Minstrel Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 Has anyone ever had a problem with their cassette being very difficult to remove and eventually it isn't possible to remove it. Help please! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracker Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 A common cause is the blade not shutting properly. Try opening and shutting it fully a few times to ensure it is not sticking. We do not use the pink fluid in the flush tank because it seems to breed algae that can block the pump at worst and the black bits in the bowl do not look very nice at best but some neat pink fluid applied round the blade and it's rubber seal do help to lubricate it which makes it move easier - and we all need easier movement! The catch under the cassette when you pull it out can be tricky at times but this is usually apparent upon checking it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 As per Richard, only time it's happened to us was when the blade wasn't closed completely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikebeaches Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 Just to add to what Tracker has said - is the blade actually working properly? We had our mechanism collapse in the cassette, which prevented the cassette being removed from the van! We were high in the Swiss Alps at the time - which we discovered later was the cause of the problem. Anyway, we sought out a Thetford agent - a large motorhome / caravan dealer in Interlarken. They were very professional, but it took 2 technicians working together over thirty minutes to extract the cassette! And then a further ten minutes to dismantle the blade mechanism and re-assemble it. And we were on our way, about €35 lighter, pleased to get it fixed. That was until similar occurred the next day, when we were high up in the Alps again!!! Second time, the mechanism did not disintegrate quite so badly, and we were able to get the cassette out ourselves that evening with only a small struggle, and then put the mechanism back together again. We'd watched the technicians do it the day before. Unfortunately, I couldn't really see how they eventually extracted the jammed cassette in the first place. If you haven't guessed yet, the problem was caused by camping overnight at low level, and then driving up into the mountains, causing a very significant change of pressure in the loo. So much so, the blade was jammed shut until force was applied and it fell apart. When we got home we purchased a new blade assembly - but rather than fit it, just carried it as a spare, because the original was working fine again... And that was 3 years ago - and no problems ever since - and the spare remains unused! Secret - for us at any rate - is to have the blade ajar when taking the van into the mountains - then no problem with change of pressure. :-D Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracker Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 Slightly off topic but worth bearing in mind - if you carry a spare screw on cassette spout cap you will never need it from losing the original down a septic tank or emptying point! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayjsj Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 Tracker - 2015-12-15 6:36 PM A common cause is the blade not shutting properly. Try opening and shutting it fully a few times to ensure it is not sticking. We do not use the pink fluid in the flush tank because it seems to breed algae that can block the pump at worst and the black bits in the bowl do not look very nice at best but some neat pink fluid applied round the blade and it's rubber seal do help to lubricate it which makes it move easier - and we all need easier movement! The catch under the cassette when you pull it out can be tricky at times but this is usually apparent upon checking it. Agree, the Thetford Pink fluid is a liability, causes more bugs and algae than it kills. The Elsan pink (more red really) is much better and causes no black bits to form, however my present loo takes it's flush water direct from the fresh water tank. I spray my blade seals with silicone which keeps them free and easy to move. The manual says olive oil or of course Thetford blade spray, which is just expensive silicone spray.to keep the blade lubricated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjmike Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 Not sure if you have one of the newer cassette's with wheels, if you do the problem is the wheels have worn due to use on hard surfaces. The fix is once the cassette is removed put a couple of strips of insulation tape where the wheels run in the housing. This will lift the cassette high enough to engage properly. Alternatively take to dealer who will spend ages swoping wheels over to obtain the right height Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I think you may have to syphon it out! 8-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minstrel Posted December 16, 2015 Author Share Posted December 16, 2015 Many thanks for all the replies. We are certain that the blade moves properly, we don't have a tank for flushing but we do have one of the wheeled cassettes, but it's less than three years old.Murvi can't look at it till the new year and Martins Caravans - our closest will only take on work from existing customers.Yes, siphoning