Forester dry camping water issues

[Echozepher]

When dry camping with my forester 2291S I have not been able to get the water system to work. The water tank is full. I have tried the control panel switch in both water and pump positions. My batteries are charged at about 14volts. The pump never starts. Am I correct in assuming the system should work with batteries? When connected to city water the system works great. Should the pump work while on city water? Under what conditions should the pump work?
Thanks in advance.

[BehindBars]

The pump should not run nor need to run while on normal pressure city water.

The pump should run when there is water in the fresh water tank, the pump is switched on, city water is not connected, and a faucet is opened to allow water flow. Once the plumbing is first pressurized by the pump, the pump remains off until there is a demand for water from a faucet.

If you have air in the line or an air leak at the pump inlet, the pump may not be priming. It could be running quietly but not building water pressure because it is trying to pump air.

The pump runs off the 12 volt system, so it can run if you are on battery power.

[Echozepher]

The pump doesn’t seem to run when not on city water and with a faucet open. Is there a way to manually prime the pump? Should I expect the pump to work while on city water? I ask because I’ve heard the pump while using the shower and connected to city water.

[flyflotrtim]

I'm not familiar with your unit but:
The pump should not run when connected to a fresh water line.
If you can access the pump, use a voltmeter to see if there is 12v to the pump with the switch on, If not, could be a bad switch.
If 12v is to pump, put your hand on pump, you can feel if it is running, if not probably need to replace the pump.
Send us the results of above.

[Echozepher]

Could be the switch. When I switch it to pump the light doesn’t come on. When switched to water the light does come on. I will check the voltage. Thanks.

[kenandterry]

Originally Posted by Echozepher

Could be the switch. When I switch it to pump the light doesn’t come on. When switched to water the light does come on. I will check the voltage. Thanks.

I don’t quite understand your operation of the switch, switching to pump versus water. The switch I have is labeled “WATER” at the top, and “PUMP” at the bottom.
With the button in the UP position, the light is ON, and the pump works as BehindBars describes. With the button in the DOWN position, the light is OFF, and the pump is removed from the equation. If you wanted water with the switch DOWN, then you would need to be hooked up to city water.

[formerFR]

there may be a LEVER in the wet bay that you must first turn for the Water Pump to be able to access the Fresh Water tank.

[formerFR]

the Switch is likely ONLY the power source for the Water Pump, but without turning the correct LEVER first, you'll never have water...

[BehindBars]

I can't answer with certainty on the water pump switch, because some Foresters, as I understand, have touch screen controls that I am not familiar with. However, if there is a lighted switch labeled “water pump” it is a simple on-off switch. With the switch rocker pushed up, the light is lit and the pump is enabled. With the rocker down the light is off and the pump is off. It is not a two position switch for “water” or “pump”, as the labeling might suggest.

Locate your water pump and look for a small clear filter screen at the pump inlet. If so, see if there is water visible in it. Inspect the pump wiring for a loose wire. See if there is an in-line fuse at the pump that could be bad.

At your water pump you should have a valve for adding anti freeze for winterizing. If the valve is in the wrong position, you will get no water to your pump, but the pump should still run. The valve is like a T, and the T has a short piece of garden hose attached to one inlet. Someone who winterized the camper may have left the valve in the wrong position.

[Echozepher]

Thanks everyone for your help and valuable information. Looks like I didn’t understand proper use of the water pump switch - sure indication that I am a new RVer. I had assumed that with the switch in the water position and lit that I was accessing city water when in reality I was using from the freshwater tank. Can the city water connection over ride the freshwater tank? If I am connected to city water and have a full freshwater tank would the switch position determine which source the water comes from? Do I need to disconnect the city water for the pump to work correctly? Thanks for your help and understanding for this newbie but I want to understand proper operation and how to troubleshoot. Thanks again.

[Echozepher]

One other thing puzzles me - while using the water pump incorrectly (switch up and lit while connected to city water) the freshwater tank indicator shows full. Wouldn’t the level indicator go down if the pump was turned on? How can I determine if the tank indicator is correct? Thanks.

