insignia Posted April 9, 2015 Share Posted April 9, 2015 May I ask what alternatives we could use rather than the expensive products recommended by the cassette manufacturers Would be very interested to hear what fellow motorhomers use my Pension wont run to pouring money down the drain unless I really have to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracker Posted April 9, 2015 Share Posted April 9, 2015 Many people use biological washing liquid, the least expensive being from Aldi and Lidl. Personally we use Elsan Blue as, although not cheap, it is less expensive than Thetford and works just as well and we prefer the less pungent odour. If you go to any shows there are often better priced deals available, but of course it ain't free to go to the shows! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Joe90 Posted April 9, 2015 Share Posted April 9, 2015 The Blue stuff usually has a large amount of formaldehyde in it to kill off the anaerobic bacteria. Formaldehyde is a very serious health risk, a known carcinogen and a long term water pollutant. Because it's so dangerous it shouldn't be allowed to come into contact with the skin, or inhaled, or allowed to enter our water courses. But somehow we think it's OK to put it in our camper van toilets (and if we can smell the perfume they put in the 'Blue', surely the formaldehyde is finding it's way up our nostrils too. My solution whilst perhaps may not work for everyone is to use nothing, but empty the bog as soon as possible after the dump of the day, perhaps we're lucky, we are like synchronised swimmers :D Although a bit late in the day for us I'm going to try yeast tablets this year, but apparently it takes a while for them to be effective if you have previously used chemicals. for any residual pong after emptying, as Tracker above suggests a small splash of detergent with a drop of water seems to do the job Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracker Posted April 9, 2015 Share Posted April 9, 2015 Joe90 - 2015-04-09 12:43 PM empty the bog as soon as possible after the dump of the day, perhaps we're lucky, we are like synchronised swimmers :D Going through the motions, as swimming in the sea around our shores used to be known! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJ46 Posted April 9, 2015 Share Posted April 9, 2015 We have been using a biological washing powder, not only for the toilet but also the grey waste tank. We buy the powder for £1 a box in Iceland. Make sure it is "BIOLOGICAL" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted April 9, 2015 Share Posted April 9, 2015 There are also Elsan biological products that are formaldehyde free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayjsj Posted April 9, 2015 Share Posted April 9, 2015 Brian Kirby - 2015-04-09 1:16 PM There are also Elsan biological products that are formaldehyde free. But only Elsan Blue carries the British 'Kite Mark' meaning that it does exactly as it says on the bottle. Kills all germs and bacteria. Which makes me prepared to pay for it. Got 5 x 4 litre bottles cheap, because Elsan have changed the container style, and were clearing old stock. Not happy with Thetford (pink) either, as it does not even kill Algae in the flush tank, Elsan Pink does. (which is a pity cause i don't have a 'Flush tank' now), still it's good stuff to spray around the bowl) and we prefer to be a 'Sog free Zone'. Anaerobic Bacteria is ALSO a serious health risk.As is MRSA, C differcill etc.,etc., I used Formaldehyde regularly in a Large Brewery where i worked many years ago, it and Chlorine Bleach were the only products KNOWN to kill all bacteria and germs, with NO exceptions. And in a Brewing environment there are plenty of bacteria about. Ray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Joe90 Posted April 9, 2015 Share Posted April 9, 2015 Why is anyone going to get bacteria all over the place, do folk wash their hands in the contents of the cassettes, don't get it, we crap in the house, then wash our hands, how paranoid do folk need to be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matrix Meanderer Posted April 9, 2015 Share Posted April 9, 2015 On the same subject/thread - what do people use to really clean the inside of the cassette? We have a SOG system so don't use anything in the cassette. However, we now have a build up of brown stuff around the inside to the cassette and on the float etc. I have tried steeping the inside with a couple of dishwasher tablets dissolved in hot water overnight but that (surprisingly) didn't make much difference. I think I've also tried holding tank cleaner but without much success. Pre SOG installation we used ALDI biological washing tablets, cannot remember if they kept the interior clean or not. Now I don't want to achieve a spotless interior of the cassette but as nothing I've tried has cleaned off the brown coating any suggestions would be welcome :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ips Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 Always amazed that folk can spend tens of thousands on a van and all the service costs etc but can't afford proper chemicals. Maybe some put way to much in. Half a cup full max is all I use so it lasts a season probably. