Upgrade to S-Model - Yes or No??

Mercator

We are considering trading in our Q-model for a new T@B S-model with wet bath and toilet.  

Questions for those with black water tanks:

1. Is the addition of the shower and toilet worth giving up the interior space and having to go the dump station when leaving camp?  

2. If at a campsite for a period of time and the black water tank is full, how inconvenient is it to take the T@B to the dump station and return to the campsite?  i.e. do you have to totally secure and pack away everything in the T@B to move it?

3. How long does the 6 gallon fresh water tank last when boon docking? (How much water is used for flushing?)

4. Where do you stow your sewer hose when travelling?

jkjenn

Mercator said:

We are considering trading in our Q-model for a new T@B S-model with wet bath and toilet.  

Questions for those with black water tanks:

1. Is the addition of the shower and toilet worth giving up the interior space and having to go the dump station when leaving camp?  Yes

2. If at a campsite for a period of time and the black water tank is full, how inconvenient is it to take the T@B to the dump station and return to the campsite?  i.e. do you have to totally secure and pack away everything in the T@B to move it? You could pack up everything. If I am in a campground with toilets and know I will be there more than 3 days, I try to use the campground bathrooms except at night. You could also us WAG bags.

3. How long does the 6 gallon fresh water tank last when boon docking? (How much water is used for flushing?) Varies based on usage.  If you shower, not long. You can "recycle". Water by using dish water to flush with. I carry extra and will be investing in a couple smaller containers as 5 gallons is too heavy.

4. Where do you stow your sewer hose when travelling? In the tongue box/basket.

I always use my own shower so I will be investing in a portable grey water tank.

T@Balong

For the model year 2015, the fresh water tank in the T@b S Max is now 11 gallons.

Rad

My take on the S

Quick answer, I would not be without the wet bath, we like it.

That being said, there are some very real limitations.  The 5 gallon fresh water tank will limit you long before the holding tanks fill.  I solve this with 4 three gallon fresh water containers I carry in my TV.  Why so many small ones? Because water is heavy and it must be lifted up and held in place as you refill the fresh water tank.  

I will ill be purchasing a portable waste tank in the future so I will be less limited by the holding tank capacities.  

I carry all the waste hose eq in a Rubbermaid bin with a lid in my TV.  

Rad

dheverling said:

I have a 2014 T@B S Maxx. I bought two five foot rhino sewer hoses with bayonet fittings,  a clear "Y" connector, and a 10 foot rhino hose with elbow to attach to campsite sewer line. I also bought end caps for all the hoses and a water hose "flush cap".  I flush each of the lines, put on the end caps, and store everything in a large plastic container which I transport in the back of my tow vehicle (2011 Hyundai Santa Fe).  Lots of options but this works for me since we generally camp at full service campgrounds (wife's choice!). paforester

I am considering this type of option for the T@B because of the silly set up the T@B has with two separate openings, one for black and one for grey.  Other rv's I have used or owned of course had separate tanks but only one drain opening so you could open the black valve, let it drain, close it then open the grey and flush the hose as it drained.  I don't find it too pleasant having to unhook the black and reconnect to the grey for draining.

Do you have a pic of your set up?  My main curiosity is how did you connect the Y to the openings?

Did you just make your own very short connectors?

I must admit I have considered redoing the two drains and making a single opening with two gate valves like about every other RV

Nomad

I'm almost sure somewhere on the forum someone did combine the two and had pics - Looked like a lot of work as I recall.

BBchBum

the post outlining how Bgkirk combined his tanks can be found thread "Tank heating pads installed by anyone?" in the T@B & Factory Comments section.
   http://www.tab-rv.com/forum#/discussion/comment/7771

Rad

BBchBum said:

the post outlining how Bgkirk combined his tanks can be found thread "Tank heating pads installed by anyone?" in the T@B & Factory Comments section.
   http://www.tab-rv.com/forum#/discussion/comment/7771

Thanks, I found it.

Bgkirk

For sewer hose holders, we recently installed sewer hose holders on either side of the spare tire.  Each holder stores a 10' hose.  Sanitube Super-Tube will make them any length you want which worked perfectly for us and we are very happy with their quality.

Rad

Bgkirk, very nice set up.  I do have a question regarding your waste gate modification.  My t@b s has a frame member between the black tank gate (located outboard the rail)and the grey line (located inboard the rail) making for an elevation change between them.  It looks like on your unit they are both inboard the frame rails, is that correct? Did you make that modification or is that how your unit is set up?

Lisa33

I have a T@DA, so I can't speak to the idiosyncrasies of the T@B models.  However, I can say that adding a wet bath to my set up by upgrading to a T@DA was the best single upgrade for me.  Of course, I also prefer to dry camp at primitive campgrounds or even better boondock without any facilities.  If you often camp where there are facilities and hookups, I doubt this would be as significant of an upgrade for you.  

Bgkirk

Rad,

My T@B is the same as yours with the frame member between the Gray and Blackwater plumbing.  I will document the parts I used this weekend and post a couple more pictures if you are interested.

