Water tank issues

pyrthkr

Re: Water tank issues

« Reply #15 on: August 08, 2011, 07:30:19 pm »

The fill on our 2008 2551 seems to be ok. I have had the water come back @ me 1 or 2X during the fill process but a small adjustment in feed pressure seemed to take care of that. Also, once the tank gets near full, sometimes the "sloshing" created by the feed water makes a "wave" & splashes out the air vent (usually when I'm looking in wondering what that sound is!) prior to the tank actually being totally full (not that you would ever need it to be completely topped off). My drain is also slow but not appreciably so for the size valve it is. Like Ron D indicates, any small divergence from the valve "sweet spot" causes a large difference in emptying volume. We've also learned to run down the tanks as we approach the end of our trips. Once we get home, we usually dump 1st then use the draining water to assist w/cleanup.

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mciai2000

365
OwnPC: Yes
NewUsed: New
PurchDate: 09/2011
Model: 2552
ModelYear: 2012
Slide: Yes
IntColor: grey
ExtColor: full body night shadow
Location: Pennsylvania

Re: Water tank issues

« Reply #16 on: August 09, 2011, 10:15:10 pm »

Roni:

I hope things work out for you.

I reading this post again and had another thought. On my old Palomino trailer the fill was a problem too. I had an easy fix, which might work for you too. I went to the dollar store and bought the smaller size water hose. When I got home I cut off the male end completely. I then was able to attach the female end to the spigot and run the "maleless" end all the way down the fill tube and into the actual tank itself. I turned on the water full blast and filled the tank. If was able to tell when the tank was full by the sound and also looking at the monitor. This was a cheap and easy fix. The nice thing about the cheap hose was that it bent along with the fill tube to fit into the tank. I did have to use a little force to get around a bend, but it worked great.

David

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family is a passion...work is a requirement
2012 2552 full body paint(Phoenix # 2)

billy

760
Best Friends
OwnPC: Yes
NewUsed: New
PurchDate: Feb, 6 2011. Same day Packers won super bowl
Model: 3100
Slide: Yes
Location: Coarsegold, Ca. About 20-25 miles S/W Yosemite

Re: Water tank issues

« Reply #17 on: August 09, 2011, 10:37:42 pm »

On our 3100 the fill is under the passenger bed. I installed a 4' piano hinger It's easy for me but the first thing I would do is check the sir vent.

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Insanity: Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.

gl1500

205
OwnPC: Yes
NewUsed: New
PurchDate: May. 2014
Model: 2551
ModelYear: 2551/2014
Slide: Yes
IntColor: Hickory
ExtColor: Cafe'
Location: Idaho

Re: Water tank issues

« Reply #18 on: August 10, 2011, 12:02:57 am »

This is what I use to fill my tank. Never had a kickback of water. I do not believe the picture came out but I retrieved it off the Camping World website.
Bob

YOU ARE HERE:> Home Page > Maintain RV > RV Freshwater Systems > Pumps & Tanks
Hover over image to zoom

Water Tank Fillers
P.C. Price: $2.99 - $4.99
Reg. $3.33 - $5.55
Shipping costs applied upon checkout.
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Description Specs Camper's Choice Reviews Related Items
Fill your water tank in a fraction of the usual time and eliminate “bubble-back.“

Large 5/8" fill tube allows you to fill your camper, trailer or motorhome water tank at or near full pressure while minimizing line backflow. Quarter-turn pressure-sealed valve allows you to selectively control water flow. 9 1/2"L.

Water Tank Filler

Water Tank Filler with Shut-Off Valve

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echo11

117
OwnPC: Yes
NewUsed: New
PurchDate: 4/18/2011
Model: 2350 Ford
ModelYear: 2011
Slide: No
IntColor: maple/ biege
ExtColor: umbre
Location: Cape Cod, MA

Re: Water tank issues

« Reply #19 on: August 10, 2011, 06:36:29 am »

Thanks for the suggestions. At this point, I would like to get both the intake line and the slow drain looked at to understand what the problem is. We have an appointment at the repair place on Tues. I'll report back.

I especially liked the suggestion of the piece that inserts into the intake hose. It looks like it makes the whole process a lot easier!

