ladywendolyn
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Post by ladywendolyn on Jul 14, 2015 10:36:00 GMT -8
I like to think out of the box, and it has occurred to me that it might be possible to create a system where my black and grey tank have a fitting right below them under the trailer that you could attach a drain hose onto once you arrived at your camp site, rather than running a 3" hard ABS pipe all the way across the bottom of the trailer while traveling and the issue of it catching on load station entrances etc.
Has anyone done anything a little different from the typical set up..?
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Post by bigbill on Jul 14, 2015 11:16:39 GMT -8
The biggest problem that see with that idea is when at a dumping station you would have to crawl under to hook up drain hose, possibly in not the best conditions. Did I describe that politely.
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Hamlet
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Post by Hamlet on Jul 14, 2015 12:27:45 GMT -8
Yes, bigbill, you did, and it STILL sounds icky!
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ladywendolyn
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Post by ladywendolyn on Jul 14, 2015 14:28:02 GMT -8
The biggest problem that see with that idea is when at a dumping station you would have to crawl under to hook up drain hose, possibly in not the best conditions. Did I describe that politely. So if that's the biggest problem, and the drains are just under the curbside rear of the trailer, in theory, if I had a long enough dump hose, I could stop the trailer just forward of the dump station and run the hose behind it. No crawling underneath. I don't know yet that I'm going to do this, it depends a bit on what I find in the next while once we lift the floor. My grey tank is being custom made, and the black tank sits under the toilet in the trailer. I am just considering options to make the wet bath happen. I will get this, one step at a time. I will post some photos when I get there. |
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Ten
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Post by Ten on Jul 14, 2015 14:43:20 GMT -8
I am in this process now, but my camper does not have a holding tank for gray water. The drains from the sink and the shower bypass the tank, and join the drain past the dump valve on the black tank. The black tank was broken at some point, will need some creative repair, and will still be a blackwater tank that requires special attention to dump and to maintain.
I'm considering the possibility of using a portable tank that straps underneath for transport and attaches with a short hose to capture waste from the original toilet, and a separate portable tank to capture the gray water. Seems like a lot of work, but the engineering sure does not seem all that tough. The portable tanks and hoses are not as inexpensive as re-plumbing the original ABS drain outlet, but may prove to be much more versatile for different camping situations.
Although it seems like a big "yuck" factor, this system should work well for you, as it is a very necessary evil. Creativity cannot be emphasized enough to make it work easily for you.
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turbodaddy
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Post by turbodaddy on Jul 14, 2015 17:00:04 GMT -8
We are using the original black water tank for gray water ( about 15 gallons) and now have Thetford Curve porta potty. Seems like less mess & fuss, especially if you have bathrooms available in a campground. Since we only have a 15 gallon fresh water tank with a hand pump everything seems to work capacity-wise. Its just all about managing things.
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ladywendolyn
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Post by ladywendolyn on Jul 14, 2015 17:35:40 GMT -8
Great ideas. I am stopping the trailer down to the chassis frame. So anything is possible in terms of design. So far, the plan is as mentioned to
have a custom grey tank created to fit into the centre part of the frame. I don't care how much it holds really, because we only boondocks for one night, and most of the time we are in full service camp sites. I will post some pics as I go and figure this out..
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Post by bigbill on Jul 15, 2015 5:48:05 GMT -8
What ever works best for your application is the way to go. The most important thing to remember in tank location whether it is fresh water, gray water, or black water. 15 gallons don't sound like much but it changes trailer balance weight by approximately 120 pound so if you have all three tanks you are talking about as much as 360 pounds of variable weight. If not properly located you can cause dangerous towing conditions. Example you put fresh water in front compartment of trailer and catch tanks in the rear, you can feasibly remove 120 pound from front and add it to the rear which can change tongue weight drastically. Keep in mind not only the actual weight but also the leverage forces as you set these tanks farther away from the axle/pivot point of your trailer.
