Sewer smell while driving

FED 387 · 05-26-2011, 10:59 AM

I'm definately not an expert on RV stuff but from my experience with both a motorhome and a RV trailer the thing I found out is periodically ya hafta go thru and check all the plumbing connections and joints cuz with all the vibration and tweaking/stretching/bouncing/gyrations and all these things go thru going down the road things just have a way of loosening up-drain pipes/water line connections/vents etc. and not just the plumbing stuff but wiring cables and connectors too/door latches etc---another thing is after ya have winterized one to get it road ready ya hafta go and put water (about a bucket full) down all the drains/toilets/showers etc to get some water in the traps to stop the sewer gas from coming back up the drain pipes--
Now if you have sewer smell it proboably is coming from the black water area not the gray water area cuz soapy water(which is the gray water) just does not smell like sewerage---the toilet flushes DIRECTLY into the black water tank NEVER ever going into a gray water tank---the gray water tank eventually reaches a certain capacity and then overflows into the black tank,,at least this is what I have been led to believe--- so either your gray tank is not storing water and IS draining directly into the black tank thus allowing sewer gas to seep back thru the drains or the traps are not full of water---there is also some chemicals ya can dump drown the drains to help with any odors(smell) that ya might get--Best bet is to check all your fittings/put some water in the drains to seal the traps and if all else fails go to an RV service center walk into the back door into the shop and ask who is really good/knowledgeable about this kind of problem talk to the guru tech about your problem & see what he suggests/thinks it might be could just be something simple you are overlooking

05-26-2011, 10:59 AM	#6
FED 387 VIP Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 3,420 Likes: 529 Liked 333 Times in 180 Posts	Re: Sewer smell while driving I'm definately not an expert on RV stuff but from my experience with both a motorhome and a RV trailer the thing I found out is periodically ya hafta go thru and check all the plumbing connections and joints cuz with all the vibration and tweaking/stretching/bouncing/gyrations and all these things go thru going down the road things just have a way of loosening up-drain pipes/water line connections/vents etc. and not just the plumbing stuff but wiring cables and connectors too/door latches etc---another thing is after ya have winterized one to get it road ready ya hafta go and put water (about a bucket full) down all the drains/toilets/showers etc to get some water in the traps to stop the sewer gas from coming back up the drain pipes-- Now if you have sewer smell it proboably is coming from the black water area not the gray water area cuz soapy water(which is the gray water) just does not smell like sewerage---the toilet flushes DIRECTLY into the black water tank NEVER ever going into a gray water tank---the gray water tank eventually reaches a certain capacity and then overflows into the black tank,,at least this is what I have been led to believe--- so either your gray tank is not storing water and IS draining directly into the black tank thus allowing sewer gas to seep back thru the drains or the traps are not full of water---there is also some chemicals ya can dump drown the drains to help with any odors(smell) that ya might get--Best bet is to check all your fittings/put some water in the drains to seal the traps and if all else fails go to an RV service center walk into the back door into the shop and ask who is really good/knowledgeable about this kind of problem talk to the guru tech about your problem & see what he suggests/thinks it might be could just be something simple you are overlooking