Pleasureway Plateau TS grey water guage issues

[rsmitch2@gmail.com]

Hi there, we have a 2018 Plateau TS with only 30,000 km on it and this summer the Grey water tank gauge reads 1/4 full even when the tank is totally empty. I have tried rinsing the tank; filling the tank then adding a cup of dish detergent and driving with it 2/3 full of the soapy slurry. I have done this several times and still no joy. The tank is hard to get at due to the 5 inches of clearance underneath. It is located below the kitchen sink.
Any ideas out there or magic solutions? I suspect it is grease on a sensor but can't see a way to get at them to extract it and clean. We live many hours away from a dealer hence the requirement for a local solution.
Thanks, Roger, Cranbrook, BC

[Knit]

Unreliable tank gauges are a universal RV/Marine problem. Good luck on finding a solution for your situation. Most people just learn to live with the inaccurate readings I think.

My solution is to avoid filling the fresh water tank without also dumping grey and black water tanks.

[GeorgeRa]

What kind of level sensors you have, capacitive? If they are externally mounted on the tank wall, they are capacitive and should be immune to grease in the tank unless you have a very thick layer. Changing to different gauges is likely not in your plan but there are more gauges on the market which are very reliable sensing such as ultrasonic, reed with floaters, or internal capacitive.

My experience with external patches of capacitive sensors is not very good, and at best good enough for 4 LEDs.

I used Wema on my conversion, accurate enough and never had a problem. They use internally mounted sequential reed switches with floating magnet to measure the tank level. Liquid Sensors - Marine Diesel, Fuel, or Water Level Sensor

[booster]

Originally Posted by GeorgeRa

What kind of level sensors you have, capacitive? If they are externally mounted on the tank wall, they are capacitive and should be immune to grease in the tank unless you have a very thick layer. Changing to different gauges is likely not in your plan but there are more gauges on the market which are very reliable sensing such as ultrasonic, reed with floaters, or internal capacitive.

My experience with external patches of capacitive sensors is not very good, and at best good enough for 4 LEDs.

I used Wema on my conversion, accurate enough and never had a problem. They use internally mounted sequential reed switches with floating magnet to measure the tank level. Liquid Sensors - Marine Diesel, Fuel, or Water Level Sensor

I am a bit surprised at your having had trouble with the external capacitive style sensors. We have had ours for probably 5+ years without any issues at all. Seelevel, which is probably the most common brand we hear about, is what we have.


We have also checked the accuracy several times over the years, and if you have an odd shaped tank, the % readings are going to be inaccurate, because that is just the way it works for any linear gauge in a non linear tank. Very early on I made a conversion chart of gallons to full and gallons left for each tank by filling them with a gallon jug one gallon at a time. When I have checked years later it was still very accurate. I have it posted right under the readout and it is what we use all the time.



To have true % accuracy you would have to mount a sensor dead center in both directions on a linear tank if you can't alter the readout to match the % to account for out of level conditions. In industrial applications, our tanks had such level monitors, and they worked well. They were also thousands of dollars, though, and the setup was quite tedious if you wanted good accuracy. We had outside capacitive and ultrasonic from the top for the most part, as we couldn't have anything like floats it the tanks.

[GeorgeRa]

Originally Posted by booster

I am a bit surprised at your having had trouble with the external capacitive style sensors. We have had ours for probably 5+ years without any issues at all. Seelevel, which is probably the most common brand we hear about, is what we have.


We have also checked the accuracy several times over the years, and if you have an odd shaped tank, the % readings are going to be inaccurate, because that is just the way it works for any linear gauge in a non linear tank. Very early on I made a conversion chart of gallons to full and gallons left for each tank by filling them with a gallon jug one gallon at a time. When I have checked years later it was still very accurate. I have it posted right under the readout and it is what we use all the time.

To have true % accuracy you would have to mount a sensor dead center in both directions on a linear tank if you can't alter the readout to match the % to account for out of level conditions. In industrial applications, our tanks had such level monitors, and they worked well. They were also thousands of dollars, though, and the setup was quite tedious if you wanted good accuracy. We had outside capacitive and ultrasonic from the top for the most part, as we couldn't have anything like floats it the tanks.

