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Kitchen Sink not Draining


Flyniah

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Is your trailer fairly level front to back and side to side? Is the bathroom sink and shower drain valve open (the one beside the toilet - is the handle pulled out)?

 

Those tank level indicators are not real reliable. The level is greatly affected by the attitude of the trailer.

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Bill and Martha

2018 LEII Hull 313

2019 Chevrolet 2500HD Duramax

 

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Bathroom sink is several feet of pipe above the kitchen. Yes, it's possible that your grey tank is full. The guages aren't totally accurate, nor are they in any rv we've ever owned.

Are you in a place where you can dump? Full hookups?

Sherry

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2008 Ram 1500 4 × 4

2008 Oliver Elite, Hull #12

Florida and Western North Carolina, or wherever the truck goes....

400 watts solar. DC compressor fridge. No inverter. 2 x 105 ah agm batteries .  Life is good.


        
 

 

 

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If the grey tank has filled to the top AND the travel (isolation) valve is OPEN, the soapy water will back up into the shower pan where you can see it. You can tell when this happens in the dark because your socks get soaked followed by lots of swearing... ;( Conversely, if the valve is closed, there is no way for the water (or air) to get into the shower, so then the kitchen sink will back up. There is no other place for the water to go....

 

Pull the handle forward if you haven’t already, but be prepared for the shower pan to partially fill as the kitchen sink empties.

 

If you are not at a place where you can empty the tank(s), you can dump a few gallons of grey water into a five gallon bucket or jerry can, and carry it to a waste water disposal drain or even a toilet, though the latter is frowned upon in most places. Even primitive campsites often have a place you can dump your “dish water”, but not an entire tank. If you haven’t learned how to do this yet, add it to your “Honey Teach Me How” list....

 

Where are you staying? Some western primitive sites “may” allow disposal of grey water by letting it trickle out overnight through a garden hose run under a nearby bush. Always check!

 

John Davies

 

Spokane WA

 

 

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SOLD 07/23 "Mouse":  2017 Legacy Elite II Two Beds, Hull Number 218, See my HOW TO threads: https://olivertraveltrailers.com/topic/john-e-davies-how-to-threads-and-tech-articles-links/

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John, it shouldn’t be possible but our kitchen sink backs up first no matter if the shower valve is open or closed. I haven’t been able to figure out why but I do know that when it happens, I can ‘burp’ the grey tank by tilting the trailer to one side and the sink drains. After doing that I’ll still have a few more gallons capacity before the shower tub starts to back up. I don’t think that there’s any sort of check valve in the tank but that’s the only thing I can think would cause that behavior.

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[postquote quote=175502][/postquote]

 

I can’t figure out what causes this. I wonder if there are baffles or supports inside the tank that, when the trailer attitude and water level is just right, traps air that prevents the kitchen sink from draining. There is a one way air vent under the kitchen counter but it should only allow air in and not out.

Bill and Martha

2018 LEII Hull 313

2019 Chevrolet 2500HD Duramax

 

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Sink drain not draining…

I have had this happen several times, where the kitchen sink is clogged, but the bathroom sink and shower are both able to drain. The first time I figured something was clogged in the trap, so I pulled out the galley drawers and disassembled the under sink plumbing. I put it all back together and that solved the problem, but what a mess!

 

So I bought a mini plunger to carry with us. I have had to use it twice since then when the kitchen sink clogged, and each time it worked quickly and easily in clearing the kitchen sink! I store the plunger in the curbside front under bed compartment, where the water pump lives. I also store my pex / sharkbite repair supplies in that compartment.

 

An ounce of prevention....

 

BTW, I bought the mini plunger from a hardware store, but the photo is from Amazon.

 

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David Stillman, Salt Lake City, Utah

2016 Oliver Elite II  Hull 164    |    2017 Audi Q7 tow vehicle. 

Travel and Photography Blog: http://davidstravels.net

 

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What besides water should / would be going down the sink drains? The clog then moves on in the drain system and hopefully is diluted or disbursed in the grey tank. The mini plunger is a good idea as a backup.

2019 Legacy Elite #431;  2019. TV 2019 GMC Canyon Denali, crew cab, 4X4, Long bed, Duramax Diesel.

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We have been using stainless steel drain screens in our sinks from day 1. It has prevented various detritus from entering the grey tank system and have never had a clog. Available everywhere. Glad you fixed it.

 

Cheers.

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Legacy Elite I

#240

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Nothing goes in our sink drain that would cause a clog.  Dishes are scraped and wiped clean, and we use a strainer on the drain to catch anything else.  Something in our plumbing is defying the laws of physics.

We scrape dishes clean and have a strainer. I agree with Overland that something in our plumbing is defying the laws of physics, or at least gravity. There is a long horizontal traverse in the under sink plumbing that I think is the culprit. I don't think this is a "clog" in the usual sense, but an air or vacuum bubble in the pipe, maybe where it connects to the vertical vent pipe. I hope someone with more knowledge will chime in.

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David Stillman, Salt Lake City, Utah

2016 Oliver Elite II  Hull 164    |    2017 Audi Q7 tow vehicle. 

Travel and Photography Blog: http://davidstravels.net

 

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