I would have to drag out a hose and hook it to the faucet than run it into the camper and put water into the toilet, if it is winter I can’t close the door and I’m heating the great outdoors.
I have seen the tank rinsing product called The Tornado Permanent Tank Rinser before but because of the location of the black tank there’s really no access high enough to install it. After every trip I'd say I’m going to install one some how and Dad-gum-it I’m gonna. Some people have had trouble with the tornado and have chosen the Quickie Flush
After looking around I saw that the taillights were a possibility, if I removed them I would be close to above the tank. Than I noticed that the sewer hose is even a bit higher, albeit a smaller hole to work through. Since I wanted to remove the sewer hose from this location and move it to under the camper anyways, this was the choice.
I removed all the screws and had quite a hard time getting the putty tape to let go, so I used some fine wire to slice the tape. Once I got the top loose the rest pulled off easily.
The manufacture says to install it 2” below the top of the tank but I did not have that kind of access so I choose to install on the top of the tank. I taped the template to the location I wanted and had to find a drill that would fit into the 6” of vertical space I had to work with. (on the right of the tank you can see the back side of the taillights and the white tubing is water to the toilet)
After spending a day shopping for right angle drills with no luck (I only had a total of 6 vertical inches to work with, the ones I found were still too tall and over $200) on my way home empty handed I remembered Harbor freight. They have cheep tools, so I checked them out. They had one for $20 it is still a bit too tall but it’s the best I could find. I had to drill the 1/8” holes on a slight angle, not as bad as pictured I just couldn't hold the drill and get a photo.
And than finish the hole with a hole saw with a ratchet
The tank thickness is almost a full ¼”. After cutting the hole and before installation I vacuumed up the mess. You may say, well why wouldn't you? And I would say the same thing but here’s another photo of what the factory leaves behind.
Some cleaner on all surfaces, sealant, four screws and a stubby driver
Just so you get a feel for how tight it is to work in this area here’s a photo from my point of view, I can only get one hand in there and sometimes can’t even see what I’m doing.
Add the hose and hose clamp
Here’s the permanent location for the other end (lower left)
A coiled hose is permanently mounted and stands in place on it’s own
I just grab the hose and pull it out, hook it to a faucet, turn it on and rinse, when I'm done it wants to coil back into position right where it should. (it's not pictured but there's a plug to screw into the end of the hose so no water drips or leaks inside the camper)
This is a photo of the inside of the factory sewer hose housing, If you were to put the hose away with too much water still in it, it could leak into the camper. That is why I installed the new Hose house (E-Z Hose Carrier) on the bottom of the camper just under the dump door.
I found a cheaper/easier way to flush BOTH tanks; The Flush King, hooks up to the dump valve. Has a clear plastic housing with a water hose attachment and an knife-valve to open/close for back flushing.You just have to run in and out checking the level of the tanks as you back fill. Had it for a year now and it works great!
2006 GMC 4X4 CC DM/A 6spd DRW Timbren's on all 4 corners, Rancho's Torklift's,superhitch/42" extn & Fastguns 2004 BigFoot 30.11SL
I use an inline shut off valve. . .so that if the hose bib is remote, I don't have to run over to shut it off.
(Eagle Caps have the hose connection to the black tank built-in at the factory - as shown in the photo.)
It would be simple for you now, to add an inline shut-off valve:
Spott,
I like your presentation for the work you've done. I feel your pain working in tight spaces. I was debating installing an easy access for flushing the tank as well.
I found an easy way to prevent problems with the black water tank. After dumping the black water tank, I fill the tank with 5 toilet bowls full of fresh water. To fill the tank a little faster I use the shower head as well. While driving that amount of water will keep things loosened up in the tank. All these years I never had a problem with the black water tank. I hope I won't get jinxed now that I said this.....
I haven't had a good look at my tank but I will consider installing your type of setup as well.
cheers,
Larry.
* This post was
edited 01/24/08 07:05am by sutak *
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