One of the most convenient things about our pop up camper is our cassette toilet. I never imagined we would use it as frequently as we do. In fact, when we were shopping for campers, I didn’t even have a potty on our “must haves” list. Late night bathroom trips in bear country quickly changed my mind, though, and we are so glad we have this little convenience in the trailer.
We have a Thetford C4 Cassette Potti in our pop up camper. When we first brought our Santa Fe home, though, I couldn’t find much information on pop up camper cassette toilets at all. Our user’s manual had been destroyed by the previous owners, so we had to figure out how to use and care for our potty all on our own. It’s not all that hard, really. Let me show you what we’ve learned…
Preparing Your Pop Up Camper Toilet for Use
The actual operation of your cassette toilet is pretty easy. Under the toilet itself, you’ll find the holding tank. This is essentially your “black water” tank. We have an access door to the tank inside the camper, but many models have access doors located on the outside of the camper. Either way, when you open the access door, this is what you will most likely find. The first thing you’ll need to do is fill the flush tank. To fill the flush tank, rotate the fresh water fill spout 90 degrees away from the tank and remove the yellow cap.
As you fill the fresh water tank with clean water, pay close attention to the glass vial on the side of the tank. That’s the fresh water level indicator. When the water is about 1/2″ from the top, your tank is full. You can also use an additive in the flush tank, but we never have. We’ve done just fine filling the fresh water tank with clean city water. Once you are finished filling the tank, you’ll need to drain the remaining water from the fill spout. If you have a drain nozzle on the side of the fill spout, unscrew it and let the water drain into a cup. If you have no drain nozzle, your fill spout may be designed to rotate. If that is the case, rotate your fill spout and pour out the excess water. You can then screw the yellow cap back on your fill spout and return it to the original position.
Now you need to add chemicals to the holding tank of your cassette toilet. This will take care of any unpleasant odors in the the tank. 😛 We like to use liquid Aqua-Kem because it is relatively cheap and readily available. You can find it at Amazon, Walmart, or Camping World. Thetford recommends removing your holding tank by pressing down on the safety catch and sliding the tank outward. (Make sure that the valve blade–the rubber flapper inside the bowl–is closed when you do this.) Set the tank upright, rotate the emptying spout upwards, and remove the yellow cap. The yellow cap conveniently has a measuring cup built in, so you can accurately measure the amount of Aqua-Kem to add to the tank. We usually add about 4 oz. of Aqua-Kem and 2 liters of water to the holding tank. You’ll want to make sure the bottom of the tank is covered.
Replace the yellow cap and return the emptying spout to its original position. Now you can slide the tank back into place. Listen for the safety catch to “click” so you know the tank is locked into position. It’s a bit of a pain, but Thetford discourages adding chemicals through the toilet bowl, as it can damage the valve blade and seal. The Aqua-Kem instructions actually recommend adding chemicals through an open valve blade. Go figure??? We’ve always erred on the side of caution and added Aqua-Kem to the tank through the emptying spout. We figure it’s better to be safe than sorry. Thetford does make convenient toss-in packs of Aqua-Kem that you can add to the tank via the bowl. They are much more expensive, but would have been so much easier on our long trip. I may just have to grab a pack or two in the future. 😉
Using Your Pop Up Camper Toilet
From the outside, this is what our cassette toilet looks like. There is a valve blade inside the bowl, which when opened, empties the contents of the bowl into the holding tank below. To use the pop up camper toilet, turn the flush knob several times to fill the bowl with water or open the valve blade, which ever you prefer.
