Slinky touching the ground

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by openroad118

Seems odd to be concerned whether the hose touched the ground when it seems half the dumpers I've observed don't even wear gloves!

Not that odd. You don't use gloves on the toilet, either (well, I used to know one guy who did…). You can wash your hands afterwards; it's hard to wash the ground.

[openroad118]

Good point, if not a disgusting one. However, everyone I saw, hopped in behind the wheel and drove off.

[Foiled Again]

Protag & Openroad - you started my day with a good laugh. I use the Sewer Solution - which ordinarily doesn't get anything on my hands, but I always seem to have already locked the door and folded up the steps every time I disconnect the SS.

I'm buying groceries tonight, so I just added "soap dish" and hand soap to my list of things to buy. They will abide in my bumper storage with the SS - which by the way stores neatly in a plastic box designed for wetting down pre-pasted wallpaper. Thank you I feel much better now.

Sad note: At work I always refill the liquid soap dispenser in my bathroom, then go next door to the men's room. I've never needed to add soap to their bottle in years. When I twitted the guys about this they said it was because they refilled it before it ever got even half empty. I believe that - yeah really. Next time I brink pizza into the office, they wash their hands before they peek under the box lid!

Paula

[mandolindave]

This is the first time that I ever started to think about beginning to consider the option of maybe partially disagreeing with you.
I had a pump out guy that had equipment failure, dump about 5 gallons of nasty on my campsite. I was angry. He said not to worry and dumped water over the mess. Just like he said, 1/2 hour later, the smell was gone. So, it is actually fairly easy to wash the ground.
Micro organisms in soil even eats the stuff that wears off of our tires before it gets more than 5 feet from the highway ( so says the government study ).
But I understand that year round spillage in a campground is cause for concern.
Another thing I would like to point out is how badly grey water stinks if it is allowed to fester in a holding tank.

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by mandolindave

This is the first time that I ever started to think about beginning to consider the option of maybe partially disagreeing with you.

I'm not perfect, and I welcome people who disagree with me, as long as they can back up their viewpoint as well or better than I can back up mine. How else will I learn?

They say the world is run by people with a "C" average. Think about that for a moment. A "C" average means that, on average, they have the right answers only 75% of the time. Or to put it another way, one in every four decisions ever made is wrong. I'd like to think I beat that average, but honestly I probably don't beat it by much.

With regard to washings my hands after dumping my tanks, that's one thing I like about the macerator pump. It's a very clean system from the user's point of view. But I still wash my hands afterwards, usually with waterless hand sanitizer so I don't have to start refilling my gray tank right away. I have a tough time understanding people who can dump their waste tanks, rinse their slinkies, wipe their hands on their pants (shirts, overalls, whatever) and then hop in and drive away. When I see that, all I can think is, "I shook hands with that person when we met? Eww!"

[dznf0g]

I don't wear gloves to do my business, but always wash.

I mostly wear gloves when I drain the tanks (unless I forget them) AND I wash thoroughly afterward.

I am certainly not a germophobe, but it is only common sense to reduce your chances of exposure when the likelihood of bacteria transfer is so great.

[mandolindave]

I hope that you know that I respect and value your wisdom.
My friend stopped using his macerator because it clogged up too many times ( he doesn't use any tank treatments). But, I use enzymes, and end up with just liquid ( no clumps ).
The epiphany I just had was that a garden hose coming out of a macerator seems way easier to flush out( with less water ) than a slinky.

[HowieE]

Originally Posted by Protagonist

They say the world is run by people with a "C" average. Think about that for a moment. A "C" average means that, on average, they have the right answers only 75% of the time. Or to put it another way, one in every four decisions ever made is wrong. I'd like to think I beat that average, but honestly I probably don't beat it by much.
Eww!"

We would be well served if in fact our leaders did have a C, or 75 %, average. It is commonly accepted that the higher one is on the ladder the lower his accuracy has to be. A line employee has to have close to a100% accuracy to keep their job. The President of a company, and I say company not to state a political debate, can survive with and collect a huge salary while only hitting in the low 50s.

Back to the original point of having the slinky raised off the ground. What does that accomplish? If the hose were to leak will the water evaporate before hitting the ground?

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by HowieE

Back to the original point of having the slinky raised off the ground. What does that accomplish? If the hose were to leak will the water evaporate before hitting the ground?

If it was elevated and had a uniform slope from trailer to drain, it would prevent water ponding in the slinky during a dump, which is a good thing. But just off the ground with no concern for slope?

And in practical terms, a leak would only be present while there is fluid running (or ponding) in the line in either case. In other words, it makes no difference at all until the dump valve is opened. And how many campers actually take the time to examine the entire length of their slinky for leaks while dumping the tanks instead of paying attention to what they're doing?

[dznf0g]

Originally Posted by Protagonist

If it was elevated and had a uniform slope from trailer to drain, it would prevent water ponding in the slinky during a dump, which is a good thing. But just off the ground with no concern for slope?

And in practical terms, a leak would only be present while there is fluid running (or ponding) in the line in either case. In other words, it makes no difference at all until the dump valve is opened. And how many campers actually take the time to examine the entire length of their slinky for leaks while dumping the tanks instead of paying attention to what they're doing?

Yup, I keep one of these onboard for the rare times I am on full hookups for more than a few days.

Level-Trek Sewer Hose Supports - 20ft-pplmotorhomes.com

There are other styles, but this one is light and compact. It actually lives in my outside refrigerator compartment.

[moosetags]

Back in my early days of Airstreaming when I still used a slinky, I had one of those folding aluminum bridges for the slinky to sit in. I used it because I thought that it made the slinky drain more efficiently. I did not use this device because of any rule. I started using the Sewer Solution about eight years ago. The Sewer Solution drain hose(s) are always directly on the ground. I don't see any reason for or advantage to elevating this hose.

