in home sewer??

[huck55]

We travel from NJ to Florida in Jan, Feb and a little in March. When we return home, I need to dump my gray and black tanks at home since many campgrounds in our area aren't open in March.

Is there a way to hook up a macerator and dump my tanks into our sewer system via garden hose? Is there a way to do that? My sewer PVC line has easy access but I'm unable to hook anything up that is permanent.

Any suggestions?
Thank you.

[InsideOut]

If your PVC line is accessible, can't you just take off the clean-out cap & dump into it like at a campground? It doesn't have to be "permanent"...although we did add a clean-out & threaded fitting to our sewer line in a previous house. We're on septic now...don't have any experience with a macerator/garden hose.

Alternately, just dump a bit farther away from home at someplace that is open and don't use your tanks on the last stretch home. You might also check truck stops, like TA, Pilot Flying J, Love's, etc. - many of them have RV dump stations. Or check this out:

RV Dump Stations by State

Shari

[nelsonh]

You may be able to rig up a system using a sewage pump in a portable container and run a discharge line to your home's sewer.... But speaking as someone who works in the residential plumbing business, it's not something I would really want to try. It would be a lot of jacking around with a high potential for things to go wrong, and the potential resulting mess would be fraught with danger IMO.


Having said that.... if you were absolutely determined to pursue a solution like this, I would envision something like digging a hole in the ground in a location that is both near where you park your trailer and near where you could tie a discharge pipe/hose into your home's sewer. Into this hole goes the plastic sewage pit and "macerating" sewage pump, the pit would come with a lid with holes in the top for the inlet and outlet piping. A garden hose would not be large enough to accommodate the discharge force and volume from a typical residential sewage pump, when installed in homes these pumps are typically piped with 2" PVC pipe. So I would find a larger diameter flexible hose for this part. Then you would have to figure out how to get this hose/pipe into your house and 100% securely attached to your home's existing PVC sewer plumbing. It might not be the worst idea to enlist the help of a plumber at this point. It could be a workable solution, just remember to pull the pump out of the pit when you're done so it doesn't freeze. Also, I am not taking into account any local codes or jurisdictions that might prohibit a scheme such as this.



I too REALLY wish I could dump my tanks at home, but honestly I would dig up my yard to tap into the main sewer out to the street before I would attempt something like using a sewage pump setup. (But then again, working in the trade would mean that I could accomplish that for a lower cost than an "average homeowner"...)

[Jim J]

I dump at home using a Thetford portable waste tank. I dump at my last campsite, use the toilet or grey water as i need to on the way home, then empty into the portable tank and flush with the tank flusher.

Then I pull my portable tank around to my house clean out, unscrew the cleanout top and dump the portable tank, flush it, close it, and recap the clean out.

My portable tank can hold about 20 gallons of liquid. I have never had to make more than one trip from the trailer to the cleanout.

Tote is easy to roll over grass or pavement.

[richard5933]

It's really not difficult at all to dump at home into a toilet, even up hill a bit.

I have one of these which I've used for years to dump the tanks at home:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I connect it to the dump connection on the trailer and use a 100-ft 5/8" hose which goes into the toilet in our barn. It's probably about 10 feet uphill from the trailer to the toilet, and the pump can handle this with no problem.

The pump needs a 12v battery to operate, and usually I'll use the TV battery for this by pulling the TV around to the side of the trailer. Only takes a few minutes to pump out both tanks. After things are done I'll turn on the garden hose to flush out the line.

It was well worth the money on this one to have the convenience of dumping at home without having to dig into my yard or make any permanent alterations to my septic plumbing.

[nelsonh]

Originally Posted by nelsonh

You may be able to rig up a system using a sewage pump in a portable container and run a discharge line to your home's sewer.... But speaking as someone who works in the residential plumbing business, it's not something I would really want to try. It would be a lot of jacking around with a high potential for things to go wrong, and the potential resulting mess would be fraught with danger IMO.


Having said that.... if you were absolutely determined to pursue a solution like this, I would envision something like digging a hole in the ground in a location that is both near where you park your trailer and near where you could tie a discharge pipe/hose into your home's sewer. Into this hole goes the plastic sewage pit and "macerating" sewage pump, the pit would come with a lid with holes in the top for the inlet and outlet piping. A garden hose would not be large enough to accommodate the discharge force and volume from a typical residential sewage pump, when installed in homes these pumps are typically piped with 2" PVC pipe. So I would find a larger diameter flexible hose for this part. Then you would have to figure out how to get this hose/pipe into your house and 100% securely attached to your home's existing PVC sewer plumbing. It might not be the worst idea to enlist the help of a plumber at this point. It could be a workable solution, just remember to pull the pump out of the pit when you're done so it doesn't freeze. Also, I am not taking into account any local codes or jurisdictions that might prohibit a scheme such as this.



I too REALLY wish I could dump my tanks at home, but honestly I would dig up my yard to tap into the main sewer out to the street before I would attempt something like using a sewage pump setup. (But then again, working in the trade would mean that I could accomplish that for a lower cost than an "average homeowner"...)

I guess I should have clarified... my reply was under the assumption that you don't have an existing outdoor in-ground sewer cleanout that you can easily access. But if you DO already have an outdoor sewer cleanout in the ground, then what I described above gets a lot easier.

[nelsonh]

Originally Posted by richard5933

It's really not difficult at all to dump at home into a toilet, even up hill a bit.

I have one of these which I've used for years to dump the tanks at home:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I connect it to the dump connection on the trailer and use a 100-ft 5/8" hose which goes into the toilet in our barn. It's probably about 10 feet uphill from the trailer to the toilet, and the pump can handle this with no problem.

