for a 1974 19" "C" class Barth motorhome. We just bought is a few week ago from "DALTON" in Calgary.
Went out camping in it for the first time this past weekend & really enjoyed it. Also a real newby question were do you dump the waste from on the outside???

Sharon

Welcome to the Forums!

As a first step in avoiding a straight answer, I'll note that "No two Barths are alike".

However, motorhome designs and layouts are fairly straight-forward, regardless of the builder.

The waste-dumping system may be accessible from the outside (fairly common on RVs of less than 25') or from a basement compartment.

The first step in locating the dump valves is to locate the waste tanks; there are usually two. The black water tank will be near the toilet. The gray water tank, near the kitchen. Some smaller RVs have a single, combined-use tank.

Waste valves look like this.

The two tanks empty into a single outlet, which is required to have a cap. This one has a connection to attach a hose to backflush the tanks, but not all do.

You'll need a correct hose to direct the contents into a sewer connection. The usual drill is to dump black water first, then gray water, the latter helping to rinse the dump hose.

Thanks a lot Rusty, found were to dump it & also the waste valve. I guess we only have two tanks....the good & the bad, no Grey.


Sharon

My 1977 Barth only has on big black tank for all the waste water. I assumed all the earlier units were like that.

Neil.

My 81 has only one tank also. Wish it had 2 but it would take some very creative work to figure out how and where to mount them so we'l just live with it.

Welcome to the forums. The closest thing you'll get to an owners manual is the Barth CD . It has lots of tech articles and pictures of coaches.

When you get a few minutes, snap a couple of pictures of your coach and send them my way. Extra bonus points awarded if you snap a picture of your data tag too.

My 85 28' Regal also has just one tank. Also has an internal spray set up in the waste tank to clean it out. You just screw a hose on to a fitting next to the dump hose, turn on the water and let it do it's thing.

The internal spray fitting for tank cleaning is available from your local RV supply store. I installed one in my black water tank.

Just don't do as I did & only hand-tighten the drill chuck because the hole saw had a hexagonal shank. When it plunged through the tank wall I jerked back & left the hole saw inside the tank. Next step was cut a hand-sized hole in the side of the tank to reach in & pull it out.

Yeah, I know, I should have tried something else. Trouble is every other alternative would have been a lot more work. I wonder why so many of these posts remind me of stupid things I've done.

quote:

Originally posted by olroy:
I wonder why so many of these posts remind me of stupid things I've done.

Funny you said that... I thought it was just me.

My dear departed dad, not being one to spend money on anything he could build himself, made a device consisting of a piece of 3/4 PVC pipe with a cap on one end and a hose connector on the other, then drilled a number of small holes around the bottom. This was for cleaning the cylinder type swimming pool filter from the inside out. I've found that it works very well when inserted into the toilet hole down into the holding tank to spray all the inside surfaces. It should cost less than a buck, and do the job fine.

I assume the same device would work permanantly mounted in the tank from the out side. If you could figure a way to mount it. Next time I am at the plumbing store I will see what I can find.

Neil.

"Just don't do as I did & only hand-tighten the drill chuck because the hole saw had a hexagonal shank. When it plunged through the tank wall I jerked back & left the hole saw inside the tank. Next step was cut a hand-sized hole in the side of the tank to reach in & pull it out."


I would have just left it in there!

Neil

quote:

Originally posted by Neil T.:
"Just don't do as I did & only hand-tighten the drill chuck because the hole saw had a hexagonal shank. When it plunged through the tank wall I jerked back & left the hole saw inside the tank. Next step was cut a hand-sized hole in the side of the tank to reach in & pull it out."


I would have just left it in there!



Neil

I would have attached a magnet to a string, dropped it down the toilet or in the hole, added enough water to facilitate sloshing around, and gone for a ride.

Or jacked the coach so it would work its way out the dump in response to vigorous thumping on the bottom with a soft mallet.

That's why El Segundo Bill is so much smarter than me. Thumping on the bottom wouldn't have worked because of the way the drain pipe is configured. The magnet down the toilet would have & I have just such a magnet. Bill, where were you when I needed you?

quote:

Originally posted by Danny Z:
My dear departed dad, not being one to spend money on anything he could build himself, made a device consisting of a piece of 3/4 PVC pipe with a cap on one end and a hose connector on the other, then drilled a number of small holes around the bottom. This was for cleaning the cylinder type swimming pool filter from the inside out. I've found that it works very well when inserted into the toilet hole down into the holding tank to spray all the inside surfaces. It should cost less than a buck, and do the job fine.

I made a similar device, but it cost a little more. It was essentially a small brass sweeper nozzle attached at a 90 degree angle on the end of a PVC tube, with a valve and swivel QD at the other end. It provided such a forceful washout that I could feel the sides of the tank drumming in my feet through the floor.

However, over time, I discovered that cleaning the tank is a waste of time, effort, and water.

Our Barth has never had its tank washed, rinsed of flushed since 99 or 2000. We use HAPPY CAMPER and don't dump until the tank is full, or almost. Sometimes it sits half-full for weeks. Our sensors always read correctly, and when the tank is empty, the area of the bottom that I can see is clean. When the tank is empty or low, I can see lots of light down the toilet.

We use an RV360 on the vent, so there is positive evacuation of what odor there is with the slightest waft of breeze.

Happy Camper also liquifies very well. To the point that we often dump our blue boy through a garden hose.