how to lubricate rv holding tank valves and cables

Weve never tried it, and do have a couple of concerns. We're so happy that you found us out there in the Youtube world!\rIf you like our channel, then give us some sub love and please subscribe. We full-timed in our Sunnybrook for 7 years and on the rare occasions we had a full hook-up site, we flushed those tanks within an inch of their life. What are your thoughts on lubricating waste tank valves? Why? Oil that is just dumped into the tank while there is any water also in the tank will just float on the surface of the water, like it does in a jar of oil and water on the counter at home. Uflex Replacement Cables; Hydraulic Oil/Power Steering Fluid; Trim Controls; Uflex Rack Steering; When you dump the tanks you just pull the handles. Dave recommends applying silicon to the shaft, rather than WD-40, which will clean the grease and rid of the natural oils that help the valve slide fluidly. I asked that to the service manager at a SOB dealership, and he told me they use Murphy's oil. Is it possible that the application of petroleum-containing grease might cause the rubber seal to deteriorateeventually leading to a mechanical breakdown or possible leakage of holding tank contents? Russ and Tia De Maris are authors of RV Boondocking Basics, a how-to guide for RVing off the grid. Visit www.icanrv.com for more information. 1 How do you lubricate RV holding tank valves and cables? What do you do when your RV black tank valve gets stuck? I suggest using water resistant WD-40 Specialist (click to view on Amazon) on the handles, but it won't work as well on the inner gate part. The Fragrance-Enhanced Eco-Save has a cherry scent. Oh gee, maybe a cup. gauges not work so guess. You can reference numerous YouTube videos showing how to go about this, but the entire process should take less than an hour. 3 bedroom house in south east london. Posted on June 27, 2022 by See Also:Best Portable Power Station/Solar Generator For Camping. The reason I asked is that I'm having problems with my black tank valve. But what if the valves are stuck closed and you have full holding tanks? I do lube the pull handles. for each tank. ??? Do not use WD-40. Then we pull each valve a few times to lubricate the action. Periodically agitate the valve with the open or hole end down in the water the idea is to remove the debris that collects in the body of the valve over time as the gate is opened to dump your tanks. When you feel the inner body of the valve is clean, remove and blow the inner valve body to remove any excess particulate that air pressure may loosen. All that goop in your black water and gray water waste tanks is held in place by the tanks dump valves. I would try adding a few gallons of water and more black tank treatment to try and break up whatever is clogging the tank. Any suggestions for enclosed tanks and valves? In fact it's easily accomplished by most RV handypersons.if the cable broke while the valve was in the fully opened position, that is! In some cases the 1.5-inch gray valve gets sticky over time especially if the RVer is not using his RV full time. Fix For Hard To Open & Close RV Black Or Grey Tank Valves. What Are the Best Campgrounds in Branson, Missouri? JavaScript is disabled. As weve said, were not recommending this procedure, only commenting on it. I removed them and cleaned everything with soap and water. Terry and Jo2010 Mobile Suites 38TKSB32008 Ford F450 2019 Ford Expedition Max as Tag-along or Scout Our photos on Smugmug, Bill Joyce, 40' 2004 Dutch Star DP towing an AWD 2020 Ford Escape HybridJournal at http://www.sacnoth.comFull-timing since July 2003. That means you can treat both the black and grey tank valves 3 times per bottle. When you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. See Also:Can Different RVs Use The Same Door Key? Open the valve and soak it in hot, soapy water. Some do it 3-4 times a year when the rig is in service as well. 3. This is easy and fairly cheap and could be the best option. Clintoons: Ever wonder how these directions make sense? Thats all you have to do. It is especially hard to spray lubricate into the gate valve if your RV uses a handle connected to a cable with the gate valve located somewhere further underneath the RV. Where to Find the Best RV Couch Replacements, Walmart Alternatives for Free Overnight RV Parking, Dog Camping Tents Your Pet Will Actually Love, Dow Corning 111 O-Ring Silicone Lubricant (5.3 oz. I wonder if I can use 303 Aerospace Protectant liquid down the tanks as well. This works well . I'm really having a lot of friction when trying to pull the gray and the black water cables. However, there are products made specifically for this purpose. This will not show on your comment but is for us to contact you if necessary. I would think that those were two different characteristics to take into consideration. Free shipping on orders over $100! \rCome join us for some GLAMTASTIC ADVENTURES!