# At Home Rv Dumps?



## WERA976

Is it OK to use our home septic tank clean-out pipe as an RV dump? It seems to me the same stuff that goes in the grey/black tank is what goes in our septic tanks, but I thought I'd ask experienced RV'ers before I tried it.


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## Ridgway-Rangers

The only thing I'd worry about is adding that much stuff to your septic so quickly. generally it fills slowly allowing stuff to settle and fluids to flow out. dumping 40 gal of stuff at once might cause some problems.


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## TwoElkhounds

I installed one at my house. I don't really use it too much, but it is there if I need it. I basically tapped into the sewer in the house at the end of the main run. I ran the extension through the basement wall and out to the area where my trailer is parked. I got lucky as the physical layout and natural slope of the yard allowed me to do this.

We are also on a septic system, so there are a few things I worry about. First item is the volume of water as mentioned above. However, I do not see dumping the gray tank as being much different than dumping the 40 gallons of water out of the tub after my daughter takes a bath. The second issue would be that the black tank contains a significant amount of suspended solids which I fear might go directly into the drain field due to the volume of water when dumping. This is not good as it will eventually clog the soil and prevent perculation in the drain field if done too often. Finally, the black tank has tank treatment chemicals which can be detrimental to the balance of the septic system. For these reasons, I use the dump station sparingly for my black tank, maybe once or twice a year.

DAN


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## sunnybrook29

My opinion , I do not believe it will hurt any thing for several reasons. Septic tanks are designed so only liquids will flow over into the liquid half of the tank. In side a modern tank is a wall that will not let sinkers or floaters cross, only liquids and things suspended in the liquids .Near impossible for solids to cross that wall. The cross over has a pipe turned down that is always under water so as nothing floating can cross. Also , by the time that you travel back home there are no solids left , it has liquidified by all the sloshing around in that the drive home . Crawl down in there and take a look at a new tank somewhere.
The only thing that might hurt your septic tank might be large amounts of chemicals. The normal amount of chemicals that you put in your holding tanks will not hurt because you are mixing it into a septic tank that holds 10 or 15 thousand gallons of water.
I know that you will have a larger proportion of solids than the tank normally expects , but your 20 or 30 gallons will not upset that apple cart.


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## battalionchief3

Your clothes washer on a large load uses about 50 gallons of water. Unless you have an energy star thing, then it would use less but I'm not splitting hairs...So your tank volume wont cause a rift in the time/space continuum. I agree your solids wont be too solid by the time you get home. The chemicals in your tank will be fine, its better then the washing soap, body soap and dish washer soap you already use. If your drain fields fail, they were doomed to do so long before your 40 gal (approx ) of black water and 40 gal ( approx )of Grey water go down the chute.

Reference: Father, Environmental Engineer 40+ years dealing with poo.


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## TwoElkhounds

Yea, I hear you guys, but a septic tank repair is $10K to $15K. With that kind of money on the table, I just can't help but be careful and conservative. Probably OK, but ..........

DAN


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## sunnybrook29

Elkhound, 
Inside the septic tank are two chambers , each holding five to eight thousand gallons. The first tank catches every thing . The second tank only gets what flows from the middle levels in the first tank, nothing from the top and nothing from the bottom. They do this by installing a three or four inch pipe between the two inside chambers , but on the first incoming tank side of that pipe they place a 90 degree turn down several inches . This is always under water. A solid will have to crawl up the pipe on its hands and knees to get in the liquid tank.
The whole structure operates more or less on a demand system , when one drop comes in one end a drop goes out the other end. What has been in the second tank usually has been there for days and days. It probably takes the average family a week or so before what you put in the front comes out the back.
Your septic tank is a living animal , treat it nice and it will treat you and yours nice.


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## ember

First I agree with Sunnybrook and Bat chief, except that I think SB means to say hundred rather than thousand, I know our tank here at home is a 1500 gallon tank, and we have put the contents of 2 mostly fulltime campers into it via a "poo pump" (macerator) for 2 years, on top of our regular household use, and the occasional weekender (siblings!!) tanks, and have had NO problems. 
my 2 cents. 
Ember


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## sunnybrook29

Opps, grade school math ! The tanks that I am familiar with , in Florida , Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands are large.,maybe an eight foot by ten by eight foot high , about five thousand gallons. 512 cubic feet times 7.8 equals- 4,992.
Newer tanks in sensitive areas have electric pumps to agitate the 'product' and make it 'green '. Much smaller and sometimes fiberglass.
I still remember one of my first jobs for the National Park in the V.I. was to shovel the solids tanks of two tanks by hand. They had been allowed to mellow for two years , actually it was not all that bad , but you all probably do not want to get into that right now before breakfast.


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## battalionchief3

Have your septic tank pumped out every 5 years, for an average familiy of 4.


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## hautevue

40 gallons (a full black tank) plus 40 gallons of grey will not make one lick of difference to a regular household septic system. 80 gallons into many thousands is trivial.

My brother-in-law lives on Nantucket. No dump stations there. So on their "final" trip back to the island in the fall they take the TT (SOB--Award). While it sits on the mainland in rented storage from April to October, they bring it "home" in the late fall even though the ferry fee is about $200 (each way). Thus they are faced with:

1. dump the black and gray on the mainland at a public dump, and then do NOT use it again. This works except when they are really tight on time to catch the ferry (their slot has to be reserved weeks in advance). Then they take the back and grey contents with them. Miss the ferry and they might have to wait two days for an opening on another trip. Bad.

or

2. dump it into their septic tank on the Island when they get home.

He tells me they often dump into their house septic tank and have never had glitch #1 with that action. The volume simply isn't significant vis-a-vis the tank volume.

IMHO, you are plenty safe dumping your black and grey tanks into the home system.


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## jozway

Thetford recommends only dumping in your septic tank when the black tank is full if you use chemicals. They also say to only dump once per week. I would not hesitate to dump in your septic tank.


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## forceten

I dug down to where my cleanout plate was on my septic, cut the pvc and added a T. Trenched to where my Rv pad is and on an upward slope ran pvc to my pad with a shutoff valve) I also ran water lines underground at the same time so now I have water and a dump right at my rv. Just have to get around to adding a 30 amp outlet right at my pad.

I use a masserator pump.

When I go to one place in NJ (NJMP raceway) there is NO place to dump on the way home. So instead of driving 40 miles out of my way I installed the dump at the house. When I can dump someplace else I do but when i hit the jersey track i can dump at home which is real nice!

I have 2 1,000 gallon tanks and its a brand new septic (18 months old now) so I have no problems using it for the roo. My wash machine doesn't go into the septic either it goes to a dry well.


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