carroll Posted May 21, 2014 Share Posted May 21, 2014 Hi,Help need for smelly loo....We've had our motorhome since January of this year, over the past few weeks we've notice the loo has started to smell. We have used Thetford tank cleaner & use the correct chemicals for the cassette.We decided to change the seal on the cassette, but the smell is still there...Thanks in advance. carroll Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordThornber Posted May 21, 2014 Share Posted May 21, 2014 Are you using 'posh' Thetford paper? I ask, as we used to use it but found it didn't empty completely when rinsing, there was always some bits coming out even after numerous rinses. So we changed to Asda's cheapest brand and hey presto it rinses with ease, to say nothing of the cost saving. Also we filled the holding tank with warm water and let it soak for 3 - 4 hours. Just a thought. Martyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carroll Posted May 21, 2014 Author Share Posted May 21, 2014 We use shops own cheap brand...We have used van many times & had no problem.Can't understand it really, as the problem has only just started...We took van to our local Burstner Dealer, although they didn't have time to look at motorhome, they said it might be the "vent pipe" which could be blocked, we have checked this & it doesn't seem to be blocked.Carroll Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CliveH Posted May 21, 2014 Share Posted May 21, 2014 I would also try one of the cheaper brands of blue liquid - I use Towsure own brand every so often - as this brand (and other cheaper brands) does have a distinct amount of formaldehyde in it (you can smell it! - so SWMBO objects for normal use, so we tend to put this cheaper stuff in over a storage period) and this formaldehyde really does sort out the bacteria that hang about to cause the wiff. I have never used the so called special loo paper having been told it is a con. I do also occasionally add a squirt of washing up liquid to the cassette as this helps if there is a lot of paper used. This also seems to help with the smells - it certainly makes rinsing the cassette out much easier and pleasant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted May 21, 2014 Share Posted May 21, 2014 you sure its the toilet and not the waste tank....fit a SOG if it is (^) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted May 21, 2014 Share Posted May 21, 2014 Only time we have had a smelly loo, found out it was due to a build up of calcium deposits on the bottom of the tank. You say you have used tank clean and that usually works. For full effectiveness put it in with a few litres of of hot water and drive the van for a few hours then leave overnight, next day rinse and add more tank cleaner and hot water invert the tank an rock it around & leave upside down overnight, that should then get rid of all deposits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted May 22, 2014 Share Posted May 22, 2014 Carroll I'm not exactly sure where your 'smelly' problem lies. I think (from looking at on-line photos of Burstner Aviano 684i vehicles) that your motorhome is fitted with either a Thetford C402 or C403 bench-style toilet, and I suspect it's the latter model that takes its flush-water supply from the motorhome's main fresh-water tank. As I understand it, a C402/C403 toilet 'vents' from beneath the cassette. I guess there is the possibility that the venting system integrated into the cassette itself might become blocked and that might cause the cassette to pressurise and for foul air to be forced past the seal and into the bathroom but, if the cassette were pressurising, I'd expect this to be noticeable when the valve in the base of the toilet's bowl was opened. If it's just the interior of the cassette that's become unusually smelly, then (as lennyhb advises) it may be due to a build up of deposits inside it. Cassette cleaning was discussed here http://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Hints-and-Tips/Cleaning-inside-toilet-cassette/16559/ I use a citric-acid solution as follows "Dissolve 100g of citric acid crystals (available from chemist-shops) in 3 litres of warm water. Pour into cassette, replace spout-cap, leave solution in cassette for at least 5 hours (in fact, the longer the better) tilting, rotating and inverting the cassette regularly so that the acid solution contacts all interior surfaces especially the upper one." and I leave the solution in the cassette for several days. My Hobby has a SOG ventilation system, so odours from the cassette would not enter the bathroom when the toilet was being used even if the cassette's interior were stinky. (Fitting a SOG system to C402/C403 models is more complicated than to other Thetford cassette-toilets and may prove to be impracticable in some cases.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carroll Posted May 22, 2014 Author Share Posted May 22, 2014 Thank you for all your comments....I'm now in the process of cleaning the waste water tank with Milton.I have filled water tank up & put Milton in, then let it run through all taps & the shower to fill waste tank up, I am hoping this is going to do the trick as we're are away from next week.Thanks again Carrol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted May 22, 2014 Share Posted May 22, 2014 Milton is not a good choice, please do not leave it in the system. Milton will attack stainless steel if you have run it through the hot water system you need to flush it out. Truma boilers are made from Stainless Steel. Until Truma brought out their own cleaner they used to recommend white wine vinegar it works very well at de scaling the boiler and cleaning & removing calcium deposits from the loo. When in France we always stock up about 30p Lt use it at home as well for de scaling kettles & irons. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted May 22, 2014 Share Posted May 22, 2014 Yep milton bad idea! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carroll Posted May 22, 2014 Author Share Posted May 22, 2014 Oh dear!!!! how do I clean the waste tank or is it just white vinegar?carroll Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted May 22, 2014 Share Posted May 22, 2014 Carroll "Milton" is a sterilizing fluid and (as will be seen from the following link) http://www.milton-tm.com/en/consumer/faqs is not best suited to sterilizing a motorhome's large-capacity fresh-water system. It's most unlikely to deal with a smelly waste-water tank using the methodology you've described. Milton, in 'neat' form, can harm metals (including stainless steel) and Truma advises against using such products for disinfecting their appliances. When I asked Truma technicians (years ago) what were the chances of the time-honoured practice of maintaining a very low concentration of Milton in a motorhome's fresh-water system causing damage, I was told that the risk was minimal. Nevertheless, as there are other, better products to sterilise/disinfect/descale motorhome water systems/equipment, Milton is best avoided. If your smell problem is waste-water tank related (and does not involve the toilet) an effective approach would be to tip a couple of litres of strong domestic bleach into the empty tank via the sink, washbasin and shower outlets. Next fill up the tank with water and leave the resultant bleach/water mixture in the tank for as long as possible. Then empty the tank (into a drain, not on to the ground!), refill with fresh water (through the sink, washbasin and shower outlets) and empty the tank again. That method has always worked for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carroll Posted May 22, 2014 Author Share Posted May 22, 2014 PHEW!!! thankfully ive now got all Milton out now in the process of running clean water through again just to make sure ive got it all out....Having said that the smell has now gone.... may be it was the waste tank and not the loo as I first thought..... What a learning curve this has been....Thank you all for your information & help.Carrol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teutone Posted May 22, 2014 Share Posted May 22, 2014 when I prep the loo with bio stuff, I tend to put some down the shower sink hole as well. And always keep the plug hole covers on when you drive! You could fit a smell trap to the sink hole like the U-bends at home. CAK Tanks sell these. Page 3 Item HGWT25 for example http://www.caktanks.co.uk/files/cak_catalogue_2012/2012_CAK_Water.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 I did say initially probably the waste tank, a far more likely culprit! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derek pringle Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 Hi all, I have often thought of using ' sterilizing powder' of the type used in home brewing, obviously thoroughly dissolving the powder first in a quantity of water. I know when I used to home brew, the cleaning powers were great. How suitable for waste tank I wonder? The second point is whether cheap 'cola' would help with build up on sensors etc cheers derek Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docted Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 Derek hhome brew cleaners are very similar to mliton so would not be reccomended. Coke because of its sugar content could be quite sticky on the rest of the tank. OK if your tipple is vodka coke but not reccomended for tea drinkers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will86 Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 U bend water traps in the sink and shower base will when driving always loose their sealing capacity due to vehicle movement. Always drive with the plugs fitted and when stopped always refill the Ubend trap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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