This forum is great. This is our first RV and the info and help this forum provides is outstanding!
Roni

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TomHanlon

Re: Water tank issues

« Reply #20 on: August 10, 2011, 07:41:22 am »

GL1500 that is what I was trying to explain in my earlier post. I could not find it on the Camping World site then but due to your post I found it.

http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/product/water-tank-fillers/594

It does help when filling the tank.

Thanks

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gl1500

205
OwnPC: Yes
NewUsed: New
PurchDate: May. 2014
Model: 2551
ModelYear: 2551/2014
Slide: Yes
IntColor: Hickory
ExtColor: Cafe'
Location: Idaho

Re: Water tank issues

« Reply #21 on: August 10, 2011, 01:44:59 pm »

Tom,
Thanks for the help. The picture shows it very well.
Bob

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JackD

231
OwnPC: Yes
NewUsed: New
PurchDate: 2017 (latest)
Model: 2350 Sprinter
ModelYear: 2017
Slide: Yes
IntColor: Cherry
ExtColor: Greystone
Location: Delaware

Re: Water tank issues

« Reply #22 on: August 12, 2011, 09:35:57 am »

I have one of the fill tubes as well --- makes a world of difference...

Jack

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echo11

117
OwnPC: Yes
NewUsed: New
PurchDate: 4/18/2011
Model: 2350 Ford
ModelYear: 2011
Slide: No
IntColor: maple/ biege
ExtColor: umbre
Location: Cape Cod, MA

Re: Water tank issues

« Reply #23 on: August 16, 2011, 04:55:25 pm »

Hi,
We are back from our serivce appointment for the fresh water intake and drain problem. I want to mention that while we were at the service place we spoke with Kermit and the tech also spoke with him. We think it is great that Kermit is so accessible. The tech couldn't believe that we were able to speak to the owner of the company. Here are the results-

The intake issue- The tech did agree that the intake line was almost at the same height at the intake and at the tank itself, approximately maybe a 1" difference- not allowing the tank to fill by gravity. He also checked both the intake line and vent tube and confirmed they were not blocked. Since there was no way to change the height of the intake area, he tried some different alternatives. Ultimately, the best approach was to use a long intake tube that was mentioned and pictured on the forum. Hopefully, this will work for us.

The very slow drain- After poking and working on this problem, the solution is to open both the hot and cold low drain point and to run the water pump. What an amazing difference. We couldn't really find out whether the tank drain was blocked or not.

Initially, when we took off the mattress to get to the water tank, we realized that the framing/ edging along the bottom half of the bed area, around the panel we needed to remove, was not secure to the wall by the bottom edge of the bed. Also the far end, near the outside wall of the RV was not supported and was bending down and breaking off. The tech secured that for us.

We are pleased with the results of our appointment and wanted to share the results with the forum.
Thanks for everyone"s thoughts on this-
Roni

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Ron Dittmer

5647
Ron and Irene
OwnPC: Yes
NewUsed: New
PurchDate: June 2007
Model: 2350 Ford
ModelYear: 2007
Slide: No
IntColor: Cherry Green&Gray
ExtColor: Full Body Gray
Location: N/E Illinois

Re: Water tank issues

« Reply #24 on: August 16, 2011, 05:13:27 pm »

It sounds like everything you experienced could have been avoided with improved factory assembly, a "workmanship" problem more than anything else. Sorry to hear about that. Hopefully the factory learned from it and will pay closer attention from now on. It seems, either the filler door was mounted to low on the outside of the RV, or the inlet hole on the water tank was drilled too high. Or, maybe I am out in left field on this one.

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Ron (& Irene) Dittmer

lghjr

306
OwnPC: No
NewUsed: Used
PurchDate: Used to own a 2700
Model: 2700
ModelYear: 2007
Slide: Yes

Re: Water tank issues

« Reply #25 on: August 16, 2011, 06:59:29 pm »

Quote from: echo11 on August 16, 2011, 04:55:25 pm

Hi,
We are back from our serivce appointment for the fresh water intake and drain problem. I want to mention that while we were at the service place we spoke with Kermit and the tech also spoke with him. We think it is great that Kermit is so accessible. The tech couldn't believe that we were able to speak to the owner of the company. Here are the results-

The intake issue- The tech did agree that the intake line was almost at the same height at the intake and at the tank itself, approximately maybe a 1" difference- not allowing the tank to fill by gravity. He also checked both the intake line and vent tube and confirmed they were not blocked. Since there was no way to change the height of the intake area, he tried some different alternatives. Ultimately, the best approach was to use a long intake tube that was mentioned and pictured on the forum. Hopefully, this will work for us.

