Consistent toilet clog

Djones033 · 01-02-2021, 11:58 AM

Hey. Any help is much appreciated!

We have had our Winnie for a couple of months. It was 2 years old and lightly used when we bought it.

Every time we go #2, the toilet clogs. Every single time. A plunger clears it sometimes, and other times I have to push a water hose through it. It is not a pyramid clog or anything in the black water tank, I am pretty sure. It is clogging just below the toilet.

I have had it snaked by the dealer, who said everything looks clear. He says there is a right turn in the pipe just below the toilet. I am wondering if this is possibly a design flaw other have experienced. I can’t handle plunging and snaking every single day we camp. Help??

SeeTheUSA · 01-02-2021, 12:25 PM

Change of diet? Sorry, couldn’t pass it up!

Welcome to the forum. Hopefully someone has a fix. You need to indicate the model and year info of your rig.

Morich · 01-02-2021, 12:29 PM

Can we get more info on exactly which Rv you have? If it is a motorhome and with the year model and size like 36 T, etc. there is a chance that the parts drawings would show exactly what is below the floor or in the stool area that might cause a clog.
Unfortunately, we do not get near the same level of info on trailers.

Beyond that idea, I could only suggest using lots more water in the bowl before flushing in the hope that it would then carry the waste further down to pipe???? Some stools are adjustable for the amount of water left but this is not really a good way top go if it can be worked around as it would limit your use between dump and fills on the tanks.

Djones033 · 01-02-2021, 03:42 PM

Yep. 2018 Minnie Winnie 2100 BH.

**Eagle5** · 01-02-2021, 04:09 PM

The two rules of plumbing are:
1.) Excrement runs downhill
2.) Payday's on Friday
This is a design flaw. My toilet opens directly into the Black Tank, as it should.
Section 2.1.3 of the Dometic installation guide clearly states this:

Mechanical seal toilets are designed to only discharge directly into a holding tank. Horizontal pipe runs as found in conventional residential or commercial plumbing systems cannot be accommodated.

You might try doing a crisscross of toilet paper in the bowl beforehand. Perhaps that would help send the payload on its way through the 90º bend and the horizontal pipe that apparently is level.
Welcome to the Forum.
Eagle5

backtrack15 · 01-02-2021, 05:45 PM

If it is a Micro Minnie 2100BH, the toilet is directly over the black tank (no 90, no horizontal pipe).

**Eagle5** · 01-02-2021, 07:02 PM

Hi BackTrack15,
That is excellent news, as it may indicate an updated 2021 plumbing design might be retrofitted into the 2018 model.
Thanks, Eagle5

backtrack15 · 01-02-2021, 07:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eagle5

Hi BackTrack15,
That is excellent news, as it may indicate an updated 2021 plumbing design might be retrofitted into the 2018 model.
Thanks, Eagle5

Something here isn’t correct. I don’t think the 2018 models were any different than 2021 models in terms of the tanks. The tank is very shallow, so maybe it just looks like it has a 90 bend. Maybe the toilet itself has an issue. The Dometic 300 toilets were not exactly stellar.

Lakejumper · 01-02-2021, 08:26 PM

This is a rather personal but frustrating topic. I suggest putting more water in the bowl after you do your business and using less TP. Try flushing after two “wipes” and the wipe and flush again. We use Cottonelles (if you can find them in the store) sometimes for “cleansing” assistance but never flush them down. Lastly, it could be possible that you have the infamous “pyramid of Poop” if the previous owner ever left the black tank valve open to the sewer connection while camping. But, I think that the RV tech would have hit it with the snake if he/she put it in far enough. Just curious, is this your first RV?

backtrack15 · 01-03-2021, 08:01 AM

If this is a Micro Minnie 2100BH (and similar to mine, which I think it is) the toilet is directly above the tank and placed somewhat close to the left-right geometric center of the tank if viewed from above. It is slightly closer to the rear of the tank than the front. The discharge orifice and dump valve are centered left-right on the front of the tank. The tank is shallow (less than the thickness of the trailer frame members). I’d probably get one of those hose attachments that let you jet the black tank from above (via the toilet) and wash it like crazy until it was obvious there was free space in every direction.

Djones033 · 01-03-2021, 08:44 AM

Thanks so much for all the feedback. Answering a couple of questions, if it helps find a solution...

Yes, first RV. I am definitely not immune to user error, but I am confident I know what I am doing and what I am seeing. A couple reasons I believe this is a bend in the pipe and not just a “normal” clog: 1) even for #1’s, toilet paper (RV toilet paper) does not always go down. It is visible just under the toilet flap. I can see a wad in there as I write this post that just will not go down. 2) I unclogged the toilet yesterday by sticking s small water hose in there. Within 3-5 inches below the flap, it hit something solid (metal/plastic kind of solid, not poop kind of solid). I jiggled the hose to get it deeper, which worked. And then when I pulled it back out, the water hose cap got stuck/hung up on what felt like an edge. I had to jiggle it a lot to unhook it and pull it out.

I have tried less wipes per flush, tried more water. No help. I didn't try a criss-cross of paper before the duty. Not likely to attempt that since I’m using the public toilet until I find a fix so I don’t have to plumb my mornings away again!

