There is no doubt in the fact that having an RV is a thrilling and exciting experience. An RV gives you the liberty to do your traveling according to your own rules. You can stop wherever you want to stop. Similarly, you can also avoid unnecessary stops when you want to continue the journey. However, being an RV owner there are lists of some responsibilities as well that you have to fulfill.
One of the most disgusting and irritating tasks that you have to perform, being an RV owner, is the emptying or dumping of the holding tanks of your RV. For some people, it is not an easy task. It requires effort as well as courage to bear all the disgusting smells from the waste inside the holding tanks.
An RV generally has two tanks. One is called the black water tank and the other is known as the grey water tank. The black water tank is used to hold the wastewater coming from the showers and sinks of your RV. The black water tank is used to hold all the waste and wastewater coming down from the toilet of your RV. There are many methods to empty the black water tank. We will discuss some methods in detail to see how we can empty the black water tank at home. We will also discuss why people find it more feasible to empty the black tanks at home.
Why Empty Black Tanks at Home?
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There are many reasons why people prefer dumping black tanks at home instead of dumping stations. Some reasons are given below.
1. Save Dumping Fee
If we talk about a time a few years back, dumping was totally free. However, with the drastic increase in the number of RVs in the last few years and due to the irresponsible behavior of some RVers, dumping stations decided to charge some fee each time you visit there for dumping. They charge you $10-$25 for a one-time dump. Some dump stations also offer an annual dump station membership that can cost you anywhere from $200-$1500. Many RVers who do travel a lot find the membership option more suitable as compared to the every time dumping fee.
2. Save the Time
Dumping stations often have long lines. This is also dependent on the location of the dumping station. Busy locations have very busy dumping stations as well. This happens a lot when you go for dumping at a dumping station and you have to wait in a long line till your number comes. Sometimes the dumping station is at a long distance from your home and it costs you a long time to reach the dumping station. That is why people prefer to dump black tanks at home.
3. No Need for Extra Stop
Stopping at the dumping stations is another hassle. You need to stop at the dumping station and take extra time for dumping. This means extra time and extra hassle. That is why many people prefer to do dumping of black water tanks at home.
Methods to Dump Black Tanks at Home
There are many methods commonly used to dump RV black tanks at home. Two of them are described below.
1. The Bucket Method
This method is used to empty the waste from the black tank when the amount of waste is small. This method is recommended when you have only a few gallons of waste in your RV black tank. People who have RVs do not want to go to the dump station if there is very less waste in their RV’s black tank. That is why they can make use of the bucket method to remove a few gallons of waste at home.
Items required to perform this method are given below.
- 5-gallon bucket
- Rubber gloves
- Funnel with a wide mouth
The steps to perform are listed below.
- First take a 5-gallon bucket and place it under the discharge line. It is recommended to use as large a bucket as possible to avoid spilling.
- Open the valve of the RV black tank and start filling the bucket with waste.
- Close the valve when the bucket is full or when the tank is empty.
- Carefully take out the bucket from the discharge line.
- Dump the bucket full of waste into your house’s septic system or sewer of the city.
2. The Macerating Method
Macerating means crushing something. Therefore in this method, the waste inside the black tank is crushed to give it a thick liquid-like consistency. After that, this thick liquid is carried through the macerating pump connected to a garden hose towards the sewer system or septic system. The greatest benefit of this macerating method is that no smelly waste will come into your face like that in the bucket method.
You will need the following things to perform this method.
- An RV macerator pump.
- A curved or straight extension adapter connects the pump to your RV.
- A CDFJ adapter to connect the macerator pump to the garden hose.
- A garden hose.
Perform the following steps to do this method.
- Connect the macerator pump to the RV discharge pipe through a curved or straight adapter.
- connect the macerator pump to the garden hose from the other side with the help of a CDFJ adapter.
- Now the remaining open end of the garden hose has to be connected to the cleanout port or septic system of your house.
- There is a water inlet on the macerator pump. Fix the fresh water hose to this water inlet.
- Now open the valve of your RV black tank.
- Turn on the macerator pump and fresh water hose. This will help in macerating and cleaning actions take place at the same time.
- Note the water coming out of the tank, when it becomes clear then you can turn off and discharge everything.
- Clean and store all the equipment.
FAQ’s
Why do people prefer dumping at home instead of a dumping station?
People prefer dumping the black tank at home instead of the dumping stations because dumping at home is the easiest and cheapest way to dump your tanks. It is basically a free dumping option that you must utilize.
