312BHTS toilet replacement - Urgent Help Needed

scbrooks01

New Member
Joined
Dec 22, 2024
Messages
3
Location
San Diego
Hey guys and gals,

My wife and I live full time in our 2022 312BHTS and the Thetford toilet in it has failed and needs replaced ASAP. The failure occurred in the foot flush system, the pedal popped completely off with the spring and released the flush valve, spraying water out. It seems like a really crummy design and I'd like to go with something a bit better.

I've found a local distributor that sells the Dometic 320 that I can get tomorrow, but I'm worried it may not fit. It's definitely what we want to go with, however my measurements indicate it may require more clearance than we have. Can anyone confirm if they've installed a 320 in a 312BHTS? If not, can y'all suggest other high quality options we can go to?

Thanks in advance
Scott
 
Check dimensions for the Dometic 310 which is slightly smaller. I don’t have your model trailer, but it fit in my GD 3100RD. The 320 is elongated, but the 310 is round but very ample plus it has the soft close lid.

FYI, I had this very same failure on a two year old Thetford. I managed to get the pedal back in place and held it in place temporarily with a strap wrapped around the base. Getting the spring in the right void was a chore, but can be done once you figure out which it was in - the right one will have water marks.
 
Thank you for the suggestions! Unfortunately the local camping world doesn't have the 310 in stock for local pickup. That was my first thought as well. I'm going to call a couple other RV shops in the area this morning because they don't have stock info on their websites.

I fought with the spring for a while last night but I'm nursing a bit of an injury on my left arm and just didn't have the strength the get it fully into place. That Thetford design, using a push-on fitted pedal to hold the water valve in is just terrible in my opinion lol. I work with water systems by trade and couldn't imagine engineering something like that.

Thanks again for your help. I'll see if I can compare the bathroom layout in your trailer to mine to see if maybe there are similarities.
 
In my original post, last line should read “wear marks” not “water.”

For those with a Thetford, be aware of a weakness that can allow the pedal to fall off after a year or two of frequent use. The plastic pedal has a ring molded into it that snaps into a groove inside the base. The ring - a slightly raised ridge in the circumference of the pedal - wears away and allows the entire pedal to fall off. This allows the water to run and no longer open or close the ball. That’s the problem I had in a two year old trailer of another brand, and why I replaced the toilet immediately when we bought our GD new.
 
To give this thread an update, I was able to source a Dometic 310 locally and installed it quickly without issue. I believe a 320 would fit in the bathroom for my RV, after installing the 310 and seeing the amount of space available behind it. So far I'm happy with the 310 and will continue using it until it eventually needs replaced, then I'll try the 320. I appreciate the advice from everyone. The 310 is truly a huge upgrade from the Thetford that it's replacing. Just having a solid seat and lid instead of the cheap plastic on the Thetford is awesome. Also, the water coming out from around the edge of the bowl is a great design compared to the one small sprayer in the back.

Thanks for the advice everyone!
Scott
 
Hey guys and gals,

My wife and I live full time in our 2022 312BHTS and the Thetford toilet in it has failed and needs replaced ASAP. The failure occurred in the foot flush system, the pedal popped completely off with the spring and released the flush valve, spraying water out. It seems like a really crummy design and I'd like to go with something a bit better.

I've found a local distributor that sells the Dometic 320 that I can get tomorrow, but I'm worried it may not fit. It's definitely what we want to go with, however my measurements indicate it may require more clearance than we have. Can anyone confirm if they've installed a 320 in a 312BHTS? If not, can y'all suggest other high quality options we can go to?

Thanks in advance
Scott
Page 2 has the dimensions of the Thetford models. https://thetford.com//app/uploads/2024/10/42088F_AM6-OM.pdf

The Dometic's dimensions are on the page here.

I hope that helps!
 
In my original post, last line should read “wear marks” not “water.”

For those with a Thetford, be aware of a weakness that can allow the pedal to fall off after a year or two of frequent use. The plastic pedal has a ring molded into it that snaps into a groove inside the base. The ring - a slightly raised ridge in the circumference of the pedal - wears away and allows the entire pedal to fall off. This allows the water to run and no longer open or close the ball. That’s the problem I had in a two year old trailer of another brand, and why I replaced the toilet immediately when we bought our GD new.

I had that same failure on my previous trailer and that was the most frustrating repair I've ever tried to make. I wrestled with that foot lever and spring until it finally beat me! I managed to get the lever back on but with all the wear on the parts it would not stay on and kept falling off.

Based on the cost of new replacement parts I just bought a new toilet.

For anyone that's got this toilet, I think maybe taking a rubber mallet and tapping the lever inward once in a while might help keep it in place. Also, be gentle when pushing on it when flushing. Bottom line: probably none of this will help extend it's life.
 
Hey guys and gals,

My wife and I live full time in our 2022 312BHTS and the Thetford toilet in it has failed and needs replaced ASAP. The failure occurred in the foot flush system, the pedal popped completely off with the spring and released the flush valve, spraying water out. It seems like a really crummy design and I'd like to go with something a bit better.

I've found a local distributor that sells the Dometic 320 that I can get tomorrow, but I'm worried it may not fit. It's definitely what we want to go with, however my measurements indicate it may require more clearance than we have. Can anyone confirm if they've installed a 320 in a 312BHTS? If not, can y'all suggest other high quality options we can go to?

Thanks in advance
Scott
I recently replaced the original toilet with a model 320 unit. From the manual, the most important thing is the measurement from the back wall which needs to be at least 11" to the center of the flange. That at least is your starting point. If the flange center is 11" or more, you should have enough clearance to install it.
 

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