Replacing black water release valve

[Imelda]

Hi all, Imelda Here hull 642 pulled by Nissan Titan. I haven't been on the forum for a while now as I have need getting out and about and enjoying my Ollie😁. I noticed at the last dump station the black water was leaking when I removed the end cover so I am assuming the black water blade valve will have to be replaced as it is either damaged or not closing properly. I have replaced on of these on my horse trailer w living quarters and it was straight forward as it was outside the trailer. I think the Ollie one is under the street side bed. 

I haven' t seen a post on replacing this blade valve on an Oliver but I should also check to make sure nothing is catching on the blade, Any tips? 

Imelda

[jd1923]

12 minutes ago, Imelda said:

I think the Ollie one is under the street side bed. 

The larger of the blade valves under the front dinette seat is for the black tank (see pic). The smaller is to cut off drain water from going out on the shower floor while traveling and it's the gray tank valve that is under the streetside bed.

First, I would fill the blank tank with water to be certain of leak. If it's just a little black water after travel, it is likely black drain water left in the main line when dumping with the trailer level or forward leaning (without raising the front of trailer higher which is a good practice). Quite a bit of black waste can sit in this long plumbing. Question, are you getting a quart of black or gallons?

I would work the drain many times prior to the pain of replacing! After filling, open and close the blade repeatedly. This may dislodge something lodged on the blade. You could use a chemical drain cleaner letting it soak for a while and then again open and close. I forget, but there also may be a way to remove the valve blade for cleaning without replacing the entire valve. Best wishes.

[mossemi]

7 hours ago, Imelda said:

not closing properly

A couple more steps that I would add to @jd1923 suggestions is to make sure that both the black and grey blade valves are closing completely.  Both black and grey tanks empty out of the same pipe at the rear bumper, so either blade valve may be leaking.  Try pushing down on both blades to check for any movement which could indicate the need for a cable adjustment.  And if you haven’t previously lubricated the valve cables, it will help valve opening and closing.  It goes without saying that troubleshooting the sewer system it much easier to do at a full hookup site.

Mossey

 

[Imelda]

Thank you jd1923. about quarts of black water not gallons coming out so there may be a blockage preventing the valve shutting and I has noticed that to get all the tanks drained I have to tip the front of the Oliver up (it cannot be flat) to get both tanks drained. I will try filling and flushing the black tank and see where I get ,

I will keep you posted.

[Geronimo John]

21 hours ago, jd1923 said:

I would work the drain many times prior to the pain of replacing! After filling, open and close the blade repeatedly. This may dislodge something lodged on the blade. You could use a chemical drain cleaner letting it soak for a while and then again open and close. I

 

14 hours ago, mossemi said:

A couple more steps that I would add to @jd1923 suggestions is to make sure that both the black and grey blade valves are closing completely.  Both black and grey tanks empty out of the same pipe at the rear bumper, so either blade valve may be leaking.  Try pushing down on both blades to check for any movement which could indicate the need for a cable adjustment.  And if you haven’t previously lubricated the valve cables, it will help valve opening and closing.  It goes without saying that troubleshooting the sewer system it much easier to do at a full hookup site.

Great info from JD and Mosseim!. 

I believe you have 4 or 5 years on your OTT.  A good reason to lube the cables to the valves before starting the below.

Having a flow control valve on your gray water hose discharge end would work if a helper is not available.  Also a head lamp to see down the toilet tank or bathroom sink drain line is helpful in not over filling and causing a flood in the bathroom.  

First dump and rinse the tank at a dump station.

Adding  a bit of food grade dye in one tank will quickly help you figure out which tank is the problem.  Most likely it will be the black tank so I would start there.  Would not suggest using blood red as if it gets away from you, it could traumatized the neighbors.   🙂   Blue frosting dye would be a better choice.  Full Hookup and a clear fitting at the end of the dump hose is also useful.

Once you know which tank is of concern, you could use your gray water  hose to fill your tank.  Black tank is easy just open the toilet valve. If it is the gray tank, then modulate the flow down the bathroom sink to hyper flow the gray tank.

Start with the blade valve closed and fill the tank with close coordination with your partner on the hose bib valve.  In an emergency situation kink the hose twice and you'll slow down the flow a lot. 

With a full tank, then open the valve and keep the gray water hose wide open filling while the tank is draining. Likely anything bad will find itself down the sanitary line to the treatment plant.

If this does not work, then go aggressive with harsh chemicals.  

