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Old 07-10-2010, 08:50 PM   #1
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Holding tank odors

  1. We have an '07 Itasca Suncruiser 38T. I am having a hard time finding where the tank odors are getting into the coach. The conditions are as follows:
  2. If I run a slide in or out without the main door open, it smells.
  3. If I turn on one of the exhaust fans with the coach closed up, it smells.
  4. If I open a window going down the road, it smells.
  5. Sometimes just parked it gets in for no apparent reason.
I have done the following without success:
  1. I installed two of the venturi vanes on the roof vents.
  2. I have verified that all the "P" traps are full.
  3. The toilet valve is holding water.
  4. I have looked as best I can in the tank areas and cannot see any fluid leakage. Nothing leaks on the ground when it is parked at home for a while.
Because we do not see any fluid leakage, I think it must be a vent leak. On our older motorhome I went on the roof and secured a hairdryer to the vent. That was when I found a vent that was leaking. The tank areas on this one are are so hard to get to I would like to do the same trick but put some sort of liquid smoke in so I could see where it was coming from.

Any other ideas or solutions would be greatly appreciated.

Tom
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Old 07-10-2010, 09:12 PM   #2
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Originally Posted by agiledog View Post
Any other ideas or solutions would be greatly appreciate it.
Check the trap on the washer dryer. Run the machine for 1 minute or so and then rotate the dial to spin. You should be able to assure a good seal in the P trap on the W/D after it spins out.
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Old 07-10-2010, 09:19 PM   #3
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Check to PROVENTS under the sinks, sometimes they will stick, the fan could draw from them, G
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Old 07-10-2010, 09:27 PM   #4
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Washer trap odor fix

Here is a fix from Lazydays Ernie's troubleshootin toolbox. Hope it helps.

Better RVing: Troubleshootin' with Ernie
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Old 07-19-2010, 09:22 AM   #5
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We had that problem years ago in a Fleetwood Discovery and it was coming from the washer/dryer trap. Let us know what you find. Good luck.
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Old 07-19-2010, 01:12 PM   #6
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I change the vacuum breaker at the washer and dyer. My smell stop. Also change the vacuum at the bathroom sink and the kitchen sink. I brough my at Home Depot for $6 each m/l
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Old 07-19-2010, 11:50 PM   #7
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Holding tank smells

