Just wanted to say thanks for taking the time to help others
Bob
This blog is for the exchange of information relating to The Geo Method of maintaining and cleaning RV waste water systems. I do not respond to questions already addressed either in the original article or the blog. Please read it thoroughly. It's not complicated. Just do it and you'll see.
Use detergent, water softener, and chlorine bleach. If you use powder, dissolve it first. I prefer the cheapest ingredients I can find. cb
Thank you for posting your very informative article on "The Geo Method". We
are new RVers and plan to immediately change our waste water method from
purchased bottled chemicals to this method.
Is there any particular brand of laundry detergent you prefer? We use liquid
Tide Free at home which has no or little odor. I detest strong perfumes in
laundry products. You did mean liquid laundry detergent correct.
Thanks again -
Anne and Joe
TwoMaineiacs on the road from Maine
I wanted to say thanks so much for a well written and logical explanation of the whole process.
Being new to Rving it certainly helped, and made sense. Especially considering some of the other concoctions I have read and really been too concerned about mixing chemicals to try.
So thanks again. We really appreciate it.
Ben & Ana Modert
Thank you, Thank you, Thank you,,,,finally someone with some plain common sense,,I am so tired of the blue stuff…doesn’t work well anyway….I am a believer…
I just read the geo method of tank cleaning. So simple. Our gray kitchen tank always reads full, so I am going to try this this week
thanks
Robert
Robert Sloane
Morgan Research Corporation- Implementation Group
AMLCMC G4 - Environmental Division
AMSAM-EN-EV
robert.sloane@redstone.army.mil
256 313 1713
DSN 897 1713
I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the
1/2 to a gallon for each of my 40 gallon black and gray tanks. 1-2 cups for my 40 gallon fresh water tank.
How much clorox do you add per gallon of water for the fresh water tank
and for the black tank? Tanks on my rv are 13 gallons for the black
tank and 25 gallons for the fresh water tank.
Thanks,
TONY
Regarding the laundry detergent (I like Tide) does it matter if I use powdered or liquid?Thank you,Christina
Hello cbruni.. well you geo method has gotten such a large splash ,I just had to try it .. Here's my take . I doubt I'll ever be able to sanitize a holding tank that holds human waste ,But I sure would like to have all the contents drain at the dump station and not leave any clumps of paper or whatever behind. So I started adding the water softener (Calgon) at the middle of last season 2004, in our Jayco 5th.The immediate result of that was all the paper and other clumps dissolved and passed out of the sewer hose easily and efficiently. One extra flush with the San-T-Flush and the job is complete. If we are at a dump station where I would not go through an extra flush in order not to hold up other folks waiting ,I now have the confidence that the black holding tank does not have any extra 'stuff' left behind to cause a problem later on.
We have since traded the Jayco for a 06' BigHorn and I use the same treatment in the new 45 gal tanks.
So thanks for doing the research and providing us (the RV'ing community) with a simple and easy system using commonly available materials.
See you down the road........Frank C
Still have doubts about trying The Geo Method? Look here.
http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/16426901.cfm
Water softener doesn't just work well in waste water tanks. Try adding it to laundry, the automatic dishwasher, the soap bucket when washing cars, trucks, and RVs, and the detergent solution when shampooing carpets and automotive upholstery. It forces dirt to let go and allows detergent to work more efficiently and effectively. It's a chemistry thing.
I've read posts about water softener slickening up the insides of the tanks on various RV forums quite frequently. One guy got the idea to put Rain-X in his black tank to accomplish this. He says it works. I don't know. Other people have tried vegtable oils, mineral oil, fabric softener, etc. Water softener does NOT make the insides of the tanks slick. Instead, the water softener is treating the water; not the tanks.
Water softener softens water. It doesn't make the insides of the tanks slick, it alters the water to keep stuff from sticking to the tank's insides, and combined with detergent will cause gunk stuck to the insides of the tanks to let go. Another way of looking at it is that water softener, detergent, and chlorine bleach, are all working to CLEAN the tanks. Adding vegtable oil makes the tanks dirty.
I also see posts that warn that chlorine bleach will make plastic waste water tanks brittle. I love that one. Those who make that claim seem to have never noticed that chlorine bleach is sold in PLASTIC jugs.
The idea behind The Geo Method is to use inexpensive, yet very effective, laundry products in NORMAL combination to CLEAN AND SANITIZE waste water tanks.
