Thetford toilet leak

[themexicandoctor]

Here are some photos of my upgraded platform upon which the ports potti is stored but never used to make deposits in.

The gap underneath showing the 6 inch plus differential in height from where your feet rest on the lowered Roadtrek aisle floor & with that platform removed about 2 years ago showing the effects of 15 years of drips & drops onto into the cabinetry biild - notice the rotten wood, the little mould taking place, etc.

[themexicandoctor]

This isn't a good photo but you can see how the plumbing continues underneath the upper platform.

[themexicandoctor]

Here it is.

The step up platform height.

[themexicandoctor]

Originally Posted by MagicBox

So where does one perform the dastardly deed of dumping the porta pooper?
Perp walk into a Hardees bathroom and bombs away?
Or at the camp ground dump site?

Yes, its true, even after it leaves our body there isn't a Magic Wand.

Living in Los Angeles & visiting clients, many of them are open to my using one of their toilets to send my gifts away.

In a pinch, I twice used a Construction Porta Potti.

Once, just as a test during this Covid Lockdown, I waited in line, to dump for Free at the Hyperion Sewage Plant - usually limited to 3 hours per day, during weekdays only, the hours staggered each day ie; Monday 9am to 1pm, Tuesdays 12-3pm.

Have you ever been to a Circus?

Here the Dumping & the Entertainment are free .

Along with people lining up in high end Class A's, you have other end of the Spectrum & everyone in between like myself with a well maintained, highly modified system & rehearsed steps that rarely change & Tourists & Newbies.

Accidents happen to all of us, its part of the RV Learning Curve.

But the most Entertainment usually comes with those owners, on an extreme budget ie; the Homeless but for the RV (technically I am considered Homeless by the same criteria).

Now some of these people suffer from Mental Issues & many of them, issues caused by Alcohol & Drugs.

And remember this is Los Angeles.

So let's begin with the gated entrance into the facility that rather than using GPS I can be assured that if I pay close attention I can follow what on closer inspection tells me is the arrival earlier than I, of rigs whose maintenance is best described as never quite fully reaching complete capacity because of age & stress induced fissures in the sewer system.

Then you are usually in a conga line of up to 5 or 6 units, overflow of arrivals are kept parked outside the gates.

On average, the Engineering Employees of that facilities organization claim one in four units, has defects in the integrity of their black water tanks.

So as you sit there, sometimes you might get lucky & be in a line of newer, high end units & the line shortens quickly until its your turn to put your waders on & dump your own tanks.

You dump your tank into a hole which is centered upon a limited flat concrete apron. Everywhere beyond this is a corrugated, black top, rough surface upon which years of mistakes have been spilt.

Plus the fetid hose that they give you to wash some of the errors back into containment, is usually the victim of a tear that limits the pressure, sprays you with water & isn't long enough to clean the historic discharges of the past.

Most of the time, whike in this line, there is at least one OMG Spectacle if you can bare to watch.

On many occasions, I have seen various owners of rigs, suffering from whatever, pull the valves open only to have the outlet hose;

1. On the opposite side of the dump station hole & the discharge happening 20 feet from the hole.

2. The hose not secured & the contents being discharged all over the area with force as the hose kicks around like an Anaconda upon the work area which one needs to stand in.

3. Or whole valve & hose assemblies suddenly explode upon the pressure.

4. Plus the drip, drip, drip of Honey Oil from the older units in front of you.

And even more hilarious when they happen to other people, displays of utter horror.

This is Los Angeles, half a mile south of LAX, not Tijuana, Mumbai or Calcutta.

The one time I did revisit the plant & dumped the Porta Potti, it took just 2 minutes to dump, rinse the unit a couple of times & then get on my way.

[rowiebowie]

Originally Posted by MagicBox

So where does one perform the dastardly deed of dumping the porta pooper?
Perp walk into a Hardees bathroom and bombs away?
Or at the camp ground dump site?

Ah, the elephant in the room. Great visual Magic.

I've long wondered the same thing when cassette toilet owners brag how convenient it is since "You can just dump in any regular toilet". I've yet to see anyone carrying a tank to or into a restroom. If I were, I'd imagine that instead of being curious and watching, that I couldn't get out of there fast enough.

[themexicandoctor]

The Rant above is related to years of attempting to effect changes while offering solutions to the Engineering Dept of Hyperion.

Primarily because for 30 days every year, Dockweiler RV Park is closed for maintenance & even Jesus needs to dump his black tank & for January, this is the only game in town.