\r\r\r****************************************\rPLEASE SUBSCRIBE, CLICK THE BELL, \rLIKE, COMMENT \u0026 SHARE!\r****************************************\rThanks for watching! If your valve is getting stuck, you might need to replace it down the road anyway. Everything You Need to Know About Camping at Zion National Park. The valve is located against the trailer frame and just behind the rear tire just above the plastic covering. Some do it 3-4 times a year when the rig is in service as well. Its safe to grease the seals as well when you position the valve back on the flanges. new 2023 venture rv sporttrek st333vik travel trailer #1538 with 31 photos for sale in blue grass, iowa 52726 . In some cases the 1.5-inch gray valve gets sticky over time especially if the RVer is not using his RV full time. Remove the seals from the flanges and inspect both of the seals and the flanges for cracks or abrasion. Waste flows through a 3" ABS gate valve with 50:1 gear reduction developing plenty of torque for years of service. My valves are due for a little lube too. Sometimes a simpler solution is all thats necessary. oz. Dont freak out. oz. The lubricant is heavier than water which means it can sink to the bottom. Then place the included seals on the flange fittings and position the new valve body. Once you detach the valve, clean around the seals and gaskets. Many trailers will have the handle on one side and a cable running across to the tank. Were Jenni and Jesse. Some people recommend that you should never leave the gray valve open either, as it can allow odors from the parks sewer system up into your RV. Its time to replace it. i finally went and bought new valves, they were cheep. Price: $73.28. Tube), Valterra-T1003VPM Bladex 3-Inch Waste Valve Body with Metal Handle, Mess-Free Waste Valve for RV's, Campers, Trailers, Black, RV Toilet Paper Alternatives Youll Wish You Used Sooner, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wU-a8W44_4, RV WASTE VALVE REPLACEMENT IT'S EASY !!!!!!!! These are 15 of our favorite songs/themes/scores that Tod has created for our YouTube channel. RV toilet tissue is single ply and will break down quickly in your black holding tank. The sloshing around of the liquid will not only clean the inside of your tank, but it can get down into the valve and loosen whatever residue is there. To use, dump the RV like normal. Now work the valve open and closed a few times. I will report back the results. We occasionally update our terms and privacy policies pages so if you have not read them lately, we encourage you to do so. If there is no lube to try, Ill have to give a shot at tearing into the back of the wet bay. Finally, it will settle on the RV gate valve from inside the tank. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. 2019 Ford Expedition Max as Tag-along or Scout. Save my name and email in browser cookies for the next time I comment so I won't have to enter that information again. orbit eccentricity calculator. Make sure to lubricate the valve blade and put a leak-free gasket around it. Pretty hard to pull upwards when the compartment ceiling is in the way! Stocking thousands of OEM & aftermarket marine parts by top suppliers. The handle that pulls or pushes the gate, and the gate that holds or releases the contents of the holding tank. The idea is that the dish soap will be able to clean around the gate valve to loosen up whatever is making it impossible to open. Tighten the provided hardware to complete installation. Every Saturday and Sunday morning. But for those who would like to know more, heres how the job has been explained to us: With the valve closed, in the area immediately adjacent to where the stainless-steel actuating rod comes out of the holding tank valve, bore a 3/16-inch hole through the plastic and into the cavity. Gonna give it a try thanks for the tip! Wish I could find something that is good durning cold weather. I havent actually tried this by putting a small amount in a jar and letting it sit, but I think that I will the next time I use some. After a while, it starts to feel like you wont be able to open them at all. Pro Tip: There a several methods for cleaning your black tank, find out which method