Occasionally, people write to me asking how much water softener, detergent, and bleach to use. I outline it in The Geo Method article. It takes a scoop of laundry detergent in a washing machine to wash clothes. It takes a half cup of Calgon water softener to wash clothes. It takes a cup of bleach to wash clothes. RV holding tanks hold WAY more water than a washing machine. RV holding tanks hold WAY more dirt than a load of laundry. You have to use enough water softener, detergent, and chlorine bleach, to clean RV waste water tanks because they hold more water and dirt than a typical load of laundry.
You'll have to figure how much you need for your tanks. However, if you don't use enough to do the job, don't be surprised when the job doesn't get done. Try again using more.
This guy needs a reality check. C&P from an RV forum. Here's the link:
_________________________________________________
DAVID D WILEY wrote:
Just found your information--had heard about it but hadn't read the whole story. I have a question I didn't see addressed in your article--about using bleach in the tanks. I had heard that bleach will damage rubber seals--is this true? Also--chlorine and ammonia don't mix--is there
enough ammonia in urine to make a different and vent dangerous fumes? Taking a whiz into a newly cleaned toilet that has not been flushed will show what I am talking about!
I've been doing this since 2002 with no apparent damage to anything. This includes two six month periods of full-timing. From my experienceThe Geo Method is very effective, inexpensive, AND harmless. cb
The tanks are vented through the roof to the outside. I'm certain there must be at least a chlorine bleach smell, but I've never even noticedthat when flushing the commode or at any other time. cb
In 40 years of RVing we've never had a black tank problem (except when we cracked one going up a bank after crossing a stream!) We dry camp mostly--use minimal water when flushing but dump all sink water, with detergent, into the toilet. We keep water and chemical in the tank when not using it, until we store it for winter. We sometimes go 2 weeks before dumping during hunting season. Fill tanks, if not already so, before dumping. We have found that public dump stations don’t have hoses that will attach to a Flush King, and frankly don't have enough room to carry a non-potable one with us. We pay $5 for each dump--if we then take it home and do a flush, we have to haul it back to the private campground and dump again for the same price before heading for the storage lot. We always use RV paper, and wet-only paper goes into a plastic bag lined waste can, not flushed. We do use a toilet chemical. Can water softener be used with these chemicals? We are using Odor-less at the moment. If not, we could add water softener after dumping, no chemical, with the 5 or more gallons of water we add to the tank. It sloshes the 5 miles home, then 6 more or so to storageafter we unload the trailer.
Don't mix chemicals unless you know what you're doing. All I'm suggesting is using laundry products in normal combination to clean waste water tanks; not mixing something else in there with it. I am NOT mixing chemicals in unusual or novel combinations, and advise others notto do so. cb
I wouldn't make an extra trip to dump. You can use The Geo Method whether the tanks are empty or full of waste water. If the tanks are empty fill them about half way first, then let them sit with water softener, detergent, and chlorine bleach, until you're ready to dump again. I've let the solution sit in the tanks for over two weeks at atime. cb
The Geo Method WILL make the stuff let go of the insides of the tanks. However, without a thorough flushing, my tanks can't move all that stuff out of the drain hole without the Flush King. My tanks sag at thebottom. Your's may be different. cb
Thanks for providing this information. I am going to add a link to our Northwood Owners Forum (Nash, Arctic Fox and Desert Fox trailers and5th wheels).
Great! Thanks. cb
Linda Wiley
Salem, Oregon
2002 Arctic Fox 25R
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If you're worried about dumping into your septic tank at home I suggest going to an RV park with full hook-ups to dump. Two cups of Calgon Water Softener amounts to four laundry loads at a half cup per load. Your washing machine holds far less than 30 gallons.
The chlorine bleach is necessary if you want to kill odor and germs in the tanks. I put it in and dump it several days later. By that time the bleach has broken down and is no longer present.
Keep in mind that I only use The Geo Method once in several (4-10 - I don't actually count) waste water tank dumps. Once the tanks are clean they're easy to maintain.
No, I haven't done a study. These are common laundry products used by literally tens of millions of Americans every day while doing laundry. These products are also VERY effective in cleaning and sanitizing RV waste water tanks. The reason for this is that the stuff contained in waste water tanks is essentially the same kind of dirt we all get on our clothing and linens. Considering the vast amounts of these products used on a daily basis across the country, if they damaged waste water systems we'd all have been in deep trouble long ago.
