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Old 01-06-2018, 07:24 PM   #1
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Waste pipe routing - Driveshaft ahead!

Hello all!

Summary: Looking for some advice for draining a galley tank into the main grey water tank on the opposite side of the bus. Only looking to have a 5-10 gallon tank for the kitchen sink under the kitchen. Looking for pump ideas. We'd like something that would allow the galley tank to fill before it automatically drains into the grey water tank on the opposite side of the bus. We have no issue manually turning on the pump until the tank is galley empty but automated would be nice.

Ideas?
Also to note, we aren't going to be staying fulltime in the bus and don't expect to use the kitchen sink much.


Back story for those who care to read lol: We have a front engine 25' Blue Bird. Floor plan solidified and the bus is already studded out/framed. Thinking ahead and planning electrical and plumbing.

Our main grey and black water tanks will be in a massive empty space between the front and rear wheels on the drive side of the bus. This is great as they will be directly under the bathroom but awkward because the kitchen and associated sink is on the passenger side of the bus.

Can't connect the kitchen sink directly to the grey water tank because there's a lovely drive shaft going down the middle of the frame as can be expected of a front engine bus. Not complaining we got the exact bus we wanted.

My solution was to implement a galley tank and pump to drain said tank into the grey water tank on the opposite side of the bus.

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Old 01-06-2018, 07:38 PM   #2
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There are bilge pumps designed for boats that automatically pump when water reaches a certain level.

If you used a flexible pipe from your sink tank to your grey tank it could bend above the driveshaft.

I'm curious to know what model of bus you have at 25'??
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Old 01-06-2018, 07:48 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Robin97396 View Post
There are bilge pumps designed for boats that automatically pump when water reaches a certain level.

If you used a flexible pipe from your sink tank to your grey tank it could bend above the driveshaft.

I'm curious to know what model of bus you have at 25'??
Thanks for the quick reply Robin! I thought about that but my only concern was standing water when winterizing at the end of seasons.

Am I overthinking it?

Our bus is a C1FE 2509
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Old 01-06-2018, 09:02 PM   #4
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you want a macerator pump, probably on a switch.

leaving water long term in an unheated bus is a recipe for disaster if you are not in a frost free area. you'll want a water system thats easy to drain/ blow out / winterize.

my kitchen and bath are on opposite sides of the bus, with a plumbed gravity connection. i think the cross over is in a spot just ahead of the differential and clears the drive shaft easy. i had to make a heat sheild for protection from my muffler too.



my waste tank hangs pretty low (its under my fuel tank), but you can see in the picture, a 2x4, that i used as a drop across the width of the bus. one side is at the frame rail, this side is the frame rail plus the 2x4
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Old 01-06-2018, 10:43 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by turf View Post
you want a macerator pump, probably on a switch.

leaving water long term in an unheated bus is a recipe for disaster if you are not in a frost free area. you'll want a water system thats easy to drain/ blow out / winterize.

my kitchen and bath are on opposite sides of the bus, with a plumbed gravity connection. i think the cross over is in a spot just ahead of the differential and clears the drive shaft easy. i had to make a heat sheild for protection from my muffler too.



my waste tank hangs pretty low (its under my fuel tank), but you can see in the picture, a 2x4, that i used as a drop across the width of the bus. one side is at the frame rail, this side is the frame rail plus the 2x4
A ton of great info! Thank you! For the life of me, I could not remember "macerator pump". I was just referring to them as a "marine" waste pump.

I'll have to get another look under the bus near the rear axle for the space you mentioned. That would save a ton of time and negate the added complexity of a separate galley tank and macerator pump. I sounds like you were also able to get a decent enough slope over that 9' span.

Off topic but I see we have a similar power train. How does your bus do climbing hills?
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Old 01-07-2018, 07:21 AM   #6
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i have tuned my bus a bit....The AFC, specificly, and i can climb hills without an issue. i live and play in Colorado, lots of hills.

i cant say that i'd reccomend you do the same. tuning one part has caused a chain reaction of unfortunate events. but pushing the bus hard did so too.

i'll probably have to redo the head gasket soon as the bus seems to have developed a leak there.

check out my thread in the cummins forum on turning up the afc screw.
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Old 01-07-2018, 07:25 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by robin97396 View Post
there are bilge pumps designed for boats that automatically pump when water reaches a certain level.

If you used a flexible pipe from your sink tank to your grey tank it could bend above the driveshaft.

I'm curious to know what model of bus you have at 25'??
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Old 01-07-2018, 08:57 AM   #8
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Talking

Rusty, that's the one! Here's a pic of ours!
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