I had 4 RVs with capacitive patches on tanks and 4 rows LED monitors for fresh, gray, black, and voltage LEDs. I don't remember the brand. Sensors were simple strips of copper tape attached to tanks, perhaps new ones are better. They were erratic, to the point that they became useless. Multiple reasons, wiring, attachment to the tank, or proximity cargo. I understand why they wouldn’t work well with black tanks, but I had issue with all of them. One issue I found was on the fresh water tank, in the cargo space, in the trailer that metal cargo skewed the reading, kind of obvious. A sensor wire separated itself from likely a weak solder joint on the copper tape, access was torturous.

There is nothing wrong with capacitive level sensing, perhaps it was manufacturer quality issue.

On boats I used Wema, and continue in my conversion, never had a problem.

[avanti]

Originally Posted by GeorgeRa

Sensors were simple strips of copper tape attached to tanks, perhaps new ones are better. They were erratic, to the point that they became useless.

I, too, have had excellent results from the SeeLevel (except for a flakey LED display). This system is quite a bit more sophisticated than what you describe. There are chips along the sensor strip as well as the sensors themselves. Communications is digital, not analog. Other than perhaps the pressure-sensor-at-the-bottom-of-the-tank approach that ARV uses, my belief is that the SeeLevel system is the best available--fresh, gray, and black.

[CarolMerrell]

Hi there,
We have not had any gauge issues in our 2016 Pleasure-Way, however, we treat our black and grey to Thetford Tank Blaster once or twice a year. I just wanted to throw that in because it may help a sticky gauge. Good luck!
By the way, we drove through your beautiful town last July!

[mloganusda]

Another trick is to fill the tank 1/2 full and dump ice cubes down the black tank and drive around. The sloshing should break up any solid material on the tank walls. I have not done this as my Trend has external sensors. When I owned a Rialta, the tank gauges did the same as yours and I learned to gauged how much was in the blank tank (only 13 gallons black and 9 grey) before I dumped.

MLogan
2017 Trend
Smyrna, TN

[Want a B]

https://youtu.be/iH6acEmqvcw

[mloganusda]

In the video he did not have any water in the tank for the ice cubes to float around and scrub the wall of the tank. He was only concerned about what was on the bottom of the tank, not the side wall where the sensors are located.

MLogan
Smyrna, TN

[dicktill]

I can't speak to how well this method works, especially since you need to clean the entire height of the tank walls, to get all the sensors. I did try it once, but ceased quickly, as I realized that driving like that (as in the video) was pretty dangerous, as in: "oh hey, I now have a wrecked camper with real clean tanks". YMMV.

[icepilot00]

I have a 2018 PW Plateau XLTS and we have had issues with the black and the gray tank sensors every since we bought is in Sept 18....have had 3 different service centers (4th one next week) look at the issue and still unresolved. It will be "resolved" for about a day and then right back to incorrect readings. I have tried the ice down the tank, didn't work. We had a service center use a "special" cleaner to clean the tanks--worked for 2 days. when I asked them what it was, they didn't disclose--yeah right a special cleaner. Even changed the RSI-9 board out, and nothing. I have suspected sensor issues from day 1, but no one wants to address that. Luckily we have been persistent and PW is still covering under warranty even thought 1 year warranty is up but since we addressed it since Day 1, and being persistent, they will cover it. Hopefully it will get fixed, right, this time. We don't have a local service center, no one around here in NW FL will work on warranty for PW, so have to drive to South/Central to get worked on, that's the bad thing. So we feel your pain, hopefully ours will get resolved soon. good luck

[rsmitch2@gmail.com]

Icepilot, would you be good enough to tell me what they do to correct the issue. I have spoken with pleasure way and they just say the capacitance sensors on the grey water tanks do this and live with it essentially. Which is at odds with the generally wonderful electronics on board.
Thxs roger bc

[booster]

Originally Posted by rsmitch2@gmail.com

Icepilot, would you be good enough to tell me what they do to correct the issue. I have spoken with pleasure way and they just say the capacitance sensors on the grey water tanks do this and live with it essentially. Which is at odds with the generally wonderful electronics on board.
Thxs roger bc

There are lots of posts about the Pleasureway sensors not working on the internet, but didn't see any solutions. If there are that many they should be stepping up and fixing them, that is just the way they are, is not an adequate way to address the problem.