is right for you. A 7/64ths inch drill bit and a #8x1/2 inch stainless steel screw works best to plug the hole.You don't have to use lithium grease, you can use any lubricant that you think is appropriate and one that will not damage the valves in your particular system, which may be different than mine. All seams are solvent welded and have a 1" mounting flange. DO NOT USE the old standby, WD-40. Takes less than half a second to open and close. How to Market Your Business with Webinars. Thank you for stopping by. We scratch our heads on that theory. Can Different RVs Use The Same Door Key? See the detail from Valterras Installation Sheet to make sure your cable is installed properly or has not loosened up from a secure area. A quart bottle treats a tank eight or nine times. An RV holding tank sensor's installation ease is a function of the product's type. Living in Florida we don't put the RV into storage but I'll bet it would help if it sits for a month or so too. Remove the 6-8 self tapping screws which hold the Coroplast to the frame. of lubricant. maybe a zit, but thats another problem for my teen years, Its been corrected. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 20082023 RV LIFE. PROPER METHOD OF LUBRICATION If you use a grease zerk be sure you do not apply too much grease or the valve will be hard to pull and push open or close. The RVers are usually referring to the black 3-inch gate valve on their black holding tank. The cables were also fairly level with no sharp bends. Once the hold is drilled put the nozzle straw that came with the can of lubricant into the hole and spray lubricant inside the gate valve until its filled with lubricant. Here's a video showing how how to lub your waste valves. One of the commercial seal lubricants, or silicone spray is the best way. Try adding more than the recommended dosage to increase the chance of it getting to the valve. DO NOT USE the old standby, WD-40. A lot of "old-timers" use mineral oil or even cooking oil, like vegetable oil. RV Waste Superstore - On Sale Now! Ive been an auto mechanic for 43 years, and never heard them called anything but ZERKS. Next, you want to get the lubricant around the sides of the gate as well. Perhaps you had a great day planned with your spouse, but it gets ruined because you broke your black tank valve in frustration that morning trying to dump your tanks. A small T-shaped handle allows you to grab the rod and pull back the gate, permitting the contents to flush forth. The contents inside the valve dry out causing the valve to stick. Please support our sponsors and let them know you heard about their products on iRV2. Use Dow 111 synthetic greaseor any non-petroleum grease and lubricate the SS shaft if your valves are the manual pull type. When you dump a tank and the handle is pulled to the open position, simply shoot the stainless rod with a good shot of lubricant spray containing silicon or Teflon. All tanks are rotationally molded of a seamless one piece, non-corrosive linear polyethylene that meets FDA acceptance and complies with Coast Guard regulations. How long should a dryer heating element last? Diverter Valves; Holding Tanks; Sewer Accessories; Water Pressure Regulator; Waste Valves; . After emptying your tank, work the valve open and closed a few times and then close it. Valve easily adapts to existing bolt on flanged valve connections. What to do about sticky valve handles in RV? They dump it into the tank & it works pretty good. Holman RV is not responsible for any misprints, typos, or errors found in our website pages. I wonder if I should continue using it? We're asked often about the proper method to lubricate a sticky RV dump valve. I will do this with only about 2-3 gallons of water for sloshing and just before a trip. View Details. Taking care of your RV black tank valve is a necessary task for RVers. They did work but were very hard to pull out and push in. A stuck (or broken) holding tank valve is a really big issue if it happens, but can easily be prevented. Im very handy, but the valves are not visible at all from underneath the rig, and Im not sure how easily I can get at them from the wet bay (I admit, I havent tried yet). shot in dark but maybe you have answer. There is no way to get lubrication to this seal. Apply a thin coating of grease to the seals and install them on the flanges. Replacing a BAL Accu-Slide slide-out clip-in style wiper seal, New lube product coming soon for CP4 pumps. . Rockport TX. Then every so often I spray wd40 into holes. I did not use much and I only worked the rod a little, being