mowermech
Billings, MT
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Joined: 06/28/2003
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Add me to the list of those who ignore the sensors. In all the self contained RVs I have owned (about half a dozen), none of the sensors worked properly. If I managed to get them working, it was only until the first dump, then they were screwy again.
Now, the only one I look at is the battery coddition indicator. It works. Most of the time.
CM1, USN (RET)
'94 Dodge 3500 4X2 CTD, Std. cab, LB, 5 speed, 4.10 LS diff., Jacobs Rambrake, 273,000 Miles
'99 Monaco McKenzie 32' triple slide
'95 Tioga 29H Ford-based Class C
Daily driver: '06 Jeep Liberty CRD
Towed: '06 Jeep Rubicon Unlimited
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2oldman
WA
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Joined: 04/15/2001
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was_butnotnow wrote:We have never put paper in our black tank I won't ask.
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BLDMAN
Missouri
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Joined: 04/02/2005
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Well I can only give you what I have experienced. Only once that I know of have my sensor on the black tank messed up. I added dawn dish detergent(original), and filled black tank about half way with water. We drove back home, and the next weekend the sensor was working. Worked for us that time anyway.
Jeff and Barb two sons Jeremy and Jared one daughter Heidi one grandson Gabe
Two Labrador Retrievers Shadow and Otis and her majesty, Miki the Boston Terrier
2006 Fleetwood Prowler 275CSK Fifth Wheel
1999 F350 PSD dually
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Fulltimer50
Eloy, AZ
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Joined: 07/07/2001
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You might take a look in your owners manual, if you have one, to see if they say anything about resetting the guages. Mine can be recalibrated perhaps yours can be too.
George
99F250XLT/SC/LB/4x2/3.73LS/gauges/JNB BypassReg/ Airlifts/Rancho 9000s/DS Predator Tuner/203*TS/Coolant filter/Jimmyjammers/Oilguard/4"turbo back/Suncoast tranny/BD EBrake.
06 Newmar Cypress 29KSRE 5th wheel, Mor/Ryde IS, Kodiac disk brakes
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Duck
Miami Lakes, Fl
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Joined: 03/04/2001
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I have had no problems but when I dump the black tank I always spend a lot of time flushing out any left behind paper and******with the tank flush valve. Close the dump valve and let the water accumulate before opening the valve again. Do this at least six times. After cleaning the black tank I always put in around 5 gallons of water to slosh around while driving.
Don
08-FORD F350 PSD
08-Hitchhiker II 34.5 UKSBG
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Dianne and Tom
New Bern,NC
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Joined: 12/18/2002
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We can go four days on our black tank before it full. So I just remember the number of day since the last dump.On our last trip we were our 30 days and the blank tank read 2/3 full after the 1st day. On next to our last day our after a dump I put a lot of water into the tank and drove to our last place where I dumped it and everthing read ok or empty but it won't last.
Tom
2006 Chevy 2500 Duramax
2003 Artic Fox 33-5v
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Wefish2
California
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Joined: 09/09/2007
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Our black water tank always read 1/2 full and we know it's empty.
I agree with the others commenting on this subject, it must be toilet paper stuck to the sensor.
We know it's empty so we don't really worry about it much.
Skip and Linda
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outdoorsman2007
In the Woods - Somewhere!
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Joined: 04/12/2007
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Eycom wrote:Stick a piece of electrical tape over the black tank bulb on the system monitor. Use the "shine-the-light" down the 'john' method. Problem solved... no worries. 
IMHO, trying to keep that sensor clean ain't worth the hassle and money, when water is running clear and there aren't any problems.
Your "shine-the-light" method only works if the pipe from the toilet to the black tank is straight. Our previous rig and our current rig does not have a straight pipe so there is no visibility into the black tank therefore we have learned to actually take care of the inside of the tank instead of letting it get bad.
We bought our previous rig used. When we bought it none of the sensors (black, grey and galley) worked - they all read either 1/2 or 3/4 no matter what. We employed the geo method and after about 10 treatments, the sensors were clean and worked fine.
Take care of your tanks and your sensors will work fine. The problem is most folks think that taking care of the tank means adding the blue chemicals when it's empty and pulling the valve handle when it's full. It takes more than that - you have to do a little work to keep the tank working right. The cool think is that the geo method makes this very job easy.
For those who think that paper is the only problem - you're wrong - it's an unclean tank. Let "dirty liquid" in a dirty tank dry to the sides of the tank over and over, and that layer of scum will eventually cover the sensors. The geo method cleans the inside of your tank walls and treats them so things and scum doesn't stick to them and build up.
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lemonjim1
Oquawka, Il 61469
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Joined: 04/29/2008
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On my Jayco, the grey kitchen tank failed after 1 month and the black tank read 2 lites when empty after 2 months. 2 dealers and the Jayco factory invested over 20 hrs to fix and never got the job done. They even replaced the kitchen tank which had probes installed. It failed in 30 days. The dealer told me these problems are caused by grease,soap bubbles, and toilet paper. Guess you are not suppose to use them.
I installed the Acu-Gage non-invasive system. It took me about 16 hours but, it works perfectly. When it says full, you are and when empty, you are. It has been in for 6 months now. The manufacturer could install for about $100 over the old probe system. Good luck.
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RedRam
Moved from the smallest county in Texas
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Joined: 10/20/2003
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All our sensors work except for the black tank and here is what we do.When flushing and it bubbles back then it's time to dump the black tank.
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