Fresh water drain wonky?

[Brother Les]

fresh water tank will have a 'fill line' and a 'drain line' and an 'over flow' line'..... Can you take a picture and post of your 'over flow' line? If that is your 'over flow' line, that would easily explain why some of our tanks 'self drain' when the over flow is started.

[gbaldwin]

and pump line

[rockfordroo]

Originally Posted by IsleDog

I think this installer is a whole lot smarter than we are giving them credit for. they are teaching us a valuable lesson in physics using Pythagorean's Cup.

Yeah! It's so you can't overfill your tank!

[MSgt Rick]

Originally Posted by Brother Les

fresh water tank will have a 'fill line' and a 'drain line' and an 'over flow' line'..... Can you take a picture and post of your 'over flow' line? If that is your 'over flow' line, that would easily explain why some of our tanks 'self drain' when the over flow is started.

Here is the best picture I could get of all hoses. The only thing I can think of in the way of an overflow line would be the vent doubling as an overflow (or visa versa). The one I have circle in the original pic couldn't be overflow as it is on the bottom of the tank, and it has a shut-off valve underneath the tailer.

BTW, I plan on moving the tank over a bit to get the fill hose off of the wood. That's some fine attention to detail that the industry is known for!

[MSgt Rick]

Originally Posted by gbaldwin

and pump line

Here it is

[pmsherman]

The fresh tank drain is usually a welded connection into the water tank. From your picture, it appears that there is a wood support under the edge of the tank that prevents installing the drain with the exit port pointing down, as it usually is. My guess is that the installer pointed it up for convenience then ended up with the "U" shaped drain line.



The drain should have been installed with the 90 degree fitting pointing horizontal, then plumbed to the drain line. If this is a new trailer, FR should fix it under warranty. The better alternative would have been to use a drain that didn't have the elbow as part of the drain.



Phil

[MSgt Rick]

Originally Posted by pmsherman

From your picture, it appears that there is a wood support under the edge of the tank that prevents installing the drain with the exit port pointing down, as it usually is.

If this is a new trailer, FR should fix it under warranty.

Phil

The small wood block is flat on the floor against the tank to prevent it from sliding. There are no obstructions at all in front of the drain, it's a straight shot from the tank to the hole in the floor. That is what makes this install leaving me scratching my head.

Unfortunately, I am five months out of warranty. It shouldn't be too difficult to fix at least.

[jimmoore13]

I'm late to this party, so I'll just echo others:
1. Re-plumb the drain line. Straight out the side, one elbow to go vertical, and a bit more line to connect to the quarter-turn ball valve under the floor. While you're at it, replace plastic with brass. If, as someone else said, there is wood framing blocking a straight shot out of the tank, evaluate the wood framing's purpose. Is it "structural" or is it just framing for cabinetry and partitioning? If it's not structural, you might use an oscillating tool to remove a small chunk of that wood to give you a clear path for the plumbing. Be sure of what you are doing if you make this cut.
https://www.amazon.com/DEWALT-DWE315...=fsclp_pl_dp_1
2. Fix the suction line from the tank to the pump. You might get away with a 45 degree elbow and a couple of hose clamps to eliminate the kink.
3. And what gives with the fresh-tank fill? It appears to have a low point outside the tank. A gravity-fill pipe should run continuously uphill to the fill port. A sag in the line will make filling very difficult and slow. At minimum, strap it up with some zip ties or pipe clamps. Or consider shortening the pipe so it doesn't sag.
4. While you're at it, look for the fresh tank fill air vent line, which should parallel the fill pipe and also go continuously uphill to the fill port connection. Any sag in either line will collect water and may prevent easy fresh-tank filling. Both need to be supported or shortened as needed for proper filling.

[jimmoore13]

A hunch on the "why" of this.
The fitting for the drain line should NOT have been an elbow. It should have been a "nipple"...straight pipe threaded on one end and with a barbed fitting on the other to accept PEX and a clamp.

This all started with the installer putting in...or discovering...the elbow, and then doing the world's worst job of making the most of a bad mistake. If the rise had been kept to an absolute minimum, it might have been a tolerable fix, EXCEPT that when you winterize, your antifreeze will be diluted by many gallons of fresh water left in the holding tank. Then comes the joy of trying to sanitize and remove that antifreeze mix in the spring.

So, in short, this is ludicrous. Your pump becomes the best possible fresh tank drain. But that's not what it's designed for, and it's likely that the pump won't drain the tank as well as the low-point drain will.

Looking closely at the photo, the wood framing is there to hold the tank in place. I suggest: Cut the notch I recommended in the previous post...at least 4" wide to enable removal of the elbow in the drain hole. (or pick convenient spots where the saw fits best...) Be careful with the oscillating tool, or you'll damage the fresh tank...and believe me, they are nearly impossible to repair. Drill thru the remaining wood and floor on either side of the gap and add some 3/16" bolts, washers and nylock nuts to reinforce the wood framing on either side of the cut...this will be strong enough to hold the tank. Install a proper nipple and get this drain working as it should. That's what I would do...but many others might disagree.

[MSgt Rick]

I thought that I would post my original picture again with different illustrations to alleviate some possible confusion. Some have mentioned having to cut a block of wood. The only block of wood is next to the pump line, and it is screwed to the floor to prevent the tank from sliding around. The vertical piece of wood in the background is framing for the side table next to the bed.

Luckily, the drain line in question has no obstructions and can be ran straight to the hole in the floor with no structural modifications.

As I was writing this, my wife informed me that she reserved a spot this weekend and we are going camping. Darn, the fix will have to wait!

[jimmoore13]

Originally Posted by MSgt Rick

<<SNIP>>

As I was writing this, my wife informed me that she reserved a spot this weekend and we are going camping. Darn, the fix will have to wait!

Have a great trip!!