Toilet Paper clog in the Black Tank

If your black tank is directly below the toilet and you can see stuff after dumping the tank, fill it half full, get a stick and give it a stir. I have a plumber buddy that lives out of his RV 3/4 of the year and he told me this trick. Problem is not enough water. He also said the first thing he does after dumping is run about a gallon of water into the tank. Just enough to cover the bottom of the tank under the toilet. Other wise the first "dump" my land on dry tank bottom and kind of seals itself. More water is your friend.
 
I would try a couple of items. Normally we put silicone around the rubber seal to keep it lubricated and maintain water in the commode. This year when I winterized, I put Thetford RV seal and lube in. It was still there in the spring. The advantage of this is when you flush in the spring, it lubricates the down pipe to prevent clogs (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002NSU0ZW/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1).

We have had really good luck with this brand of TP (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08M2LCMQF/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1). We drain the tank frequently (I don't want to pull the extra weigh) and have yet to see any semblance of TP coming out of the discharge when dumping.

A lot of water is your friend.

The other item we use is Green Gobbler (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08M2LCMQF/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1).

You may have a functional design problem, but any of these might help.

The only difference between the Scotts TP you linked and regular Scotts single ply 1000 sheets per roll is the price... they put "RV" rapid dissolving on the label and charge the consumer more.... 33¢/100 sheets vs. 10¢/100 sheets. They both are the exact same paper and dissolve at the same rate.
 
The only difference between the Scotts TP you linked and regular Scotts single ply 1000 sheets per roll is the price... they put "RV" rapid dissolving on the label and charge the consumer more.... 33¢/100 sheets vs. 10¢/100 sheets. They both are the exact same paper and dissolve at the same rate.

Nope not true - scroll in on the picture and you will see the ribs in the ply. The regular Scotts is a flat single ply sheet which does not dissolve easily. These are ribbed sheets which literally disintegrate when in contact with water. They may both be paper, but they do not dissolve at the same rate. After three days on the road with the original Scotts, white clumps when dumping. I have not seen any white material since switching a year ago and have had zero clogs even dumping the next morning after use.
 
have had zero clogs even dumping the next morning after use.

That's what Green Gobbler does for you.

I use the GG pods and use Cottonelle ribbed basic tp. Same result. Never see a trace of the tp.
 
That's what Green Gobbler does for you.

I use the GG pods and use Cottonelle ribbed basic tp. Same result. Never see a trace of the tp.
Steve,

It was your recommendation on green gobbler that got me started. Thank you. Stuff is great. The ribbed tp is another key.
 
Reminder: Black tanks work best with LOTS of water. Allow water to "run" 10 seconds after flushing (especially #2 ). Make sure to use a black tank product that breaks down paper fiber. Some are deodorant only. I like use the "old" fashion" wand occasionally to attain more accurate "fullness" readings. (3 ft. long, flexible with rotating head inserted through toilet).
 
This is why I installed a portable bidet (Home Depot - $50) and never flush tp down the toilet. We use tp to blot ourselves dry and put it in a sealable can (with a disposable bag in it). Have never had a problem since we started doing this. Also, we are a lot cleaner. I was hoping this would maybe clean off the sensors, but it did not.
 
Hello,
I have another toilet paper clog in the blank tank ...again.

The local septic service charges $100 to pump, but that doesn't always work.
There's a pressure washer service that does work but it's about $300!

...Is there anything I can do to try myself other than filling up with water and flushing, which I've done 3 times now to ono avail?
Important to note that the water does drain fairly well, so there's really no more poo or pee to speak of.

Looking into the future -- since this tends to happen from time to time:
...Is there a better TP brand or certain Chemical I can use to help?
To this point, I've just been using the only 1-ply septic safe TP they have at the grocery store and those Camco TST drop-ins.

Thanks, CCE

You should not be having clogs. I learned long ago that the trick is plenty of water. I flush and run the water for a few seconds to ensure a large amount is in the tank to help flush the tank when emptied. I have never had a clog using the logic. You should also pick up an attachment to the drain line that permits a hose hookup to help clear a line when this happens. I have let others use it when they have clogs due to insufficient water in the tanks.
 
