normared wrote: As far as cleaning the sensors - I have tried the various commercial cleaners, putting down hot water + laundry detergent (and driving for a while) and also tried the vinegar & baking soda job with no results. We gave up on trying to clean them and learned to live with it.
We just know we've gone too long when the grey water rises to the shower drain, and our toilet "burps" upon flushing.
x2 - also tried the ice cubes as well - pointless.
Save yourself the bother of trying to make them work and just enjoy yourself.
Here's my update on trying the "Thetford Level Gauge Cleaner". It made a big difference, though not in the right direction!
Before I left the campground on April 29th, I placed half the bottle in my kitchen holding tank along with a fair amount of water, probably not enough! I drove home, let it all sit till the following Friday when I left for my next trip. They say let it sit 24 hours, but had nowhere to dump it!
Before I left the following Friday, May 4th, I added another 5 gallons of fresh water and drove an hour to that weeks campsite.
I emptied the tank when I got there and it made a difference! Instead of reading 2/3 full it now read completely full I waited until my hot water heated up and ran hot water until it ran cold again, added some dawn detergent, then did it again 3 more times until the kitchen sink stopped draining. I emptied the tanks again and it was back to 2/3 full.
I'm not giving up! Our next trip isn't until August, it's a 2 hour ride and I plan to use the second half of the Thetford before we leave and empty when I get there. Hopefully the second time is the charm!
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The previous post mentioned the Horst Miracle Probes. I have an open underbelly and put them in and I have to say they work well. I found that when the manufacturer put the probes in the tank, he had them at wrong locations per the level sensor's diagram so I repositioned a couple.
Seems to work okay for what was involved.
JU
Jerry9n
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computerbug wrote: Half gal. of white vinegar some baking soda, cleans the sensors everytime. Your soap was creating bubbles and tricking the sensors. Good Luck
Wouldn't the two compounds neutralize each other? Acid vs base. I can see using one or the other one at a time. Have you actually tried the compounds separately, or does the vinegar/soda mixture always actually work?
Wes
...
When mixed the combination makes a nice fizz that looks impressive but the product is water, carbon dioxide and sodium acetate. Sodium acetate is used as a flavoring agent for salt and vinegar potato chips.
It has a ph of about 9.5 which is about the alkalinity of sea water or baking soda.
See chemical properties on the right side for the ph value HERE.
I fail to see how it can be an effective drain cleaner.
I did one trial with a trap I removed from my kitchen sink to see what would happen. It did not clean the trap at all. The scum on the sides of the trap was unchanged.
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I waited until my hot water heated up and ran hot water until it ran cold again, added some dawn detergent, then did it again 3 more times until the kitchen sink stopped draining. I emptied the tanks again and it was back to 2/3 full. 
