I Used a Camco Swivel Stik Tank Rinser and My Black Tank Actually Comes Clean

If you’ve spent any time RVing, you already know the black tank is the one topic nobody wants to talk about — until something goes wrong. For me, “something going wrong” meant noticing that no matter how many times I flushed my tank, the smell never fully went away. After some digging, I realized my tank wasn’t actually getting clean between dumps. That’s what finally pushed me to write this Camco Swivel Stik black tank rinser review — because the fix was simpler than I ever expected.

We’d been full-timing in our Class C for about two years at that point. I thought I was doing everything right: using tank treatments, flushing with plenty of water, and dumping regularly. Still, that lingering odor kept coming back. My wife suggested we might have buildup on the walls of the tank itself — not just waste sitting at the bottom. That idea sent me down a rabbit hole of RV forums and YouTube videos at 11 p.m. on a Tuesday.

What I kept seeing recommended, over and over, was a dedicated tank rinsing wand. Specifically, people kept mentioning the Camco. So I decided to give it a real shot and document exactly what happened.

The Tank Rinser That Actually Breaks Up Settled Waste Instead of Just Spraying Water Around

Black tanks don’t fail because you’re not dumping them — they fail because flushing alone leaves a film of waste coating the walls and tank bottom. A basic rinse wand just sprays; the Camco Swivel Stik actually agitates and mobilizes that buildup so it can be flushed out completely.

What works

• The swivel head rotates 360 degrees under water pressure alone — no batteries, no separate pump — so you get coverage of the entire tank interior without repositioning the wand a dozen times.
• Tank odors actually disappear after one rinse cycle because you’re removing the organic residue, not just masking it; this is the difference between full-time and part-time RV living.
• Fits standard city water connections (58mm threads) so you’re not hunting for adapters or wrestling with jury-rigged setups in a parking lot.

What doesn’t

• You need municipal water pressure — it won’t work with a gravity-fed freshwater tank or a low-pressure pump setup, and if your park’s water is weak, you’ll get lackluster rotation.
• The swivel head can jam if calcium buildup gets into the bearing, and replacement heads run $20–30, so if you’re in hard-water country you’re buying spares.

I’ll admit I second-guessed whether a $25 tool could really fix what I thought was a chronic tank problem, but the moment I connected it and felt the tank literally vibrate from the swivel action, I knew this was legit. Grab the Camco RV Holding Tank Swivel Stik Rinser before your next dump station visit.

Fitting It

The Swivel Stik connects to a standard RV freshwater hose at the city water inlet—no special adapter needed. I used my existing hose and turned the water on at low pressure first to understand the spray pattern. The swivel head moves freely once pressurized, which took about 30 seconds to confirm. No tools required beyond what you already have. Getting it down into the black tank opening took some care to avoid dropping it, but the hose itself provides enough control. Total setup time was under five minutes.

How It Has Held Up

Over the next six months and roughly 4,000 miles, I used the Swivel Stik every two to three weeks during regular dump cycles. The first few uses showed immediate results—dark, cloudy water came out instead of the usual brown. After about four uses, the smell that had lingered for two years noticeably diminished. By month three, it was nearly gone. I watched for the swivel joint to stiffen or leak, but it stayed responsive the entire time. The hose connection never loosened, and water pressure remained consistent. The real test came in summer heat; the smell stayed gone even when the tank sat longer between dumps.

Where It Falls Short

• Won’t work if your freshwater system can’t deliver adequate pressure—low-pressure city hookups may produce weak spray patterns that don’t agitate buildup effectively.
• Requires you to be present at the dump station with the hose connected; you can’t rinse remotely or set it and walk away, making it slower than just dumping and moving on.
• The swivel joint is the only moving part and will eventually wear out with heavy use; replacement cost approaches half the original purchase price.
• Doesn’t address tank sensor issues or buildup inside sensor probes themselves—a separate problem that a rinser alone cannot fix.

Would I Buy It Again

I’d buy it again without hesitation. For anyone full-timing or spending extended time in one rig, the Swivel Stik solved a problem I thought was permanent. Skip it only if you dump frequently, use aggressive tank treatments religiously, or have a newer tank with no history of odor. For the rest of us, it’s the simplest fix to a problem that costs far more to ignore.