I came upon your website through some links in an RV forum and have but a few questions.I generally dump my tanks (30 gallons each) into my home septic system upon my return home because we use the RV as a mobile motel and rarely have access to dump facilities. When our septic system was being installed, I spoke with the designer and he recommended that we refrain from dumping concentrations of chemical into it at one time. He noted that chlorine products and the bacteria in our tanks did not mix well and that any concentration of chemical could upset the ecology of the tanks significantly.I noted that your technique uses considerably more water softener in one tank load than one would use to wash several loads of laundry and the same is true of the chlorine bleach (which we don't use at home).Have you ever done an actual study (rather than a theoretical/academic projection) of the impact of introducing the contents of both a gray water and a black water tank ( using your technique) into a home septic system in such concentrations at one time? I'd be interested in the results.With best regards,Mike HudickManheim, PA
Link to the knife fight on Escapees Forum.
5THWHEELFORUMS.COM Charles
I'd first like to introduce myself as the creator, designer/administrator (whatever you want to call it) of 5thwheelforums.com - a site that is going to be totally dedicated to 5thwheels.We would like to post your GEO method (un-edited) on our website. I know it’s a controversial method to some but its one we use & believe in and know would benefit others as well.
I know some forum moderators would simple "cut&paste" your article but that’s not the way to a healthy, growing & thriving forum. Its your work & you deserve the credit for it.
5thwheelforums.com history - We just started this site and have not yet released it to the search engines. We are working with several RV industry product manufactures and testing their products followed by detailed write-ups of the products installation, use & performance. We purchased 2 identical Forest River Wildcat 29BHBP 5thwheels for use as testing platforms of various products to feature on our website. If we like the product we will ask the manufacturer to advertise on our site with a link back to their store or dealers store. We don't want to invest in or manage any inventory- our job will be to get traffic to the website. Once we have enough quality information for new visitors to read and come back to then we will start advertising in Trailer Life magazine as well as other forums.
We invite you to take a look at www.5thwheelforums.com & tell us what you think but please don't post about it in any other online forums.
Thank You
Travis Chrystal
Administrator - 5thwheelforums.com
I've not recommended it with every tank. I only do it occasionally. Every time is unnecessary. The whole Geo Method is an occasional thing. RV plumbing materials are the same as household plumbing materials as far as I can tell. Chlorine bleach shouldn't affect RV plumbing any more than it affects household plumbing. Bouncing down the road, and freezing temps, causes RV plumbing damage. I don't believe chlorine bleach, especially in the concentration I'm talking about, has an affect. Do the math yourself. Bottled chlorine bleach is usually a 5% solution. Dump a gallon of it in a 40 gallon tank and where does that put the percentage? Regardless, ther're just plain old plumbing materials. Hasn't done mine a bit of harm - unless you take into account the lives of billions and billions of germs that I've killed..
Thanks for your input. I have been told though that washing machine seals are of a material that bleach does not attact, where as seals in RV’s are not. I am going to continue with bleach, but certainly not every tank full. Thanks again.
Dale
-----Original Message-----
From: Charles Bruni [mailto:cbruni@mindspring.com]
Sent: Monday, July 04, 2005 12:04 PM
To: dlsmith1@comcast.net
Subject: Re: The Geo Method
Yes, it is a problem. Dopes who slept through high school chemistry, and lack the common sense of ordinary laundry experience, spout off nonsense about chlorine bleach damaging plumbing. But then, dopes spouting nonsense relating to all sorts of things is a common problem and not limited to ordinary housekeeping. It's a good thing folks like us can figure it out on our own. Don't you agree?
Trellix Mailer wrote:name: Dale L. Smithemail: dlsmith1@comcast.netcomment: Some say the bleach will and does attack the seals of the dump valves etc, do you see
such as a problem?Thanks,Dale
My VistaPrint Electronic Business Card Hi Charles: Very interesting article on your Tank Cleaning Method.One question comes to mind, can you mix all these things in the Tank together, without a Chemical Reaction of some sort.Will Bleach react with Calgon or Laundry Detergent?Appreciate your feedback.Jeff
I stopped using the blue stuff in late 2002 when I first tried detergent, water softener, and chlorine bleach. The solids don't stick to the tank and just drain out. However, you still need plenty of water to flush all that loose stuff down that relatively small hole. I use the Flush King to accomplish that. Also, from what I could tell when I used to use the blue stuff it was more for odor control and a germicidal, than effective at breaking anything down.
Don't fret over this stuff. I only do it occasionally (NOT with each tank full) when I think it's time. I don't have an odor problem. That includes spending several weeks in Augusta, GA, with temps normally over 90 degrees, and occasionally over 100 last summer.
Good luck.
Hi Charles,I've been using the Geo method for all 3 weeks that I've been an RV owner! [grin] So far so good!...anyhow, one question that I'm not 100% sure on. Certainly the Geo method keeps the tanks as clean as possible, but do you still use the stuff that is designed to break down the waste, or do you find that unnecessary.Thanks!
Glenn