Intermittent fresh water tank leaking/dripping

[Dgrothen]

I have a 2021 Solitude 2930RL and I've been having some fresh water tank leaking/dripping issues.

I can put some water in the tank before leaving on a boondocking trip. Usually between 20 and 30 gallons. Upon the initial fill I don't see any leaking even after letting it sit for 12 plus hours ..... No dripping. Sometimes I can complete my trip and never notice any dripping. Other times upon arrival at home of some destination I notice significant dripping from the outside of the drain valve. I've emptied the tank, cleaned the drain valve and sometimes that resolves the issue ... Seemingly, For a while, but it comes back. Of course the water appears to be coming from around the outside of the valve and sometimes, depending on the levelness of the rig it might drip from the under belly at some location other than the dump valve. I haven't pulled the underbelly yet. I'm wondering what I should look for or what might typically be the issue.

Any guidance is greatly appreciated!

[Country Campers]

Can you turn the drain valve? Mine was loose when new. If not dropping the coroplast may be needed.

Brian

[Yoda]

I have a 2021 Solitude 2930RL and I've been having some fresh water tank leaking/dripping issues.

I can put some water in the tank before leaving on a boondocking trip. Usually between 20 and 30 gallons. Upon the initial fill I don't see any leaking even after letting it sit for 12 plus hours ..... No dripping. Sometimes I can complete my trip and never notice any dripping. Other times upon arrival at home of some destination I notice significant dripping from the outside of the drain valve. I've emptied the tank, cleaned the drain valve and sometimes that resolves the issue ... Seemingly, For a while, but it comes back. Of course the water appears to be coming from around the outside of the valve and sometimes, depending on the levelness of the rig it might drip from the under belly at some location other than the dump valve. I haven't pulled the underbelly yet. I'm wondering what I should look for or what might typically be the issue.

Any guidance is greatly appreciated!

Doug
As Brian Country Campers mentions the white drain valve screws into the bottom of the FWT. It is probably loose. You can try to tighten it. If that does not work take it off and apply Teflon tape or dope (be sure it's safe for drinking water) to the threads and re-install. If you take it out check for cracks on the fitting that is attached to the tank.

The other source for the drip might be a loose tank connection on one of the fittings above the drain that might be dripping down such as the overflow (2-blue pipes side by side) or the suction/fill line that runs to the pump. They are near or above the drain valve so might drip on to it. You can try apply chalk dust (string line powder available at most hardware stores) to the the area above the drain valve and see if a drip trail shows up from above.

Hope this helps

Keith

[Dgrothen]

Well today I did open the belly and I tried checking the dump valve to see if it was loose and found it to have a good seal. I also checked the fitting for the fill and over flow lines and both were good. Thanks for the suggestions Brian@countrycampers and Keith.

I decided to pressurize the tank by using the power fill with air. I used a wine cork to plug the overflow then pressurized it to about 15 lbs. It was enough pressure to cause the tank to bulge a little bit, visibility noticable. It's been pressurized for four hrs so far and still holding. I'm going let it sit under pressure till morning then with first light, I'll check again.

If the tank still has pressure in the morning I think I need to chaulk this issue up to a water issue we had last spring. On one of our travel days I had left the water pump on and at some point traveling the kitchen sink faucet had turned on and ran all over the floor. We don't know how much water ran but it was a mess to clean up. Between the mishap and the fact that there was some mold on the insulation this current water issue was not a recent one. It's been wet for a while.

Thanks for your guidance. This form has helped me a few times and I truly appreciate your help.

[Dgrothen]

I'd like to ask two more questions..... Now that I have the belly of my trailer open.

1). I have to replace the fiberglass insulation now that it's all wet and molding. I'm thinking I'd like to replace it with 2" styrofoam insulation board. It would increase the R valve and It would actually help prevent some wear on some of the electrical wires that are riding on the trusses too. Is there anything that I'm missing or some reason I should not use Styrofoam?

2) Because I had to remove my coroplast and all the spots it was sealed by some sort of sealant I now need to reseal those spots again. What is the sealant used for this. I feel like it's some sort of silicone but it was all black too. Can you tell what is used to reseal the underside of the RV?

Thanks

[Cate&Rob]

Hi Doug & Holly,

I agree that closed cell rigid foam is a lot better choice than fibreglass batts for underbelly insulation. I did this on my Reflection (that does not have OE insulation above the coroplast). See this thread, post 12. https://gdrvowners.com/forum/exterio...al-replacement And others if you search on “rigid foam” and my forum name. There are a number of black silicone products that will do a better than OE job of sealing the edges of the coroplast. I use one made by DAP.

Rob

[Jlawles2]

Dgrothen Do you have an on demand HWH or traditional? If Traditional, you may be experiencing leaks due to the pressure rise in the system when the HWH first heats. Been there done that with those leaks. Rob (Cate&Rob) has documented water pressure rise to over 100 psi (IIRC) just from the HWH heating the water for the first time. In my first TT the toilet inlet would leak, in the previous 5er the sink feed lines would leak. On the 5er, the way the lines were routed it resulted in the water finding it's way out the back of the island. If the lines are routed such that the water can follow them, it could pool in the under belly and then drip wherever it finds a way out.

[Dgrothen]

Jlawles2 I do have a traditional water heater, but I don't believe I'm experiencing high pressure at first heat up. But now you make me wonder too about the pressure release valve, I'm going to check to see what its rated for .... just so I know.

