Promaster Van Build | Ep.16 | How to Install a Grey Water Tank
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 19 พ.ย. 2021
- How to install a grey water tank with an electronic drain valve, plus some bonus footage from my recent camping trip to Death Valley, CA
Tank- amzn.to/3HAQf5B
Motorized Valve- amzn.to/3DlY64b
DPDT Switch- amzn.to/3ccTxx5
Stainless Nuts and Bolts- amzn.to/3CnEwmS
1/2” Male Pex Adapter- amzn.to/3qJCVFN
Pex Clamps- amzn.to/3kHqINY
Pex Crimper- amzn.to/3FkRVhk
Plug- amzn.to/3qNEUsy
1’’ 1/2 drain adapter- amzn.to/3ozE4wO2”
Galvanized Self Drilling Screws- Find these at home depot
1’’1/8 self drilling screws for pilot hole- find these at home depot
Pipe sealant- amzn.to/3oykuBm
Metal Angle- amzn.to/3qEsrHL
Metal Straps- Get this from Home Depot
L Brackets- Get this from Home Depot
Reversable Clamps- amzn.to/3Hp6kuT
Episodes:
Episode 15 • Promaster Van Build | ...
Episode 14 • Promaster Van Build | ...
Episode 13 • Promaster Van Build | ...
Episode 12 youtu.be5NGXpMDMgqc
Episode 11 • Promaster Van Build | ...
Episode 10 • Promaster Van Build | ...
Episode 9 • Promaster Van Build | ...
Episode 8 • Promaster Van Build | ...
Episode 7 • Promaster Van Build | ...
Episode 6 • Promaster Van Build | ...
Episode 5 • Promaster Van Build | ...
Episode 4 • Promaster Van Build | ...
Episode 3 • Promaster Van Build | ...
Episode 2 • Promaster Van Build | ...
Episode 1 • Promaster Van Build | ...
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You did a decent job. A few suggestions for you. First I would have run a piece of rubber expansion pipe in the vertical section (after the pee trap) which offers some room should the pipe move vertically for whatever reason. Next, your drain pipe is going to fill up with grey water to whatever height it is in your grey water tank because you entered the bottom of the tank with it. Not a huge deal, but something to think about.
Third, you have no way of disconnecting your tank in case it requires servicing or replacing. You will need to cut off your pipe and re-glue it back together again.
Fourth, the bigger your drain pipe at your electric drain valve, the easier it is for food particles to get out or at least not get stuck.
Fifth, there is a lot of strain on the base of your drain at the tank. The weight of the drain valve, especially when going down bumpy roads will stress it even more and could cause it to fall off or crack over time. I would recommend finding a way to support that weight.
Sixth, I would consider having metal protection on each side of the toggle switch so that it doesn’t get hit as you walk in or out or perhaps get caught in a belt loop or by something you are carrying in.
Next, I would caution against using loomex (romex in the US) or any other type of solid wire as it tends to break. Stranded conductors are a better choice.
Finally, I had the volume turned down while watching this, so you may have dealt with this issue, but I hope you angled the pipe down towards the grey water tank once outside of the van rather than having it fairly flat. Considering that your entry point into the grey water tank from your sink is at the bottom instead of the top (I understand why you did), the steeper the angle down your pipe goes from your first 90 below the van floor, the better off you would be because there would be less water in that pipe and less pooling should you be parked facing downhill.
My apologies if I am wrong on any of my thoughts, but just shared them in the hopes that they are helpful... Enjoy the adventures!
I would add one other point, you should have a manual valve before your motorized ball valve in case ball valve fails which mine did. I had a tank full of gray water and no way to drain. I ended up removing sink drain line and siphoning gray water out through. Not fun!
Love this idea for the switch! Thanks for your videos. Building out a promaster and your knowledge is super helpful.
Thank you
You make killer videos, I’m using a lot of your ideas on my build. Thank you man!
Thank you!
@@BuildingVanLife9:08
Perfectly done video! No fluff. Looking forward to doing this in the next couple weeks. Thanks so much!
Also, will be using your links if applicable! Cheers
@@Paulscheer1 Thank you!
Very informative! This was my first grey water set up video, hopefully mine goes as smoothly
good luck, happy to answer any questions you come across!
Thanks man, this was super helpful!
