Tank Cleaning April 30, 2006, 11:23:15 pm Yahoo Message Number: 66144The current issue of Motorhome Magazine has an interesting letter to the editor. The writer talks about a RV tank cleaning service in San Antonio TX called San Antonio All Pro. This company will high-pressure clean your black, gray, and hot water tank. They use a remote camera to direct the spray to clean every part of your tank, including the sensors. While I certainly would not want to do that for a living, I am thinking that this might do the trick to make my tank sensors work again (they always show empty on the gauge). I have tried everything else, and since the tanks on our 2000 30' IB are insulated, replacing the sensors isn't an easy job. Does anybody know anything about this company? Any ideas where I might get this done in Southern California?Thanks!Kevin Lindsay Garden Grove CA
Re: Tank Cleaning Reply #1 – May 01, 2006, 01:30:12 am Yahoo Message Number: 66154Quote The current issue of Motorhome Magazine has an interesting letter to the editor. The writer talks about a RV tank cleaning service in San Antonio TX called San Antonio All Pro. This company will high- pressure clean your black, gray, and hot water tank. They use a remote camera to Quotedirect the spray to clean every part of your tank, including the sensors. While I certainly would not want to do that for a living, I am Quotethinking that this might do the trick to make my tank sensors work again (they always show empty on the gauge). I have tried everything else, and since the tanks on our 2000 30' IB are insulated, replacing the sensors isn't an easy job. Does anybody know anything about this company? Any ideas where I might get this done in Southern California?Quote Thanks!Kevin Lindsay Garden Grove CA Kevin,Fouled sensors will stay lit. Since your's show empty, my guess is that your problem is more likely a broken wire or plug, or perhaps the display unit or switch.bumper
Re: Tank Cleaning Reply #2 – May 01, 2006, 02:13:17 am Yahoo Message Number: 66155Bumper:The sensor display works fine for the fresh water tank, so I don't think it is a problem with the display unit in the range hood. Do you know how the wiring works from the tank sensors to the display unit? Is each individual sensor wired to the display unit? Any help is greatly appreciated to troubleshoot this!Kevin
Re: Tank Cleaning Reply #3 – May 01, 2006, 10:02:19 am Yahoo Message Number: 66163QuoteThe sensor display works fine for the fresh water tank, so I don't think it is a problem with the display unit in the range hood. Do you know how the wiring works from the tank sensors to the display unit? Is each individual sensor wired to the display unit? Any help is greatly appreciated to troubleshoot this! If your gauges are always reading empty, I'd guess that you have disconnected or broken wires. It's interesting that only the black and gray tanks are affected, and those are the ones with insulation. When I installed external tank sensors on our rig, I found that there is only one wire from each tank. The "sensors" are basically just bolts through the tank wall at various heights. My best guess is that the bottom sensor in each tank is grounded locally to the chassis. The other three sensors in each tank is probably connected to a resistor "ladder" with the resistors wired so that another resistor is "shorted" to ground (in parallel) as the tank level reaches that sensor. Thus, as the liquid level rises, the resistance to ground drops. The control panel decides which LEDs to turn on based on observed resistance. This is all an educated guess.Art
Re: Tank Cleaning Reply #4 – May 01, 2006, 11:26:07 am Yahoo Message Number: 66173Quotethinking that this might do the trick to make my tank sensors work again (they always show empty on the gauge). I have tried everything else, and since the tanks on our 2000 30' IB are insulated, replacing the sensors isn't an easy job. Does anybody know anything about this company? Any ideas where I might get this done in Southern California? Just want to post my experience. Our '83 FL was 10 years old when we acquired her. The gauges worked fine. I have since replaced the black valve a couple of times, and cleaned the tank in preparation for the task. However, in all the years, we have never had any problem with the sensor readings (and we use Charmin Ultra tp). I never rinse the tanks more than one additional full-toilet flush, and never use sewer hookups - always dump at the dump. I don't know why we have never had sensor problems, which seem so prevalently mentioned on all RV sites, but perhaps using sewer hookups can cause problems from too-frequent dumping.Steve
