2013 Vibe 6504 "inflatable" freshwater tank??

[Ray Elkins]

If I'm doing something wrong, pleas forgive me. I'm very familiar with vintage RVs (which I much prefer over modern ones) so maybe there is just something I don't get about these newer ones.

When I first attempted to fill the FW tank on this thing, it inflated and almost blew out of the cheap brackets holding the tank in the frame. This was not an over-filling problem, rather this happened with the tank about half-full of water. We have not been able to fill the tank because the air above the water compresses and inflates the tank since it apparently ha no means of venting. When we use the water from the tank, it slowly collapses and eventually creates such a vacuum in the tank that the pump can no longer pull any water from it until I remove the plug from the fill inlet.

So is there something wrong with this particular RV, am I missing something, or are there just no competent engineers at FR that understand a tank must be vented?
Thanks!!
Ray

[Mr. Dan]

Originally Posted by Ray Elkins

If I'm doing something wrong, pleas forgive me. I'm very familiar with vintage RVs (which I much prefer over modern ones) so maybe there is just something I don't get about these newer ones.

When I first attempted to fill the FW tank on this thing, it inflated and almost blew out of the cheap brackets holding the tank in the frame. This was not an over-filling problem, rather this happened with the tank about half-full of water. We have not been able to fill the tank because the air above the water compresses and inflates the tank since it apparently ha no means of venting. When we use the water from the tank, it slowly collapses and eventually creates such a vacuum in the tank that the pump can no longer pull any water from it until I remove the plug from the fill inlet.

So is there something wrong with this particular RV, am I missing something, or are there just no competent engineers at FR that understand a tank must be vented?
Thanks!!
Ray

My guess is that this is not an engineering problem but an installation problem. We've had multiple reports of a vent hose that was kinked or had a low place (a P-trap if you will) or a mud dauber's nest in the vent. You may have to drop any coroplast bottom cover and see for yourself.

[Ray Elkins]

Originally Posted by Mr. Dan

My guess is that this is not an engineering problem but an installation problem. We've had multiple reports of a vent hose that was kinked or had a low place (a P-trap if you will) or a mud dauber's nest in the vent. You may have to drop any coroplast bottom cover and see for yourself.

Ah, so there is supposed to be a vent? Well, wonder where it would be attached. I don't know what is meant by coroplast. Lol I can see all of the fittings on the tank and none are for a vent, unless there is an additional fitting on the very top somewhere.
Thanks again!
Ray

[Flybob]

As mentioned it is a vent issue. Either the vent was not installed or not installed properly. If you can access the top of the tank you should be able to check this.
Coroplast is the product used to cover the bottom of some RVs. If you can see the tank, you don't have a covered bottom. The vent should come out the top and is usually about a 1/2" clear vinyl hose.

[Mr. Dan]

Originally Posted by Ray Elkins

Ah, so there is supposed to be a vent? Well, wonder where it would be attached. I don't know what is meant by coroplast. Lol I can see all of the fittings on the tank and none are for a vent, unless there is an additional fitting on the very top somewhere.
Thanks again!
Ray

Sorry... coroplast == corrugated plastic (black plastic cardboard).
I don't know anything about your Vibe. You might go to User CP (control panel) and add a signature line showing the manufacturer/line/model/year/whatever so other members will know exactly what you have.
Supposed to be a vent? Well, I have one but can't speak for yours. Hopefully, someone else knows.

[bikendan]

Since this is a 6 year old used Vibe, how do you know if the previous owners properly maintained it or overfilled the tank, causing stress on the supports?

[Ray Elkins]

Originally Posted by bikendan

Since this is a 6 year old used Vibe, how do you know if the previous owners properly maintained it or overfilled the tank, causing stress on the supports?

I don't know what a previous owner did, but the issue is the fact that the tank and system is completely sealed at the moment so any pressure put into the tank with the fill hose inflates the tank. I'm sure if the tank is not vented, or the vent is stopped up, then a previous owner probably did the same thing I've done. What a previous owner did or didn't do is kind of irrelevant though, unless something they did restricted a vent. Speaking of stressing the supports, it wouldn't take a lot since they appear to be nothing more than 16 gauge sheet metal.

[Ray Elkins]

Originally Posted by Mr. Dan

Sorry... coroplast == corrugated plastic (black plastic cardboard).
I don't know anything about your Vibe. You might go to User CP (control panel) and add a signature line showing the manufacturer/line/model/year/whatever so other members will know exactly what you have.
Supposed to be a vent? Well, I have one but can't speak for yours. Hopefully, someone else knows.

okay thank you. Yeah the tank is exposed underneath so it's easy to see everything other than the top side of the tank

[Ray Elkins]

Originally Posted by Flybob

As mentioned it is a vent issue. Either the vent was not installed or not installed properly. If you can access the top of the tank you should be able to check this.
Coroplast is the product used to cover the bottom of some RVs. If you can see the tank, you don't have a covered bottom. The vent should come out the top and is usually about a 1/2" clear vinyl hose.