At this point, your toilet is ready for use. As a side note, we use a toilet paper designed for RV use, like this one from Scott. It’s available on Amazon and at Walmart. It is a little pricey, but we found it the cheapest RV tissue available. It’s not completely necessary to use RV toilet tissue, but it does break down quickly, making the task of emptying the tank a little easier. Once you’ve done your business, you can open the valve blade (if it wasn’t already open) and flush the bowl a few times with water by turning the flush knob. Close the valve blade after use. That’s it! Keep an eye on your tank level indicator throughout your trip. Once it turns red, it’s time to empty the tank. 😛
Emptying the Cassette Toilet Waste Tank
You should empty the waste tank on your pop up camper toilet as soon as the level indicator turns red. In fact, Thetford actually recommends emptying the tank before it is completely full. If the waste tank is too full, it will be more difficult to empty, so we usually empty our tank when it is about half full. Thetford cassette toilets were designed to be easy enough to empty in a bathroom toilet, but we haven’t done that yet. We usually use the campground dump station or the sewer clean-out at home. Check your campground rules for specific waste dumping regulations before you tote that tank into the public restroom. 😉 Here’s how to empty your waste tank.
- Make sure the valve blade is closed, and push the yellow safety catch down. Grasp the tank by the handle and pull it outwards.
- Rotate the emptying spout 90 degrees and remove the yellow cap.
- Hold the waste tank by the upper handle with one hand. Grasp the back of the tank with the other hand, making sure you can depress the vent plunger easily. This will allow you to empty the tank without splashing.
- Empty the tank into the appropriate waste receptacle by tilting the tank forward while depressing the vent plunger. Then thoroughly rinse the tank and valve blade with fresh water several times.
To thoroughly clean our waste tank, we remove the emptying spout by rotating it 180 degrees from the original position. It will then slide up and off the tank, allowing us to get the spout and tank really clean. We usually use about a quarter of a cap of Woolite and lots of fresh water. Then we replace everything and return the tank to its place under the cassette toilet. If we will be using the toilet again, we refill the deodorizing chemicals. If we are storing the camper, we open the valve blade to let the holding tank dry out well.
Cleaning & Maintaining Your Pop Up Camper Toilet
Cleaning your pop up camper toilet is actually pretty simple. You’ll want to steer clear of harsh or abrasive cleaners, as they can damage the bowl, valve blade, and seal. We usually use a little Dawn dish soap, a sponge, and water, but recently, I discovered a Thetford cleaner I really like. It’s called Aqua-Clean, and it is designed for cleaning RV kitchens and baths. It is safe for toilet seals, which was what I was most concerned about. I had a little trouble finding it. There wasn’t a cost effective solution on Amazon, so I had to drive to Camping World to pick up a bottle. It cost me about $10, but it will last for a long time. I really like that it does double duty, so I can use it for a general all-purpose cleaner in the pop up camper. I just spray down the outside of the toilet and wipe it clean with a wet rag. We use a lot of Thetford products, but I feel pretty comfortable that Thetford products were designed to work well with my Thetford toilet. There may be some other great brands out there, so if you use something different, please feel free to share in the comments. 🙂
To ensure your valve blade lives a long life, you’ll need to give it some love, too. The valve blade is like a rubber flapper, and can be damaged if not properly cared for. Once your valve blade and seal are damaged, they may leak or stick. To prevent that from happening, we use a toilet seal lubricant and conditioner from Thetford. We love this stuff. When we first got the camper, the valve blade stuck when we’d try to open it. After several applications of Toilet Seal, it now works perfectly. We use this stuff a couple times a year to keep everything running smoothly. We buy it on Amazon, but I’ve seen it at Camping World, too. If you can’t locate Toilet Seal, you can also use pure olive oil to lubricate and condition your seals. Never use Vaseline or vegetable oil, though, as these may cause leakage.
Thetford recommends that you empty your fresh water and holding tanks before traveling to reduce the risk of leaking or flooding. I’ll be honest, we’ve traveled a couple of times with water in the tank and had no issues, but it’s always better to be safe than sorry.
So that about sums it up! I hope you’ve learned a few things, and if you’re already a porta-potti pro, feel free to share your advice with us in the comments section.
Happy Camping!
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Happy Camping!