Rad

Bgkirk said:

Rad,

My T@B is the same as yours with the frame member between the Gray and Blackwater plumbing.  I will document the parts I used this weekend and post a couple more pictures if you are interested.

Wow! I would love that, thanks 

Conrad

Bgkirk

Walloe,

I do try to do the same angle thing if I have a steep departure angel/drainage.  I like the protection the tire affords from the rear of the trailer dragging.  The surface area of the tire distributes the load of some dragging over a large area and protects the frame, jacks, rear of trailer and the newly added sewer hose holders.  

I did consider the tire mount on the front as many have done.  After weighing our tongue with two large batteries and the front cabinet alterations we made, I decided to leave the spare in the back and consider the positives of it being there.

Have thought about making some sort of teflon sheet skid plate to cover the tire.

Bgkirk

Rad,

Here is the documentation of what I did on our 2015 T@B CSS with aluminum platform to combine the Black and Gray water connections.  Sorry for any typos as I did it fairly quickly this morning with the coffee just staring to kick in.

Nomad

Wow, thanksBgkirk - Next time I wipe out my gray water assembly (just a matter of time) I'll redo it this way.

Rad

Bgkirk
Fantastic "how to", thanks.

I helped run/admin and moderate what might be the largest motorcycle forum on the net and it was chocked full of step by step pictorial service, repair and modification procedures contributed by the members.  It was one of the most beneficial web based forums I have ever seen.

Your procedure, with great pics reminds me of that. Very well done, thanks again.

conrad

PuggyPod

Well after this flury of great advice what would a gal add? Just one comment: I WOULDN'T TRADE MY TOILET FOR A MILLION BUCKS! But I would trade the lost space for a million warm cozy pee pees he he ...

My tricks n tips:
1. CONSERVE WATER -Invest in a large water storage receptacle - keep a juice jug on your counter for drinking and cooking, which you only have to fill occasionally. If the campsite has water taps I fill when I arrive ... if not, I stop at the nearest store etc and hijack a tap
2. CONSERVE FLUSHES = use the outhouse when you are out and about ... save the flushes for nocturnal/early morning business and inclement weather.... it is heaven to stay warm and dry - you will be so glad for it! Learn to "quick flush" ie a brief rinse is all you need much of the time
3. TANK CAPACITY - I have camped for days and days and days like this and never had to empty the tanks ....but hey I never shower, a sink of water to splash around in and a washcloth is all a person really needs! A jug of water over the head once a week and oila!
4. UPGRADE WATER CAPACITY - I had the guys add the largest holding tank they could - ate a bit of my under storage but well worth it 
5. DUMP STATION - a breeze for a single gal ... I adon my turquoise rubber gloves (to match the trailer!) and it's done in moments - a quick rinse of the hose and gloves ... store in a tupperware container with holes (so it all dries) and tuck into the gas tank area

PuggyPod

Umm clarification ... do NOT tuck your hose in the "gas tank area" ... I meant the propane tank area he he

mickietucs

PuggyPod - I've got to get some of those turquoise rubber gloves as my T@B will also be turquoise! And good to hear doing the dump station thing is easy for a single gal.

Verna

I've never seen red rubber gloves...

wanderingchickof66

I need red rubber gloves...
Glad to know the dumping thing is not too bad. Keep thinking of the movie RV with Robin Williams. 

radren

I did the dump station for the second time and now it is a real breeze. Just don't forget gloves and a short regular water hose. I have the clear rhino thing at the end and you can see when you are clear. The first time, If you forget (like I did) a regular water hose, just empty the black water tank first, flush the toilet a few times to really empty and clean out the black tank, ours is so tiny compared to anyone else's it is easy and then empty the gray water tank. It rinses out the hose and you can run the sink to clean that hose out. I have only done it the two times, both times someone comes over to look at the trailer. RV people are very friendly and very helpful. Offering gloves, hoses, advice without your even asking. I love my T@B.

Nomad

I've run into dump stations where the normal entrance is slightly up hill, not good I found out - things just don't drain out well or completely. If possible, come at them level or downhill. Luckily I've ha level or two-sided since so I could get a downhill grade by u-turning.

SweetlyHome

We have experienced a similar situation in many Florida State Parks.  The drains in the campsites are raised to high for us to use.   We end up going to the dump station.  The other issue is the tank drain(s) being at the front of the T@B.  The drain on most RV/Trailers are in the back, close to or behind the rear wheels so the drains are positioned in an appropriate spot in the sites.  This leaves a really long hose run or repositioning the T@B to drain our Grey water tank when its low enough.

Rad

Ya, I'm not a fan of the waste drain set up on the T@B.  The two issues that might have been solvable in the design phase is the fact that there are two outlets and they have very little fall.  A combined single exit with more drop would really have been appreciated.  It could be the floor is already so low and so are the drain outlets that it is an unavoidable design factor in such a small unit.