Brian

[TG Twinkie]

It's just the mentality of the rule makers.
Let's not get carried away with concern about a small amount of sewage dripping on the ground.
I was the manager of the process and sewage treatment plants for a very large corporation. I learned a lot of s**t about the way things work.
Not all waste dissolves in these processes. There is what is called sludge or solid waste. It is loaded into slurry trucks. Then spread on the "ground". Usually on some farm.
I am not advocating for letting things drip. So to speak. A little common sense goes a long way.
I am sure there are places that require a raised sewer hose. I would bet they also sell the devices that hold the hose off the ground.


Sent from my iPod touch using Airstream Forums

[mandolindave]

I take a green stance on the environment, and respect the health and safety of others. But if I were to argue with myself, I would say that soil has been " eating " animal waste for millions of years. with little ill effect. But I would quickly fight back and think that people on a camping vacation shouldn't have to smell pooh. I also worry about the next guy to camp on the site
Another interesting thing. I hear that in the old airstream owners manuals. Wally included the technique of digging a " gopher hole " to collect the discharge coming out of the tanks. I tried it at my farmhouse for grey water. It works, no puddles, no smell. An additional technique is the use of a " Missouri Bucket" ( a bucket with a hole in it. it slows the flow to give the ground a better chance of absorbing liquid without a puddle) Again I would only try this with grey water, and not at a public campground.
I am really not well suited to comment on this though, as I rarely go to campgrounds. I should mention that two of my annual outings are at rodeo grounds where there is horse pooh EVERYWHERE. And Cutting Horses…let's just say that they pee pretty much ….like race horses

[mandolindave]

Jamestown, one of the first white man settlements in these United States of America, was quickly fouled and rendered inhabitable by poor sewage management. Swampy terrain didn't help matters.

[J. Morgan]

If a person wants to work hard enough they might in their own mind be able to make a law mandating an elevated sewer hose seem reasonable, because after all we must make some effort, no matter how ineffective it might be, to stay the possibility of a camper leaking waste on the ground.

May I offer for consideration that sewer water leaking on the ground next to a camper really ain't due to lack of hose elevation, but due to a leaking drain hose.

That said, the easiest way to keep the slinky off the ground is to add one Viagra to the black tank when you make camp.


1/2 Ton 4WD Truck, 72 Sovereign Hensley Arrow

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by J. Morgan

That said, the easiest way to keep the slinky off the ground is to add one Viagra to the black tank when you make camp.

You, sir, are a sick and twisted individual. That's one of the thinkgs I like about you.

[HowieE]

Originally Posted by J. Morgan

That said, the easiest way to keep the slinky off the ground is to add one Viagra to the black tank when you make camp.

But what if you are camping for more than 4 hours?
And not all SLINKYS react the same

[CDONA]

In my travels, I have been so instructed about the sewer line in different states during sign up at the camp office. Some parks require paperwork about registration/insurance and "sewer safety", for stays 1 month or longer, that are based on county laws. I do see the sheriff patrolling on occasion, even in city limits.

[clancy_boy]

Nice thing about the sewer solution setup is most - and I would have to say "all" in my experience - campgrounds have no idea what it is. Therefore a rule or law like this has no impact on my camping. At the Diamond State Park in Arkansas, the campground "police" or just some huffy guy in a tan uniform with a golf cart said he had to go back and use the internet to get a better understanding of my setup - I had spent the better part of an hour showing him. He never came back.

[Gene]

First, a city inspector in Marin Co. only has authority to enforce city ordinances and maybe state ones. That you got a ticket probably means you violated a city ordinance. The ticket must state what ordinance (or state statute) you violated. Check it if you still have it.

Next, I wear gloves when dumping the black tank. But it is easy to get whatever is on the gloves on you or on something else you later touch. That is also why it is hard to remove gloves and protective suits when infectious diseases are a problem without infecting yourself. Getting each glove off while not touching the outside is an art I have not fully mastered. And once I have the gloves on, my nose decides to get itchy. I try to stop it through kind control or rub my sleeve on it, but I'm not entirely successful with either method.

Your own urine will not poison nor kill you. It is yours and if it contains disease causing bacteria or viruses, you already have them. If lost in the desert, drinking your urine can keep you alive (though that may be stomach churning). And if you know how not to pee on your hands (men often master that after a few decades), maybe you don't have to wash them. I do see men in public bathrooms who don't wash after #2. You can get sick from the e coli in your own intestines and that's why you have to wash after #2. On the ground along with waste from animals, most gets absorbed and becomes benign fairly quickly, but human waste on the ground day after day at one spot builds up and could be a danger.

Grey water is more benign, but usually includes food particles that can also build up and become a problem. Some may be bad for animals (they are smarter than we are and usually avoid highly processed human "foodf"), but they may eat it and get ill. Otherwise it just rots on the ground as it builds up. That's why dumping grey water is not ok in campgrounds. But at home, at the end of the season, anything that remains in the tank after flushing it out is ok to dump on the ground. Living in a desert environment, it disappears really fast.

Some of the cheap slinkies are made to fail. The ends that screw on each time you use it frequently leak. I bought better quality ones with glued on end connections that never have leaked unless stuff built up on the O rings. They are easy to clean off and you can replace them periodically if you need to. I use the black plastic thing that is like an accordion (though fortunately it doesn't play any "music") to support the hose. There are a few problems—sometimes too short, sometimes it ends up too low because some sewer drains are too high at CG's, and sometimes the hose sags between the supports. But it works ok except for the yuk factor.

Gene