Thanks Larissa, that was very detailed and helpful. Happy Camping and stay away from the bears, lol.
Our Coleman Sun Valley did not come with a cassette toilet. Since we wanted a toilet we hunted and discovered the Thetford Curve toilet and it has worked great! At night we keep it in the camper so we don’t have to make a midnight run. For extended camping stays we bought a shower tent and put the toilet in that for day use. It’s light enough to move and large enough to not have to empty frequently for a family of five. Highly recommend for those not lucky to have a built in cassette unit.
Good Evening Chris,
I hope you see this as your post is 3 years old. We just were gifted a Fleetwood pop up camper and it does not have a cassette toilet. I read your post about the Thetford curve toilet and the shower tent. Great idea! I will be researching that as soon as I am done typing to you. Thank you pop up princess and Chris for your informative post. It helps us “newbies”
Thanks Larissa, we have a ’99 Santa Fe too. And all of your posts seem to timely correspond to what we need to learn. Thanks!
No problem, Rudy! Glad to be able to help! 🙂
Thank you very much for the fine article. Answered all questions about this toilet. Wife and I just bought our very first, 2005 used , pop up and have a lot of learning to do.
So glad it helped, Raul! 😉
Just discovered you from pop up portal.
You are my new super hero! Hope to meet you camping some day.
My 03 SKAMPER (discontinued mfg) did not have toilet, so I got the thetford tall toilet. Now that I see what’s involved w a built-in, portable seems easier & takes up less space.
I will be creating a slide-out drawer/dolly for mine & will send you pics when done. (Winter projects)
Kat
Awesome! Can’t wait to see it!! 🙂
How do you empty the remaining water before you leavethe camp site? Is it all in the cassette you pull out?
We just bought our pop up and have yet to use it. Trying to prepare as much as possible. Thanks!
I was wondering the same thing, how to empty the fresh water…
Ooops! We travel with water in our fresh water tank all the time, so I forgot to mention how to drain it. Open the access door to the cassette. To drain the tank pull the water level indicator tube toward you, near the top. The bottom of the tube is connected to the clean water tank. Remove the rubber stopper in the top of the tube and the tank will drain. It’s helpful to have bucket nearby if your access door is inside the camper, as ours is, since you won’t be able to drain straight to the ground. A hose works even better, as the angle of the tubing and water level indicator makes draining a bit difficult. Hope that helps! 😀
Thanks for the great tutorial and for the info how how to drain the water supply. We travel with it full as well, but never thought to drain it. Probably should do that when we aren’t camping. I also put the deodorizer directly into the waste tank. I never even occurred to me to put it through the toilet. Glad i didn’t think of it. LOL
Keep the tutorials coming, I’m sure there are still lots of things you and Mr. Two Types of Fun can teach the rest of us.
Cannot flesh the toilet. Could it need a new fuse or new motor. Pop-up camper is only a year old and not used very often. Have never seen this problem addressed.
Email is all lower case. Thank you.
I’m not really sure what the problem could be, Gail. Our cassette toilet is manual–no motor or fuses to deal with. Since your pop up camper is only year old, I would definitely contact the manufacturer. It is likely still under warranty. 😀
Hi where can I find a replacement cap for my toilet.? Is just like the one in your picture
Check your local RV store, Shelia. They may have the parts (or the ability to order them for you). 🙂
The flush knob on our toilet will not pump the fresh water into the bowl. The water tank is full. Any suggestions? How would you prime it?
Do you have an automatic flush, Emma, or is it manual like ours?
We just got our new pop up and we have a cassette toilet just like yours. I found a curtain/skirt to go around the cassette toilet with snaps at the top, but don’t see any place to attach the snaps. I am wondering if I am missing something? Do you have a curtain like that? We have a 2004 Fleetwood Redwood (a Highlander).
Thanks!
Kitty from Iowa
Hmmm… Ours has snaps on the ceiling of the PUP, Kitty. Do you not have snaps? I’ll see if I can take a picture next time we have the PUP open.
