black tank cleaning

[thedrake123]

I am told there is a product that will help lubricate the release valve in my Black tank, that I'm having trouble with. It has become increasingly hard to open and close the black tank valve. What should I do before it gets stuck permanently. Please help, thanks Gary

[spindrift]

Are you talking about the exterior handle, or the actual valve that is part of the PVC piping? I've lubricated the handle cable with any good, silicone spray. Fortunately, I've never had the pleasure of a valve hanging up on me. Are you sure there isn't some obstruction on the valve itself; maybe some stubborn pieces of T.P.?

[travelin' texans]

I will 3-4 times a year, maybe more, after draining/flushing the black tank put a good healthy squirt of an el cheapo dishwashing liquid into the tank through the toilet & then fill/drain til the suds are gone & this has worked to ease the valve. I have also used approximately 1/4 cup of el cheapo cooking oil into all the tanks after draining to lube the valves, this has also worked. In my opinion both of these methods work as well or better than the over priced so called tank valve lubricants.

[thedrake123]

Thanks for your advice, I'll give that a try.

[RWJSIM2003]

I use powder Calgon in our Black tank. Pour in about a cup about once every 3 months this makes the side walls of the tank and pipes slick and nothing sticks when you empty. My tank monitor has always worked fine since we started using the Calgon in the RW.

[ted 95]

What I have done is I would either do the dish soap or the Calgon trick. But After draining the black tank and adding the "soap" I would add around 10 - 15 gal of water and go for a short drive to slosh the mixture around and let it do some cleaning

[Retired educators]

Originally Posted by travelin' texans

I will 3-4 times a year, maybe more, after draining/flushing the black tank put a good healthy squirt of an el cheapo dishwashing liquid into the tank through the toilet & then fill/drain til the suds are gone & this has worked to ease the valve. I have also used approximately 1/4 cup of el cheapo cooking oil into all the tanks after draining to lube the valves, this has also worked. In my opinion both of these methods work as well or better than the over priced so called tank valve lubricants.

I do the same thing as a Danny mentioned and this works well. A lot cheaper than buying product for black tank cleaning and lubrication.

[RWJSIM2003]

To really clean out the black tank I put 5-10 lbs of ice in the black tank through the toilet. I then add about 15 gal of water and 1 cup powder calgon I leave this in the tank when we are traveling works really good when on a long trip. the sloshing cleans the sides and bottom. When we get to the location I drain the tank and flush again this has always worked well for us.

[rlmankin]

Thanks for this information. I've been curious about the best way to clean up the black tank. We'll give this a go when we break out from winter storage. Would this process work for the gray tanks or is there another procedure for them?

[travelin' texans]

RWJ, I would imagine by the time you get the water & Calgon on that amount of ice that there's not much ice left, if you used maybe 25-30 lbs it might work, but if you're happy by all means keep it up.

[RWJSIM2003]

I tried the larger amount of water and found that the ice did not hit the bottom of the tank as well while traveling down the road and sloshing around in the tank. I do sometimes add water to the tank before draining so that it helps clean out any leftover gunk. I try to do this at least twice a year Knock on wood have never had any black tank issues with any of our RV's.

[atom ant]

According to this myth buster, don't waste the ice or the time

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q...3D26&FORM=VIRE