I had described a water issue we experienced last spring where I left the pump on, and the kitchen sink got turned on. Well, i just remembered one more thing too. As I was remodeling my RV basement in preparation for my solar install, I moved / rerouted a couple water lines. After moving the lines, I tested for leaks, like all water line modifications should have done. As part of that testing, I found three leaks at locations other than what I had done, from the factory, i guess. Two of them were very slow drips and I cut off the clamp and re-clamped them. They were on the domestic water side of things. But the big leak was on the Black Tank flush line. I was literally a big spray. So, every time I flushed my black tank, I'd dump a quart or so of water into the belly. It turned out that the nut fastening the line to the control panel had two domed typed washers. One of them was in backwards and pinched. I've owned this RV for just over a year now and I can't believe all the things I find from the factory that could have easily been tested and checked but were obviously missed. But I don't let it get me down, I also get some self-satisfaction upon fixing each one I find.

[Jlawles2]

I hate to burst your bubble about the no pressure during initial heating of a traditional HWH. It's well documented here by Rob (Cate&Rob) with verification by others. When you first turn on the HWH, wait 20 min then "BURP" the hot side of any faucet. If you notice a quick high pressure / flow then it drops off, you have pressure build from heating. If not, then you have either added an accumulator or there is a leak somewhere releasing the pressure.

Post 23 https://gdrvowners.com/forum/operati...pressure/page2
Post 25 https://gdrvowners.com/forum/operati...stall-it/page2 Also see post 34

[Dgrothen]

Oay Rob Jlawles2 I concede. I read through the post you included a couple of times now and I'm seeing your point. I conducted numerous tests on my water system yesterday, before reading the posts. I was not able to find any leaks. Even pressuring with air and letting is set for hours with no pressure loss. My next step i guess is to install a permant in-line pressure guage and watch when the water heater is running and most likely install a pressure relief tank.

[Cate&Rob]

I decided to pressurize the tank by using the power fill with air. I used a wine cork to plug the overflow then pressurized it to about 15 lbs. It was enough pressure to cause the tank to bulge a little bit, visibility noticeable. It's been pressurized for four hrs so far and still holding.

Pressurizing the water tank system to check for a leak is an interesting way of doing this. Certainly used for many plumbing systems, but I am surprised that the thin walled water tank could take 15 psi without permanent distortion. That tank can be collapsed with inches of water vacuum (1 psi = 28" water column). The test pressure for rigid ABS residential drain plumbing is 10 ft of water (less than 5 psi).

Air pressure is much more "explosive" than hydraulic (water) pressure. For example, many folks match their water pressure when blowing out water systems with air. Using 40 psi or more, when 20 psi is sufficient (and a lot safer). The rapid outrush of air when opening a faucet at 40 psi can dislodge seals an O rings. But, I digress . . .

Rob

[Scott'n'Wendy]

I agree 15psi seems pretty high,,but I guess it's holding. My first thought was for the soft hose connections....

For example, many folks match their water pressure when blowing out water systems with air. Using 40 psi or more, when 20 psi is sufficient (and a lot safer).

I usually blow out at 30-35 psi. Did the 20psi come from testing or is it a good engineering guess? I always wanted to blow out as low as possible while still being effective but never found anybody willing to put down a minimum number. Mind you, I never deadhead, always have a valve open.

[Yoda]

I agree 15psi seems pretty high,,but I guess it's holding. My first thought was for the soft hose connections....


I usually blow out at 30-35 psi. Did the 20psi come from testing or is it a good engineering guess? I always wanted to blow out as low as possible while still being effective but never found anybody willing to put down a minimum number. Mind you, I never deadhead, always have a valve open.

I try to never exceed 40 psi. My regulator on my little compressor is not the best +- 5 psi so I set it to 35. I use the winterize setting and do let the system pressurize before turning on and off faucets starting with the furthest fixture first. However I also crack the power fill valve momentarily to blow out the FWT fill line, and also do the same with the HWH line (normally on bypass in winterize). The hot water drain valve is open during this. You would be surprised at the amount of water in that line that runs across the trailer.

I also agree with Rob the 15 pis is way too much on the water tank. I'm not sure I would trust 5 psi given the tank surface area. A 6' by 3' tank has a surface area on one side of 2592 SQ in and at 15 psi is 38,880 lbs of force (on one surface) 2x that for the tank and more if you want to include the sidewalls. That's why rescue uses those air bags to lift cars and trucks. You may want to inspect your tank supports.

Keith

[howson]

Cate&Rob -- I'm likely to get these terms wrong, but is it the pressure or the flow rate of air that does the work to clear the lines (or some combination of both)?

This may sound crazy (what else is new?), but what I do is open the low point drains and, with my wet/dry vac set to blow (so there's a high volume of air with low pressure) open a faucet and blow air backwards through the plumbing system. Every time I've done this (when "winterizing") water has come out of the low point drains. I do each faucet (and the shower), alternating between hot and cold. Only lines I can't do are the toilet and washing machine.

[Cate&Rob]

howson
You are correct that it is volume of air, not pressure, that clears the water lines (in my opinion) Using a shop vac for high volume, low pressure, as you describe, is an interesting idea.

Scott'n'Wendy
I don't have any data to prove that 20 psi is sufficient . . . it is just all that I have ever used. The pressure setting on the air compressor is meaningless anyway. As soon as you open a faucet, the system water pressure gauge will drop to near zero psi as the air/water is released through the open faucet, particularly if you are using a small portable compressor. The problem is that many folks open/close each faucet in sequence. Essentially "deadheading" the system in between, as you describe it. The 40 psi to near zero air rush out of each faucet will dislodge contaminants and even seals.

Rob