Are you sure the are capacitive, as if they are there is something really wrong with system to fail that quickly or not work at all.

[icepilot00]

Yeah I sure will.

[avery1317]

Originally Posted by icepilot00

I have a 2018 PW Plateau XLTS and we have had issues with the black and the gray tank sensors every since we bought is in Sept 18....have had 3 different service centers (4th one next week) look at the issue and still unresolved. It will be "resolved" for about a day and then right back to incorrect readings. I have tried the ice down the tank, didn't work. We had a service center use a "special" cleaner to clean the tanks--worked for 2 days. when I asked them what it was, they didn't disclose--yeah right a special cleaner. Even changed the RSI-9 board out, and nothing. I have suspected sensor issues from day 1, but no one wants to address that. Luckily we have been persistent and PW is still covering under warranty even thought 1 year warranty is up but since we addressed it since Day 1, and being persistent, they will cover it. Hopefully it will get fixed, right, this time. We don't have a local service center, no one around here in NW FL will work on warranty for PW, so have to drive to South/Central to get worked on, that's the bad thing. So we feel your pain, hopefully ours will get resolved soon. good luck

You mention a 1 year warranty. I assume then that it is covered under a separate sensor warranty not the 5 year Pleasure-Way warranty. I am distressed to hear about the sensor problems since I am ordering a Pleasure-Way On Tour 2.0 for delivery in late September and this is the first significant problem I've found about their vehicles.

[icepilot00]

No, the sensors, and the electronics (control panels, etc...) are only 1 year warranties...That's what we thought also, but in the end, its very specific as to what is a 5 year warranty, and most of the major stuff is only a year. Generator is a 3, refrigerator is a 2 I think.....Only reason we are getting it fixed under warranty cause we identified it from Day 2 that there was an indicator issue at the dealer when we bought it (who is a piece of crap-Giant RV in California) and Pleasure Way. Giant RV had it for 2 weeks and didn't fix crap and if they did, it had to be redone when we got back to FL. We have been persistent with PW with this issue, and I think I said, have already had 3 different places try to fix (including myself) with no real fix done yet. I was trying to figure out but when it comes down to sensors at the tank and PW is going to cover it, a repair place can do it! We have been very persistent and have kept good notes on everything with this RV.

An update on the fix, is that they are saying it's a RS9 board and a control monitor. I say bogus because I have replaced both monitors, a year ago and ordered a new control board and installed, and it didn't change anything. But what do I know! I am just an aircraft mechanic by trade and I know how to troubleshoot! Just more time not being able to use the RV.....
I know I kind of went off on a tangent. But if we were to buy an RV again, it wouldn't be a Pleasure Way and that isn't easy to say cause we love the RV, just don't love all the issues we have had to deal with and hasn't been much fun dealing with the warranty issues with the warranty people at PW and repair shops.....

One more thing to keep in mind. We don't have a PW dealer around the local area, and we didn't think before hand that it would be a problem getting work done. Well, when it comes down to warranty work, it WAS a big deal. No one in the local area would touch it. If we were to take in for a repair and pay out of pocket, then they would touch it....So we have had to literally take trips to South Florida to get warranty work done. And that has been a mess. Repair facilities are not fast and efficient, they take there dear sweet time. And if a part is needed? Guess what, its coming from Canada because its Pleasure Way. So that's a week in itself. That has also been an issue that we didn't know before hand. When we tried our local Camping World/Gander Outdoors, they came out and told us it's because PW hasn't paid them before for warranty work....

If you have any more questions, you can message me or I can just air the dirty laundry out on this public site!!
Will update more when they get the parts.....