Fresh water loss while driving - Page 2

WinnieView · 02-13-2018, 03:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Robbbyr

Running the vent/overflow lines up into a loop arrangement would likely work in some models, but the OP has a Seneca and our tanks are mounted close to the underside of the floor as Sundancer notes above. To get the lines up much higher than the top of the tank would mean (somehow) penetrating the floor. That would likely be a big undertaking.

Ours is mounted in the same place but there is also a clear gap across the top of the tank to the other side and wet bay.

Robbbyr · 02-13-2018, 04:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 2008Seneca

Ours is mounted in the same place but there is also a clear gap across the top of the tank to the other side and wet bay.

On my 2014 TS the other side of my freshwater tank is the generator, so no help there! The wet bay is one compartment forward of the genny, but its "ceiling" is still the bottom of the floor so no increase in overhead clearance to provide a raised loop. Still would have to come up throgh the floor to gain any appreciable height.

RVermont has a hole, mine has the wires for my bedroom slideout motor there too, but way too small to get multiple or larger vent/overflow line(s) through. And the hole would have to be large enough to get six original-sized lines through or two combined lines in and out. What goes up must come down! But with a larger hole(s) that certainly could be a way to get enough height to accomplish the goal. But different Seneca floorplans have different tank locations, the OP has a RB (Rear Bath) and I have no clue how his are arranged!

MD3 · 02-13-2018, 06:05 PM

Here is a pic.
My overflows are almost directly in the middle and I don't see any way to reach them... maybe pull out the entire wet bay but that doesn't seem practical.
I found a push on piece with a cap for irrigation lines that looks like it might work for this trip but I need to figure out long term.

Robbbyr · 02-13-2018, 06:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MD3

Here is a pic.
My overflows are almost directly in the middle and I don't see any way to reach them... maybe pull out the entire wet bay but that doesn't seem practical.
I found a push on piece with a cap for irrigation lines that looks like it might work for this trip but I need to figure out long term.

Looks like those fittings should work well to allow you to cap the lines off to prevent water loss.

What is on the opposite side of your Seneca where the water tank resides? Is it the wet bay itself?

MD3 · 02-13-2018, 10:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Robbbyr

Looks like those fittings should work well to allow you to cap the lines off to prevent water loss.

What is on the opposite side of your Seneca where the water tank resides? Is it the wet bay itself?

Yes, wet bay. I looked up inside there but it is a mess of hoses and the metal wall of the wet bay.
I might be able to get to it via over the rear axle and then come trough from the side. Not sure what is on top of the rear axles. Any idea how to remove the trim around the rear axle to open up and look in that area ?

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RVermont · 02-14-2018, 02:32 AM

While the following process is easy and straight forward it is up you to decide if you can do this without damaging your unit. To open the axle cover you remove a couple screws on L bracket in the well that hold the panel shut.

There are two of them. One at about 9 am and one at 3 pm in the tire well. Once these are removed you simply carefully pull the bottom of the panel outward. The top is locked inside the trim as a sort of hinge. I then place a board in front and back of the panel to keep it held at 90 degrees. Once the panel is open there is a plastic panel with about a dozen screws many of which completely miss anything. Once you take these out you will have to break a caulk seal to remove this panel. There are no screw up the the upper edge as this is held in place with caulk. This caulking is supposed to help keep the dust and water out however when I pulled both sides open they were only about 70% successfully sealed there were several large areas that were not sealed and there was actually a gap and the seal was useless. I think this was due to miss driven screws that were driven into the air not into the plastic frame.

Now having said all this in my unit you can not access any other bay from the well.

I took the opportunity to clean up the heating duct. And added some insulation and a sill seal to the panel. I then put in new screws that actually sealed the panels on the bay. Added some foam to seal some wall penetrations as well.

I also just noticed on the photo that the seal in the black tank looks to be leaking. So I guess I need to open this back up and inspect this more closely.

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Crossingover · 02-14-2018, 07:14 AM

I have been watching this topic with interest. Was thinking that a check valve solution might help. https://smile.amazon.com/Homewerks-V...lve+3%2F4+inch It could be installed on each of the three vent lines to allow air IN but not let water OUT. The only issue with this arrangement is that you would have to remove one of the check valves during tank filling. Perhaps install two of the valves in the air IN position and the third in the air OUT position would work to at least limit the amount of siphoning. Or use once check valve in a manifold arrangement.

MD3 · 02-14-2018, 07:45 AM

Found this fix on another thread here.
Anyone try this ?
One concern is it would vents into a sealed bay.

http://eksfiles.net/jayco/fresh_tank...limination.pdf

Crossingover · 02-14-2018, 07:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MD3

Found this fix on another thread here.
Anyone try this ?
One concern is it would vents into a sealed bay.

http://eksfiles.net/jayco/fresh_tank...limination.pdf

I think this was a Jayco recommended fix. In my situation (HJ), it wouldn't work since there is insufficient clearance above the tank.

WinnieView · 02-14-2018, 08:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MD3

Found this fix on another thread here.
Anyone try this ?
One concern is it would vents into a sealed bay.

http://eksfiles.net/jayco/fresh_tank...limination.pdf

This may work for our rig. Thanks for the link!

