Shower Drain

Z

zachary zehnacker

New member
Oct 3, 1997
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Scott,

We added a gray water tank to ours. It was actually one of the first
things we did to our GMC. We have a separate valve that we can open to let
it out on the ground or another valve that lets us let it out through the
regular black water outlet. We usually just leave the ground valve open
(we made it so that we can open this one from inside) if we are on grass
because it soaks right into the ground. If we are on pavement, we usually
close it so we don't have a big puddle around our motorhome. It really
cuts down on the need to empty the black water tank.

Zak

>I now think someone was trying to eliminate most of the grey water from
>filling up the holding tank. The cap on the end of my discharge pipe has a
>small nose connection on it so I guess they just attached a hose to it. I do
>not have a grey water holding tank but now that I spent some time looking at
>my plumbing system maybe there is some way to do it. Larry, I will crawl
>under the coach and try to figure this change out and how they did it. ( My
>guess is they removed the bathroom module but I will check it out better)
>
>Scott Adohen
>
 
Emery,

Thanks for the info. Usually we "camp" at a race track, so we have never
had any trouble. We very rarely camp in a campground or park, but we'll
have to remember to check the valve when we do. Our ground valve dumps out
from the middle underneath the motorhome, so it would be pretty difficult
to see anyway though as long as the ground absorbs it.

I'm surprised the states are that strict. I can understand a rule for
black water, but gray water is just our shower/sink water. We could wash
our dishes and take a shower outside and it would be fine (as long as we
were wearing shorts :-) . If we do it inside and let the water out on the
ground then it isn't. Sounds like another law that could use some
adjustments to me.

Thanks,
Zak

>Just want to point out that in many states and in all National Parks it is
>illegal to dump even gray water on the ground. I have known people to put a
>bucket (with a small hole) under the hose but some of the states have
>incorporated a "leaky bucket" clause into the law.
>
>Emery Stora
>77 Kingsley
>Santa Fe, NM
>
 
Lanier,

We made ours into a pretty big project. We have a 23'er as well, so our
info could be a little different, but here it goes. We used the space
behind the black water tank. We found a tank that was close and then cut
it down to fit between the frame rails (they start to curve in at the back
of the GMC, so we cut the tank into a trapezoid type shape). We then
fiberglassed a piece of PVC pipe through the middle of the tank and
attached it to the existing black water valve with a rubber coupler. We
then fiberglassed up the sides we cut so that it was a tank again. On the
other end of the PVC pipe, we connect it to the original equipment swivel
90 and outlet pipe. This means our black water goes right through our gray
water tank, but never mixes because it is in the PVC pipe.

We have two valved outlets on the gray water tank. One dumps to the
ground. The other opens up to PVC pipe right before the swivel 90. This
way, we can dump the gray water out through the original outlet if we want.

The vents were a little tricky. There are two vents on our GMC which were
both originally for the black water tank. Our first attempt used one of
the vents for the gray water and one for the black water. This worked well
for separating the colors of water, but it smelled :) like we needed the
two black water tank vents.

We then used one vent for both the gray and black tanks and the other for
just the black. We thought the way we did it would only allow some of the
gray water into the black tank, but it ended up filling up the black tank
rather quickly. We now have a better set up for the T which prevents the
gray water from going in the black water tank by going up/down in the
appropriate spots.

Hope this wasn't too confusing :)

Zak

>
>> We added a gray water tank to ours. It was actually one of the first
>> things we did to our GMC. We have a separate valve that we can open to
let
>> it out on the ground or another valve that lets us let it out through the
>> regular black water outlet.
>
>Zak,
>More details, please. size, location, hookups, etc.
>Thanks,
>Lanier
>
 
>
>>
>> Did you actually add a grey water holding tank or does the grey
>water just
>> stay in the 3" pipe like mine?
>
>You ain't gonna hold much water in a 3" pipe.
>Lanier
>
I couldn't resist, Lanier. How about if that 3" pipe is 26 feet long??

David Lee Greenberg F22009
GMC Motorhome Registry
200 MacFarlane Drive PH4
Delray Beach, FL 33483-6829
 
Rick,

Thanks for the bacteria info. I'll have to look into it more. I guess we
will have to be more careful what parts of our bodies we wash when we have
the valve open :).

I can understand not wanting it done at campgrounds/parks because it would
really build up if everyone did it. We usually only "camp" at race tracks.
Most of the tracks we go to are only used for the big (over 1 day) races
two or three times a year. Some of the tracks even pit us so that we
couldn't leave our pit spot to dump even if we wanted to. This is one of
the reasons we split the two systems. A couple of showers and the black
tank is almost full. We would have to dump after every race to make sure
we didn't overfill it the next race. Other tracks we race at have dumps
right inside the facility because we sometimes get parked inside a circle
track which has to have dumps because vehicles can't leave while the race
is taking place.

People changing their oil and letting it run out onto the ground is
actually a much bigger/more common eco problem at the track. This is
something that we wouldn't do. Most of the tracks have 55 gallon drums to
pour it in, but apparently that is not convenient enough for some people.

Zak

PS - Anyone know why this bacteria is a problem from showering but cow
manure fertilizer is not a problem? I'm just wondering what actually
causes this bacteria to become a problem.

>Zak,
> I don't want to sound like an Eco-Freak, but someone (in rec.outdoors.rv-
>travel, IIRC) pointed out that shower drain water contains fecal coliform
>bacteria, and that draining it on the ground is not a good idea. It's
illegal
>to do so in Colorado, and I suspect most campgrounds frown on the practice.
>Don't mean to be critical, but that's what I've heard....
>
>Rick Staples
>'75 Eleganza
>Louisville, CO
>
 
>
> PS - Anyone know why this bacteria is a problem from showering but cow
> manure fertilizer is not a problem? I'm just wondering what actually
> causes this bacteria to become a problem.

IMO, the fecal coliform issue is a red herring. Ecoli is naturally
occurring in the topsoil(all God's creatures gotta poop). More likely
the real concern(at campgrounds at least) is the mess left by campers
after dumping grey water for a week. Soap residue, human hair, grease
from dishwashing, etc. ad nauseum. Activists use the fact that ecoli
appears in grey water(I have no doubt that it does) because that's the
bacteria de jour and scares more people these days than HIV.

My opinions, worth the price,
Patrick
- --
Patrick Flowers
Mailto:patri63

The GMC Motorhome Page
http://www.gmcmotorhome.com
 
It's
>illegal
>to do so in Colorado, and I suspect most campgrounds frown on the
>practice.
>Don't mean to be critical, but that's what I've heard....
>
>Rick Staples
>'75 Eleganza
>Louisville, CO

It is true...illegal in all Nat'l Parks and most state parks. Gray water
has stuff that the Govmt has decided is harmful.

David Lee Greenberg F22009
GMC Motorhome Registry
200 MacFarlane Drive PH4
Delray Beach, FL 33483-6829
 
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