How do you monitor tanks level?

[sokhapkin]

How do you monitor black and grey water tank level in Scamp trailers? To my understanding Scamp doesn't provide monitoring gauges.

[Donna D.]

Gray water... is it backing up in the sink or shower? Black water tank... LOOK everytime you flush. Or, like me, after a while your "ears" tell you how close you are at topping off.

There's really something grand to be said about NOT having a bunch of electronics. You learn about your trailer, and it really, really isn't tough.

[sokhapkin]

Got it! Thanks, Donna

[floyd]

Attachment 67871

Originally Posted by sokhapkin

How do you monitor black and grey water tank level in Scamp trailers? To my understanding Scamp doesn't provide monitoring gauges.

1] Fresh water...
At first we simply looked under the lid of the bench... That got old so we added a door under the bench with a tap light inside next to the water tank.
2] Black water...
Placing a flashlight snug against the side of the tank at the bottom then raising it up works great as soon as the light reaches the liquid level it shows the light at the level line.
3] Gray water...
We simply used the SWAG method (Scientific Wild-A#@ed Guess) and then emptied it every few days.

Then we installed a non-invasive electronic system on all three tanks called "See-Level" Now a simple touch of a button gives us a digital voltage reading on the battery and percentage readings on all tanks.
Donna is right though...The "See-Level" system may be a bit decadent!

[honda03842]

Our approach is simple, Ginny marks the day I dump on a calendar and when it's been 4 days she tells me to dump.

When you travel a bit you quickly, develop a sense for when to dump.

[Carol H]

As Norm suggests the more you use the trailer the faster you learn what your limits are as far as when you need to dump.

As Donna suggest the black water is an easy one - you can see the level every time you flush. For the grey water - I know that if I have gone through 2.5 tanks of fresh water the grey water needs dumping or my feet might get a little wet the next time I use the bathroom.

The fresh water is a little tricker and if you use the search function on this site (bottom google option) you will find some pretty creative ways people have dealt with it. I again just count of historical usage.

I carry a 8 gallon portable tote that I drain the tanks off to if I am planning to stay longer and don't want to move the trailer to a dump station.

[Cyndi B.]

Yeah, Scamp is by sight. Montana trailer is by smell.

[peterh]

When we converted our dinette into a "U" shape and put the fresh tank under the back bench, I cut a slot in the front of the back bench in front of the water tank, then put an LED light bar on back side of the water tank, parallel to the floor. When I press the little button next to my pump switch, it illuminates the tank so I can see the water level.

[Carol H]

Dang Pete, you really are the man!

[Gina D.]

as said before, the more time you spend in it, the more you will become "One With It's Needs".

Every trailer has it's own personality, just like your house, and you learn to read it's quirks. A good example for mine is, I can tell when I should think about filling the fresh tank. Long before it actually runs dry. My water pump changes its tune when its down to about 10 gallons. Not the pump motor itself, but the way it vibrates. It's hard to explain, it's just a sound and feeling I have learned to recognize.

Grey holding is the same. The drains will let you know by the tune change. I have no holding tanks in this one, but in my Burro, I knew when I had only a couple gallons to go by the sound of the drain.