Re: Tank Cleaning Reply #5 – May 01, 2006, 12:46:45 pm Yahoo Message Number: 66181Quote Bumper:The sensor display works fine for the fresh water tank, so I don't think it is a problem with the display unit in the range hood. Do you know how the wiring works from the tank sensors to the display unit? Is each individual sensor wired to the display unit? Any help is greatly appreciated to troubleshoot this!Kevin The sensor probably works and is wired like this: The tanks "sensors" are really just simple electical contacts formed by a bolt and seal washers through the tank wall. One wire will be attached to each sensor. Consider the bottom most sensor in the tank as "common". If the fluid level is so low that it only covers the bottom contact/sensor, then there is no current flow and all lights will be out.As the fluid rises to cover the next sensor, current will flow and this will light the 1/3 full light. This sequence will repeat as the tank level increases. The actual current is quite low, and is intended such so there won't be a corrosion problem. The low voltage/current is probably driving a transistor amplifier and this in turn will be lighting the LED (light).If a wire is broken or off the bottom most sensor, all lights will stay off. If a wire is off one of the other sensors, then only that sensor would not light it's LED.bumper
Re: Tank Cleaning Reply #6 – May 01, 2006, 01:46:08 pm Yahoo Message Number: 66189Hi Steve!We don't use very many camping areas that have full hookups, so I don't think that is the problem. It may well turn out to be a wiring problem..KevinQuoteJust want to post my experience. Our '83 FL was 10 years old when we acquired her. The gauges worked fine. I have since replaced the black valve a couple of times, and cleaned the tank in preparation for the task. However, in all the years, we have never had any problem with the sensor readings (and we use Charmin Ultra tp). I never rinse the tanks more than one additional full-toilet flush, and never use sewer hookups - always dump at the dump. I don't know why we have never had sensor problems, which seem so prevalently mentioned on all RV sites,
Re: Tank Cleaning Reply #7 – May 01, 2006, 01:48:35 pm Yahoo Message Number: 66190Art:Thank you for your reply. Are you saying that there were no visible wires from each tank sensor? Just one coming from the bottom sensor?KevinQuoteIf your gauges are always reading empty, I'd guess that you have disconnected or broken wires. It's interesting that only the black and gray tanks are affected, and those are the ones with insulation.When I installed external tank sensors on our rig, I found that there is only one wire from each tank. The "sensors" are basically just bolts through the tank wall at various heights. My best guess is that the bottom sensor in each tank is grounded locally to the chassis. The other three sensors in each tank is probably connected to a resistor "ladder" with the resistors wired so that another resistor is
Re: Tank Cleaning Reply #8 – May 01, 2006, 01:54:37 pm Yahoo Message Number: 66191Bumper:Thanks for taking the time to reply.Even when the tank is completely empty, the "Empty" LED will remain lit when the switch is pushed on the range hood.I'm going to get under the rig and try to trace the wiring...the insulation makes it very difficult. The insulation wasn't my choice..we bought our LD used. I wish it wasn't there!KevinQuoteThe sensor probably works and is wired like this:The tanks "sensors" are really just simple electical contacts formed by a bolt and seal washers through the tank wall. One wire will be attached to each sensor. Consider the bottom most sensor in the tank as "common". If the fluid level is so low that it only covers the bottom contact/sensor, then there is no current flow and all lights will be out.As the fluid rises to cover the next sensor, current will flow and this will light the 1/3 full light. This sequence will repeat as the tank level increases.The actual current is quite low, and is intended such so there won't Quotebe a corrosion problem. The low voltage/current is probably driving a transistor amplifier and this in turn will be lighting the LED (light).
Re: Tank Cleaning Reply #9 – May 02, 2006, 05:34:57 pm Yahoo Message Number: 66277QuoteEven when the tank is completely empty, the "Empty" LED will remain lit when the switch is pushed on the range hood. That doesn't sound like there's a problem...that's the way it's supposed to work, isn't it? Now, if it was showing "empty" when it was "full," that would be a problem.Linda Hylton2004 Red 23.5' TK http://map.datastormusers.com/user1.cfm?user=1167 http://earl-linda.blogspot.com/
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Topic: Tank Cleaning (Read 7 times)
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