Accolade 37 k Wet bay set up

[Dhindle]

We just purchased a new Entegra accolade. I was wondering if anyone else had concerns over the way the wet bay is set up.

Our macerator and the emergency tank dump is all up in the same area as the fresh water filter, the shower and drinking water hook ups. It seems they have set this up for some real issues with contamination from sewer waste. The macerator stores directly under the fresh water filter. I’m wondering if there was some thinking from Jayco that I don’t fully understand or if anyone else had the same concerns and made any modifications?

There is also no area to store your sewer hoses except in that same area with our shower head and drinking filters. We stored our fresh water hoses in a compartment on the other side that is not carpeted but it also doesn’t have any drain. From my experience, no matter how well you drain the hoses prior to storing, there is always some leaking left. I think we can have the dealer easily put in a small drain plug in that compartment.

Thanks for any thoughts regarding this issue!

 

[Rustynuts]

I felt the same way when we got our Seneca as our old Winnebago was set up so much better. I completely remodeled our pretty early after my dislike for the Macerator and the crossover of components. I moved things like the water filter and fill to the right side, moved my drain valves, added better lighting, tank flush valve up into the white panel and added an aluminum panel dividing the left and right half. The sewer drain connection was still in the left side and I kept the hoses there. Used that for a while and still wasn’t happy with it so I decided to add an electric hose reel on the right side, one fit perfectly up on half the compartment ledge and half on an overhanging bracket and also cut a hole in the bottom of the left side, installed a tank grommet and ran the drain pipe out the bottom so the sewer hose connection was now on the outside of the coach but still stored the hoses on the left side. A bit later I added 2 sewer hose tubes under the rear of the coach with a couple of brackets I bent up, one to bolt to the bottom of the compartment and one that bolted to the frame by replacing an existing bolt with a longer one to hold the bracket, and then the tube attached to it with some 4.5” muffler clamps. The final version which I am finally happy with is I added a BluTech Trio water filter system which is compact and all Stainless Steel, and their water softener and hard plumbed the pressure regulator. I did have to install the water softener on the waste side but, it is a sealed unit and there is no sewer hose storage of hose connection inside any more. Very happy with it now, quick and easy to use and clean. Here are some pics of the progression with the final version in the last pic.

Here is info on the hose reel install.
https://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f64/seneca-electric-fresh-water-hose-reel-install-71782.html

 

[Dhindle]

Seneca wet bay modifications

Wow, those are great modifications. I had already thought about having the dealer run the sewer hose connector out the bottom.

I’m not quite as handy as you but will certainly take these ideas to our dealer to see what we can do.

It may make sense to remove the macerator as well. I am on the fence with it currently. I have read good and bad and some really nasty mishaps when it goes wrong.

Thanks again!

 

[Dhindle]

One last question, did you have any issue with connecting your hose for city water? We noticed that with the limited space they allowed, when we close the door, it really crimps the hose and reduces the pressure. It also looks like it would start to break the hose. Maybe install a 90 degree or was that solved when you installed the hose reel somehow?

 

[Rustynuts]

One last question, did you have any issue with connecting your hose for city water? We noticed that with the limited space they allowed, when we close the door, it really crimps the hose and reduces the pressure. It also looks like it would start to break the hose. Maybe install a 90 degree or was that solved when you installed the hose reel somehow?

Before I did any mods I used a Camco brass 90 degree fitting and it fits behind the door just fine and also puts a lot less stress on the connection and its fittings. If yiu look at my pics, I have that same 90 on the black tank flush line so it doesn’t stress that plastic fitting. Using the brass 90’s also keeps the plastic one from wearing out and leaking from use. The hose reel does make it nice as the hose just pulls out and goes out through the floor of the compartment.

