8 replies to this topic

[plug ugly]

do they invariablly always have some stink to them?  Im debating upgrading to a camper with a toilet, but the wife is worried about stink as the one we went to look at had some smell, but had been sitting for a year or two.

[Jon R]

Without getting into a long post about this, I tend to be in the same camp as your wife. I don’t want to cook, eat, or sleep with rv bathroom smell, and in the tiny space of a camper someone with a good nose will smell it even in the best conditions.

I’ve become a fan of carrying a well scrubbed portapotty in a closed cabinet in my Grandby and using it outside in a tent if possible. If the plastic gets to the point where you feel like you can’t get it adequately clean, you recycle it and buy a new one for under $150. I like the Thetford 345. I also bought the Thetford coated nylon carrying bag for use in other vehicles but I don’t use the bag in the camper cabinet.

[Wandering Sagebrush]

We have a Northern Lite hard shell.  The toilets don’t smell if they are dumped and cleaned regularly.  You need to use a good black tank additive, preferably biodegradable, after every dump.  Using the vent fan when stinking it up is advised.

 

For the gents, if you miss, clean it up and spray with a mild vinegar water solution.

[michelle_east_county]

Our Hallmark Ute has a cassette toilet and it’s fine as long as you use the recommended amount of appropriate black tank enzyme chemicals, which is a greater proportion concentration than with marine toilet and black water tank.

Also check size before you buy. The cassette toilet in ours sits close enough towards center that what would be a tolerable amount of knee room if toilet were closer to back wall is, on this one, really too tight at my 5’9” height.

[BlueSky]

They stink, period.  I've been in lots of campers with bathrooms and if you use them for number 2 the camper is going to smell at some point. There's a lot of plumbing beyond what you can scrub clean, and campers do sit for long periods. My simple solution is to use the camper bathroom for number 1 only, and take a walk to the campground vault toilet for number 2 (or when boondocking go dig a hole).  I can't believe they put toilets in truck campers.  30 foot Airstream, ok fine maybe.  Truck camper?  No way.

 

On may last trip in southern CO I saw a Ford Transit camper van with a big metal rear tray.  On the rear tray was a square-shaped structure, tall and big enough to stand in. It had a vent on top. I have a feeling I know what it was, and frankly not a bad idea.

[craig333]

My Thetford doesn't stink. You do need to keep the appropriate chemicals in it. I never use it inside except in case of emergency. Of course its true as soon as you sit down someone will come by

[CreekRob]

The thing is even if scruplously cleaned they sometimes end up smelling like clean toilets. Better than the alternative, but still obnoxious to some. Not to mention the odors that come from use. A truck camper is a pretty small space with only so much ventilation and one needs to either live with it or go (heh) with another solution than a built in toilet.

[smlobx]

The  cassette toilet in our Hallmark rarely stinks. I can only think of one time when we had an odor and that was because it was very full!

Full disclosure, it is used primarily for night time visits and we use public facilities when ever possible which seems to work for us.

[craig333]

I only use mine if its raining or too cold to use outside.