unsure if I was performing a useful process. Our tanks can be used for black and/or grey water. it is going to the teens for 5 days and I cant empty black tank!!! What are your likely plans for 2023? The handle will either be connected directly to the gate or it will be connected to a long cable that leads to the gate valve thats located further away. I have put vegetables oil in gray tank. Its especially worth doing if youre consistently having problems. There may be others I don't know. The biggest way to prevent a sticky black tank valve is proper maintenance. What to Do If RV Black or Grey Tank Valve Is Stuck Closed? Travel Trailer. Its effective and safe for RV waste systems and holding tanks. Last update on 2023-03-04 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API, Your email address will not be published. 513-401-7763 or Contact Us. IN CONCLUSION On ours, it took putting about 1/2 gallon of oil in each tank and running it through twice to get them loosened up real good. They are universal, so dont worry about getting the wrong one. Use a product like Dow Corning 111. Hows the lubrication to work there? Install a grease zerk or access port so the valve can be lubricated without removing the valve. Click to visit Daves forum. Regardless of this potential revenue, unless stated otherwise, we only recommend products or services we believe provide value to our readers. Be careful not to ding or in any way damage that steel rod, as a rough rod can create problemslike tearing up the shaft seal. RV Mirrors; RV Window Parts . Easily replaces manual or cable pull valves. 4 What to do about sticky valve handles in RV? We have heard from a number of our customers that speculate this would be the answer to solve their problems once and for all. 2022 RVTravel.com All rights Reserved. how to pronounce canadian cities. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For the gray, took the trap loose under the bathroom sink, emptied out the water, reconnected it and poured the vegetable oil down it. Forest River recalls some trailers for fridge fire risk, ST-type tire speed ratings One mans opinion. They have a system for shooting lubricant down motorcycle brake and clutch cables using a spray can and a foam rubber adapter. Only lubricated 2 times but started sticking after all these years. and how do i hook it back up to work. but does require access to the gate valves which are inside the coroplast in most cases. Wait as long as you can before trying to open the stuck black or grey tank valve again. We'll see how long it lasts. When your RV black tank valve gets harder to open, you dont want to wait until it breaks. NPS calls out YouTube and TikTok users. When you empty the waste tanks in your RV, the dump valve plays a significant role. RV Daily Tips. Use this lubricant at the start, middle, and end of the camping season to maintain the gate valves so they open and close easily all season long. Maybe others will chime in soon. Pull the T handle all the way out, spray the metal rod, slide it in, pull it out again, spray the metal rod, slide it in, etc., etc. Then remove the screw and fill the valve with lubricant while the gate valve is open. It seems that a shot of lube directly to the valve rod is about the only practical solution, at least from our experience. tried veg oil, also gallon dish soap,and sil grease fitting , all did not help . 2014 Ford F450 King Ranch CC PSD LB DRW 4.30 Moonroof 6.7 auto Navigation Sirius/XM sony radio Air bag suspension with tank and monitor Transfer Flow 75 Gallon tank with Monitor Reese 25K hitch/goose hitch 2009 Elite Suite 36RSSB3/4 #5008 Then, with the gate valves closed pour 1/2 a cup in the toilet and the sink that is the closest to the grey tank. For the black tank, just pour down the toilet. Please be as brief as possible. First order of business was to drain the tanks and give the black tank a good flushing before unbolting the valve. Once you insert the new valve, replace the bolts. You must log in or register to reply here. Just replaced all three pull cablesturned out to be a relatively simple jobat least that's what DH saidLOL! By visiting our site, you agree to our privacy policy regarding cookies, tracking statistics, etc. If Im going to pull off the valve I would probably replace it unless I am in a location that I must repair. drill a hole in the top and squirt a bunch of dry lube in. Likewise, to prevent gunk buildup and maintain pliable seals, you can pour vegetable oil down the drain and allow it to coat the RV waste valve. The waste tank T handle is in the wet bay. One