Thanks, Larissa – No, I don’t think I have snaps on the ceiling. A picture would be great – I have looked all over the internet and cannot find any pics. I love the fact that there is a partition curtain, just need to figure out how to hang it up. Thanks in advance for the pics!
Thank you very much for posting this information, very helpful indeed!
Where do I find one of these toilets at and how much are they?
These are built into the camper, Cynthia. I’m not sure if you can purchase them separately and build a cabinet around them. However… if you are looking for a built-in potty option, and your camper doesn’t have one, check out Shannon’s Pop Up Camper Makeover. She did a great job building one using a portable potty from Amazon. 🙂
Thanks for the great tutorial. Now I must get on with the mods and making my 06′ Santa Fe look great like yours.
Speaking of bears, the National Parks want you to store food and even cosmetics or anything that has a scent someplace other than in your tent. Anyone know what whether the odors of the aquachem and other tank additives fall under this directive?
When we camped in both Sequoia and Yellowstone, we were told by the rangers that the Aquachem in our cassette toilet tank was just fine. We detailed our trip to Yellowstone here and the one to Sequoia here.
Have you ever heard of anyone replacing the water pump on their cassette toilet, mine stopped working and I’m trying to figure out how to replace it, there is wiring to the switch and I can’t figure out how to remove without pulling the whole thing apart……………….. Thanks
I have not, Davis. We have an old-school manual pump on ours… no wiring, no electric flush. I’m afraid I’m not much help. Have you checked PopUpPortal.com? I’m sure someone there has your answer. 🙂
Thanks!
I cannot thank you enough for this post. We’ve had our 2016 Pop-Up, with one of these cassette toilets, since March. Our user manual DID NOT COME with instructions on how to use it! We’ve gone on 12 campouts and have NEVER used it, but I will definitely be taking this knowledge with me this weekend when my son and I go out! NEXT, going to see if you have any posts on how to get my WATER HEATER going!
1995 Coleman Hatteras
We have same cassette toilet will be using olive oil to lubricate valves kind of hard to turn
All this information is greatly appreciated
Thank you,
what do you use for privacy when using the toilet?
We have a privacy curtain that snaps into the ceiling, Kathy. You have to be a little relaxed in the privacy department to use the camper potty, for sure. By the end of the trip, we are usually so tired of walking to the bathrooms, we don’t even care that is is only a fabric curtain anymore. 😉
Searched high and low for this info! Should’ve known you’d have the best demo!
Thank you very much this really helped New to camping just bought a 2012 jayco with cassette system,.
Is there a line that goes from the potty directly to the sewer? We are new to camping and I have researched with no definitive answer!
No, Virginia. All the waste is stored in the cassette tank directly under the toilet. Check out the section in the above post on “Emptying the Cassette Toilet Waste” for information on how to empty the tank. You can empty your tank into a sewer clean-out, but there is no direct line from your camper.
Has anyone ever made a adaptable part/ homemade hook-up to the sewer site?
Excellent article, very helpful. I’m wondering if there’s a replacement for the lid. We just bought a pop-up and the toilet lid is cracked.
I noticed you said you use this when in bear country. Are you not worried about the waste being inside the camper, therefore attracting bears? They’re still attracted to those scents, and I was told it’s best to not go in your camper. Thoughts?
Our pop
Up is a 2000 Coleman bayside that has a refridgerator that doesn’t work. Has anyone ever removed that and put a toilet in it place? I wonder if that would work?
You are incredible! I went to google to see about a toilet for the popup – clicked and there you were! Great details – you are the popup GODDESS!!!
Hello,
We just purchased a 1996 Jayco popup jaybird.
We have the same Cassette but ours won’t flush? I been trying to trouble shoot but am wondering if you have run into this problem or know of a site or resource? Does it have a fuse?
I have not run into that, Audrea. Ours is not electric, so we don’t have a fuse. Have you tried contacting the manufacturer?