Robbbyr · 02-14-2018, 09:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MD3

Yes, wet bay. I looked up inside there but it is a mess of hoses and the metal wall of the wet bay.
I might be able to get to it via over the rear axle and then come through from the side. Not sure what is on top of the rear axles. Any idea how to remove the trim around the rear axle to open up and look in that area ?

Like RVermont indicated you remove the screws in the "L" bracket and then the wheel fender will hinge up. On my 2014 you could then even "slide" it over top of the adjacent compartment so that access was even easier. Then the outer cover needs unscrewed, but at least on mine the polyurethane caulk on that cover was the toughest part of getting it off!

In my picture below I have the outer cover removed as well as the large wheelwell liner out. Radical surgery to possibly get to the vents, but whether it would help access yours on an RB I cannot say.

MD3 · 02-17-2018, 07:05 AM

All my overflow lines are sealed in with a grey colored expanding foam.....
I have any idea for fixing but I would need to then replace he foam.

Any idea where I can buy the gray/black colored expanding foam ?
My local stores only have the yellow kind.

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RVermont · 02-17-2018, 07:32 AM

I use products made by Todol. They are available at my local lumber yard.
You can google them and they have a number that you can call to get specific dealers in your area, not sure if they are in CA as you have a whole different requirements.

I just used the regular yellowish stuff because that is what i had in the dispenser at the time, i will have to trim it down and will cover it with black sealing tape when it warms up.

Some brands offer rodent protection in the foam, the little bas----- eat it and die, hopefully outside your unit. Though i am not sure i would use it in direct contact with my water system.

On trick to applying is to lightly apply a mist of water on the surface first, this should be very light and let it drain for a minute or so. Then apply the foam. If applying in a large area use small additions and mist between coats. The product cures in the presence of water and in some areas of the country the air moisture level is pretty low and the cure can take awhile.

pmdevries · 02-17-2018, 09:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MD3

Any idea where I can buy the gray/black colored expanding foam ?
My local stores only have the yellow kind.

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This should work:

https://www.amazon.com/Great-Stuff-9...ct_top?ie=UTF8

nighthawk87 · 02-27-2018, 01:38 PM

Just plug them and be done. Look at your fresh water fill port. It has a vent already. When I’m filling my tank I can feel the air rushing out that vent hole.

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Robbbyr · 02-27-2018, 02:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nighthawk87

Just plug them and be done. Look at your fresh water fill port. It has a vent already. When I’m filling my tank I can feel the air rushing out that vent hole.

While a simple solution, many of us can't do your fix. We have no gravity fill with vent for our freshwater tanks. Our only way to add water to our freshwater tank is to connect a hose, orient our valves correctly, and either have "city" pressure push it in or use our 12-volt water pump to "draw" it in. In both cases the overflow/vent lines must be open or the tank will overpressurize. Likewise the vents must remain open when using the pump to supply the RV, or the water tank will collapse. That happened recently to an owner who recently purchased a gently-used Seneca not realizing the original owner capped the overflows/vents. Fortunately he was able to re-expand his tank without it cracking as far as we know.

201822j · 06-14-2018, 09:08 AM

I was initiated on my maiden voyage of this phenomenon. A couple days before I filled my tanks for the first time and thought ...what happens when I reach Fill?, well I saw the over fill in action. My Redhawk C-class has (3) tubes dangling 2-3 inches below the frame from the side/top of the tank.
I topped off a few hours before hitting the road.

I get to the campsite (site only has electric), get all squared away, do a check on the fresh water level 1/4 tank full. What the heck happened. I do a visual and yep the the water level is only about a 1/4 filled. Has to be from driving. I close up the unit drive over to the campgrounds drinking water supply and fill back up.

My tank is up against the floor so I can't loop above the tank. I'm not sure what all (3) hose are for but I think I need to put easy to reach shut offs for driving.

Nytebyte · 06-21-2018, 03:00 PM

I have the same problem with my 2018 Redhawk 22c. Why 3 overflows?? Can I cap 2 of them? Maybe plug the 3rd till I get to my campsite and then open it.

Nytebyte · 06-21-2018, 04:32 PM

Just read about a guy with country fill problem. Would it be possible to remove the check valve on the country fill option to use as a vent for the water tank? Thinking I could use that as a vent and plug them 3 overflow drains. The more I get into my new 2018 Jayco Redhawk the more I miss my Holiday Rambler!!!!!

Robbbyr · 06-21-2018, 06:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nytebyte

Just read about a guy with country fill problem. Would it be possible to remove the check valve on the country fill option to use as a vent for the water tank? Thinking I could use that as a vent and plug them 3 overflow drains. The more I get into my new 2018 Jayco Redhawk the more I miss my Holiday Rambler!!!!!

If your unit is plumbed like mine, the only way to add water to the tank is through the hose inlet connection. There is no gravity fill like many of us had before. So once the hose is connected from the water source, you set the valves to direct water to the tank or to the fixtures. That hose connection on the panel is where the check valve is located on my unit, so obviously removing it won't help since the hose supplying the unit to fill the tank is connected there.

Jayco told me there are three overflows/vents on my unit because when filling from a source with high pressure and flow, there has to be a place for the water to go once the tank is full. If not enough overflow capacity, the tank might rupture. The design is likely the same on your unit.

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