tip I did see is to drill a small hole above the handle and spray silicone into the hole while moving the handle in and out. So make sure you dont undo the bolts too much. Holding Tank Treatments; Water Hoses; Sanitation Hoses & Accessories; Toilet Paper; . This will not show on your comment but is for us to contact you if necessary. We are here to help, call us at. If would be great if there were some sort of a way to add grease or some other such lubricating stuff under pressure to make the cables work easier. Next, remove the valves from the flanges that hold them in place in the piping. Plug the hole with a small screw. my type of pr0blem. Enclosed and heated dump valves; Docking station: easy winterization, Hot and cold spray port, black Tank flush, pull valves for tanks; Large tinted windows with 80/20 UV prohibitor; E-Z LUBE Dexter axles; Dexter Nev-R-Adjust brakes; Hickory Springs radius triple steps with 9" riser (no pinched fingers) Dometic "One-Touch" electric awning with . This will then lube the valve seals. Try and open the valve again. Click or drag a file to this area to upload. You have 24 hours to edit a comment. If you can get it open, dump your RV. Let sit for a few minutes and then exercise the valve by opening and closing a few times. I've had some success with 2 approaches: 1) vegetable oil and dawn liquid dish soap down the drain into the tank, and lubricant spray into the sewer outlet. Now turn the handle counter-clockwise by hand to remove it, and screw a new one on firmly. Conclusion. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); document.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. A plumber friend of mine told me to use it on my clean outs when I plumbed my house. Thanks for the comment! The first thing you need to do is make sure your black tank is empty and clean. Attach a photo or two if it might help Dave with his response. When you loosen the bolts that are holding the gate valve together only undo them about a 1/4 turn at a time. When RV heat is on, cabinets and counters get hot. The black and grey tank valves should no longer be sticky. If you want to edit a comment click the gear icon to the right of your comment and choose edit, or delete. If that T character breaks, opening the valve is tough. I drilled the hole and spray silicone in it a few times a year and also on the metal rod. Where Can I Have Packages Delivered While On The Road. No anonymous comments. Serving RVers for more than 20 years. RV Sanitation. This is one of those old RVers tricks that gets you into hour long discussions as to what is best. Hope it helps. Last year in Texas I started to squirt a lubricating/penetrating oil into each one of the cables where they pass through the dock center (if that makes sense). Mine are getting sticky, I am going to find that sprayer and foam adapter SOON. It is the most popular high-quality rubber protectant, so it should function in a similar way to the cooking oil/baby oil. Why Do People Put Pool Noodles on Their RV Slideouts? Another help would be if the cables that are in the crawl space were run with as straight a shot as possible, or at least with large radius turns or bends. The process of lubricating the valve is simple. Thank you! or any other ideas why black Valve seems working in that cable moves but nothing out. This keeps the gate space and pull rod seal lubricated. the freeze statrs Friday night and it is Wednesday night. How to conquer the fear of breaking down in remote areas, Lawsuit could upend operations of Recreation.gov, Montana moves to save some campsites from filling up with out-of-staters, Fact-checking, ethics & corrections policy. Access to the valves is actually easy without cutting the Coroplast. I suggest using water resistant WD-40 Specialist (click to view on Amazon) on the handles, but it wont work as well on the inner gate part. Carol & Jeff Savournin Usta have a '93 U225 36', Usta have a '95 U320 40', Usta have a '02 U320 40' Wait for 10 minutes to allow the lubricant to flow down the plumbing lines, into the grey and black tanks, and settle on the gate valves. This will then lube the valve seals. This led me to put zerk grease fittings on each of my gate valves. Then when done with gray valve, removed oil from trap and used it down the toilet for the black tank valve. How do you lubricate RV holding tank valves and cables? Oh, for goodness sakes we have a 2000 Sunnybrook travel trailer and when our grey/black tank dump valves become harder to pull, we simply spray the metal rod connected to the T handle with silicone spray (NOT WD 40).