[bclemens]

1. If you are connected to city water you do NOT need the pump. The water pump should be OFF.

2. If you are dry camping, the pump should be ON. It will only run when needed.

Do you have a picture of this "water-pump" switch you are referring to? I think we're getting lost a bit.

[BehindBars]

Originally Posted by Echozepher

One other thing puzzles me - while using the water pump incorrectly (switch up and lit while connected to city water) the freshwater tank indicator shows full. Wouldn’t the level indicator go down if the pump was turned on? How can I determine if the tank indicator is correct? Thanks.

If you are connected to city water and the city water pressure is higher than the pump pressure cut on switch, even if the pump switch is turned on, the pump will never actually run, and no water will be taken from the fresh water tank.

The way to tell if the fresh water tank level indicator is accurate is to look at the level pf water in the tank, and compare it to the indicator. If you can’t see the tank, you would gave to fill it with a known quantity of water, compared to the tank capacity, and see if the indicator agrees. Level indicators in RVs are notoriously inaccurate.

[Echozepher]

The switch is as shown in kenandterry response above. Didn’t mean to confuse anyone... I was confused but understand now how the system works.

Thanks again everyone for your help and input.

[Echozepher]

Thank you BehindBars for your helpful responses.

[bclemens]

Originally Posted by Echozepher

The switch is as shown in kenandterry response above. Didn’t mean to confuse anyone... I was confused but understand now how the system works.

Thanks again everyone for your help and input.

Ah yes...I see the confusion now, things we sometimes take for granted.

That is a "Water Pump" Switch. On-Off. Looks like to make things symmetrical, they made it above and below instead of just two words above the switch.

[NavyLCDR]

To summarize everything:

1. The label on the switch means "Water Pump". It is only on or off. On (up) with the light on means there is power available to the water pump. Off (down) and the light off means there is no power available to the water pump.

2. The water pump has a built in pressure switch, which can be adjusted by turning a screw on the pump itself. When pressure in the RV plumbing system is below the set point of the pressure switch, the pump will run, assuming the "water pump" switch is in the on position. Once pressure in the RV plumbing rises above the pressure switch set point, the pump will shut off.

3. The water pump is more than likely a diaphragm type pump (with a built-in check valve), which is both self-priming and will not be damaged from occasionally running the pump dry.

4. When you connect to "city water", that connection is what keeps the plumbing system pressurized, so the pressure switch on the pump should prevent the pump from running under normal circumstances. If you leave the water pump switch on, and the "city water" pressure drops enough such as during a shower, then the water pump may actually turn on. In this case you will be using a very small amount of water from the FW tank, but not much. If your FW tank happens to be empty, then the FW pump will actually be pushing air into the plumbing system, not the ideal situation. That's why you want the water pump switch off (down) when connected to city water.

5. If the internal check valve in the water pump fails or sticks open and you connect to city water, you will notice your FW tank filling up. Many times cycling the water pump on and off and cycling a water source such as shower on and off will unstick the check valve. If not then you either need to rebuild the water pump or just replace it, they are not that expensive.

IMPORTANT NOTE about your water heater: if you have an electric water heater, DO NOT run it in electric mode without it being full of water! You will burn out the electric heating element in less than 1 minute. Many water heaters only have an on-off switch for the electric element accessible by opening the outside panel of the water heater. Some have an inside switch - mine has two inside switches, one for gas and one for electric water heater functions. If the electric mode is turned on, and the water heater is empty, and you connect to shore power (or generator) in this condition, the electric heating element will burn out.

[CedarCreekWoody]

I think your switch is simply labeled "Water Pump", as it should be, but because of space the switch happens to be located between the two words. It is simply a switch - turn it on when you need it to work or leave off when on city water.

[Tundra 2014]

Check the fuse that is on the water pump-10 amp auto on mine. Should run when you flip the switch.

[Echozepher]

Looks like the pump is bad or not priming. The fuse is good. Voltage is good. There is water in the little chamber where the screen sit. Water tank is full. When I open the faucet to create demand nothing happens. Fortunately I have access to city water each night. Seven more days on this trip and then I can get it fixed.