Help! Tire blow out and ripped out gray water valve pull rod

[marcesq]

So - I am in the middle of nowhere texas. I blew out a tire and somehow destroyed the gray water valve pull rod.

I have no clue how this happened. There is a fair bit of general damage to the black panels underneath and the valve rod "lock/holder" has been ripped out.

I leaked gray water all over - seems that the valve opened and filled up the discharge pipe. Water was coming out the opening where the pull rod entered and seems to be generally leaking. However, my tank was fairly full and there was plenty to empty upon arrival at the Koa.

I just started my vacation - don't want to turn back to Austin.

Any idea if I can do anything to fix this while on the road?

[GMFL]

Yes the repair can be done on the road. Pictures would help with details. Dump valves are replaceable and the metal work as long as it’s not rubbing anything or causing any other problems other than cosmetic can be done later.

[marcesq]

Originally Posted by GMFL

Yes the repair can be done on the road. Pictures would help with details. Dump valves are replaceable and the metal work as long as it’s not rubbing anything or causing any other problems other than cosmetic can be done later.

Thanks

Water is Dripping from the back corner.

[CRH]

I assume your pull rod is similar to mine. There is an extended rod riveted to the rod that comes out of the valve. The problem is that the riveted joint is hidden by the belly pan. You either have to drop the pan or cut a hole in it to drill out the rivet and put a new extension on.

If you have water dripping out of the pan, I suspect the dump valve is also damaged.

[marcesq]

Originally Posted by CRH

I assume your pull rod is similar to mine. There is an extended rod riveted to the rod that comes out of the valve. The problem is that the riveted joint is hidden by the belly pan. You either have to drop the pan or cut a hole in it to drill out the rivet and put a new extension on.

If you have water dripping out of the pan, I suspect the dump valve is also damaged.

Thank you - that makes sense.

[JCWDCW]

Pull Rods are fairly common spare parts at RV dealers; they are not specific to Airstream. You can probably jury rig something till you get home. If the bracket holding the rod was torn off you may have to go to an AS dealer but check with the closest RV supplier.
JCW

[Glenritas]

Valtura makes a twist on drain gate valve. You just twist on the outlet pipe on your rig and your good to go.
Should be able to get at a good rv parts dept. or Amazon

This will change your dump procedure to Gray water first then black.

[banderabob]

Had this happen in the middle of the Imperial Valley desert, though our blow-out also fractured the neck above the gray valve. If you are staying at a KOA, you likely have a mobile RV service nearby. When we got to our destination, we sourced a service, and they had us fixed in a day. Maybe more expensive, and may diddle with your schedule a bit, but it was less hassle for me at the time.

[RamRider]

Are you close to Dublin TX - BAYER Airstream is a good place for repairs. My Airstream is there right now getting some work done for tire damage.

[GCinSC2]

Any info on tire too?

[greenflag]

A piece of 18 wheeler tire tread broke my gray valve completely off. I stopped in Vegas for the night. The RV park desk recommended a good mobile RV repair service. They had me back on the road the next morning in a couple of hours.

[marcesq]

Good to know - tire was ripped to shreds. Discount tire set me up with 4 new ones - they were ready to be replaced anyways. Apparently I had uneven wear - may have an axle issue...

[Daquenzer]

I do not understand why AS leaves the sewage area exposed behind the tires. I’ve decided I need to get some protection like mud flaps or something in that area.

[marcesq]

Bayer RV had me fixed up for about $4k and 5 weeks. Nothing to complain about now but I am sure I will find something to complain about [emoji16].

It was recommended I get 16" wheels next time I need new tires, so I am going to plan for that in 2019/2020.