Excellent videos .. clear ..concise and to the point .. keep it up
Thanks for watching
@@BuildingVanLife rounded head carriage bolts might have helped...
I have the auto reverse ball valve instead of the reverse polarity. When power is removed, it auto closes - but it actually doesn’t use power at all once closed, so I actually think it’s a much simpler setup. Just FYI!
I think I bought the same one as you (so many options, I had no idea! 😂) Can you tell me what type of switch you use for that? STSP? Thank you!
@@conandal yes, I use a latching push button switch - so push and latch to open, push again and it removes power, closing the valve
@@davidskirk thank you!
@davidskirk do you have links to what you used in your setup? Thanks.
nice!
love the remote drain feature, easier than I would have thought. So I'm wondering if larger food particles would get stuck over time in that smaller drain pipe though?
The sink comes with a little strainer filter that is like mesh to catch any food particals. It pulls out to easily clean. Anything that gets past that then yes you would need to clear the clog
Music sounds like Snowman Attack Flash game!
Good setup! Not trying to be negative but the only problem I see is that due to the lower input pipe, you’ll only be able to use less than half your tank due to fluid dynamics. Your level will never go above the top of your input pipe since the system is not pressurized. You gave me some good ideas as to how to install mine! Thanks!
Good sir, you are indisputably wrong. Pressure will equalise in the system, the system does include the inlet pipe. Hence the tank can be filled to the brim once water starts building up in the vertical pipe.
increase your drain to 3/4 or 1" not 1/2" and use whirsbo waterpipe. (rent the tool from homedepot) - use abs glue on abs pipe and where you use your 90 after your p-trap, replace with a T and off the top of the T use a cheater vent. (cheater vent is a check valve airintake)
What do you mean? This is 2” drain pipe
@@BuildingVanLife for your zone valve drain you made. Great videos and van build. one of the better built out there
By cheater vent, do you mean for the grey water tank ventilation? If so wouldn’t any odours end up inside the van? Or am I missing something?
@@albertanasoul by cheater vent i mean - "air admittance" after you connect your ptrap. you use a T and off the Top of the T you use a "air admittance valve" or a cheater vent you glue with abs glue on your pipe. the height doesnt matter (just go as high as possible) because it has a internal check valve. all it does is let air in when you use your sink so if siphonage happens the air admittance valve opens on negative pressure and lets air in to save your ptrap from being siphoned out and running dry. because then you get sewage gas smells.
@B C very cool. Never heard of that before. Thanks for explaining it
Loving this set up. One quick question, do we purchase the On/On switch or On/Off/On switch. Sorry if I miss anything from the video.
The on on switch. Link should be in the description
thanks for the lesson. I'm extrapolating this into two 10 gallon tanks. you haven't had any issue with the bolts sticking up rupturing the tank over time?
No definitely not have had any issues with that
Sweet! Where did You vent it? I see the hose but where is the end tip?
The vent is on the top left corner. It’s just an elbow pointing up with the pex.
Great videos!! We’re you concerned about the nuts/bolts rubbing against tank and wearing a hole in it?
Not at all. If that happened in ten years time (doubt it) it’s a $38 tank to replace
@@BuildingVanLife Those tanks are now double that by the way.
Fight club is in my top five all time
Glad someone noticed haha
Love the build. Do you have a ballpark cost of the build, minus the cost of the vehicle?
after i make the van tour video I am planning on making a video breaking down the costs
Can I install this hot water heater in my Ram Promaster? I can get an inverter, but it seems that I might need a breaker box? I would have an on and off switch when I’m not taking a shower or I need to just wash my hair in the sink.
Yes you can add a water heater. You have a few options. You can do an electric water heater like i did on my last build here th-cam.com/video/U3-FfbOsG8I/w-d-xo.html if you do that you would need at least 300 amp hours of battery and an inverter sized to handle the load or you can do a propane tank less water heater out the back of the van like I'm going to do on my current van. I would recommend this option and I'll be showing it in my next video.
Great explanations and detail. Thanks! Can you tell us what you think the ideal tank size is? Is 5 gallons too much or too little in practical use? If more is better, how much more? I'm aiming at full-time use and thinking of a single 25L tank, with baffles to minimize sloshing. If that's overkill, can someone explain why? Thanks again.