Hi, what worked for me is to put 10lb to 20 lb of ice down the tolet, 1/2 cup dishwasher soap and then drive around. The ice and soap act as a scrubbing pad, clears up any hard packed areas. To clear the immediate clog try boiling water.
 
I had the same problem. If you don't already have one get a cap for your drain line that has a common hose attachment outlet and a double female hose connector hook up to pressurized outlet, turn on faucet, applying back pressure to your holding tank for a just a little bit. Wahla, it worked for my plug.
 
Try some Unique RV Digest-it products. The products seem to work for my problem last year.

I will be trying their maintenance products this year 0 see what happens.
 
Hi, what worked for me is to put 10lb to 20 lb of ice down the tolet, 1/2 cup dishwasher soap and then drive around. The ice and soap act as a scrubbing pad, clears up any hard packed areas. To clear the immediate clog try boiling water.

Sorry to say but putting ice down into your black tank has been proven several times to do absolutely nothing.
 
I would disagree, on my old trailer when ever my sensors stopped reading correctly, dishwasher soap and ice fixed it everytime. I did add some water and drove 80 km. Was the only thing that worked,
 
Thanks, but I meant whether I should spray down into the toilet or up through the outlet, or both

My husband does that "down the toilet" with the spray wand periodically; maybe once a month or so. It's a special kind, we bought ours on Amazon, but I've seen them at Walmart too. He can hold the flapper open and see down into the tank and can see where the TP might be stuck on a sensor or a side wall. The sprayer is not high pressure and doesn't hurt the sensors; just cleans them off.
 
I have volterra flush king and water meter. Hook it up at outlet and push water up. Meter helps make sure don't overfill tank.

Of course, I start with few gallons of water before use.

We do use TP but after two flushes the water comes out very clear. No solids or paper.
 
Hi. Just to make sure that you leave the black water tank valve closed and let the tank fill up full, then open when you are ready to dump and flush the tank with lots of water, you shouldn’t have any more issues. Always flush with plenty of water. I’ve had to help my neighbors in our park on several occasions open up their black water tanks up because they left the black water tank valve open. The liquid would drain away but the poo would stay in the tank and after a period of time, the tank would plug up. Just my thoughts. Good luck with rectifying your problem.
 
There's some good advice on here on how to unclog. It sounds like you KEEP having this problem, though.
We basically eliminated TP going into our tank by doing the following:

Installed an inline bidet (LUXE Bidet) to the RV toilet - wasn't too much work, a few new pex fittings and we were good to go.

Then we use our kid's diaper trash can (diaper dekor) that is specific designed to keep waste smells in - although with the bidet, there isn't really any "waste" to speak of. More so just using the TP to dry yourself. The trash can comes with its own bags that are expensive, but we found we can just use regular trash bags without any issue.

Either way, we don't through anything into the toilet anymore - which also allows us to buy the good (non-septic friendly) TP.
 
I did not see what type of clog you have. If you have a blockage on the other side of your valve then I agree this works great.

https://a.co/d/6lmCRer

Plus a Valtera valve at the end unless you already have one.

https://a.co/d/0vAtNUe

If TP is stuck or jamed in the black tank valve preventing the blade from closing all the way, short of a tank power wash treatment or removing and cleaning the valve this will be difficult to clear.

If you have the black tank just below the toilet this will do a better general sensor cleaning then the black wash spray port but will not remove a clog.

https://a.co/d/7slNmfQ

For the future if you use too much TP you are going to have problems no matter how much water you use. The best solution for us was a good butt sprayer like this.

https://a.co/d/9uJap1L

And a trash can for TP to dry your butt and toss in clean but damp TP. Other advantages you can use the softest most absorbent TP on the market also you've got a super easy way to clean up the toilet if needed.
 
I must be missing something here, because I don't know how you have a clog, but the water drains.

From the OP's first post....

"Important to note that the water does drain fairly well"
 

New posts

Try RV LIFE Pro Free for 7 Days

  • New Ad-Free experience on this RV LIFE Community.
  • Plan the best RV Safe travel with RV LIFE Trip Wizard.
  • Navigate with our RV Safe GPS mobile app.
  • and much more...
Try RV LIFE Pro Today
Back
Top Bottom