Fresh water outflow mounted too high on tank, cannot get last 7-10 gallons

[inorganik]

Hi all. I have a 2021 Apex Tera, it's a small 15' camper but it's set up for boondocking and has a 50 gal fresh water tank.

However, we can never get the last 7-10 gallons of water in the tank because the outflow valve (not sure what it's called) is mounted on the side.

In the image you can see where the blue hose that I referred to as the "outflow valve" is coming out the side instead of the bottom. It doesn't have a hose clamp because I cut it off so I could unscrew it and look inside because my suspicion was that there was a straw attached that allows it to get the water in the bottom of the tank. But I couldn't see anything but the reflection on the surface of the water sitting in the tank. (That water can never be drained out, even the dump valve isn't low enough).

Should I have the dealer re-mount the valve underneath the tank? I'm not sure how to fix this problem, it always leaves us with a lot of water we can't use. Also, the tank is permanently enclosed in the frame of the trailer, so I don't believe I can swap it out. Suggestions are welcome, thanks.

 

[fipntdot]

Unfortunately that's pretty standard procedure with these tanks. Ours is the same sort of set-up.

 

[5picker]

Depending on how far your drain valve sticks down, if you have room, you could adapt off the bottom of the valve.

 

[bikendan]

Also what's a Apen Tera? I couldn't find any such RV brand. I did find a Terra brand, made by In-Tech, which is not a Forest River product.

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[Larry-NC]

Or...

Depending on how far your drain valve sticks down, if you have room, you could adapt off the bottom of the valve.

Or maybe even remove the drain valve and insert a tee (1-1/2 x 1-1/2 x 1/2) above it.

 

[cboss]

Also what's a Apen Tera? I couldn't find any such RV brand. I did find a Terra brand, made by In-Tech, which is not a Forest River product.

How About Aspen Trail made by Dutchman (Thor)?

 

[inorganik]

Also what's a Apen Tera? I couldn't find any such RV brand. I did find a Terra brand, made by In-Tech, which is not a Forest River product.

Typo, sorry. It's an Apex Tera.

 

[bikendan]

Typo, sorry. It's an Apex Tera.

Apparently Coachmen has discontinued the Tera, after only 2 years of production. There no 2023 Teras, only 2021 and 2022.
There are probably less than 5 members here who own a Tera.

Anyway, moving thread to the Coachmen sub-forum since the OP is asking for model-specific information.

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[TitanMike]

A major reason you can't get the last 7-10 gallons from the tank is the sag in the tank bottom.

Many have solved this issue, at least the major part, by installing off the shelf (Home Depot) struts used for mounting electrical conduit and plumbing pipes on concrete walls, etc.

These struts can then fastened to frame flanges with "beam clamps".

Push that bulge up and you'll get all but the last few gallons.

Note: Those last few gallons will often contain stuff you really don't want in the system anyway.

 

[inorganik]

SOLVED!

I was able to engineer a pretty good solution to this problem. I used a tap to thread the inside of the outflow valve, screwed in another hose adapter facing the other way, and put an 18” straw hose on it, which arched down to the bottom of the tank.

Doing this resulted in getting 27 gallons from the faucet after the tank indicator showed empty. Granted, the empty sensor isn't low enough and it's a 50 gallon tank. Previously I had the faucet blowing air when the tank indicated about a third full.

Here are some pictures showing the process:

1. Existing outflow valve, tap, and hose adapter
2. Threaded outflow valve. I was able to use a socket wrench to turn the tap held in my vice
3. Hose adapter screwed in, and I had to whittle off the edges to fit into the fresh water tank hole
4. Straw fit onto the adapter and outflow valve
5. Inserting the straw into the tank

 

[Aussieguy]

get rid of the sag ( as per Titan's post)




did you add some sort of weight to the straw to keep it near the bottom

 

[inorganik]

get rid of the sag ( as per Titan's post)

did you add some sort of weight to the straw to keep it near the bottom

The straw is curved because it's sold wound up. I actually straightened it out a bit beforehand. So no weight needed.

I don't need to get rid of the sag because the straw reaches down to the bottom