The very slow drain- After poking and working on this problem, the solution is to open both the hot and cold low drain point and to run the water pump. What an amazing difference. We couldn't really find out whether the tank drain was blocked or not.

Initially, when we took off the mattress to get to the water tank, we realized that the framing/ edging along the bottom half of the bed area, around the panel we needed to remove, was not secure to the wall by the bottom edge of the bed. Also the far end, near the outside wall of the RV was not supported and was bending down and breaking off. The tech secured that for us.

We are pleased with the results of our appointment and wanted to share the results with the forum.
Thanks for everyone"s thoughts on this-
Roni

I had the same problem on the bed framing. Once I figured out how I wanted to reenforce the rails and add support to the floor area there did not look to be enough structure to screw to for ''real'' support. Worked it out by using screws to hold things in place while Gorilla glue did it's thing. Nothing moves in that area now that isn't supposed to. Lack of space to work in also made it a bit of a cut and test proposition.
L. G.

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Bob Mahon

547
OwnPC: Yes
NewUsed: New
PurchDate: 6/2011
Model: 2552
ModelYear: 2011
Slide: Yes
IntColor: Tan/Gray/Cherry
ExtColor: Lower Slate Gray
Location: PA

Re: Water tank issues

« Reply #26 on: August 16, 2011, 07:47:57 pm »

I hope this doesn't appear to be hijacking this topic but a bit of related information would be helpful to me.
Our previous 2551 and this 2552 have an exterior water tank drain.
Not having had to winterize the 2551 because we got it last March and the 2552 we got in June is still enjoying Summer, am I missing something or are there no low water drains on these models?

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Carry on, regardless..................
"In God we trust" to save our country and bring our troops safely home.

TomHanlon

Re: Water tank issues

« Reply #27 on: August 17, 2011, 08:19:44 am »

Hi Echo11,

It is really good to see someone follow up with the results to their problems. Thank you.

As for the fill tube, There is only so much room under the bed for the tank and the tube. The tube is placed as high up on the wall as the bed will allow and since the tank's top is almost as high you get the almost level fill tube. The water fill device will help, trust me.

If you open both the cold and hot water drains and pump the water out, you will end up draining the water heater also. Please make sure the electric water heater switch (in front of the kitchen sink) is in the off position. If you run the electric water heater without water in the tank, you will burn out the heating element faster than you can read this post. In my case I only drain the water at the end of the season or if I think I got some bad water in the tank from a campground. I live in the country and we have a well with an electric water pump. When the electricity goes out we don't have water for toilets, showers or cooking, so we rely on the PC as our backup. Therefore I like to keep the fresh water tank, gas tank (for the generator) and LPG tank at or near full and the gray tank at or near empty. I always dump the black tank before coming home and put just about two toilet bowls full of water in the bottom of the tank to keep it clean.

Again thanks for reporting back.

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TomHanlon

Re: Water tank issues

« Reply #28 on: August 17, 2011, 08:32:49 am »

Here is a picture I took at the factory of a 2350 under construction. You can see that the fresh water tank is almost as high as the bed frame and the filler tube is at the maximum high it can be and still stay under the bed frame. This is not poor workmanship as suggested in an earlier post, just the way it has to be if they wanted to put the tank under the bed and out of the way.

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echo11

117
OwnPC: Yes
NewUsed: New
PurchDate: 4/18/2011
Model: 2350 Ford
ModelYear: 2011
Slide: No
IntColor: maple/ biege
ExtColor: umbre
Location: Cape Cod, MA

Re: Water tank issues

« Reply #29 on: August 17, 2011, 08:51:29 am »

Tom,

Thanks for your mention of the water heater being drained. We hadn't thought of that. We will make sure to run the hot water faucet, to fill the tank, before turning on the heater. We really appreciate that warning!

A possible solution during construction for the level water fill, would be to raise the bed a little higher to allow for a slant in the water fill tube. I guess the problem with that is allowing enough room, at the end of the bed, between the top of the mattress and the bottom of the cabinet that over hangs the bottom of the bed. I'm sure there is probably a reason why that can't be done.

I wanted to post the results of my service appointment. I do appreciate when others post how problems have been addressed and fixed. As new and first time owners, this forum has helped tremendously!
Roni

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