water pumping back to street

[mmette00]

OK... so we are jumping right in.

We have never even slept in a trailer before 3 weeks ago and now we are full-timing with our 5 kids. We have been remodeling our airstream throughout the winter. It was not in very good shape when we started. We worked for a set amount of time and now we are in it, living - and working out the rest of the kinks.

Be prepared for a slew of questions. For now, we will start with one. Water.

We have hooked up the water, replaced the kitchen faucet and installed a new girard tankless hot water heater. Everything works fine. That is, it works fine as long as we are hooked up to city water.

When we fill the fresh water tank and turn on the pump, we get a steady trickle from and faucets, but the majority of the water flows out the fresh water supply hose. The white hose that you would normally hook up to city water. What causes this? Is there a valve somewhere?

Thanks!
~Michelle

ETA:
It's a 1985 Excella 34'
http://michaeljamesmette.com/blog/

[TG Twinkie]

Cap off the connection where your white hose connects. It sounds like the check valve on the city water line is not closing as it should. If it even exists is a question to be answered.

[Jim Clark]

Disconnect the water hose and try it. Sounds like you may have crossed some lines when you installed the heater, I don't know how this would even be possible. It sounds like you are saying your trailer is making water.

On my 68 I added a valve to isolate the tank and the city water, I think it had a check valve at one time and the valve was removed some time during the trailers life.

[DKB_SATX]

I have to plug the city-water inlet to use my water pump as well. I have a quick-disconnect on it, and I have a gate valve on a quick-disconnect that I put on instead of the fitting that's on the trailer end of my freshwater hose.

The "right way" of course is to fix the check valve... someday.

[overlander63]

Camco 23303 RV 1/2" Back-Flow Preventer : Amazon.com : Automotive

[Inland RV Center, In]

Originally Posted by DKB_SATX

I have to plug the city-water inlet to use my water pump as well. I have a quick-disconnect on it, and I have a gate valve on a quick-disconnect that I put on instead of the fitting that's on the trailer end of my freshwater hose.

The "right way" of course is to fix the check valve... someday.

Airstream uses 2 water check valves.

One is to keep the city water pressure off the valves that are in the water pump.

The second one, that's always near the city water inlet, is to block any water flow out of the city water hookup, when using the water pump.

A temporary fix when water flows out of the city water hose hookup, is to install a plug where the water hose hooks up.

Of course, that plug should always be in place anyway, when the water hose is not being used.

That keeps dirt and bugs out of that hookup.

Andy