Thank all of you for the responses. Upon further investigation, I found a very strong ammonia smell coming into the coach from below. It had to be the black water tank. I removed the water service panel to gain access to the black tank and found the big pipe from the toilet was leaking and splashing on top of the tank. There was no hose clamps on that one or the vent line to that tank.
I sent pictures to Winnebago and they said they did not use hose clamps on those "grommets". I cleaned up the mess and put clamps on both pipes. We'll see what happens when we take the next trip.
I'll report after that one in August.
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Old 08-10-2010, 11:10 PM   #8
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We are two weeks into this trip since I found and installed clamps on the "grommets". So far no smell. I have opened windows going down the road, ran ceiling exhaust fans with coach closed, and ran slides in and out. Apparently the clamps fixed the stink. Yahoo!!! The only smell now is when someone is in the bathroom without the courtesy fan on.
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Old 08-11-2010, 05:08 AM   #9
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on mine, I have found the vent pipe is inserted to far into the black water tank so I can only fill half way then it starts to stink. I think there are a lot of winnebagos with the vent pipe inserted to far. not worth fixing. I just dump at two lights. just another QC deal
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Old 08-11-2010, 11:44 AM   #10
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So how did you determine that the vent pipe was in too far?
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Old 08-12-2010, 05:09 AM   #11
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I have read abut this being a problem so I noticed that when my black tanks hits half full it stink and before half tank no smell what so ever and its has been this way since new, the first time I used it. I have tried all the chem additives nothing, except droping it at half full or about weekly.
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Old 08-21-2010, 08:28 AM   #12
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We are getting a sewer smell in our coach; We turned the thing inside out trying to locate, where it was comming from.. Now it is a Winnebago, Ultimate advantage 2000 year, the most expansive coach winnebago built. Now as for the smell/stink. The vent for the tank that the sink drains into comes up under the sink then stops with a cap on it that has holes in it, to vent the tank;; all i can say is WINNEBAGO SHAME ON YOU;; While setting around the camp fire in the evening and telling of this no one would believe me tell I showed them. Now look we all cut corners;; but to vent the sewer into the motorhome, That is quite questionable; Don't you think ?? Life is good.. Some times stinkie;
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Old 08-21-2010, 01:44 PM   #13
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Now it is a Winnebago, Ultimate advantage 2000 year, the most expansive coach winnebago built. Now as for the smell/stink. The vent for the tank that the sink drains into comes up under the sink then stops with a cap on it that has holes in it, to vent the tank; all i can say is WINNEBAGO SHAME ON YOU
That is not a vent, it is a vacuum breaker. You will also find one under the galley sink, not only on Winnebago coaches but on MOST RVs of any make. Unless it is broken or stuck somehow, the valve only lets air INTO the tank, not out. Without these vacuum breakers (there is different type on the back of the commode), when you dump your tanks all the liquid would be sucked out of the traps (sink, shower, washer, etc) which would then allow tank odors to come into the RV. The vacuum breakers do sometimes need to be replaced, but not terribly often. We still have the originals in place on our Ultimate Advantage. The only time we have ever had tank odors in the coach has been when we drove down the highway with the rear-most ceiling vent open ...it happens to be not far from the rooftop tank vent. If we leave that vent closed and open one further forward, we don't get any odors inside.
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Old 08-21-2010, 02:52 PM   #14
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To clearify The under the sink vent.. It is open And vents out from the tank. Also the vents that are on the roof they are there to vent and to displace the air when draining the tanks. The vent under the sink is not ,never was a check/flapper valve; As it lets the oder flow out of it. I have taken the time to check it out. And I do not wish to dissagree with any one. Just the facts.. The next step would for any one who dissagree. come and look at it. PLEASE;; life is good most of the time;;
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Old 08-21-2010, 03:39 PM   #15
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never was a check/flapper valve; As it lets the oder flow out of it. I have taken the time to check it out. And I do not wish to dissagree with any one. Just the facts.. The next step would for any one who dissagree. come and look at it.
If there is not a rubber flap or spring loaded device in it, it needs to be replaced (or is the vacuum breaker totally missing??) ...more places that sell plumbing supplies should have one. My Ultimate has the kind with a rubber flap in it. That is what Winnebago installs ...they don't install an open vent there. I don't wish to disagree either, but as you say, that is a fact, and a fairly common discussion item on pretty much any RV forum I have seen. I would be glad to pull one of mine off and do a "you show me yours and I'll show you mine" anytime you are next door. I am currently in Fairborn OH ...where are you??

You could always talk to Winnebago Owner Relations at [email protected] OR (800) 537-1885 to get the "facts" from the horse's mouth, so to speak...
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Old 08-21-2010, 07:47 PM   #16
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Tank Odors

Bachelor

I have to agree with AFChap. Every motorhome we have had has these vacuum breakers under the sinks. It is fairly easy to unscrew it and look at it. If you are convinced that this is an open vent, I would suggest you cap it off and give it a try like that. I had one stick on me years ago and it does let the smell in.

Our smell is gone now that I installed the clamps on the tank grommets. Just got home from a three week trip and no problems.
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Old 08-21-2010, 08:01 PM   #17
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I believe this is what everyone is talking about. We started having a sewer smell in the kitchen sink area but after replacing the vent in the kitchen and bath the smell went away. No moving parts to speak of but the rubber does get faulty and leak tank fumes backward.
Shop Keeney Mfg. Co. Black Plumbing Vent at Lowes.com Most good rv stores should have these also.
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Old 08-21-2010, 08:12 PM   #18
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Yep. That is the one. The rubber does deteriorate over time. Lowes is a lot cheaper and quicker than the RV store.
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Old 07-20-2011, 08:03 PM   #19
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Smell Update
Well my clamps that I reported on lasted a short while and then the familliar odor returned. I was afraid that the tank was cracked so I took it to our local shop to get a good diagnosis. They told me it was leaking in the same place as before but the white grommets had a tendency to crack and leak. What they found was that the 3" pipe from the toilet was only proturding about 1/4" into the grommet. It is about 2 1/2" to the bottom where it should be. This was obviously a factory goof but Winnebago said that they would not cover it since the warrenty had expired. They didn't even offer to send me a "TS Card". The shop installed newer style grommets and extended the 3" pipe so it would fully engage. They also replace the vent tube grommet with the newer style. These fit tighter than the white ones. They said no clamps are required. We'll see what happens on the next trip. Stay tuned.
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Old 07-21-2011, 05:39 AM   #20
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Is it OK to use black tank chemicals in the grey tank for oder control? Thanks
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