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ladywendolyn
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Post by ladywendolyn on Jul 15, 2015 7:41:08 GMT -8
Thanks Bill,
We have a rule on our big trailer that we never tow with anything in the tanks. I think that will remain the same in the tiny one, however it does remind me that if I need to add weight in the front i could put my fresh water there and keep some in it when travelling to balance the tow! Thanks
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cheri
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Post by cheri on Jul 15, 2015 11:18:44 GMT -8
We are using the original black water tank for gray water ( about 15 gallons) and now have Thetford Curve porta potty. Seems like less mess & fuss, especially if you have bathrooms available in a campground. Since we only have a 15 gallon fresh water tank with a hand pump everything seems to work capacity-wise. Its just all about managing things. This is a great idea. I wanted to do this with my camper, but the sink is on the opposite side of the camper from the original location of the toilet. Unless I can convince water to flow up hill, I can't make it work. I'm still trying to figure out how to capture the sink water without one of the portable waste totes. |
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Post by bigbill on Jul 15, 2015 17:37:47 GMT -8
We are using the original black water tank for gray water ( about 15 gallons) and now have Thetford Curve porta potty. Seems like less mess & fuss, especially if you have bathrooms available in a campground. Since we only have a 15 gallon fresh water tank with a hand pump everything seems to work capacity-wise. Its just all about managing things. This is a great idea. I wanted to do this with my camper, but the sink is on the opposite side of the camper from the original location of the toilet. Unless I can convince water to flow up hill, I can't make it work. I'm still trying to figure out how to capture the sink water without one of the portable waste totes. Run a 1/2" PVC line across trailer using U traps made from 90s and short nipples to get under frame rails. Install a T in the bottom of each trap for winter drain plug. Turn the T sideways then install a thread adapter for a screw in plug, this will give you more ground clearance. Also cross trailer near axle. I know this sounds small but many portable tanks are fed with garden hose so it will work. secure line to floor too prevent flexing. |
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rockerarm
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Post by rockerarm on Aug 2, 2015 11:20:45 GMT -8
My new...(old), 19' 1968 Concord has the water tank, (an iron 30 gal tank), all the way in the rear and is equipped with a sink on one side and a shower/toilet on the other before the axle. It has no gray or black water tank and seems like it has always been that way.
Were the campers manufactured that way back in those days.....? How would it work....?
The sink and shower drain have no valve and drain directly to the outlet under the toilet, and the toilet has a valve but no tank. I'm new to this and its a little confusing.
I think I will have to" at least" add a black water tank and perhaps a gray water tank to make things work.
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Post by bigbill on Aug 2, 2015 16:02:16 GMT -8
My new...(old), 19' 1968 Concord has the water tank, (an iron 30 gal tank), all the way in the rear and is equipped with a sink on one side and a shower/toilet on the other before the axle. It has no gray or black water tank and seems like it has always been that way.
Were the campers manufactured that way back in those days.....? How would it work....?
The sink and shower drain have no valve and drain directly to the outlet under the toilet, and the toilet has a valve but no tank. I'm new to this and its a little confusing.
I think I will have to" at least" add a black water tank and perhaps a gray water tank to make things work. It sounds like you have a park model that was made to hook to a sewer line. They had no holding tanks. |
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SusieQ
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Post by SusieQ on Aug 2, 2015 18:02:53 GMT -8
I'm considering the possibility of using a portable tank that straps underneath for transport and attaches with a short hose to capture waste from the original toilet, and a separate portable tank to capture the gray water. Seems like a lot of work, but the engineering sure does not seem all that tough. The portable tanks and hoses are not as inexpensive as re-plumbing the original ABS drain outlet, but may prove to be much more versatile for different camping situations. Ten, I thought about that with my gray water and at one point was looking at tank sizes and trying to figure out a way to strap it underneath securely and yet make it removable. I have no problem with my gray water running from the side of the trailer to a container on the ground, but some campgrounds have a problem with that. I have the Thetford Curve and it fits nicely in my closet. Really happy with it. |
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Ten
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Post by Ten on Aug 5, 2015 5:20:28 GMT -8
I'm considering the possibility of using a portable tank that straps underneath for transport and attaches with a short hose to capture waste from the original toilet, and a separate portable tank to capture the gray water. Seems like a lot of work, but the engineering sure does not seem all that tough. The portable tanks and hoses are not as inexpensive as re-plumbing the original ABS drain outlet, but may prove to be much more versatile for different camping situations. Ten, I thought about that with my gray water and at one point was looking at tank sizes and trying to figure out a way to strap it underneath securely and yet make it removable. I have no problem with my gray water running from the side of the trailer to a container on the ground, but some campgrounds have a problem with that. I have the Thetford Curve and it fits nicely in my closet. Really happy with it. Susie, The problem I am having with this is finding a tank large enough to be worth carrying but still fit into the space left by the black tank. It is only 12 inches wide however, and there are few that fit up in. The largest of the demand for capacity would be gray water We have a 5-gallon blue tank, but running the dishwasher once would pretty well require emptying it. Strapping below the floor level with the belly pan leaves very little road clearance. Not a big deal on the highway, but even pulling into some driveways could become a challenge. Another consideration is "dry-camping", or "parking-lot-camping", in a spot in or out of the woods without disposal facilities. Lifting a partially filled tank back into position underneath may be quite a challenge. I'm really leaning toward replacing the black tank as it was and tying the gray water outlet into the tank. Either of these possibilities require the use of a dump station, even without the toilet so the easier it is the better. |
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