I think it depends on how you use your van. For me this was the perfect size. But I always just leave the valve open and drain out the bottom of the van unless I am somewhere that it wouldnt be appropriated to do that, then when I leave I empty it by opening the valve. So i never really drive around with a full grey water tank. So i think it depends on how you use it.
Plus you have to think about how hard it is to fit a bigger tank under there.
Awesome video I'm thinking of using some of your ideas for this for these tanks. I'm having issues with your links it brings me to Amazon but just the home page that it no items are shown.
Hmm wierd I will check this out later and update them if they aren’t working. Maybe it’s because you aren’t logged in on your browser? Sometimes if you are clicking from the TH-cam app it’s different than your normal browser. Try that it might work
ok i think i fixed the links now, it should be working
@@BuildingVanLife Thank you my friend they are working perfectly now.
Does it matter which positive and negative for the valve align with the positive and negative from the battery? Or as long as the valve positives and negatives are criss-crossed on each end it's good?
It does not matter which one you connect as long as they are crisscrossed
I also have a newer video on this that might help too. Here it is th-cam.com/video/Tq3AtgnSLu8/w-d-xo.html
I am moving out to Newport in a month. I am driving my ram pro-master out there. I am building it out but may need help with setting up the battery bank and electrical. Would you be willing to do a side job?
I do get these requests quite a bit, right now I'm not doing any side jobs sorry.
I’ve looked at a few of these gray tank videos. They all show the e-valve mounting on a straight extension from the tank. That creates a relatively long, unsupported lever. Would it be better to have some support for that lever or is it so light that no support make a difference? Also, why not just use a nipple to connect the valve directly to the tank?
You may be able to do it with a nipple, it's going to basically the same thing though. It may look like a pex extension is being used and it could flex but in reality the pex piece is the minimum length i could use with the two male adapters. So basically that little piece of pex has solid brass inside of it. The valve is pretty sturdy as it is, I didnt feel it needed any extra support after tugging on it but you could add something if wanted.
It's in a vehicle, vibrations will always have an effect, always support either side of any mass and double up on number of supports generally, I'd also be adding a clamp to the drain as it passes under the frame rail. 😀
I finally saw one! Was it Fight Club maybe? Dude smoking?
Haha you got it
Hi, is there a reason why you went for 2 grey water tanks instead of one?
I wanted to keep the tanks small and also since I have the sink on one side of the van and the shower on the other side it would have been difficult to run drain lines across the van and still have enough pitch for them to drain.
DO NOT USE OUTDOORS!!!!!!!!!
I purchased this valve and installed on water tank outdoors, above ground. It was exposed to rain and water splashed but never submerged. It failed with in a few months. Took it apart and found it rusted and water inside. It is rated IP65. I contacted USSolid and was told Quote
"Hi,
It is stated in the manual that the ball valve is IP65 and cannot be used outdoor. I'm afraid that the gears are rusted due to used outdoors.
Looking forward to hearing from you, thank you.
I will say before failure valve worked beautifully! It just can't be used outdoors
Best,
Yuan "
I've been using these for years outdoors and never had a problem and you're the first person that had that issue in the comments
@@BuildingVanLife I guess that I'm just lucky! I did reach out to USSOLID one more time and their response was "Please refer to the manual here( see attached).
I'm afraid that our ball valves cannot be used outdoors." In manual it states, "If permanently installed outdoors, it is recommended that you enclose motorized in some protective housing" My valve was located on side of tank in middle of van. Maybe that location gets more spray while driving in rain?? Love your videos and have used many as a guide in building my van! I only trying to help you and others so they don't have same problem down the line. Maybe a plastic housing would help, made from a piece of pvc pipe?? Also, when this valve does fail, there is no way to drain tank. Maybe adding a manual valve before this valve would be a good idea??
@@gregnorman3183 they aren’t that expensive. Just put a new one in
From the way you connected the switch, i think the valve is getting power all the time, and the switch is only reversing it. one position is + - , the other is - + . is that correct?
but this is a normally closed valve, no? it should remain closed if there is no power at all. would a simple on/off switch be enough? i mean give it power only when you want to drain.
No that’s not how this valve works. They sell like 5 different types for different applications. This one only uses power to move the valve.
If there is no power at all the switch stays wherever you left it.
