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Old 01-11-2017, 10:01 AM   #1
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Electric Valves on all Four Gates

Seriously looking at the electric valves (once again). Do you guys install them on all four of your waste lines or only the two black? Also, in the event of an electrical issue, since I'm not very power savvy, is there a manual way to work around them if there is a short? Thanks as always,
Rusty
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Old 01-11-2017, 10:16 AM   #2
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I have the installed on the front two tanks. The other two will be installed this spring. In the event of electrical issues, they can be manually actuated, but you will need to retain a flap or door to access them for this.
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Old 01-11-2017, 10:54 AM   #3
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Thanks.
Rusty
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Old 01-12-2017, 05:04 PM   #4
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Other than being electric are there any other advantages to having electric valve?
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Old 01-12-2017, 06:01 PM   #5
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Planning on doing at least the galley tank where the handle is located under the slide. For those that have done this, where are you getting power for the valve?
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Old 01-12-2017, 07:48 PM   #6
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Should have power in the wet Area where the wire valves are, or you can add wiring from the battery area and add a fuse block
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Old 01-12-2017, 08:43 PM   #7
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Those sound like a really great idea. No more crouching in the rain to drain the back tanks!!
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Old 01-12-2017, 11:51 PM   #8
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Originally Posted by RVNevada View Post
Should have power in the wet Area where the wire valves are, or you can add wiring from the battery area and add a fuse block
From what I've read, there is a 3' wire on the valve. I understand the control wire goes up to the wet area but is power being run all the way up there as well? I'm wondering if there is power available closer to the valve.
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Old 01-13-2017, 12:48 AM   #9
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Quote:
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Other than being electric are there any other advantages to having electric valve?
They typically are much more dependable than the cable operated valves which are a poor design and prone to failure at inopportune moments. Also with electric you can mount the switches where you don't have to lay under the RV to get to the pull handles.

In my case I have one pull handle on the right hand side, and 3 on the left. By going electric I can put all the switches on the left side and eliminate one valve. I can also put the switches high enough up that I don't have to get down on my hands and knees to pull the valves.

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Old 01-13-2017, 02:44 AM   #10
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I have electric valves on all four tanks. Two grey, two black.

The major advantage is the valve has an automotive style motor drive that opens the valve and closes it in under a second. So no cable to get sticky or fail. Just 12V DC and it slams that valve shut and there is no leakage. If eventually you get some leakage...who knows how long that might take...you can replace the flange O-rings.

Doesn't matter where you get power. Just use about #12 braided copper wire and you won't have enough voltage drop to cause a problem.

I wired all four of mine to the circuit that feeds the light in the "wet cabinet" from what I could find, that light was the only thing on that circuit. The load for each valve is short, and you only open one at a time.

Me? From the old cable days, I purchased a Valterra twist-on valve for the two drain outlets. Thus no surprises when I go to connect the drain system. Even after adding the electric valves, I kept the twist on valves in place...all the time.

You will have to remove some of the belly skin to get access to the valve and install them. I couldn't find black belly skin so I used home depot white. Cut the piece or pieces so they overlap the original belly skin by two inches and used 3/4 x #8 sheet metal screws about every two inches. Thus I can simply remove the screws and have access to all the plumbing.

Just how I did things.

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Old 01-14-2017, 04:16 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wahoonc View Post
They typically are much more dependable than the cable operated valves which are a poor design and prone to failure at inopportune moments. Also with electric you can mount the switches where you don't have to lay under the RV to get to the pull handles.

In my case I have one pull handle on the right hand side, and 3 on the left. By going electric I can put all the switches on the left side and eliminate one valve. I can also put the switches high enough up that I don't have to get down on my hands and knees to pull the valves.

Aaron
Sounds like this is a mod worth looking into.
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Old 01-15-2017, 01:04 AM   #12
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Barry,

Let there be no doubt this is the best upgrade you can do on an RV!! Period!!

The cable valves...the cable is not like today's motorcycle cables that have a teflon liner, can be lubricated and cannot be adjusted for length.

All the valves I replaced had 8 ft long cables. One end was embedded in the valve the other in the handle. So no access at all. And... the two front tanks one valve is 3 ft from the "wet cabinet" the other is 5 ft away. So you have all the cable just wadded up, yes wadded up, under the belly...so they begin to get sticky and fail pretty quickly. My front black tank valve started sticking partially open after the first outing...was a mess!

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Old 02-14-2017, 08:02 PM   #13
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Good notes please

Quote:
Originally Posted by soonernation View Post
From what I've read, there is a 3' wire on the valve. I understand the control wire goes up to the wet area but is power being run all the way up there as well? I'm wondering if there is power available closer to the valve.
Whe you do yours take good notes @soonernation so you can help me do mine when I get it.
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