They say their hands are tied.

The will not be able to re-engineer a new dumping station because their belief is that the current system cannot to be taken offline.

My suggestion was a drain hole with a larger apron, a steeper decline/ to the hole, no safety gates that limit units like Class B's from getting over the hole & an apron that is large enough & easily washed down from the perimeter.

I thought this year we would finally get some traction especially with the initial analysis that Covid 19 the Virus is possibly transmitted via Sewage.

However there is a laundry list of other diseases, bacteria & pathogens that are present in Sewage.

But no movement towards a more hygenic environment.

[GeorgeRa]

Michelin rated restaurants are great for dumping cassette goodies, usually excellent greetings.

[themexicandoctor]

Originally Posted by rowiebowie

Ah, the elephant in the room. Great visual Magic.

I've long wondered the same thing when cassette toilet owners brag how convenient it is since "You can just dump in any regular toilet". I've yet to see anyone carrying a tank to or into a restroom. If I were, I'd imagine that instead of being curious and watching, that I couldn't get out of there fast enough.

Rowiebowie,

The first few dumps had many lessons.

Like remembering to lift the 45lb cassette (when full), slowly tipping it while depressing the white button (like an Air Purge), & not being in a rush to empty the contents.

Remember in actuality, as your pour the contents into the bowl, the toilet self discharges.

Occasionally there is a little droplet or two of splash around the bowl easily wiped clean.

No Magic, No Drama, No Hassle ...

[themexicandoctor]

Originally Posted by GeorgeRa

Michelin rated restaurants are great for dumping cassette goodies, usually excellent greetings.

I think that was sarcasm.

If you are on the road, Public Restrooms are also an option, Truck Stops, etc.

[Bud]

Originally Posted by GeorgeRa

Michelin rated restaurants are great for dumping cassette goodies, usually excellent greetings.

Hi George,

This is true and cassette toilet dumpers know what they are doing. Anyway the cassette users website does rate places. Michelin rated restaurants are the highest rated at 8.8 stars with McDonald's only 3.4 stars.

Of course, to use a Michelin rated restaurant the cassette user must be rated, no rating required for McDonald's.

Bud

[themexicandoctor]

Originally Posted by rowiebowie

Ah, the elephant in the room. Great visual Magic.

I've long wondered the same thing when cassette toilet owners brag how convenient it is since "You can just dump in any regular toilet". I've yet to see anyone carrying a tank to or into a restroom. If I were, I'd imagine that instead of being curious and watching, that I couldn't get out of there fast enough.

Imagine your process when making a singular deposit.

Now imagine all those deposits & urine are sloshing around in a waterproof cassette.

Instead of sitting upon a residential toilet you unscrew the drain cap, swivel the tubular opening into the toilet bowl opening, press a white air release button & pour slowly the multiple deposits into the toilet.

I then screw on the cap & have a container of water with which I pull then open the valve, pour in the water, close the valve, give it a good Giant Martini shake, undo the drain cap, pour the flushed contents into the toilet, close the cap & flush the toilet.

Game, Set, Match.

Go back to the rig, pour in some Thetford Chemical, add a cup of fresh water, click the top unit back down onto the base & its ready for multiple deposits again.

If one if you can answer in person the electrical theory questions as they pertain to my solar & battery bank system, I will take care of your first 5 episodes.

[GeorgeRa]

Originally Posted by Bud

Hi George,

This is true and cassette toilet dumpers know what they are doing. Anyway the cassette users website does rate places. Michelin rated restaurants are the highest rated at 8.8 stars with McDonald's only 3.4 stars.

Of course, to use a Michelin rated restaurant the cassette user must be rated, no rating required for McDonald's.

Bud

No rating required, just a receipt from where goodies come, they will not accept McDonald receipts.

Seriously, here are my statistics for dumping cassette’s load:

1. Public campgrounds toilets
2. Rest stops toilets
3. Home sewage service inlet
4. RV Dumping stations

[themexicandoctor]

I am a Kiwi, I don't have enough Gall to consider using another person's business to deposit anything other than my money for goods or services received.

Let alone the gymnastics, skill & downright dishonesty to dump anything in a restaurant.

Bud & George, what are these sites you are talking about, do you have any links?

[themexicandoctor]

I am a Kiwi from New Zealand, we are engineered with just enough Gall to get through Customs.