What happened to all those garage doors?
Do you still like the electric valve? Would you have done anything differently?
Yes it works great I’ll be using it again on the next one
This is random but you look so much like this Austrailian actor Jacob Elordi if he was a bit older
Haha haven’t heard that one.
How do you clean the tank? There is no opening on the bottom.
You can pour bleach down the drain and just run water through and drain it a few times.
Just Curious...why didn't you flip the tank and use the inlet at the top?
Not sure what you mean?
@@BuildingVanLife he means put the big hole on the top versus the bottom.
@@WaybackRewind it’s not possible to fit it that way because the tank can’t be moved back far enough to have enough room for the pipes to make the bend, plus it would add another another uphill section to the pipe to get over the frame of the van. I don’t know if all that makes sense but to make a long story short it doesn’t fit that way.
@Alluvium inc no worries I was just explaining the question. I am in the middle of a build and appreciate all the effort to record your work.
Your drain entry is so low in the tank, doesn’t that mean you;l only get a small amount of water into the tank before it backs up into the drain?
Water stays in the bottom pipe but it fully drains into the tank without any resistance
This is not correct, the level in the tank will be exactly the same in the pipe. The pipe will be fully drained only if the tank is drained.
@@lucjean5610 I am saying the same thing. I agree
to be more specific water stays in the pipe when the level of the water in the tank is above that level....
The inlet to the gray water tank is supposed to be at the top of the tank. The main problem from the shown setup is that the movement of the van can cause the p-trap to be sucked dry when the water in the tank sloshes. One solution would be an additional vent between the p-trap and the tank, or use a HepvO Waterless Valve instead of a p-trap. Or, just deal with the odor - it should not be dangerous like real sewer gas.
Will you always have a little water in your tank because the drain isn't at the very bottom of the tank? Could this potentially freeze?
What I do is I just leave it open while I’m driving and the last bit drains out. You can also pour some anti freeze down the drain. They make special RV drain anti freeze for this purpose
How does it actually fill the tank when the input is on the bottom of the tank?
gravity, the pipe extends 3 feet above the tank
@@BuildingVanLife I see. So no chance of a vapor lock?
@@yourpcmd it's not set up where it needs to drain uphill so no. While some water remains in the pipe, there is nothing restricting it from filling the tank
@@BuildingVanLife good to know. We're building a PM 136 HR so we're taking ideas from your build series.
@@yourpcmd sounds good, this set up worked great for me, i'll be doing the exact same thing on the one I'm building now
I don't understand why you have that fight club pic that pops up and goes away super fast. Please explain so i don't feel like i'm taking crazy pills lol
I’m just entertaining myself
Take the plunge, buy a 120v welder!
Those screws you used to screw brackets into frame didn't look like they had ANY thread for about 3/4 to 1" from the head of the screw--- how are they not pulling out of the holes??? It looked as if they they didn't stop when you drove them in-- (you even spun the heads after they were up against the brackets-- when they should have been tigth if threads were engaged)--- nothing to keep them from sliding back out to the threaded portion--- I would hope you replaced those screws with shorter "all thread" screws (off camera).... th-cam.com/video/Od5L_t8ygMs/w-d-xo.htmlsi=s1m5yCHtqs9FDinK&t=338
you should really be using plus nuts to screw in. these screws are risky
Was that Hunter Biden you flashed on the screen?
my bad your the one making cash on movies no one said they need to be mechanically correct.
really the wast water hooked to bottom of tank. last time i checked drain water will not push the water up in tank. dum a drain valve is supposed to be at bottom of tank not 2 inches up from bottom. DUD you punt tank in wrong. waste water is at top
Dud your mechanical skills are not so smart. heads of bolts and that strapping will damage tank, whats point of using rust proof self drilling screw when you're drilling a metal Fram. ITS NOT THAT HARD TO USE A RIVNUT IN EXISTING HOLES OF VAN
My opinion this installation is poorly executed. 1, the tank is resting on the bolts head and will work through the plastic tank. 2, the solenoid valve is upside down, depending on the design the water pressure (water high) from the tank could open the plunger inside the valve. 3, the solenoid valve head is exposed to be damaged by branches or rocks.
Ok thanks looking forward to seeing how you do it
I am glad not to be your customer.