RV Holding Tank Gauge Issues: Things You Need To Know

Posted on: 2 November 2022

One of the most convenient features added to modern RVs is the holding tank gauge system. With a glance, you can see how full your fresh water, grey water, and black water tanks are. This is great for knowing when it's time to add water to the fresh tank or empty the waste tanks. Unfortunately, sometimes the sensors feeding those gauges can malfunction. Here's a look at what you need to know about some common issues with the RV holding tank sensors.

Debris On The Sensor

When your tank's gauges are reading more full than the tanks actually are, such as reading partially full when you just emptied the tanks, that's a sign that there is debris on a sensor, tripping it and causing a false reading. Usually, you can resolve this by flushing the tank. If that doesn't eliminate whatever is stuck on the sensor, you'll want to talk with an RV repair technician about cleaning out the inside of the tank, which often means dropping it. This can take time and is best left to the professionals.

Faulty Sending Unit

If you aren't getting any reading from a tank, that's a key indication that the sending unit may be malfunctioning. Over time, the sending unit can suffer wear and lose adequate connection or a component may burn out. It's usually a fairly simple fix, though. You can work with an RV repair technician to test the sending unit for proper signal and replace it if it isn't communicating correctly.

Bad Sensor

Whether you have a gauge that isn't reading at all or that seems to be reading unpredictably, that's often an indication that there's a sensor failing. In most cases, that means having to pull the sensor from the tank and replace it. Since it can be difficult to determine which sensor is faulty, you should leave it to an RV repair technician. They have the tools and equipment to test them and determine which one is malfunctioning. That way, you only replace the sensors that need it instead of spending extra money on parts that are unnecessary.

These are some of the most common reasons why an RV's holding tank gauges may not read correctly. Be attentive to the way that your gauges function so that you can spot a problematic gauge reading right away. The sooner you spot it, the easier it is to address the problem and avoid a tank overflow. 

For more information about RV repair, contact a local company. 

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