shower leaking

[upflying]

During a recent two night camping trip, I noticed water leaking near the dump valves. Closer inspection revealed the gray water was coming from above the Coroplast. The water smelled like the shower I had just taken.
Pulled the convenient inspection panel from beneath the shower and found a cracked P-trap.
Nice how Forest River conveniently glued the P-trap threaded fittings to make the repair oh so easy. Kind of like FR expected the trap to break and making sure anyone attempting a DIY repair will go to the dealer. Why am I repairing out of warranty, 18 month old plumbing on an RV used 6 times?

[cboss]

I think I've lost track of all the repairs we've made to the camper.
The good side of this (if there is one) is I've learned tons of stuff about our camper and the repairs I've made should last for years.

[NXR]

That looks like impact cracking because there seem to be other small ones. Either it was installed and stressed because it was tightened and pulling on the piping or it's flexing a lot when you're standing in the shower or when driving.

Have you looked at whether either was the case? Maybe some spray foam underneath the P-trap could reduce the movement if it's from bouncing down the road.

Ray

[upflying]

I removed the damaged p-trap and found the downtube was cocked sideways when it was glued together. Hopefully the mangled plumbing assembled by the "experts" at Forest River was the cause of the failure. I managed to build another identical p-trap thanks to $57 worth of black ABS plastic. The bare p-trap alone was $24.95! The damaged trap is on the right. I'll be driving back out to storage to put it back together.
It has also occurred to me my 210lb weight on the shower pan also stressed the plastic. I'll check into that. The pan always had a squishy feel when I walk on it.

[upflying]

Originally Posted by NXR

That looks like impact cracking because there seem to be other small ones. Either it was installed and stressed because it was tightened and pulling on the piping or it's flexing a lot when you're standing in the shower or when driving.

Have you looked at whether either was the case? Maybe some spray foam underneath the P-trap could reduce the movement if it's from bouncing down the road.

Ray

While I was looking at the lack of engineering and assembly quality of the shower pan support, I realized you could be right. It appeared the lack of structure under the shower pan stressed the ABS fittings and caused it to crack.
I removed the shower walls and shower pan and discovered a big chunk of the shower pan support was cut out and missing. No wonder why my shower pan felt "squishy". It appears the Forest River "plumbing technician" cut out the support so the pan could be dropped in with the P-trap in place. No need to try to connect plumbing through a 5"x8" hole, right?
I cut a 22" by 36" sheet of plywood and screwed proper length 2X4 supports under it. Now the shower pan is supported with no soft areas.
I have so much fun fixing Forest River quality.

[comfun1]

Nice job! Looks like you put it back together the way it should have been done to start with.

[Cabinfever97]

For anyone needing to do a plumbing repair, keep Furnco brand plumbing products in mind. Their flexibility makes them great to work with.

[youroo]

Originally Posted by Cabinfever97

For anyone needing to do a plumbing repair, keep Furnco brand plumbing products in mind. Their flexibility makes them great to work with.

Fernco! Youroo!!

[upflying]

Originally Posted by Cabinfever97

For anyone needing to do a plumbing repair, keep Furnco brand plumbing products in mind. Their flexibility makes them great to work with.

I'll keep that in mind, my repair included parts from an RV supply store and Lowes.