Trying to fill fresh water tank on new 3010DS.

[GMax]

I've emptied the fresh water tank. It was full when I picked it up. I want to sanitize it. When I try to add the diluted chlorine mix or just add water, it comes back out. What am I missing. I did not have this problem with my 2300.

[CedarCreekWoody]

Figure out the fill problem before trying to add the bleach. You don't want that on you! Find your vent tube and be sure it isn't blocked.

[5picker]

Is your fresh water fill a gravity fill port?
If so you may need to use a tank filler hose similar to this one...

[GMax]

Yes, I used the exact same tank filler attachment. Water came back out.

[GMax]

Originally Posted by CedarCreekWoody

Figure out the fill problem before trying to add the bleach. You don't want that on you! Find your vent tube and be sure it isn't blocked.

I saw the vent tube. Suggestions for unblocking.

[GMax]

I'm thinking it's the vent tube. Somebody filled the tank at some point... that's how it was when I picked it up.

[Murphy55378]

It's all about regulating the flow of water going in. Too much pressure and it comes right back out because the air coming out uses the same tube as the water going in. The vent is not actually a separate tube per se. I have to fill mine with just a trickle of water going in and it can take 45 minutes or more to fill my 40 gallon tank. I use something similar to the above but sometimes I have to twist the hose around it around to get it going in the right direction into the tank. Poor design!

[Underdog]

If the tank is full, that may be the problem. Drain some water and try it again. Otherwise, disconnect the vent line at the tank and blow it out with compressed air, and watch what comes out the external end. Water standing in a low spot in the vent line can create enough backpressure to prevent filling. You can try a small diameter hose to blow it back into the tank before filling. A screen at the external end may be plugged. I had no screen but had insect cocoons in mine. If you are getting water in the vent line during filling, you may be better off without the screen to reduce restriction. Mine seems to fill best with a smaller diameter hose inserted about a foot into the fill tube.

[KyDan]

I have found that a rubber washing machine hose cut in half is the
perfect size to fill a tank.
Most folks toss the old black rubber ones that used to come with a
washing machine and use the braided SS hoses in their place.

A cut off hose shoved in there as FAR as it will go can make all the
difference. Expect a little blow back especially if the vent tube has a
sag in it and is holding water.

How far are you able to shove your fill hose in the fill port??

[charlton1218]

Similar model, same problem. For me it was a poor factory installation of the tube from the inlet to the fresh water tank. It was tacked up such that it had a low point that prevented it from filling. I proved this by temporarily raising the low point (access under the bed) and it allowed full pressure filling. I then unhooked the existing attachment point and reattached so there were no low points. It has worked fine since then.

[TGR]

X2

[garyllantz]

Same problem with my Palomino Puma. When I looked at the inlet tube inside the trailer it appears that the inlet tube inside the trailer is higher than the inlet port on the outside. This makes it nearly impossible to gravity feed water or
diluted bleach solution from the outside. Adding water with a hose is usually successful if it is under pressure.

[CedarCreekWoody]

I've had them crimped at the tank, had to add a 90 degree fitting. Can you see the vent hose and follow it?

[bearscot]

We had the same problem and this hose fixes it.

[markb422]

The fill hose like 5picker showed in post #5 will work. You might have to add a longer hose that you can insert all the way through the fill tube and into the fw tank. Or, use a cut off washer supply hose. It needs to be small enough and flexible enough to snake through the fill tube. I cut the end to a point so it snaked though easy. Worked on my last two TT's. Just make sure to store it in a zip lock bag to keep it clean between trips.

[johnshoe]

My 2016 3011DS did the same thing. I built a fill attachment with a longer hose, 18", and it fills fine now. Don't know why it did it, but I don't care as long as it works!

[DougW]

On my 15 3010DS the fill hose slides in easily about 6 inches then wants to stop. If I turn on the water at that point it will come back out unless I run it very slow. If I twist and push on the fill hose it will slide in several more inches then I can turn it on full speed and it fills fine.

[jimmoore13]

I won't repeat what others have said. I suspect a blocked vent.

If you want to clear/check the vent tube, and if you have an air compressor (you need one), set it to about 40 PSI output. Buy a new, appropriately sized hose clamp...perhaps for 1/2" PEX. Try to remove the screen on the vent tube so that any crud you blow out will not get caught in the screen. Clean the screen (with a tooth brush) while you're at it. Crawl under the RV, remove the vent hose from the fresh tank. Using a "blow gun" on the compressor, push it in the vent hose until you have a somewhat snug fit, and let 'er rip. If you have a volunteer, have the person stand near the "exit" of the vent pipe with a rag to catch whatever comes out...so you know if there was "stuff" in there and you can identify it.

Others touched on kinks in hoses, etc. but if the demo had water in the tank, one assumes it can be filled. While you're under the camper, look for the obvious in terms of blockages, kinks, etc. If possible, also check the fresh-tank fitting for the vent hose and the fill hose.

I use a similar Camco fill adapter, and I am able to run the hose full blast while filling the tank. The vent exhausts air well enough to easily accept water as quickly as I put it in. As the tank approaches almost full, I have to slow down the water flow, because the lion's share of the fill pipe on the side of the fresh tank is underwater, and that slows down the rate at which the tank will accept water. But that's only for the last 5% to 10% of the filling process. When the tank is nearly full, I sometimes get a small amount of "burp back," but I just stop the flow for a few seconds, wait for the gurgling to stop and add more water.

When I'm filling the fresh tank, I "set it and forget it"...walking away until I hear water spilling on the ground. Then I tend to squeezing in the last drop.

[jimmoore13]

Originally Posted by charlton1218

Similar model, same problem. For me it was a poor factory installation of the tube from the inlet to the fresh water tank. It was tacked up such that it had a low point that prevented it from filling. I proved this by temporarily raising the low point (access under the bed) and it allowed full pressure filling. I then unhooked the existing attachment point and reattached so there were no low points. It has worked fine since then.

I agree with build-quality issues. My fresh tank fill tube had a cabinet screw driven right into it...down through the floor. As time passed, the screw went from being a snug fit in the fill hose to "holing-out" the fill hose so that I'd lose about 1/2 of my fresh water supply in about 4 hours or so.

The repair was easy, but the lack of quality control was more than a bit annoying. One would expect that the floor would be marked with places where "no screws" will be driven. Who knows if I have screws driven through the floor into the top of my fresh tank or the black/gray tanks?
And why in hell is an assembler using a screw that's 3/8" longer than needed?

[DougW]

On our 3010DS the fresh tank is under the bed so unless they made some changes there is no need to crawl under the unit, just lift the bed to get to where the vent line connects to the tank.