What do you pull your camper(s) with and does it have a transmission cooler installed?
We pulled with a 2006 Honda Pilot for about 3 years. Last year we broke down and bought a new Pilot. The old one had nearly 300,000 miles on it, but it never left us stranded. I seriously love that Pilot. We have a transmission cooler on both cars. 🙂
Great info! Thanks for the reminder about the valve seals. We have an Alaskan “telescoping” camper that raises and lowers with a hard top. We bought it used and love it -especially the Thetford cassette toilet. BTW I found you on Pinterest. 😉
Thanks for the great advice! We have recently purchased a 2001 viking tent trailer(pop-up). It didn’t come with a manual and the previous owners said they had never used the the cassette toilet.
Thanks again!
Shel
Canada
Congrats on the new camper, Shel! So glad you found the tutorial helpful. 🙂
Thanks for this. I found it very useful. I have one very similar except where you have a flush mine is a toilet roll holder. TOnce again thanks for putting this together .
I just bought a pop up with this kind of cassette toliet. Do you think its possible to run an rv dump hose to the Emptying Spout so that it can drain into a full hook up sewer site?
It’s probably possible, but sure would be a lot of work. Gravity is going to be working against you. How would you get the cassette tank to empty? You could really just easily pull the tank out and empty it in the sewer cleanout at your site. That would probably be your best bet. 🙂
Great tutorial! I just purchased a 04 Viking camper with the exact toilet as yours, but had no manual. I came across your post and it taught me everything about it, Thank you very much. I did notice though, when you mentioned “It’s a bit of a pain, but Thetford discourages adding chemicals through the toilet bowl, as it can damage the valve blade and seal. The Aqua-Kem instructions actually recommend adding chemicals through an open valve blade. Go figure??? “. I think Thetford doesn’t want the chemicals poured directly into the white toilet bowl as it might harm or fade the plastic bowl, but Aqua-Kem is probably refering to open valve blade on top of the holding tank itself which can be opened up with the lever on top. Again , great post as I learned a lot.
Wonderful and extremely thorough article. Thanks for the great info.
This was so helpful. We have the exact same toilet and were struggling to find any instructions online. Thank you!
I just bought a 1991 Jayco King6 Deluxe. It does have Thetford cassette toilette. It is actually a toilette shower combo. The problem is, it’s old, yellow and looks to have been caulked half a dozen times. Part of our renovation will be to remove the tub and just leave a new white cassette toilette. Do you know if it is possible to replace these? If so where I would find one?
I have looked into it quite a bit, and haven’t been able to find replacements. You might try your local RV dealer, though. They might have the resources to order one.
Wow thank you so very much for your detailed explanation! I have been through YouTube and even some facebook groups looking for a descriptive popup camper waste removal instruction guide… you have the best descriptions and even photos! we purchased a handyman special that I am positive wasn’t cleaned prior to purchase, and it came with no manual so this helps us a ton!!
Glad it helped, Rae! 😀
We have just bought a 1996 Shenandoah, with a cassette potty. Is there a way to use campground sewage hookup with these Thetfords? That would be awesome!
Unfortunately, there is not. Some of the newer Coleman/Fleetwoods highwalls came with a black water tank and sewer hookups. The beauty of the cassette toilet, though, was that when camping without hookups, you could empty the cassette without driving the camper to the dump station. 😉
Thanks for the tutorial! I have the same model in our pop up, but the flush valve isn’t working any longer. Not sure if you’ve experienced this, or have a good replacement before I start retrofitting some things and experimenting.
Ours doesn’t flush really well, so we usually have a cup of water on hand to give the bowl an extra rinse. I don’t know if it is something that just happens to the cassette toilets with age or what, but nothing we do has seemed to help.
Just got new to us 20 year old Coleman Westlake with a Thelford toilet cassette shower. Of course I’m scrounging for instructions and this is perfect! Thank you!