What type of toilet cleaner?

[Oregonconversion]

Does it matter what brand/ type of toilet cleaner I use?

[JackConrad]

Depends on what your toilet is made out of.  If it is plastic, do not use any cleaner that is abrasive.  I would go to the manufacturers website and see what they recommend.  Jack

[WEC4104]

Oregon raises an interesting question when you consider the fact that the cleaner is going to end up in the black water tank.  Lot's of past board threads have focused on what people add to their tanks to keep them odor free. I think there is some consensus that you WANT the organisms in the tank that aid the breakdown and decay of the waste.  They actually help the process along, making it easier to dump and with less odor.

With that in mind, I have to believe that the toilet cleaner used could factor into the matter. You would probably want to make sure that the toilet cleaner isn't going to disrupt the process going on in the black tank. Certainly one recommendation would be to simply go easy on the amount of disinfecting chemicals. Taking it to the extreme, the ideal approach might be to wash the toilet with lots of fresh water until it appears clean, then finish it off with a disinfecting wipe that you throw in a trash can.

[happycamperbrat]

Ammonia is a good aunatural cleaner and disinfectant that wouldnt upset the organisms

[HighTechRedneck]

I use a toilet bowl cleaner product immediately before dumping only.  Other than that, dish soap (not the anti bacterial kind).  For the seat and outside of it, I use a Lysol type spray and wipe it off after a few minutes with a damp paper towel.

Seems to work for me.

[JohnEd]

You want  septic tank approved product.  In 20 years I haven't used anything except that Lysol spray, minimally, and I use HTRs procedure. 

John

[Oregonconversion]

I am looking for something that is not terrible for the environment and will not upset the organisms.

[ruthi]

I dont know if I really understand all the talk about organisms and such in a holding tank. I wouldnt think it sits in there long enough to worry with that, not like a septic tank system. We have a septic system at home, but that is a different story. We dump our tank a lot as we travel, so I really dont worry about it. I try and use environmentally safe products, but, I do use cleaners to clean the toilet.

[JohnEd]

Ruthi,

The inside "poop" is don't drain your tanks till they are full.  The black tank works just like your septic at home.  Difference is that on the bus you never get it completely digested.  Have you ever driven past a waste treatment plant and wondered why on earth they would build the thing so close to humanity and also WHY IT DOESN'T REAK?  Then at a later date driven past the same facilityand it took your breath away?  Well, I did and having time on my hands I went down to the "plant" and asked them.  The answer was tha if the aireatng pumps are off line it only takes and hour for that gazillion gallon tank to stink awfully.  The air going thru it kills the odor.  For proof we tok a stroll out on the catwalk over the tank and while you could see nasty stuff swirling there was absolutely no odor.  He cautioned that you could never do tat if the air supply was cut off.  If you kill off the bacteria that likes air then you will have some rank odors coming out of you vent pipe and people downwind get pretty testy.  Don;t ask how I know that.  I went down to their space and it was akin to putting your head inside my black tank.  Peat moss and septic starter and a couple gallons of water and all was well that evening.  If you tank is working it will also not get all caked up inside and chunks will not block your gate valve open.  Soooo less cleaner is cleaner.

HTH

John

[gus]

Since the tank is probably never completely dumped the organisms, if present,  probably are never eliminated unless the tank is flushed with something pretty strong.

We never clean out our tank for this reason.

[Ed Hackenbruch]

So if you ran a little air line off of a small 12v pump into your tank you would never have any smell?

[JohnEd]

I know that sounds patently STUPID Ed but it is gospel.  Our tanks get enuf air to support the aerobic bacteria.  If the aerobic variety dies off you get the anaerobic critters going strong and they produce hellish odors.  Stranger than fiction is fact, Amigo. In the final analysis, it is all a bunch of $#!%....right?

John

[Ed Hackenbruch]

No John, i don't think it sounds stupid.   I was just wondering if you were having a problem with oders, if you could just add some air to start up the process again. Sounds to me like you could.

[JohnEd]

Ed,

Well trust me on this, I have talked to many that did think it was a stupid "theory".  You are right....it isn'tstupid nor a theory.

I was told during that tour that the air was critical to enabling the digestion phase and that a pump failure would have the tank go anaerobic dominant bacteria but that the air, ox actually, would kill the anaerobic bacteria and restart the process.  He said "it isn't like it becomes a spoiled batch that you have to throw out".  Funny guy that he was.

We expect that the black will start working with the first charge and continue till we dump.  There is no air supply needed to promote digesting with that small a quantity.  Would probably help but you are fixing a problem you don't have.  They restart by adding some of that septic tank starter and I have heard some add a clump of peat moss.  From what little I know you must be correct about the restart.

If you have any odor inside the coach you have a problem that a digester won't fix. Bad seal or cracked pipe or plugged vent.

John