Broken Black Water Flange

[Mtn4Mike]

I have a sinking feeling this is a bad one. I bottomed out my 2011 Flagstaff HW27 pop-up and broke the valve lever. That would have been easy to repair but I just learned the flange (I think that's what it is) exiting the tank is broken. See picture. There is a rubber coupling but unfortunately it did not fail first. Is this a tank replacement or can it be repaired?



Mike

[rockfordroo]

Based on your pic, I'm thinking "new tank." Unless a new one can be glued to the outside somehow, but I'd be leery of that if I had it done. Maybe someone has has more experience?

[Twisty]

New tank. The fittings will be welded on.
Buying a new tank might not be much fun but imagine a repaired tank failing at the campsite.
Repairing plastic that has been exposed to the elements or "other stuff" is virtually impossible.

[Mtn4Mike]

Thanks for the replies. Has anyone ever replaced a black water tank? I assume this is no longer a DIY. Any idea on cost?

Mike

[Mtn4Mike]

This is ending up to be a DIY. The tank itself isn't too bad regarding cost, $137 + shipping but the dealer says it will be a 5 hour job. The tank is above the plywood floor and below the toilet/shower pan so that needs to come out to get to the tank. Dealer claims about $1000-$1200. I'm pretty comfortable with this type of work so I'm going to do it. Wish me luck!

Mike

[Broadway Joe]

Good luck and take lots of pictures.

[Mtn4Mike]

Finally got the new tank. Thought I would share the replacement sequence, which I wish I would have had going into this.

I'll share the problem first.



The toilet and shower tray needs to be removed to access the tank. Here is where I started. I removed the hard walls to get better access.



Here the toilet is removed. I had to cut the vent plumbing to unscrew it from the fittings. Instead of buying all new vent plumbing I used a coupler to fuse it back together when re-assembling. Access to the shower drain plumbing (lower right) is underneath after removing a protective cover. This must be removed to get the shower tray out.



I removed the toilet flange with my DIY tool.



Here I have removed the shower tray. This part sucked. The screws are easy but all that caulking is tough to break loose. I had to remove the towel bar and soap tray to get the shower tray out but no big deal. The new tank is in.



From here it's just reversing the process. This entire process took about 4 hours, including replacing the waste valve and all associated plumbing. Total cost about $300.

I hope this is helpful to someone

Mike

[Broadway Joe]

Glad to hear your problem has been repaired, hopefully you can still get to enjoy your Flagstaff this year. Nice job with the repair.

[jim44646]

I repaired my tank with a crack about the same as yours. The product is called Plasti- mend. cost about $50.00. Tanks Been working great. I'm just saying this to let others know there are other alteritives to pulling black tank.

[Mtn4Mike]

Originally Posted by jim44646

I repaired my tank with a crack about the same as yours. The product is called Plasti- mend. cost about $50.00. Tanks Been working great. I'm just saying this to let others know there are other alteritives to pulling black tank.

Where were you about a month ago? Although I'm not sure I would trust a repair with such an extensive crack. I feel better about it being new. I also added a pipe hanger underneath near the waste valve fastened to the frame which it did not have originally. Probably contributed to the failure

Mike

[Arefbee]

Originally Posted by Twisty

New tank. The fittings will be welded on.
Buying a new tank might not be much fun but imagine a repaired tank failing at the campsite.
Repairing plastic that has been exposed to the elements or "other stuff" is virtually impossible.

Smart to do the tank. Having a repair fail as you are on the highway with a trooper behind you would have been the worst possible result - and with my luck the likely result.

Thanks for the great pics.

[rockfordroo]

I repaired my tank with a crack about the same as yours. The product is called Plasti- mend. cost about $50.00.

Was yours a cracked wall or a cracked fitting? I think a cracked wall is a far different issue than a cracked fitting. To me, a cracked fitting = new tank.

[jim44646]

Originally Posted by rockfordroo

Was yours a cracked wall or a cracked fitting? I think a cracked wall is a far different issue than a cracked fitting. To me, a cracked fitting = new tank.

I'm not near my computer to send u photos. I also added a hanger strap, as there was nothing holding pipe til near main outlet.

[GalsofEscape]

thanks for the pics, they may come in handy as I hit a hubcap lying in the road and damaged the grey water system. A Y connection in the grey water piping underneath the PUP had a huge crack and dripped, this was easily fixed. What was not seen was damage to the shower drain. We would get water running across the floor inside the camper and could not figure out where the water was coming from. We always saw the water up front around the frig and water pump. Finally took it to a repair shop and they found it (and only because I just happen to bring it in without dumping the grey). It was damage to the shower drain and when the grey water tank was full, it is flowing out onto the floor, under the dinette and to the front of the camper rather than backing up into the shower pan. To fix it, they will have to remove the bath. Have not had it fixed yet, so have been using an external tote for the grey (we do not use the bathroom at all, makes a great closet). Not sure if hubby is up to this job - and to repair is pricey. (also has me wondering if there was any black system damage but as we do not use that system - I am not worried until trade in time.).....

[jim44646]

Originally Posted by Mtn4Mike

Where were you about a month ago? Although I'm not sure I would trust a repair with such an extensive crack. I feel better about it being new. I also added a pipe hanger underneath near the waste valve fastened to the frame which it did not have originally. Probably contributed to the failure

Mike

photos of tank repair. If you notice the crack extends around bottom of flange and up the side of tank. The ABS repair kit I used comes with new ABS material to cover area and melts into old making it one piece