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 Matrix Meanderer - 2015-04-09 11:16 PM On the same subject/thread - what do people use to really clean the inside of the cassette? We have a SOG system so don't use anything in the cassette. However, we now have a build up of brown stuff around the inside to the cassette and on the float etc. I have tried steeping the inside with a couple of dishwasher tablets dissolved in hot water overnight but that (surprisingly) didn't make much difference. I think I've also tried holding tank cleaner but without much success. Pre SOG installation we used ALDI biological washing tablets, cannot remember if they kept the interior clean or not. Now I don't want to achieve a spotless interior of the cassette but as nothing I've tried has cleaned off the brown coating any suggestions would be welcome :-) See my posting of 14 November 2007 8:30 AM in this 2007 discussion http://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/Thetford-Cassette-toilet-Vent-Seal/9617/ Thetford markets a product for cassette cleaning, but I’ve never used it so can’t comment on its effectiveness http://www.thetford-europe.com/product/cassette-tank-cleaner/ but using a citric acid solution definitely works. (If your cassette’s interior is really badly ‘scaled’, you should not expect absolutely all of the scale to be removed by a single citric acid treatment - but one ‘go’ should get rid of a lot of it.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 Never use any chemicals we too have a SOG, also means you can empty into septic tanks where chemicals are banned. Never had any problems cleaning the tank have used both the tank cleaner an white wine vinegar both work well providing you put them in with hot water and give good agitation (a good drive works well), then take the tank out put another dose in and leave it upside down overnight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordThornber Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 Aqua Kem green for us. Absolutely odour free other than a pleasant whiff of pine. Usually there's a deal to be had online, Amazon more often than not. No carrying, parking, and keep the couriers in a job... Martyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StuartO Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 lennyhb - 2015-04-10 8:43 AM Never use any chemicals we too have a SOG, also means you can empty into septic tanks where chemicals are banned. Never had any problems cleaning the tank have used both the tank cleaner an white wine vinegar both work well providing you put them in with hot water and give good agitation (a good drive works well), then take the tank out put another dose in and leave it upside down overnight. I carried on using chemicals when we got a SOG system, mainly because I assumed there would be bound to be some smell otherwise, and more risk of undissolved solids to get rid of. I've carried on using blue suff too. probably ought to gather resolve to try doing without but I get so fed up of being told I'm ruining the planet in so many ways that slipping in a little dollop of blue somehow gives me quiet fulfilment. B-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harvey Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 Lidl biological washing tablets. Just drop one in: no messy measuring liquid or powder. They are cheap too and also keep the inside of the cassette clean: no, or very very little, 'brown stain'. They disolve 'solids' well but do not do as much for odour masking as some of the special liquids. I prefer to empty the cassette when only 1/2 to 3/4 full anyway or as soon as a slight smell is noticable. Try them and see: not expensive. Harvey p.s people who mention using a SOG system rarely mention the cost of installation or the expense of replacing the filters periodically. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 Harvey - 2015-04-10 9:45 AM p.s people who mention using a SOG system rarely mention the cost of installation or the expense of replacing the filters periodically. Cost of a SOG is negligible when spending over 60k on a new van. on a door mounted SOG the cost of a once a year change of filter change is less than a bottle of fluid, roof vented SOG's, don't have a filter under floor ones vented ones with the canister filter are a bit dearer when I looked in my dealers they were €23 shall we seeing if I can refill the the active charcoal in mine. :D The SOG is more about convenience, lets face it even when you have spent 10's of thousands on your van, you are reluctant to waste 50p worth of chemicals by emptying daily, big attraction is you can empty anywhere even when it says no emptying of chemical toilets, and lets not forget due to the forced ventilation when in use no smells in the van even after a good curry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayjsj Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 I have a Thetford version of the SOG system in my van, but still use Elsan Blue, never had any problems finding proper Chemical disposal points, Even on the Western isles, at all the ferry ports. Know that some CL's have 'no chemical' septic tanks, but would use 'Biological' to keep them happy if required. The only expensive filter I buy is for Fresh Water, and that lasts for 2 seasons at least. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matrix Meanderer Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 Thanks Derek Didn't go back as far as 2007 checking posts :-D Should have realised it was scale not plain gunk! Will try the citric acid method and maybe the acetic acid one as well to shift it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted April 11, 2015 Share Posted April 11, 2015 The residue in the cassette is limescale, so anything that will dissolve limescale should work as a cleaning treatment. Citric acid powder is fairly cheap, easy to store and weak enough to be safe to use. Vinegar is likely to be more expensive, will be more bulky, but will be equally safe. Vinegar wil be an under-10% acetic acid solution, but much stronger (and more hazardous to use) acetic acid can be obtained. Presumably this should be even more effective at removing scale from a toilet cassette and (apparently) it can also be employed to remove warts! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matrix Meanderer Posted April 11, 2015 Share Posted April 11, 2015 Just bought 500 gm of citric acid for £8 - enough for two treatments if needed. So the next six days includes: Annual Fiat Service & MOT, Habitation Service, cassette clean, load up for holiday and finally drive to Dover for three weeks in motorhome heaven aka France (lol) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Had Enough Posted April 11, 2015 Share Posted April 11, 2015 lennyhb - 2015-04-10 11:20 AM Cost of a SOG is negligible when spending over 60k on a new van. I was thinking along the same lines: "Cost of a bit of toilet fluid is negligible when spending over £60K on a 'van and thousands of pounds a year on tax, insurance, diesel, tyres and servicing etc." I admit to finding this whole debate weird. Going to great lengths to save pence on toilet fluid and then going out for a meal and spending €50, or having a satellite TV system installed that costs us about two grand to watch a bit of TV. My Hymer has a Thetford SOG-type of toilet but I still bang in a hundred mil of Blue Diamond fluid that works out at less than 20p a day. I know it may not be absolutely necessary but it stops me from throwing up when I empty my cassette. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracker Posted April 11, 2015 Share Posted April 11, 2015 Had Enough - 2015-04-11 2:24 PM Cost of a bit of toilet fluid is negligible I admit to finding this whole debate weird. Quite so!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StuartO Posted April 11, 2015 Share Posted April 11, 2015 Ah but we're all a bit anal about saving money of some things, or many of us are. It's a bloke thing. My great weakness was garden hose fittings, because I felt that Hoselock prices were rediculously high for a bit of plastic moulding, I would go to great lengths to brows market stall selling non-Hoselock fittings and I would feel a sense of triumph when I bought a Hoselock equivalent at a fraction of the price - indeed I would buy several of them, to add to my feeling of gaining by doing so. I began to realise after a while that I was accumulating rather a lot of unnecessary and surplus hose fittings, of dubious quality and compatibility, so I had a damcine moment and gave up. When I need a hose fitting I now buy one. usually Hoselock, and I feel no pain at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayjsj Posted April 11, 2015 Share Posted April 11, 2015 A bit like me with a shed full of 'Special Offer' Elsan Blue ! It's the thought of a bargain that does it. Ah, well, least I wont have to buy any for a while....quite a while in fact. Ray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tugga Posted April 12, 2015 Share Posted April 12, 2015 We use the blue and buy it from Halfords or Aldi when it is cheap, at the end of the season. We have a very nice row of bottles in our garage. When we bought our first motorhome, the Thetford tank was very limescaley and I purchased a bottle of Harpic with limescale remover and put about half a bottle in, swished it around so that every surface was covered and left it overnight. The next morning I flushed it out and it looked so much better but that night I did it again and the results were brilliant, shiny tank. We kept it clean after that by buying some tank cleaner to use at the end of each season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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