When done, lubricate the drain valves.

Hope this works for you.

GJ

 

Edited December 31, 2024 by Geronimo John

[Snackchaser]

7 hours ago, Imelda said:

noticed that to get all the tanks drained I have to tip the front of the Oliver up (it cannot be flat)

Yup, I have to tip up the front too.   I was wondering if anyone's tried that product that can be added to the tanks to lubricate the dump valves?  Seems rather gimmicky to me.

[topgun2]

4 hours ago, Snackchaser said:

I was wondering if anyone's tried that product that can be added to the tanks to lubricate the dump valves?  

Blade valve lube works - I've use THIS and another brand or two over the years just following directions on the bottle and the blade operates much easier.

I suspect that dumping a small amount of vegetable oil, mineral oil or the like would serve the same purpose but I've never tried that.

Bill

[Mike and Carol]

First thing I would do is to open the dinette seat and give a push on the silver cylinder on top of the valve. Can you push it down (this is after closing with the cable)?  If you can, then a simple cable adjustment may be all that is needed.   There’s a set screw on top that holds the cable in, it may have slipped over time (mine did).  I’ve adjusted it a couple of times over the years.  Also, you could have some black water debris that is stuck in the bottom of the slot where the blade rests when closed.  I also had that happen and after taking it out and cleaning it all was well.  Mike

[Steph and Dud B]

We just replaced our black valve due to leaking. Had a repair shop do the work.

[Ronbrink]

12 hours ago, Imelda said:

Thank you jd1923. about quarts of black water not gallons coming out so there may be a blockage preventing the valve shutting and I has noticed that to get all the tanks drained I have to tip the front of the Oliver up (it cannot be flat) to get both tanks drained. I will try filling and flushing the black tank and see where I get ,

I will keep you posted.

Distinguishing black from gray water is definitive, so concentrating on the black tank valve should be your priority. Regarding valve blockage, some owners have experienced the tank hole cutout being the culprit. I experienced leakage once, turned out the pull handle was turned in such a manner as not to be fully seated. Both black and gray handles are in a recessed box and can hangup on the edge if not paying attention to proper orientation. 

[Imelda]

Thank you all. I am going to try these suggestions and I will keep you posted.

Imelda

[Geronimo John]

For the Pro's:  

Should all the above fail, then knowing some replacement/repair info would be helpful.  

Are our valves the Valterra 3"?  If so, which one?

Are one of these the proper repair kit for the blade?

[johnwen]

On 12/31/2024 at 9:13 AM, Mike and Carol said:

First thing I would do is to open the dinette seat and give a push on the silver cylinder on top of the valve.

Mine needed adjustment as well, one time, I found the valve didn't fully close as I could push it down a little.  A lot of good ideas listed here....especially black vs grey.  The only thing I can add is that my black tank handle offered some resistance (sprung back out a half inch or so) when I  pushed  the handle in and I found that holding the handle in for about 5 seconds was enough to allow that long cable to offer enough pressure to fully close the valve and the handle did not try to spring back out.  We also switched to the Calgon beads/ Pinesol /water solution to clean and lubricate the tanks and blade valves and the handle seems a little smoother to operate.  So far so good ")

John

[Geronimo John]

7 hours ago, johnwen said:

We also switched to the Calgon beads/ Pinesol /water solution to clean and lubricate the tanks and blade valves

Yep.  Calgon softens water by binding with calcium and magnesium ions.  This has the effect of reducing hardness impact on our OTT drain systems by preventing hard water minerals from causing buildup on surfaces. 

Or, it is a similar effect as washing our hair in soft water.  Soap goes a lot further and our hair feels slippery as a result. 

In our RV's it is sort of a laxative for our system.  🙂

GJ

 

Edited January 2 by Geronimo John
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[Geronimo John]

7 hours ago, Geronimo John said:

We also switched to the Calgon beads/ Pinesol /water solution to clean and lubricate the tanks and blade valves

That said, I'm sort of thinking that the Calgon beads and Pinesol is a great way to keep the tank clean on a regular basis. 

But I still recommend using the Thetford lubricant as many of our owners use and cleaning/lubricating the cables every four years or so.

So, my inclination is to use both, but not at the same time.  

Certainly open to the thoughts of our members on this.

GJ

 

[Mike and Carol]

We’ve been using liquid Calgon and a detergent pod since new.  Happy Camper goes in when we’re back from a trip while our trailer is waiting for another adventure.  Mike