 

[Dhindle]

Hi there Rustynuts, it’s been a while since we last spoke on this string. Since then we have continued to have issues with our dumping. We took it back to dealer that did the modifications and they said that we/they should have never removed the macerator that the plumbing is not run at the proper angle and wont function properly with it removed. I find that hard to believe given you and others have had good success. They tell us it is what it is. I’ve tried to contact Jayco to no avail. Our issue seems now to be with the dumping and potentially the venting. We had a clogged black tank last trip. First one in over 20 years of having rv’s. Can’t say it wasn’t possible that it was just a clog but we seem to continue to have problems. They say plumbing in the Seneca is so flat that it also leaves nasty stuff in the pipes without the pump. Every time we drain and flush to zero and no water comes out, we pack up and move only to have what seems like black water at the cap. We had them install another valve before the cap to avoid the nasty’s coming out when I open the cap to hook up the hose. It was super embarrassing and nasty. We’re not sure where to turn next. We can’t seem to get any good answers on this expensive coach. any other suggestions or thoughts. Thanks!

 

[Plumberman]

Might want to call a plumber - seriously. Removing the macerator should have no bearing on the performance of the sewer system in the coach. A good residential plumber can re-route the sewer in just a few hours. What year is your coach? Where was the stoppage at? After reading a few other strings I brought my camera home from the office and looked in my black tank through the toilet- the "cookie" from when Jayco originally drilled the hole in the tank was still there and it would block the outlet only allowing water to pass and leaving all the solid waste behind. Removed it and suddenly all those piles of solid waste have disappeared. I wonder of you have a similar issue.

 

[Rustynuts]

Hi there Rustynuts, it’s been a while since we last spoke on this string. Since then we have continued to have issues with our dumping. We took it back to dealer that did the modifications and they said that we/they should have never removed the macerator that the plumbing is not run at the proper angle and wont function properly with it removed. I find that hard to believe given you and others have had good success. They tell us it is what it is. I’ve tried to contact Jayco to no avail. Our issue seems now to be with the dumping and potentially the venting. We had a clogged black tank last trip. First one in over 20 years of having rv’s. Can’t say it wasn’t possible that it was just a clog but we seem to continue to have problems. They say plumbing in the Seneca is so flat that it also leaves nasty stuff in the pipes without the pump. Every time we drain and flush to zero and no water comes out, we pack up and move only to have what seems like black water at the cap. We had them install another valve before the cap to avoid the nasty’s coming out when I open the cap to hook up the hose. It was super embarrassing and nasty. We’re not sure where to turn next. We can’t seem to get any good answers on this expensive coach. any other suggestions or thoughts. Thanks!

What they are telling is a flat out lie, all the plumbing is sloped for a gravity feed into the macerator collection box where it is then munched up and pumped out by the pump in the collection box. The macerator does not suck the waste out of the tanks. With that said, the residue you are getting after the the tank is drained is because the way Jayco mounts the tanks from the sides the belly of the tank often sag below the height of the drain outlet which leaves a puddle in the bottom. This can be cleaned up some, I close my valve and fill the black tank back up with the flush system and drain several times until I get clean water coming out. Your clog probably was from not flushing enough and a buildup of TP builds up in this belly and then all at once try’s to go down the pipe and clogs it up. You will still have dirty water in the tank no matter what you do, you can get some of this out by raising the passenger side of the coach manually with the levelers to get the water to flow out of the belly of the tank. To keep from any surprises when pulling a cap, you can’t rely on the tank valves themselves, you must have at least one additional valve, if you look at mine, you will see that I have two valves after the tank valves and the final one even has a clear section of pipe right above it so I van visually see if there is a leaky valve upstream.

We have an RB and I see you have a K so we both have 2 black tanks. I have found that I only have this issue with the front tank but the rear tank totally drains and flushes out clean and quick and it is a narrow, long tank where the belly doesn’t sag down. In this second pic, this is the front gray tank, but you can see what I mean about the belly of the tank hangs low and this tank is empty, but the black is the same way. The next time I have the section open over the axle area where the front black tank is, I am going to try blocking up the belly of the tank to see if this helps.