is necessary and if it will stop raining soon we'll get out there and do it. We have a plan made easier perhaps because we have a Murvi with the toilet accessible with the rear door open.This is the first post I have made for a couple of years as I got fed up with some of the nasty sniping going on. I'm glad to be back. Happy ChristmasHeather Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjmike Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 You could try sliding a thin steel rule under each wheel , lifting the cassette up, this MAY help release the cassette Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billggski Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Is this any help from another forum? How to release a jammed Thetford cassette C400L type We were presented with the situation that we could not move/open the blade using the control on the loo, nor could we remove the cassette from it's housing. This happened after emptying, cleaning and refitting, nothing untoward was noticed when refitting the cassette My dealer is Cotswold Motor Caravans their Service Manager Pete Curry gave me this advice. The diagnosis was that the blade opening control knob had moved out of alignment with the locating track/slot, which was why we could not remove the cassette, it can be caused by debris, usually toilet roll getting stuck in the blade opening mechanism, which when you try to open the blade causes it to dislodge and leave the cassette blade control knob mis aligned and causes it to jam solid, it can also be caused by heavy shaking when cleaning or flushing through/out. Under normal conditions the blade control knob on the cassette is parallel to the long edge of the cassette when you are sliding in or out Using a 500mm ruler/ or a long screwdriver and a good torch tap the knob to relocate correctly, it is also sometimes possible to move this knob through the outlet of the toilet if your fingers are small enough, once you have been able to get the cassette out you can check the blade action, on this model you can see two alignment marks, grip the centre section and turn to the other mark, you will then be able to lift out the mechanism and check it is located correctly, I found that the slider mechanism had dislodged and gone past the stop point, it is flexible plastic and only needed lifting and repositioning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobalobs Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 The Murvi loo is a Dometic rather than a Thetford and I think its release is slightly different but it does have wheels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Photos on the Murvi website suggest that the Dometic toilet is a "CTLP 3110” model. Dometic operating and service instructions for the CT 3 range can be found here http://www.dometicapproved.co.uk/docs/toiletmanuals/ct3000-series-(94)operation.pd.pdf http://www.dometicapproved.co.uk/docs/sanitationmanuals/599_7079_16_en_ct3000_service..pdf There is no guidance in the Dometic instructions on how to resolve a stuck-cassette problem and - although there is plenty of on-line advice regarding stuck Thetford cassettes - the only thing I could find that might have some relevance in Minstrel’s case is this http://www.caravantalk.co.uk/community/topic/87166-dometic-toilet-sticking-slide/ which suggests that the rubber seal between the cassette and the underside of the toilet-bowl might stick if not lubricated. Plainly, if the seal sticks the bowl and cassette together, this would prevent the cassette being extracted (and it might also explain why Minstrel’s cassette has become increasingly hard to remove). Photos/drawings show that the Dometic cassette differs in design from the Thetford equivalent, so it’s hard to know if ploys that manage to get a stuck Thetford cassette out will work with a Dometic toilet. I’ve no hand-on experience of Dometic toilets, but if it’s practicable I’d try working through the base of the toilet bowl (with the blade fully open of course!) to try to confirm that the rubber seal isn’t adhering to the bowl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
747 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 On my present van, the flap tends to stick in the closed position if not used for a while. I do not close it fully after the cassette has been emptied and washed out (a C2 type cassette). Over the Winter I let the cassette stand whilst full of bleach and water to sanitise it. Once emptied, I refit it and leave the flap fully open. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 In her most recent posting Heather (Minstrel) said that she was certain that the toilet’s ‘blade’ was moving properly. With a Thetford toilet a blade that will not fully close would very likely (as Billggski’s posting highlighted) prevent the cassette from being withdrawn from its locker due to the blade-opening knob being misaligned. All Thetford cassettes have a blade-opening knob, but photos of Dometic toilets show that Dometic cassettes do not. Dometic's operating instructions reveal that opening the blade does not involve Thetford’s ‘rotary’ process; instead a Dometic cassette’s blade is opened/closed via a sliding handle located beneath the toilet-bowl at the front of the toilet’s pedestal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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