Holding tank sensors

Has anyone installed the https://www.garnetinstruments.com/rv-shop/products/ system? I just found out about them and they sound pretty interesting. They seem a lot more accurate than the empty, 1/3, 2/3, full light system in my Cruiser. Worth a look see. Their website is a bit hard to open so you might have to go to https://www.rvupgradestore.com/Garnett-Technologies-Model-709-SeeLeveL-II-p/709-1003.htm?gclid=Cj0KCQiAlZH_BRCgARIsAAZHSBlrv7oau55x3ERjvO-dqKZXq65KJTJjjEw0W9wgYiTBbdGqfcM25dkaAjPMEALw_wcB.

Garmp, I can't help you on those new gauges but here's what I do. My 2400 has the 23 gal black tank which is actually less than that, we find with the two of us we can go 5 days before dumping.  We have the 35 gal grey tank so that always out lasts our black tank. I write down in my journal every time I dump, so if I need to I can look back and count the days. Plus I have a pretty good feel of when the tanks are getting close to full. Beer drinkers need to reduce the number of days between dumps. Your gray tank is smaller so you'd have to experiment. I never have trusted those idiot lights. Your 2351D sure looks like it has a lot of open space, I think you were smart trading up to a roomier floor plan.

I asked a See Level factory rep one time about installing them in our PC considering the tank insulation type used and he said no. Yet, I have seen that the PC folks have installed them in some units. I thought whenever (if ever) I get by that way again I would ask the factory about the feasibility of installing them.

I have always done similar to RVRunner's reply in that each year I buy a 8 1/2 X 11 monthly calendar (similar to a mini desk calendar) and use it to mark when I dump. That way I can look and see how long its been.

I also use the calendar for other things such as tracking mileage and stops on a trip.

My sure-fire tank monitor system involves a flashlight aimed down the toilet to monitor the black tank level, and when the gray water starts coming up the shower drain, it is full.  When that happens I open the gray tank dump valve and a gallon or two goes into the empty 3' drain pipe,  or like Ron does, briefly open the black valve also to equalize tank level. Buys you a day or two of extra gray tank volume.

Gary,

When I spec'd out my 2552 in late 2018, the See Level II system was a $495 option on the Phoenix build sheet.  Although I had zero RV experience, based on everything I had read on the forums about the unreliability and shortfall of the standard "light system" monitors I decided to add them to my build.

To date, I am completely happy and have mentioned in a couple of previous posts that I really like the performance.  You get a 1% change on the readout for each monitor (fresh, grey, and black water, and LPG), and 1/10th volt readout on the battery.  Based on my use, they have been accurate, and you develop a sense of confidence that you know the exact status of each of the tanks.

Mike (Gandalf) asked me once before about how they were installed on the foil-wrapped black and grey tanks--and I don't know if we ever followed-up with the exact answer.  On those two tanks, Phoenix trimmed the foil wrapping exactly on each side of the sensor/sender boards, and the sensors are applied directly to the tanks.

I see from your link that the listed price for the system is $200; I assume that Phoenix had some mark-up on their unit and the balance of their price difference was installation labor.  Based on my experience so far, I would consider the $200 well-spent.  That could change if the reliability of the system doesn't continue for some reason.  So far, so good.

Mike

Mike (Gandalf) asked me once before about how they were installed on the foil-wrapped black and grey tanks--and I don't know if we ever followed-up with the exact answer.  On those two tanks, Phoenix trimmed the foil wrapping exactly on each side of the sensor/sender boards, and the sensors are applied directly to the tanks.

Interesting info. Thanks! 

The Sea Level product line seems quite nice.  If ordering a brand new PC, I would consider having that installed.  But it seems very challenging to retrofit it into an existing PC.  Sometimes such effort can do more harm than good.

Our 13 year old tank sensors work well to this day, I believe because I bleach all our tanks annually.  I do it for other reasons, but the 3 different tank sensors benefit.  Given we exclusively boon dock in our old 2007 2350 (grey tank is the smaller) I have to blend the tanks once between dumps and refill, and our old style sensors work great for that.

The battery monitor is a decoration.  I learned quickly that it cannot be trusted.  As soon as it goes from green to yellow, it's already too late.  The house batteries are almost dead.  That is why I added a simple volt meter in the control panel.  It's not perfect either, but it is enough information to work with.

  We had the Garnet SeeLevel sensors installed on our tanks last August at the factory by Doug. It’s a huge upgrade over the existing lights which aren’t very reliable. With a push of a button you see the exact percentage of what the level is in the tanks. I find them to be very accurate and I highly recommend them. Bud

If I copied the link right, it should take you to a brief description of my installation. Bottom line, they work good and I would recommend them.

https://forum.phoenixusarv.com/index.php?topic=3961.msg34371#msg34371

I had not heard of these.  Thanks for the info.  It's amazing to me that RV manufacturers still use the 4 light systems that have been around for years.