Black tank sprayer stopped working

[Diamonddave]

Jayco28 RLS.

Last month I used the black tank sprayer to flush the black tank and it worked fine. I just tried it today and it will not let any water flow. When you hook the hose up to it and turn on the water, nothing happens.

I don’t know if it got stopped up or something but the tank was empty from last trip. Strange.

[Shokyle1]

Sounds like the check valve may be stuck.

[RAurand]

There is no check valve in the black tank sprayer, Only the city water fill!

[Shokyle1]

ok no check valve. Could be your backflow preventer valve stuck. If you search black tank there are several threads that may give you some ideas what to check.

[Brownie]

Mine did that several years ago. I bought a spray wand for about $13 at Walmart until I could get it fixed, and it did a better job of cleaning than the built-in sprayer ever did. After using it, my blank tank lever-sensors started working for the first time in a year!

I finally cut the underbelly and removed the spray head. It was clogged with tank contents! I cleaned it out and reinstalled it (using gasket seal to make sure it didn't leak). It worked again for about 2 weeks, then . . . nothing. I've been using the wand ever since. At full hook-up sites, I just put a hose splitter with shut-offs on the spigot, connect my white hose to one side and a garden hose to the other side. When it's time to flush, I run the garden hose through the sliding panel in my bedroom screen door, hook it up to the wand (also with a shut-off valve), stick it down the toilet, and get the job done. Since my built-in flush connection is near the rear of my trailer (on the flush side), the grey water hose at dump stations never reached it, so I had to connect a garden hose to it anyway. Connecting it to the wand is no big deal.

[EA37TS]

Originally Posted by RAurand

There is no check valve in the black tank sprayer, Only the city water fill!

Most black tank flush systems have a va cum breaker. It is generally located in a top corner under a cabinet. This breaker tends to go out and will not allow water through to flush the tank if is bad.

https://www.amazon.com/Camco-Assembl...H402PV9QBDSVJ6

[rkresge]

Originally Posted by RAurand

There is no check valve in the black tank sprayer, Only the city water fill!

Tempted to disagree on this. My 23RLSW absolutely has a "vacuum breaker/check valve", and I strongly suspect every RV with a black tank sprayer system has one. Mine went bad and started leaking, which is how I know I have one. Dealer's service dept. told me they keep a supply of them in stock because they are known to go bad.


Since the black tank sprayer is pretty dang simple, there's not much that could go wrong other than the check valve. Also, depending on placement (mine is under the bathroom vanity), it's an easy replacement. Dealer will replace it under warranty, should be pretty easy for the OP even if it's not under warranty. Should be right inside the unit, very close to the black tank rinse fitting.



OP can do a search on "vacuum breaker/check valve" and find some easy online options.


Good luck!


Roger

[RAurand]

Originally Posted by rkresge

Tempted to disagree on this. My 23RLSW absolutely has a "vacuum breaker/check valve", and I strongly suspect every RV with a black tank sprayer system has one. Mine went bad and started leaking, which is how I know I have one. Dealer's service dept. told me they keep a supply of them in stock because they are known to go bad.


Since the black tank sprayer is pretty dang simple, there's not much that could go wrong other than the check valve. Also, depending on placement (mine is under the bathroom vanity), it's an easy replacement. Dealer will replace it under warranty, should be pretty easy for the OP even if it's not under warranty. Should be right inside the unit, very close to the black tank rinse fitting.



OP can do a search on "vacuum breaker/check valve" and find some easy online options.


Good luck!


Roger

That might be a possibility but at my hose connector, there is no check valve like on the city water fill.
See photo.

Mine is a single line that runs from the black tank flush port 9Rinse fitting) (see above picture) into the sprayer. It don't connect to anywhere else in my water line.

[Diamonddave]

Ok. I checked it out and removed the hose coupling where you attach the hose on the outside wall.

It was attached with a nice screw-off connector to a short piece of blue hose.

Going into the bathroom lower cabinet (I measured over to the coupling on the outside and found it went into the trailer right where that vanity cabinet is) that short, blue hose was indeed attached to a check valve and from that check valve a white hose continued on down through the floor to the sprayer I imagine.

I disconnected the hose from the check valve and blew through the hose going down to the sprayer and could not get air through. So the sprayer itself must be clogged up somehow. I don’t see how since I sprayed it out when I emptied it last month and it wasn’t used at all and I was going to just go ahead and spray it out again at the beginning of this trip, and it’s clogged?

I also tried to blow through the check valve and while a little air went through, not much!

So not sure if check valve is bad and a clog or what. I’m not sure if air should just flow through that check valve easily (In the correct direction of course) or if more pressure is needed.

I took pictures but I guess it won’t let you load them direct from your phone onto here.

Thanks for the suggestions.

Originally Posted by rkresge

Tempted to disagree on this. My 23RLSW absolutely has a "vacuum breaker/check valve", and I strongly suspect every RV with a black tank sprayer system has one. Mine went bad and started leaking, which is how I know I have one. Dealer's service dept. told me they keep a supply of them in stock because they are known to go bad.


Since the black tank sprayer is pretty dang simple, there's not much that could go wrong other than the check valve. Also, depending on placement (mine is under the bathroom vanity), it's an easy replacement. Dealer will replace it under warranty, should be pretty easy for the OP even if it's not under warranty. Should be right inside the unit, very close to the black tank rinse fitting.



OP can do a search on "vacuum breaker/check valve" and find some easy online options.


Good luck!


Roger

[Jim Smyth]

Originally Posted by RAurand

That might be a possibility but at my hose connector, there is no check valve like on the city water fill.
See photo.

Mine is a single line that runs from the black tank flush port 9Rinse fitting) (see above picture) into the sprayer. It don't connect to anywhere else in my water line.

Mine went out yesterday during a black tank flush. Water started running out under my left fender. Traced the water leak all the way to my shower. I took the shower handle hot/cold unit off the wall (4 screws) and low and behold the black tank check valve (B&B 571) was right in there with the hot/cold connections. My local RV place didnt have one in stock so I got a 90 degree elbow and put it in its place till the new part comes in. I suggest you follow the blue black water line down stream and you will find that vacuum break somewhere! You have to have one in there so you dont potentially back feed sewage into the drinking water. If you dont have one I would put some sort of a check valve in that line.

[TCNashville]

After replacing my vacuum breaker twice because both started leaking, I installed a sharkbite 90* elbow in its place and installed a check valve/back flow preventer at the source where the hose connects to the side of the trailer.

[Matrix]

Thanks. When I connect my hose to the black water flush nothing comes out. I turn the water on and nothing happens. I am suspecting that paper has clogged the sprayer to the point that water cant get through and the backwater valve then kicks in. Could this be the reason the no water is come out of the tank when I turn the flush on? Certainly open to other advice or recommendations!