The pump needs a 12v battery to operate, and usually I'll use the TV battery for this by pulling the TV around to the side of the trailer. Only takes a few minutes to pump out both tanks. After things are done I'll turn on the garden hose to flush out the line.

It was well worth the money on this one to have the convenience of dumping at home without having to dig into my yard or make any permanent alterations to my septic plumbing.

Well me being VERY new to the RVing world, I didn't know such a device existed - and it sure looks like a viable solution for at-home tank dumping. Thanks for posting this, it might just find its way into my Amazon cart....

[Tim A.]

As nelsonh mentions, if your house has an external clean-out for the sewer line, there are multiple ways to use that for dumping. Richard5933's 12V pump is a good one. So is a Sewer Solution if you do not need to pump much uphill. We have used a Sewer Solution for years in commercial RV parks and can attest to its utility.

Tim

[Shiny16]

I use the Flojet as well. I just pass a garden hose through the basement window to a clean out on the sewer pipe. Buy a good quality 3/4 hose in the length you need.

[kb0zke]

When we had our acreage we had a sewer cleanout near where we parked our little trailer. It would have been pretty easy to use most of the year, but when it rained that area turned into a swamp for a few days. Would have been pretty messy trying to dump there then.

[LAWBC]

Sewer Solution Valterra; Used this when I had my trailer garaged with a washroom/toilet in it. Worked great,, still have it.
https://www.amazon.com/Valterra-SS01...%2C1026&sr=8-1

[1StreamDream]

Originally Posted by InsideOut

Alternately, just dump a bit farther away from home at someplace that is open and don't use your tanks on the last stretch home. You might also check truck stops, like TA, Pilot Flying J, Love's, etc. - many of them have RV dump stations. Or check this out:

RV Dump Stations by State

Shari

We have the same dilemma, go south for the winter, return north while still cold enough to freeze so have to be prepared. I would love to have the convenience of dump at home, but I have settled on the solution recommended by InsideOut ... I find a Pilot/Flying J/Loves along my return path home, and pay the going rate to dump there before I get back to my house. After that dump, no more use of trailer plumbing for the remainder of the ride home. We find that to be a really good option.

[majorairhead]

Get a large dish pan. Dump in to that, then dump that in to a 5 gallon bucket. Carry bucket in to house and dump in toilet.

[centennialman]

I had to have the main line to my home replaced. When that was being done, I had the plumbers add a clean out for the Airstream. It's so easy now to wait until I get home to dump out the tanks. It also allows me all the time I want to thoroughly rinse them and keep them ready for the next trip.

[JCWDCW]

Originally Posted by huck55

Is there a way to hook up a macerator and dump my tanks into our sewer system via garden hose? Is there a way to do that? My sewer PVC line has easy access but I'm unable to hook anything up that is permanent.

As suggested just use the sewer access
We don’t have that option, but take the trailer to the sewage treatment plant
The “honey wagons” dump there and we are allowed to use it also

[3OnOurWay]

Originally Posted by centennialman

I had to have the main line to my home replaced. When that was being done, I had the plumbers add a clean out for the Airstream. It's so easy now to wait until I get home to dump out the tanks. It also allows me all the time I want to thoroughly rinse them and keep them ready for the next trip.

we don’t have the front yard clean out, but my brother-in-law two blocks away does!!! .

which comes in handy when I have an emergency

We are getting some bathroom work done and will ask plumber to add a clean out ( like kitchen sink require ) to the side of the house.
That will be near driveway where the RV is parked at. So there’s options to have that done underneath the house pretty easily, which may be cheaper than digging up the front yard and connecting a new pipe and clean out.

[ForteePlus]

I'm trying to think the last time I *did not* see a dump station at a rest stop on the interstate. Worth a look-see for the route ahead.
Safe Travels.

[Overstreet]

I just pull into my RV port and hook up to a sewer clean out.

See Camping World for the portable model that pumps into clean out via garden hose........ https://www.campingworld.com/flojet-...kit-26125.html

[PC Conner]

1. Clean-Out Pipe. Had one at previous house. Easy and efficient.
2. Macerator Pump. Be sure to have a 5-gallon bucket for removing the hose from the toilet and out of the house. I didn't find the instructions clear and had to experiment. Turn-Off water going into the black tank when pumping out the tank.
3. My dad had a 5-gallon bucket with a toilet seat for boat use. Remove the seat and put a lid on the bucket. Pour carefully into the home toilet.
4. After final road dump, use plastic bags: (1) Place plastic bag (grocery type or similar; small garbage can bag) in toilet bowl; (2) Make your deposit into the bag; (3) Place that bag into another bag that has a clean exterior (has not been in toilet bowl); (4) Store bag safely until discarded in an appropriate receptacle--be sure bags do not have any holes.

[lemley]

Originally Posted by LAWBC

Sewer Solution Valterra; Used this when I had my trailer garaged with a washroom/toilet in it. Worked great,, still have it.
https://www.amazon.com/Valterra-SS01...%2C1026&sr=8-1

+1 for sewer solution. I have 3 ways to dump.
1. Stinky slinky- my favorite when I can use it
2. Sewer solution. I use it at home where the house clean out is about 30’ from the drive. I also am using it now at a site in the mountains where we buddy camp with friends who have an RV set up permanently. I also have pulled it out at campgrounds with odd sewer setups.
3. Portable tank (blue boy). This is mostly used at state parks where we have water and electric but no sewer. I’m a fan of the Barker 32 gallon tank.