Jayflight Spewing Water all over the Highway!

[Wally22j]

We have a 2018 Redhawk 22J. We tried filling the fresh water tank to go dry camping. I stopped filling when it began to run out the overflow tubes underneath the coach. Went inside to check the level and it showed only 2/3 full. Drove 30+ miles to the camp site and checked the level again to see it was now at 1/3 full. This did not make sense to me so we tried the same thing a second time with the same results. The 43.5 gallon fresh water tank overflows at 2/3 capacity, then half of that sloshes out before arriving at the destination, leaving about 14 gallons in the tank, if the indicators are correct. It doesn't make sense to me, it seems they could do better. The advantage is we can pump fresh water into the tank after getting set-up using the "Country Fill" setting. When we dry camp, we now carry 8-10 gallon jugs of fresh water with us from home or buy them along he way and fill up (only to 2/3 full) at our destination.

[20jayflightslx]

Jayco Trailers - for the stationary dwellers that don’t leave their homes!

[RetiredOne]

Originally Posted by CamperStu

why would you want to carry all that dead weight? it would be cheaper to buy water than drive it 150 miles..+ the water reduces your load capacity a lot
1 gallon = 8.34 lbs...

If you put 20 gallons in, you're talking around 160 lbs. on a 5000+ lb rig. Not really a big deal.

[RetiredOne]

Originally Posted by Wally22j

Went inside to check the level and it showed only 2/3 full. Drove 30+ miles to the camp site and checked the level again to see it was now at 1/3 full. This did not make sense to me so we tried the same thing a second time with the same results. The 43.5 gallon fresh water tank overflows at 2/3 capacity, then half of that sloshes out before arriving at the destination, leaving about 14 gallons in the tank, if the indicators are correct. It doesn't make sense to me, it seems they could do better. The advantage is we can pump fresh water into the tank after getting set-up using the "Country Fill" setting. When we dry camp, we now carry 8-10 gallon jugs of fresh water with us from home or buy them along he way and fill up (only to 2/3 full) at our destination.

First, it's possible you have a bad senor at the full point. If water was coming out the overflow, it was definitely full.

Mine sloshes out too, and I just do the exact country fill method that you do, when I get to the campground and top it off. It's really a poor tank design. My overflow hoses are underneath, behind the generator, so I'm not crawling under there to put in valves, and open and close them all the time. I try to get sites with water hookups to eliminate the whole water tank issue.

[20jayflightslx]

No. They are indeed correct. Jayco decided to put the overflow holes on the side of the tank so it is effectively impossible to ever completely fill your tanks. In addition when you are moving you lose even more water below the overflow hole level.

[RetiredOne]

The only way to know for sure, is to fill the tank, then slide under the rig, and visually inspect where the water level actually is. At the same time, you can check the position of the full sensor, to see if it's covered.

[marciaandre]

To the OP - the first few trips in a new RV can be a little bit frustrating, but you will get your groove soon. Try not to blame too much on Jayco as most companies use the same essential components. Do rely on the help from this great group. It does get better in time. We almost always travel with all tanks empty, and just a gallon bottle of "toilet water" for stops along the way. Of course, a bit of advance planning goes a long way if you ensure a reliable place to top off that holding tank before boondocking. This time of year, many parks turn off their water. Or, do as a few have suggested and only carry a few gallons in your tank. If we are not boondocking we never put any water in our holding tank.

[jaycojay]

Originally Posted by 20jayflightslx

Thanks for the tips!

But really...when you manufacture thousands upon thousands of travel trailers and are ok with putting out a faulty product such as the Jayflight that can not retain water in its water tank...there is a problem.

This will be the first and last Jayco I buy!

If this is the worst thing that happens, you are doing fine. This is not a Jayco issue, it's a matter of physics.... the water goes out the overflow, and starts syphoning, so no, it's not a faulty product. I'm sure it's happened to most of us here .... keep an eye on your gauges, when it hits full, shut off the water, it's that simple

[20jayflightslx]

Lol. Too many people here on the Jayco coolaide.

I don’t expect a lot.

What I do expect is for a company that is in the business of manufacturing a product to stand behind their products. Clearly Jayco does not. I would be embarrassed and ashamed to work or be associated with a company like Jayco with the products they sell to the public.

Y’all can act like false advertising and faulty products are acceptable....but pretty sure if your car was leaking fuel you would not be happy...and the car manufacture would not get away with it!

[wags999]

Originally Posted by 20jayflightslx

Thanks for the tips!

But really...when you manufacture thousands upon thousands of travel trailers and are ok with putting out a faulty product such as the Jayflight that can not retain water in its water tank...there is a problem.

This will be the first and last Jayco I buy!

Vast majority of folks don't travel with a full tank, do not as much of an issue. Full tank adds weight which costs fuel plus additional weight when stopping starting etc. If they put a valve on the lines people would forget to open or close them.. most all rvs have similar issues when traveling with full water tanks.