No telling what the previous owner did and if he/she left a pyramid. But I agree, I think the snake would have spotted that. And I have dumped a considerable amount of powder into the toilet over the last couple months. I have not tried to jet-wash it from above. I can try that to give it a deep clean.

Change of diet, on it! Good one! Lol

Thanks again for all the help. I am overly impressed by the forum’s participation!

backtrack15 · 01-03-2021, 09:11 AM

If it helps with your diagnostic efforts:

My old toilet was a Dometic 300 and I still have it in the garage. You might have the same toilet. I just measured and it is 9.5" straight down from the valve (bit that slides open to drain the bowl) to the floor penetration. There is a slight reduction in diameter of the "shoot" before it reaches the floor. I estimate the bottom of the tank was 6-8" below the top of the trailer floor (memory from toilet replacement). There shouldn't be anything between the valve and the tank.

Anyway, these dimensions and your description of 3-5" below the "flap" are leading me to think you may have an obstruction in the toilet pedestal itself.

Morich · 01-03-2021, 11:41 AM

I may be missing the whole point but is it not possible to see the reason for the clog if it is only less than a foot below the valve and drops straight down? On the RV that I have had a look down the stool usually shows the tank bottom if it is empty! If you look down there and see the curve in a PVC elbow, it's a pipe and not the tank.
I would drain and clean until I could see what is only a foot down there!
If it is a pipe elbow, you have a problem to live with but if it is the tank bottom, you have a problem you need to clean out!

IOS 3 · 01-03-2021, 04:20 PM

Is it possible something was dropped into the toilet (prior owner) that now is lodged in the pipe, giving the appearance of a 90 degree turn?

RVwithDogs · 01-03-2021, 04:40 PM

Your statement "hung up on what felt like an edge. I had to jiggle it a lot to unhook it and pull it out" makes me think that there must be something there.. Any chance the pipe that connects to the toilet has separated and offset a bit creating an edge where the two meet ? You could borrow one of those inspection cameras and poke around and see if anything odd shows up, chances are you will get to keep the camera when the owner finds out what it was used for.

Wyatt · 01-03-2021, 05:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by backtrack15

If it helps with your diagnostic efforts:

My old toilet was a Dometic 300 and I still have it in the garage. You might have the same toilet. I just measured and it is 9.5" straight down from the valve (bit that slides open to drain the bowl) to the floor penetration. There is a slight reduction in diameter of the "shoot" before it reaches the floor. I estimate the bottom of the tank was 6-8" below the top of the trailer floor (memory from toilet replacement). There shouldn't be anything between the valve and the tank.

Anyway, these dimensions and your description of 3-5" below the "flap" are leading me to think you may have an obstruction in the toilet pedestal itself.

I agree. I’m leaning towards a bad install of the commode, wherein there may be part of a seal that’s out of place, off center, and restricting the flow into the black tank.

In ours, I can look straight down, (we’ll almost straight down, as there’s a very small offset), and into the tanks, where I can see the bottom of the tank. There’s no way for a clog to form between the toilet and the tank, unless I completely stuffed it with paper, as in like a half a roll...

Wyatt · 01-03-2021, 05:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RVwithDogs

Your statement "hung up on what felt like an edge. I had to jiggle it a lot to unhook it and pull it out" makes me think that there must be something there.. Any chance the pipe that connects to the toilet has separated and offset a bit creating an edge where the two meet ? You could borrow one of those inspection cameras and poke around and see if anything odd shows up, chances are you will get to keep the camera when the owner finds out what it was used for.

Right on, I think you’re spot on as well...

US1 · 01-03-2021, 11:23 PM

I would tend to think if the pipe has become dislodged, the OP would be seeing a mess on the ground???

My 1st thought was along the lines that something got dropped down the toilet and has become logged in the piping not being able to drop down into the tank. Some sort of flat item that will allow a hose to bypass when jiggled enough, and also catches on the hose when being pulled back out, but not able to dislodge the item.

For a couple of bucks and an easy look, I would just get a small inspection mirror that is mounted on a rod that you could insert down the toilet opening, and with a small flashlight, look inside the pipe running to the tank. May need to use a small flashlight on a string that you could drop down the toilet so its positioned to point down the pipe for better viewing with the mirror.

akeagle · 01-04-2021, 12:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RVwithDogs

Your statement "hung up on what felt like an edge. I had to jiggle it a lot to unhook it and pull it out" makes me think that there must be something there.. Any chance the pipe that connects to the toilet has separated and offset a bit creating an edge where the two meet ? You could borrow one of those inspection cameras and poke around and see if anything odd shows up, chances are you will get to keep the camera when the owner finds out what it was used for.

I was also thinking a borescope might be just the thing for determining exactly what's going on in there.

If the budget allows, you can get a decent one for less than $100, or you can do what I initially did which was to get one from Amazon for about $25 that essentially consisted of a 4 foot optical cable with a tiny light that connects to a smartphone.

P.S. the cable is washable!

SoCo40 · 01-04-2021, 10:29 AM

I'm getting on board with some of the others, sounds like something in the pipe. Had to buy a scope myself for a lost shower fitting. As I remember it was under $75 at Ace. It now stays with the RV, grand kids seem to try a lot of things. Quick look couldn't hurt.