Dumping the black tank.
The part of camping that many new RVers fear the most.
Just follow these steps and you'll be rolling on to your next adventure before you know it!
A few points to note:
If you've been camping with your grey tank valve open to continuously drain, close the valve the day before you plan on leaving to get some water stored inside the grey tank. This will help rinse out the dump hose after draining your black tank.
It also helps to have the black tank roughly at least 2/3rds full before dumping. Whether this means you skip the black tank and only dump at the next stop, or you add some water to your black tank before dumping, this helps the tank dump smoothly.
Items you will need:
Disposable gloves
Wastewater hose
Sanitation items such as bleach and hand sanitizer (just in case...)
Garden hose for rinsing (optional)
For instructions on dumping using the optional macerator, see below.
Black and Grey tank dump
Connect the dump hose to the RV tank drain.
Insert the other end of the dump hose in to the dump station.
Before dumping your black tank, open the grey tank for a moment to see if there any leaks then close it again. Spilling grey water all over is far better than the alternative...
Once you know there are no leaks, open the black valve and let the black tank drain completely.
Once black tank is drained, if there is a water source available and no one waiting, now is a good time to rinse your black tank out! (Link to future black tank rinsing article)
Close black tank valve.
Open grey tank valve and let it drain completely.
Close grey tank valve.
Disconnect dump hose from RV and, holding the end up high, work any water left in the hose forward in to the dump station.
Use a hose to rinse off the hose inside and out before repacking it in to your motorhome.
With the optional Macerator
Warning! Don't forget to remove the cap from the macerator hose end. If you skip this step, you may find yourself reliving this scene from the movie RV! (Don't ask us how we know...)
Remove the cap at the end of the macerator dump hose.
Place dump hose end in to sewer connection
Before dumping your black tank, open the grey tank for a moment to see if there any leaks then close it again.
Open black tank valve to begin dumping black tank
Turn on macerator pump switch and let black tank empty
Once black tank is drained, if there is a water source available and no one waiting, now is a good time to rinse your black tank out! (Link to future black tank rinsing article)
When the black tank is finished dumping, close the valve and open the grey tank valve to flush out the hose.
Don't let the macerator pump run dry for too long or damage may occur.Close the grey valve.
You can spray off the outside of the hose if you'd like, before coiling it back up and placing in it's storage compartment.
If for some reason the macerator does not want to work, have a look at the "Dumping the tanks if the macerator fails" article.
That's it! The worst part is over and you can get back to your adventures!