# Black Tank Drainage Question



## matty1 (Mar 7, 2005)

Just curious, those of you that have dropped the underbelly, can you tell me where the outlet in the blank tank is located? Is it towards the front or rear or middle of the tank/RV. Seems to be a pain when I have the trailer level and it doesn't want to empty completely. If I take the front down a few degrees(or is it the back I do???) the tank will drain completely.
Thanks


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## Ghosty (Jan 17, 2005)

My outlet is dead center -- like a giant "T"...


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## California Jim (Dec 11, 2003)

Dead center here too. Big ol "T" accepting discharge from both black and gray tanks.


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## tdvffjohn (Mar 10, 2005)

Same here


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## Katrina (Dec 16, 2004)

Yup.


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## camping479 (Aug 27, 2003)

Ahhhh, draining the black tank









The style of the tanks and the way the grey/black tanks are plumbed is about the only really dumb/poor design feature I've found with our outback. Why couldn't they just use the same tanks most of the other manufacturers use?? You know the kind, sloped nicely towards the end with the drain and empties completely really fast. Really bugs me that it takes more effort than it needs to to get the tanks empty and clean.

Sorry, I'm done now

Mike


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## HootBob (Apr 26, 2004)

California Jim said:


> Dead center here too. Big ol "T" accepting discharge from both black and gray tanks.


Ditto here

Don


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## matty1 (Mar 7, 2005)

thanks for the replies guys, guess i will have to figure out why I can't fully drain when everything is level..


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## kjdj (Sep 14, 2004)

On my 2005 26RS the black drains back towards the rear & grey drains towards the front.

Raising the tongue a few inches seems to work well clearing the Black tank.


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## Bull Elk (Feb 28, 2005)

kjdj said:


> On my 2005 26RS the black drains back towards the rear & grey drains towards the front.
> 
> Raising the tongue a few inches seems to work well clearing the Black tank.


To add to this, I put the back tires of my pick-up on 3" boards (2 - 2X6's each side) and the tank drains much better. this is quicker and easier then playing with the tongue jack.
Rich


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## arbee (Feb 3, 2005)

camping479 said:


> Ahhhh, draining the black tank
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Mike is 100% correct. The tanks are aweful to drain. The trailer needs to be dead level front to back and side to side to drain both tanks. Most places we go have dump stations that are not level in either direction. The tanks drain so slow. Our previous trailer was plumbed such that the big pipe went straight into the lowest end of the black tank. You could dump in very quicky and flush easily with a clear elbow with a hose attachment.

I installed a quickie flush in the outback and can't imagine not having it the way the tanks are plumbed.

Last trip out I was on a bad incline. The black tank dumped great but the grey only about half way. Had to dump the grey at home.


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## PDX_Doug (Nov 16, 2004)

kjdj said:


> On my 2005 26RS the black drains back towards the rear & grey drains towards the front.
> 
> Raising the tongue a few inches seems to work well clearing the Black tank.


This is correct, Matty. The tanks are very flat, and almost as wide as the trailer, so they are not that great for getting every last drop. This is one of the reasons a QuickiFlush really helps.

Happy Trails,
Doug


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## MJRey (Jan 21, 2005)

When I installed Quickie Flush I got to see the tank layout real good on the 26RS. The black tank is the forward tank and the drain is in the middle of the tank pointed towards the rear of the trailer. The grey tank is next and the drain is also in the middle and points forward. The drain lines come out of the tanks and join up in a T and then go out to the side of the trailer. Since the drain outlet is in the center of the tank there is no benefit to having one side of the trailer higher . You would get some benefit by raising or lowering the tongue to get better drainage. I may try this the next time I dump depending on the dump site layout. Just for info the fresh tank sits just slightly behind the rear axle.

Just a side note, when I was under the trailer I took a look at how the tanks were installed and it looked like the black and grey tanks could be changed relatively easliy if needed. They fit between the frame rails and are held in place with straps. The fresh water tank looks like it was installed from the top? It fits snugly between the frame rails and is also held by straps. I looked around and could not see how the tank could be possibly be removed or replaced from below the trailer! After seeing how hard it might be to replace the tank if it got damaged I was very careful putting the belly cover screws back in.


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## Oregon_Camper (Sep 13, 2004)

PDX_Doug said:


> On my 2005 26RS the black drains back towards the rear & grey drains towards the front.
> 
> Raising the tongue a few inches seems to work well clearing the Black tank.


This is correct, Matty. The tanks are very flat, and almost as wide as the trailer, so they are not that great for getting every last drop. This is one of the reasons a QuickiFlush really helps.

Happy Trails,
Doug
[/quote]

Let me give the quickie flush a BIG














. Great product...great way to keep black tank as clean as possible.


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