My local post office box service is always curious when I get a big box knowing that I get to share products with you here at RVTravel.com. Recently the folks at Thetford asked if I wanted to check out their new four-wheel Thetford Titan® Tote. It is essentially a portable holding tank.
Page Contents
Uses
The idea of something like this for RVers is that you can have your rig parked somewhere, likely in a place where you’re boondocking, and be able to dump your holding tanks into it.
There are parks where there’s a central dump station and the advantage of having something like this is that you don’t have to move the rig to dump the tank. It can make some kinds of boondocking much more enjoyable.
For example, in Quartzsite and a lot of national forests and local public campgrounds and such, there are places where they have a common dump station. Rather than move your whole rig, you can move only these holding tanks around, which makes it more convenient.
Thetford
Thetford is a company that makes a lot of RV products. Those include portable toilets, stoves, and a line of products that are related to the holding tanks under the Titan name.
Within the Titan line are “stinky slinkies,” attachments and fittings, and both two- and four-wheeled portable tanks such as the one we’re looking at today. Within the four-wheel lineup are 21-, 27- and 35-gallon models.
When Thetford contacted me, I specifically chose the smallest model in their line for a variety of reasons. Those included the fact that water, and thus sewage, weighs in at eight pounds to the gallon. The 21-gallon Titan tank thus can carry 160 pounds of water. Or sewer water.
Build quality
With this much liquid aboard I would want the tank to be of high quality. There wasn’t an area where I thought it wasn’t. The materials used were sturdy plastics with metal axles and wheels that featured ball bearings.
Even full, I pulled this tank with the built-in handle over gravel, and it wasn’t overly difficult to do so. The wheels were large enough that it grudgingly followed me along. On more solid surfaces it was easy enough to pull even when full. There was never a feeling that a component was going to fail.
That’s a really good thing if you choose to use this to empty your black tank.
The handle also doubles as a trailer hitch ball connector so you could fill this tank up and then drop the handle on your hitch and haul it to the central dump station. Obviously, you’re going to want to monitor your speed as I doubt that this tank, even though it’s well made, can really handle highway speeds. While I write that in jest to some extent, there is a campground I’ve visited on more than one occasion where the campground is divided by a main road and the dump station is down a public road.
I don’t know what the speed limit of this tank is.
Operation
The tank is simple enough in that it’s a large 21-gallon tank on wheels, essentially.
At the back end is an attached Titan sewer hose with a bayonet fitting on it. An included cap can be used to plug that hose, which is permanently attached to the tank.
After removing the cap you simply attach the tank via the built-in hose to your dump valves and pull the lever. There’s a floating valve in the back of the tank that is also an indicator when the tank has been filled so a red point sticks up at that stage.
I would think you’d be better off not completely filling the tank as the hose that’s attached to the tank would also be full of whatever you’re putting into the tank.
Further, if the knife valves that control the flow from your RV are further back (such as in the case of some RVs where they’re in the underbelly to protect them from freezing), if you reach a point where this tank is full there may be enough of the RV’s holding tank’s contents left in the pipe to make you quite famous at the RV park. (And then we’d post the video here on RVtravel.com.)
Once you’ve filled the tank, you simply replace the cap on the hose and take it to wherever the central dump station is. There’s also a fitting included that has a ball valve on it. You replace the cap with that fitting, which then goes down into the sewer and you open the valve and “bombs away!”
Choices
The way my wife and I plan to use this tank is predominantly for gray water. We’ve learned that we can go up to nine days on our black tank but only three on the gray water. That also means we’re not hauling around the contents of the RV park buffet in the tank, which is our preference.
Obviously, you can haul whatever you want in the tank. Thetford provided for a place to rinse out the tank – sort of a black tank flush.
In summary
A few more things worth noting include the fact that Thetford provides an “L” bracket built into the handle such that you can hang this from the ladder of your RV. There are also handles built into the front of the tank itself and one on either side, as well. So lifting it is pretty easy.
I will say I don’t ever plan to hang this off the ladder while the RV is in transit, even though the tank is designed to do so. I just don’t think the ladders on RVs are meant for this large of an item shaking around back there. So my personal preference is to keep this in the back of my pickup truck.
Since we’re only planning to use it for gray water, that shouldn’t be a problem. But, clearly, that’s my choice and I’m not saying what I do is what everybody should do.
The tank is sturdy and well-made
However, if you are considering one of these types of tanks to extend your boondocking or move water around for any number of reasons, this tank seems sturdy and well-made. They’re not quite yet available on Amazon, but I know that will change soon enough. I do like this model.
What has been your experience with this type of device, if you have one?
Tony comes to RVTravel having worked at an RV dealership and been a life long RV enthusiast. He also has written the syndicated Curbside column about cars. You can find his writing here and at StressLessCamping where he also has a podcast about the RV life with his wife.
Got an RV or product we need to look at? Contact us today and let us know in the form below – thank you!
##RVT1027
I have a 35 gal Thetford Titan portable tank and have never been so disappointed in a product in my life. I own a 5th wheel and don’t skimp on products I believe that you pay for what you get. If you fill the 35 gal tank and don’t get a chance to empty it right away possibly until the next day the tank will start to fold in half at the location of the side handles it collapses or folds up enough that the bottom is dragging on the ground or street depending on what surface you are pulling it on. I don’t recommend this product it is a ecological disaster waiting to happen.
Whenever I read articles on any black tank topic, I am so glad I will never be “famous at the RV park”. I installed a compositing toilet upon delivery of our 5th wheel. I use the black tank now for gray water over flow! I read about blown valves, disconnected hoses, cracked tanks! I will never use a black tank (and all the complications) in our RV!
A friend of mine just did this as well and diverted the urine stream to the gray tank, which is absolutely legitimate. It has significantly extended how long they can stay off the grid and has all the other benefits that come with a composting toilet.