Alrighty, well it looks like the only way I would be able to access the top of the tank would be to drop it :-(

[Ray Elkins]

Originally Posted by Mr. Dan

Sorry... coroplast == corrugated plastic (black plastic cardboard).
I don't know anything about your Vibe. You might go to User CP (control panel) and add a signature line showing the manufacturer/line/model/year/whatever so other members will know exactly what you have.
Supposed to be a vent? Well, I have one but can't speak for yours. Hopefully, someone else knows.

I was trying to edit the original post because for some reason I typed in the wrong model number. It is a 2013 Vibe 6504, but I will do as you suggested. Thanks again!

[Mr. Dan]

Originally Posted by Ray Elkins

I was trying to edit the original post because for some reason I typed in the wrong model number. It is a 2013 Vibe 6504, but I will do as you suggested. Thanks again!

Title edited with this info.
Site Team

[clintbonnie73]

Just a note... Even if the vent is installed and working properly, with some plastic tanks you have to be careful filling them.. don't stick the end of your garden hose into the opening and turn on the water on and walk away.. If it over flows, good chance the tank will expand and damage the metal supports.. It happened to me on my 2017 Rockwood mini lite 2506S TT.. (vent system is not large enough to compensate for this air pressure build up)

[llr]

The OP said it also collapses the tank on usage so there is a serious vent issue.

Ray, do you have a gravity fill port? Or one the screws onto the end of the hose?

If you have a gravity fill there is generally a little screen next to it and that is the vent. Removing the fill port will probably be easier to investigate then dropping the tank. If it appears to be a kink or plug on top of the tank you will still need to drop it.

[Ray Elkins]

Originally Posted by Mr. Dan

Title edited with this info.
Site Team

Thank you sir! Much appreciated😁

[Ray Elkins]

Originally Posted by llr

The OP said it also collapses the tank on usage so there is a serious vent issue.

Ray, do you have a gravity fill port? Or one the screws onto the end of the hose?

If you have a gravity fill there is generally a little screen next to it and that is the vent. Removing the fill port will probably be easier to investigate then dropping the tank. If it appears to be a kink or plug on top of the tank you will still need to drop it.

LOL, I think maybe you misunderstand. It is indeed a serious issue since with a vacuum being formed in the tank as water is drawn out, the tank collapses and eventually creates a vacuum that prevents water from being drawn out of the tank. No this is not a gravity fill tank, man I wish it was! When the hose is connected to the fill connector, there is no place to vent the pressure created in the tank as the water level rises. And other words the air pressure in the tank is not being vented out.🙁

[llr]

I was commenting on a post above, I understand it is a serious vent issue and even with a pressure fill there still need to be some kind of vent it could just be an open hose like on the gravity fill or a vacuum breaker or something else I can't think of. I am not familiar with the pressure fill except to know they exist.

For the black tank flush they like to put the vacuum breaker under the vanity sink, may look there and see if you find anything. A vacuum breaker could be bad or installed backwards.

[Ray Elkins]

Originally Posted by llr

I was commenting on a post above, I understand it is a serious vent issue and even with a pressure fill there still need to be some kind of vent it could just be an open hose like on the gravity fill or a vacuum breaker or something else I can't think of. I am not familiar with the pressure fill except to know they exist.

For the black tank flush they like to put the vacuum breaker under the vanity sink, may look there and see if you find anything. A vacuum breaker could be bad or installed backwards.

oh man I'm sorry! I misread read the first part of your comment. My sincere apologies!
Yes I agree there has to be some way to vent the air from the tank or it's going to be the same thing as turning a beer bottle up and sucking on it. At some point the vacuum builds inside until you can't suck out any more beer. This is what's happening to my tank, there is no way to pump water out of the tank after a certain point of collapsing unless I unscrew the cap on the fill port and let some air into the tank.

[Ray Elkins]

Originally Posted by llr

The OP said it also collapses the tank on usage so there is a serious vent issue.

Ray, do you have a gravity fill port? Or one the screws onto the end of the hose?

If you have a gravity fill there is generally a little screen next to it and that is the vent. Removing the fill port will probably be easier to investigate then dropping the tank. If it appears to be a kink or plug on top of the tank you will still need to drop it.

My filler is mounted obviously on the outside wall and when you open the door to access the pump and Battery you can see the hose going from the fill port and through the floor. Underneath you can see the hose going to the tank. I've not found any type of vacuum breaker or any kind of other means of venting the tank though. There are no fittings close to the top of the tank around the sides that I have found and the top of the tank sits against the floor. All of the floor that covers the tank is visible, either in the storage compartment or in the compartment where the battery and pump are. I've not found anywhere where a vent hose comes through the floor. I have just about came to the conclusion that, along with all of the other poorly engineered issues on this RV, that this is just another problem that nobody seemed to foresee when this thing was designed.��

[MillMitch]

Since you bought used, one other thought if you are looking underneath anyway. You might look for 2 hoses coming down from or around the FW tank that are capped. FW drain and overflow line. I've read on this forum of people that got tired of the overflow line siphoning most of the water out of their FW tank and put a cap on the line. They are obviously aware of the cap and remove it when filling the tank. The overflow line will also vent the tank.
Good luck

sorry, just saw your post, mine won't be relevant.

[Bama Rambler]

I skimmed over this thread, but on the RV you have, you should have a fill like below. The screened port you see is the vent hole. If it's plugged then it's blocking the tank from venting.