[BrendaD]

I love your idea about taking gallons of water from home. With pre planning, the jugs could be found. I personally am set up at a campground so I am not travelling with my current trailer. I always travelled with my last one with empty tanks however as the information suggests and it was to campsites with water hook up. But if I was to start travelling again to a dry camp spot, I'd likely use this suggestion.

[jaycojay]

Originally Posted by 20jayflightslx

Lol. Too many people here on the Jayco coolaide.

I don’t expect a lot.

What I do expect is for a company that is in the business of manufacturing a product to stand behind their products. Clearly Jayco does not. I would be embarrassed and ashamed to work or be associated with a company like Jayco with the products they sell to the public.

Y’all can act like false advertising and faulty products are acceptable....but pretty sure if your car was leaking fuel you would not be happy...and the car manufacture would not get away with it!

......personally, i think u need to get rid of it, because frankly, if this pees you off, i can guarantee you something worse is going to happen between now, and when you trade up to, lets say, an Airstream maybe. I'm sure if you ask any Jayflight owner in this sight if there RV is perfect, they are going to tell you "no", far from it...... but what it does do, is help you have great memories of camping with friends and family at an affordable price. I for one can tell you, Jayco stands behind the products they sell as well, if not better, than any other RV brand on the market. Just keep one thing in mind here, Jayco, along with every other RV manufacturer are at the mercy of the companies that make most components in an RV, and most of the time, it's these components that cause issues for owners. If theres a screw missing, or a cabinet not fitting perfectly etc, than thats the RV Manufacturers problem. Components are designed in certain ways for a reason..... not to tick buyers off i can pretty well assure you of that. You deal with it, let it go, and enjoy your RV and the memories it will bring you!

[20jayflightslx]

Lol. Screws missing or misaligned cabinets are not quite in the same ball park.

Trust me...if I can get what I paid for back I would sell it in a heartbeat because Jayco DOES NOT STAND BEHIND THEIR products and they sold me nothing but lies.

Oh. Here’s a thermal package you can buy. It doesn’t work and your pipes and tanks will freeze any way. Oh here is a Baja/RM package you can pay more for. By the way the large tanks you are paying more for don’t hold any water.

Give me a break. I literally have not dealt with a company worse then Jayco in my lifetime!

The fact that they even put a product like this on the market is a disgrace not even counting the millions of cosmetic/poor craftsmanship issues new owners deal with daily!

[RetiredOne]

Originally Posted by 20jayflightslx

The fact that they even put a product like this on the market is a disgrace not even counting the millions of cosmetic/poor craftsmanship issues new owners deal with daily!

Since you hate it so much, my suggestion, set it on fire, burn it down, and collect the insurance money. You can blame the fire on Jayco. Problem solved!

[madmaxmutt]

The other manufacturer's trailers I owned had gravity fill points like these.


Both of these have a overflow connection included. They only overflowed until gravity stopped it because it was physically feet above the tank.


Jayco chose to install this sealed fill system water "docking station".

It's fancier, but because they also chose not to run the overflow tube up to this panel, overflow and spillage occurs. The hoses just go straight down to the ground where gravity allows them to continue flowing/spilling/siphoning (whatever we want to call it).

[Lmbrjk]

Thanks madmax - found that one and this on Amazon
Valterra BLACK Gravity Fresh Water Fill Hatch Inlet RV Trailer.
Should fix the problem for $9 and a little work.

Currently - I close my valve on the overflow and fill the tank until it overflows at the fill. Put on the cap and go to camp. Tank is always full when I get there.

[Lmbrjk]

Originally Posted by 20jayflightslx

Jayco Trailers - for the stationary dwellers that don’t leave their homes!

I did 200+ days in my lousey Jayco this year.

[marciaandre]

Record levels of new folks have gotten into RV-ing this year due to the virus. You've heard about the backlog of orders for new rigs and parts I would imagine? Or seen the empty lots? I've been reading a lot of articles about this, and listening to Podcasts such as RV Miles. Some folks predict we will see a number of almost new RV's on the market next year, as some will have unrealistic expectations or are not well prepared for the challenges of RV ownership. I suspect that we will hear from more folks like this who are taking out their angst on whatever company they purchased from. Others will make the effort, as most of us did, to learn all they can and offer help to others (even when they are cranky!) RV camping is not for everyone.

[madmaxmutt]

I don't drink koolaid unless it has some alcohol in it.

You might be misinterpreting people's reaction to your post. I doubt any of us like the state of RV manufacturing. But, many of us know that the rules and standards for cars and houses don't apply to RVs. I have had a Forest River, a Keystone, and a Jayco in three years. They all have their issues. They don't hire craftsmen to build them, and the don't run their assembly plants on a quality control basis. They run them on a quantity basis, on a minimal timeline.

[RetiredOne]

Originally Posted by madmaxmutt

I doubt any of us like the state of RV manufacturing. But, many of us know that the rules and standards for cars and houses don't apply to RVs.

That's an important point. I see lots of comments about quality and service departments. I think many people buy an RV and expect the same experience like dealing with a car dealer, then when they don't get the same quality or attention, they get upset.

Once they figure out that's comparing apples to horseshoes, the stress level goes down. The two aren't even close to being the same.