Today was the day to work on the macerator. At the end of a three week trip two weeks ago, the pump started leaking whether running or not when the valves were open. I closed both gray and black valves after dumping in Amarillo, Texas and drove on home to Oklahoma City (about 260 miles). I got the rig out of storage today and took a look. It was leaking at the connection where the pump bayonets to the black discharge line. I removed the pump and checked it out, halfway guessing the housing was cracked. No cracks. I took out the flat ring and o ring seals, cleaned them and their seats and re-installed the pump. Still leaking.
Now, this is a pretty simple setup. The pump simply twists onto its receiver and leaks are prevented by the two rings. What could be wrong? Well, here is what it was:
The pump is secured with its bayonet fitting and is supported by a U shaped support which is bolted through the bottom of the storage area for the Sani Com system. Other models may differ from my 2350 in specifics of where the pump is located. I noticed that the pump was not really in line with the black sewer pipe that fed into it. When installed, the pump was pulled upward by the U support about a half an inch, putting strain on the mounting at the bayonet. Over the three years since the rig was made (purchased in September 2012) that stress created by the misalignment had caused a small amount of distortion in the pump and the excess and uneven compression caused the o ring to no longer seal properly.
The solution was to lower one end of the U support a half inch by using a longer bolt and spacer to allow the pump to align. Since the pump is only about 12 inches long, a half inch upward pull on one end is significant. The installation manual for the pump indicates that the end should be secured in a way to support it
with some flexibility. It is a long way from a little flexibility to being essentially bent upward a half inch and rigidly installed. No leaks now. I filled both tanks and dumped them using the pump and all is well. When something doesn't fit, forcing it to do so can result in a heck of a mess and problem sometime later for the owner.
Also today, I fixed one of the struts that hold up the back storage area access door (where we store our hoses and the power cords on all PCs). It had come loose from the door and all three screws had popped out. No wonder. When it was installed the bracket at the base of the strut was installed to a support that apparently had missed a screw or rivet and was flexing. Who ever had installed it at the factory must have known of the problem because there were two sets of three holes, the sets being about 3/4 inch apart. At first if it doesn't work, just move it over! Glad Boeing doesn't do that building planes
I reinforced the strut bracket mounting so it would not flex, re-installed the strut in the
proper location. I replaced the screws on both struts where they mount to the door with screws both slightly longer and with a larger diameter to decrease pressure on the mounting. One size screw just doesn't cut it everywhere a screw is used
I report both of these repairs to my fellow owners so that if you have these problems you can profit from my experience. If the macerator leaks, check the alignment. You might also check your two struts to make sure they are properly secured.
Phoenix Cruisers clearly enjoy a built quality much higher than most Class C motor homes. But regardless of that, just a simple error or "hurry up" on the production line can cause a real pain in the fanny for the owner sometime in the future. A couple of minutes saved is a couple of hours spent by the purchaser repairing a problem that should never had occurred.
Paul
