Burst hot water tank on 2001 Kiwi that we just bought

[Blozlola]

We bought this from a woman who seemed trustworthy when she said the trailer was well maintained and that everything worked. We paid $400 over NADA average retail price because we believed her.

When we first turned on the water, it went streaming all along the side of the trailer. We found that the hot water tank had burst. From what I can find on line , this usually happens because the plug is left in over the freezing winter. The estimate to replace it is @$700.

We feel that she should reimburse us this amount since she obviously didn't maintain it as she told us and if she had checked it out when she, supposedly, unwinterized it, she would have discovered the burst tank.
She offered $300.
Thoughts?

[Grumpy]

You can get a replacement for about $300, it's a simple swap. I think your lucky she's willing to split the cost.

[stateboy]

It's an integrity issue with the seller and trust issue with the buyer on most any private purchase. I usually give away the farm when I sell an item and give an honest evaluation of what someone is getting from me. If it's junk, I tell them. If it's a gem, I tell them. If she's giving $300 for the "damage," it sounds like she being somewhat honest about not knowing about its condition OR inadvertently telling you she doesn't know how to properly winterize (or dewinterize) her unit.

Jerry

[Blozlola]

We also are the same. We just sold our pop up and we checked it over, bought a new part and cleaned it before we even posted it. We told them exactly what was what with it. My husband just turned 70 and we wanted something easier to set up.

The trailer we bought was initially listed as a 2002 and we were a little leary of a 16 year old unit since we had already checked out some that were pretty beat up. We didn't find out it was really a 2001 until we got the title. She was asking almost $2,000 more than the NADA average retail for a 2002.

Since it was "well-maintained" and everything worked and the floor and ceiling had been repaired by a previous owner, we offered about $400 over NADA. After no other reasonable offers, they accepted our offer.

The husband explained to my husband how to winterize/dewinterize. They were keeping the stabilizer bars, etc, so we bought and brought up parts to put on. We picked it up over a week later and expected to install our parts and check out a few things and be on our way. We were quite surprised to see that their parts were still installed and the husband was at work, so my husband had to both take theirs off and install ours.

So, we let the 2002-2001 issue and the stabilizer issue slide. When we turned on the water to discover this, I guess we could just not believe it. Glad we hadn't waited until just before going camping or even at the campground! After looking up why this happens, it seemed that it was so preventable by the previous owner. I guess we will never get smart enough to know what/who to believe and not to assume (I know!) the best of everyone.

Where can we can the part for $300? How do we know we are gettingthe right unit that will fit our gas fittings and space? RV place told us $455 for part and $267 for a kit to repair (which doesn't seem to be recommended). So much for getting something easier!!

Thanks for your help.

[Sundancer330]

I would locate the model number and brand and look to see if is still made, if not you will have to do some measuring to make sure the new one will fit. Amazon sells many different models around the $350 range with free shipping.

[pconroy]

Originally Posted by Blozlola

We feel that she should reimburse us this amount since she obviously didn't maintain it as she told us and if she had checked it out when she, supposedly, unwinterized it, she would have discovered the burst tank.
She offered $300.
Thoughts?

You bought it as-is.
You're on the hook to check everything.


I've sold a motorhome as-is and bought one as-is.

On the one I bought, I failed to check that the generator was maintained, since the entire coach was immaculate.

Cost me $700 to fix that generator.
That's a hard lesson for me to learn, but next time - I will check everything!!

[GRUU]

Originally Posted by Blozlola

We bought this from a woman who seemed trustworthy when she said the trailer was well maintained and that everything worked. We paid $400 over NADA average retail price because we believed her.

When we first turned on the water, it went streaming all along the side of the trailer. We found that the hot water tank had burst. From what I can find on line , this usually happens because the plug is left in over the freezing winter. The estimate to replace it is @$700.

We feel that she should reimburse us this amount since she obviously didn't maintain it as she told us and if she had checked it out when she, supposedly, unwinterized it, she would have discovered the burst tank.
She offered $300.
Thoughts?

TAKE IT! She is under no legal obligation to give you anything. Be happy you got it.

[tcanthonyii]

You should have asked to see the hot water heater work. Honestly it's on you. You're very lucky she offered anything back.