I wouldn't consider using another person's business to deposit anything other than my money for goods or services received.

Let alone the gymnastics, skill & downright dishonesty to dump such a device in any restaurant be it a McDonald's or Jose's Tacos.

Bud & George, what are these sites you are talking about, do you have any links?

Surely you are joking, even the cassettes with wheels woukd not be considered the least bit stealthy.

Then there are all the steps to follow, you need elbow room, a steady hand, the strength to balance & pour the contents out in a slow, controlled fashion all the while keeping your finger on the Air Purge Button.

Not to mention having access to the external container of water, usually a gallon or so & then the a Martini Shake for 30 seconds before following the same emptying procedure.

Its noisy for one thing & those noises are unnatural & mechanical in thier form.

In a normal sized bathroom stall at any point your elbows, hips or buttocks are going to make heavy, glancing contact with the sides.

Without exaggeration, its a process that would alert the senses of even the most unconscious Civilian.

[GeorgeRa]

Originally Posted by themexicandoctor

.................
Surely you are joking, even the cassettes with wheels woukd not be considered the least bit stealthy.
......

Yes, just a joke to heal our society party line split of Cassetterians and Blacktankers.

[themexicandoctor]

Bud & George,

I thought you were serious.

Have been awake now for close to 10 days (long story/unique health quirk), its all good but it doesn't take much to hook my attention these days.

Googling the phenomenon made me even more confused.

Why would George & Bud, quite serious & helpful posters, add to any thread something so outrageous, it must be true & therefore there must be a nefarious group of underground Euro Trash Van Lifers that delight in finding 5 Star Restaurants around the World (not here), & take delight in making deposits in Fine Dining Eateries & the occasional McDonald's, earning kudos amongst other like minded fanatics ie; the fur & paint activists, etc.

Probably driving around Europe in Vans, drinking Kombucha & making Raw Celery Juices with almost zero carbon footprint, hyper-miling down any slope & giving Birth underwater at Druid Festivals & entering famous eateries to deposit their dirty deeds only during Full Moons ...

[themexicandoctor]

I read your husband's reply, i thought it was quite Diplomatic...

Black Tank Plumbing - something farmed out to Professionals...

[themexicandoctor]

Originally Posted by Joe

I had a problem with mine too. I found after dumping. The valve inside was not closing all the way. Apparently the plastic Handel is loose from steel rod. I now push closed on plastic Handel. Then use blunt object to push metal rod all the way in.

Joe,

A suggestion; get the valve fixed now.

1. Unless someone got under there & physically rotated the handle counter clockwise several times, there is no way for it to rattle loose as it is connected to the valve via a thread.

2. Perhaps a newbie thought the way to open it was to turn the handle counter clockwise?

3. It was never connected correctly in the first place.

4. Or some impact to the undercarriage shattered the hard plastic & metal junction.

5. But it maybe one of the problems above & more accurately, a dump valve that has become incompetent because of toilet paper & other debris becoming wedged at the valve itself.

This would make it difficult, presenting the symptoms you are describing.

Bottom line; if its housing/coupling is not shattered, its an easy fix that even I would begin.

You can even pull the connecting rod out next time you succeesfully dump & flush the tanks, inspect the thread at that end, reinsert the rod & while lying under the unit at the valve side, you can finger pressure tight the rod into the housing & feel if the coupling is intact.

Regardless of how it happened, your description of "successfully closing a dump valve the final step with a blunt instrument ..." evoked in me much empathy.

Emergency DIY Repairs at Home that last until you can get to it next year do not have the same staying power in a moving rig.

[mkguitar]

In Ireland with a cassette toilet equipped rental camper, campgrounds would have a household toilet in a shed with out a seat or lid and there it was dumped
( or sometimes the "dump" was in the main campground toilets)

get close, very close ( splash back)

then find a hose



in my life the cassette toilet is like a cassette tape

a bad idea and a fading memory


mike

[themexicandoctor]

Mike,

Spot on description of a Virgin user who wished he was wearing glasses & not been caught in mid sentence with his mouth open. How about that for a Visual?

Think back to the Virgin you were the first few times you dumped your Gray & Black tanks.

Both have Learning Curves of which missing a step or going too fast, create lasting memories.

I don't know if I could sneak into a Michelin Rated Restaurant & do a dump surreptitiously without being discovered but I could probably do so in a Satellite Ronald McDonald.

But after I have done this several times now, would never go back to a Black Tank only set up.