As your last line of defense for really smelly tanks, you can pour one cup of Simple Green and one gallon of hot water down your toilet, then slowly fill the tank with water. Let the solution sit in the tank for 24 hours. Drain it, and do the smell test again.
RV fresh water tankage is usually cleaned with a bleach solution of 1/4c:~15gal. So, for a `60 gal tank, that'd be ~1 cup of bleach in a full tank. Run through the entire water system till you smell bleach at every outlet and let it sit 12 hours (better is overnight).
Open windows and use fans to circulate air and reduce odors. Use a mixture of baking soda and vinegar to neutralize odors. Pour it into the toilet and let it sit for a few hours before flushing. Use air fresheners specifically designed for RVs or natural options like essential oils to mask any lingering smells.
Use two cups of softener for each wastewater tank in your RV. The tank's drain valve should be closed otherwise the softened water will just drain out. Then use the tank(s) normally until it is full and drain it normally. Add a cup of laundry detergent to the black (commode) water tank at the same time.
Dish soap, Calgon and bleach in equal amounts. Used regularly will keep it smelling fresh as a Daisy. I use this mixture in both my black and gray tank.
Activated charcoal is known for its ability to absorb and neutralize odors. Place activated charcoal bags or containers in different areas of the camper cabin to help eliminate unwanted smells.
This might sound strange, but you can put toothpaste in toilet tanks to smell good. To make it work, just squeeze about two tablespoons of minty toothpaste into your toilet tank. If you can find toothpaste with baking soda in it, that's even better.
While a clog may not form the first time you add fabric softener, repeated uses can clog the connection between the toilet tank and the toilet bowl, reducing the flushing power of the toilet. It may also build up on the inside of the drain, causing a partial or complete blockage.
😌 Using Pine-Sol or other chemical cleaners in your wastewater tanks can lead to clogs and odor issues! 🚫 Pine-Sol kills all the bacteria inside the tank, but bacteria are crucial for breaking down waste and controlling smells. Don't make this common mistake!
Air fresheners are an obvious way to combat bad smells, and they're easy to use. Generally, something that is usable on fabric, as well as in the air, is the best way to go. You can spray down the cushions, curtains, carpets, and countertops as frequently as you feel the need to keep the smells away.
Unique RV Digest-it
It is odor-free and works tough on RV septic odors. It dissolves waste and toilet paper using a unique blend of bacteria and enzymes. Available in liquid, powder or drop-in pods. The Unique brand also makes a sensor cleaner and a tank cleaner for when there is a build up of waste.
Carbon is by far the most popular and effective way to keep your aquarium smelling fresh. Activated carbon has a higher surface area than normal carbon so can adsorb smells even more effectively. Carbon can be effective on all of the above smells and will also provide crystal clear water.
Some RVers prefer to use their own homemade cleaning solutions in place of store-bought. This can be cost-saving and also give RVers complete control over what they are putting in their tanks. Some RVers use borax and Dawn dish soap, while others use baking soda and hydrogen peroxide.
It is widely claimed that adding aluminum foil to a toilet tank helps to achieve a clean and shiny toilet, but critics challenge these claims due to a lack of scientific evidence.
You can clean the toilet using this product by pouring a little into the bowl and scrubbing clean. But we don't recommend placing Fabuloso or any other all-purpose cleaner in the back of the toilet tank. Such cleaners can be corrosive and may degrade the rubber gasket and seal in your tank.
As it turns out, you can actually unclog a toilet with dish soap instead of turning to a harsh, toxic bowl cleaner. Just as natural dish soap helps break down dirt, grease, and food that may be stuck on dishes and utensils, it can help break down what's in your toilet bowl.
Use Fabric Softener
If you want to eliminate black tank odors and freshen the atmosphere of your RV, take a capful or two of scented fabric softener and pour it into your black tank. Pack along your favorite fabric softener on your next RV trip and use frequent capfuls to combat foul sewer tank odors.
Adding anything to them that turns them into a septic system is bad, as we know. Leave the dish detergent next to the galley sink to wash dishes. Dumping large amounts into your waste tanks with the desire to “clean” anything is just wasting money and potentially causing problems.
The short answer: Absolutely not. While the idea of your bathroom smelling like fresh laundry with every flush might be tempting, the potential risks outweigh the benefits. The chemical makeup of fabric softeners can be harmful to septic systems, leading to clogged pipes and potential damage to the flushing system.
An even simpler odor solution is to pour vinegar into the toilet and let it work for an hour or so before flushing. For extra deodorizing power, mix baking soda and vinegar in the toilet. 8. Fresh eucalyptus leaves are a very effective bathroom deodorizer.