after cleaning toilet bowl won't shut off

[BILLYBOBTX]

I went on vacation and had a non-RVer clean my Jayco. Since coming back, occasionally my toilet doesn't shut off. It has a VERY slow leak into the bowl. I have caught it twice now where it was getting ready to overflow. What did the cleaning lady do? Is it the gasket or did she push down on it to misalign the shut off? I have tried salad oil in the hopes that it would give it that extra "oomph" to help it shut all the way. I may try vinegar but I have a feeling it is something was pushed on too hard. I feel if I step on the foot flush and let "snap" back it seals the way it should.

Any suggestions?
Thanks for all your help.

[craigav]

I have owned RV's for over 35 years now and I have never known of a special method that was required in order to clean an RV toilet that was a different method than for a cleaning a house toilet. Point being, I doubt the issue was related to the cleaning lady.

In any case, it sounds as if the toilet water valve needs to be replaced which is what I would suggest doing. I would also verify if you haven't already that the water pressure coming into the RV is ~50 psi or less. ~CA

[ARoamer]

X2, As craigrv said probably coincidence, your water valve needs replacement, and high water pressure may cause it. Cheaply made plastic valves, mine did the same and its not even 2 years old. Don't spend $40 for an original dometic one, but buy 2, the cheaper ones are hit or miss sometimes. Dometic does have a 2 year warranty, you may go that route if you're able or want to.

[BILLYBOBTX]

Nope. Something is different. After getting Craig's response I went and looked at the bowl again and it was bone dry. There is almost always a quarter inch of water in there. So something is not lining up properly.
Any suggestions?

[craigav]

Originally Posted by BILLYBOBTX

Nope. Something is different. After getting Craig's response I went and looked at the bowl again and it was bone dry. There is almost always a quarter inch of water in there. So something is not lining up properly.
Any suggestions?

The RV toilet seal (that keeps water in the bowl) is a common maintenance item and I suspect they all will give out (leak) with time, even more often than the water intake valve in my experience. Some RV'rs use a little mineral oil once in a while in the bowl (with no water) to help lubricate the seal and the slide, however that hasn't really provided me with a lot of long term satisfaction other than that it does help if the dump slide part is sticking and if it is sticking enough and not fully closing, that could keep the water valve open a little bit and could be the cause of the water to continuously fill the bowl as you described. I would try a bit of mineral oil though, as it is easy to do, just pour in a little, work the valve, then let a couple of inches of oil stay there for a few hours or overnight.

Keep in mind that these are two different components (seal and intake valve), however if it was mine I would replace both the seal and the valve at the same time if both are having issues. If you know that the water filling the bowl only occurs when the slide dump valve isn't closed or closing all of the way, then perhaps just changing the seal is all that is needed.

Here is a video if you choose to do the work yourself. It is not too hard to do, but if you call an RV tech, you may as well have him do both (water intake valve and dump slide valve seal) as the service call itself will justify not having to call an RV tech out twice.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EY9-OXVhomc

[craigav]

This video may be better, not too mention this is something I need to do again soon, but mine takes a few days before the bowl goes empty so not a big deal at this time.

One other thought, perhaps as you stated related to the cleaning lady and from this video I watched. Perhaps she got some toilet paper caught between the blade (slide) and the seal (or some other debris) and that is now causing the slide blade not to close fully. ~CA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fI1oU-We-rE

[BILLYBOBTX]

Thank you. I cannot fault someone for trying too hard which is what the cleaning lady did. I will make the repairs per the first video as it is clear there is something misaligned with the seal.

Thank you for the information.

Bill

p.s.- I did notice the smell from the black water tank which should have told me something wasn't right.
Thetford 42058- same as in video!
(edited)

[kirkelli]

Cleaning the toilet? try the 303 trick. I picked up on another forum of people using 303 Aerospace protectant sprayed in the toilet bowl. The claim was, 'Spray 303 nn the toilet bowl surface and never deal with cleaning your toilet bowl again' Well i tried it, and it does work. Everything just slides on down.. No stains, and even helps with lubing the seal gasket. My wife has even made comments "Thank-you Honey for cleaning the Toilet.. I just give her a big smile :-)