 

[Jeepin Jason]

Question about Blue Tech Trio

Rusty,

Looks like someone else pulled this thread up so I will pile on. I have already removed the macerator and will now be changing out everything else in that bay similar to your setup. Not sure I am going to add in the water softner just yet. I see that you put the water pressure regulater after the Blue Tech Unit and I imagine that is because the Blue Tech Filter slows down a bit of the flow. Any concerns with the pressure going into the Blue Tech Filter?

Also, how long do you go before changing out the filters? I was thinking about putting one of those cheap gallon meters in there to help keep track of how much water had flowed through.

 

[Rustynuts]

Rusty,

Looks like someone else pulled this thread up so I will pile on. I have already removed the macerator and will now be changing out everything else in that bay similar to your setup. Not sure I am going to add in the water softner just yet. I see that you put the water pressure regulater after the Blue Tech Unit and I imagine that is because the Blue Tech Filter slows down a bit of the flow. Any concerns with the pressure going into the Blue Tech Filter?

Also, how long do you go before changing out the filters? I was thinking about putting one of those cheap gallon meters in there to help keep track of how much water had flowed through.

The water pressure regulator is actually before the filter system. If you look at my panel, there is the factory quick disconnect for the coily hose, the fresh water fill connection and the electric hose reel below, all 3 of these are before the regulator so any water coming into the coach first goes through the regulator and then the filters and then the softener. I do have the softener plumbed to either bypass or with quick disconnects, remove it for service or when not needed. When we camp around Oregon, we don’t use the softener as our water isnt bad like other areas. I have not seen any water flow difference when running through the filters or softener at all. We did have some issues with our Truma water heater shutting off after a minute or so which I thought might be from the filters being added but it ended up being my propane regulator was bad. If we are traveling in the SW or back East, I change every 3 months but camping locally every 6 months. I service the softener when you start noticing the difference, my wife notices it when doing her hair Here is a pick of the first filter after spending 2 months back in KY, TN and FL.

 

[Dhindle]

Thanks so much Rusty! That’s no surprise about the truthfulness of their answer. I feel much better about telling them to leave the macerator out and we’ll be by next week to pick up our coach. We did have them add the extra valve last trip before the cap. Saved a lot of issue. The clear pipe is a great idea as well. Thanks again, you are very helpful.

 

[Firewrench-JAY]

I did some mods to wet bay but not as high tech as others. I cut the white panel in half so I can get head & shoulders in there to work on the back side of Nautilus unit. Have repaired a couple small leaks back there. Moved water filter over to right side. Water pump still in original location. Made a removable shelf that fits over front lip of compartment so I can sit the water jugs there to refill fresh water when boondocking. Macerator has always worked fine for me so never felt a need to remodel sewer plumbing.
3.5 years in, we are in the rig for 6 months in the winter.

 

[Southyork771]

Perfect Timing

Hey everyone...New member and 1st post!!!

The timing of this thread is perfect! I have been toying with the idea of removing the macerator from our brand new Seneca. I think it's more of an obstruction than a help. We have been RV'ers for 30 years and never needed one in the past.

I feel confident that I can remove the unit from the bay, but need a little advice about parts needed for reconstructing the black ABS pipe. I see a rubber collar that goes onto the cut pipe, but I don't know the correct terminology. Is this the best way to rebuild the line (collar-3" PVC splice-ABS bayonet mount for the slinky)?

Thanks in advance for your help. Southyork771

 

[Rustynuts]

The rubber coupler fitting is called a Fernco (brand name) and this one fits over the hub of a fitting (the part the pipe glues into) so you can cut it off flush to give you the most room to work with. Once the Fernco is on, then you can built whatever you want, everybody seems to do it a little different to fit their needs and wants. With the Fernco attached, standard 3” abs pipe fits into it, on mine, I started with a Street 90 and built from there.

Fernco P1059-33 Flexible PVC Coupling For 3" Plastic Socket to Pipe Plumbing Connections https://a.co/d/g8iRyEx