Holding tank odors seems like a favorite topic of boat and RV owners. Laura and I quickly learned we had a serious problem shortly after we purchased the Safari when we were buzzing down I-5 at 55 mph and I decided to crack the driver side window for cool air. The couch the filled with the undeniable smell of the black water tank due to the reserve pressure opening the side window had created. The freeway episode led to two solutions that eventually delivered the sweet smelling coach we sought.
360 Siphon
First on our list of retrofits was to try a new style sewer vent cap designed to draw sew gases out of the tank whenever wind passed over the cap. Our Safari came with the standard vent caps found on most RVs.
Online videos, and various website made the installation look pretty straight forward, so we ordered the device, and made sure we had an adequate supply of Dicor lap sealant.
When the 360 Siphon arrived, first thing I discovered was that there were only three components in the package. The vent, a funnel, and some sealant tape.
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| Original sew vent caps. |
I removed the cap, it was just pressed onto the based and held in place by three posts. Next involved removing some silicone like sealant that covered the screws holding the based to the roof.
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| Cap base. |
The screws holding down the base were removed, and a putty knife was used to scrape off the Dicor lap sealant.
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| Dicor removal. |
With the Dicor removed, I cleaned the area with mineral spirits.
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| The original uncoated Filon fiberglass roof, and signs of a least two previous coatings. |
With the area clean, it was time to trim the vent pipe to only extend above the height of the roof by 1/2". The pipe cut easily with a hacksaw. Into the vent pipe goes a funnel supplied with the 360 Siphon. The funnel makes sure any water that gets passed the bug screen on the vent, goes down the vent pipe. The funnel is a snug fit, and the top should be 1 1/8" above the roof.
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| Installation instructions. |
I applied the sealant tape to the based and then positioned the cap over the vent pipe and pressed down to make contact with the roof. Next came Dicor lap sealant over the screws and along the edge of the cap's base where it meets the roof.
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| Dicor lap sealant in place and elastomeric roof coating applied. |
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| All done. |
The 360 Siphon has improved our situation, but unlike RVgeeks (
www.thervgeeks.com), the 360 Siphon didn't solve our holding odor problem on the freeway (
www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xX60cCHwlM). We do plan to change out the gray water tank vent in the future.
Here are a couple of useful installation websites:
Duct Tape Odor Control
Our toilet is a Dometic Traveler Model 510+ in bone colored porcelain. A well made unit, it has performed well in the motor.
I discovered the source of our foul air when cruise down the freeway was the toilet. Online references talked about the seal, but ours was tight and holding water.
As I looked at various photos of Dometic toilets online I started to notice a unique feature of my unit I wasn't seeing in any of the other photos, VENTS! Vents in the bowl. This seemed odd if one were tiring to prevent sewer gases from escaping into the cabin.
After coming to the conclusion that the vents made no sense in an RV installation, I took two pieces of duct tape and covered the holes.
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| Duct tape in place over the vent holes. |
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| Vent holes covered |
The next test was to take the motorhome on the freeway and open the driver side window. Zipping along at 55 mph produced no holding tank smells in the cabin. How the previous three sets of owners put up with it is beyond me, I was just happy to have it resolved.
Live
well, Laugh
often, Love
much
Our toilet is a Dometic Traveler Model 510+ in bone colored porcelain. A well made unit, it has performed well in the motor.
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