OK I have taken out the old PAR pump from my 1976 31' center bath A/S and gotten down to the fresh water tank opening where the hose connects from the outside fill position. Its probably been 20 years since the fresh water tank was used. I took off the fitting and can see down in the tank. There is some water, not much, in the tank and I can see what appears to be dirt and maybe light mold. As I understand there is no way to drain the tank other than with the pump. I had hoped to be able to clean it up before turning on the pump and maybe clogging up the filter a few times. Any thoughts
My much newer A/S has a drain underneath for hot and cold water - surely yours does too. Wouldn't it drain the fresh tank if you opened these and drove the A/S over some bumpy roads?
Or of course there's always a siphon. Buy some clear plastic tubing small enough to fit down the fill hole and suck away until you see the cruddy water coming, then drop it to the ground.
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Mine didn't have a drain originally either . It's not hard to put one in . Under the trailer in the center of the water tank is a square steel plate with a 1/2 " bolt . Remove this plate and you'll find a 1/2 " black hose . This hose is the feed from the tank to the pump . Cut the hose and install a T with a drain valve . Now you can empty the tank without the pump . You definatly want to sanitize the tank and pipes . Good luck
Don, the drain in my Safari is configure liked Ticki2's drain. However, my Overlander, Sovereign, and Caravel all have a drain in the well under the sink. Look carefully next to or in the same line as the pump takeup line. The 70's Airstreams all seemed to have a very small valve, maybe 1/4" inside diameter, for draining this tank. Drain time was on the order of hours. I've managed to concoct bigger lines and valves in order to drain faster and to remove things like small clumps of mold. The original valves were so small they would definitely clog if anything of any size was inside the tank.
In the Caravel there was no room for a valve, so I put a "T" in the line with a pipe pointing down that extended just below the belly skin. I cap that line with a screw-on cap, so it's a bit of a pain to reach under and have to take the cap of in order to drain, but it's now a 1/2" real drain line.
The pump is in but have some problems - need help.
OK I have the pimp in and connected to power and it runs. I have attached the inlet hose from my tank and then hooked up short hose with an faucet on the discharge side with a hose to the outside of the trailer. I want to clean the tank before hooking up to my trailer water lines.
I put some water in the tank and flipped the switch. The pump comes on and water comes out the hose to the outside but its spitting and sputtering like air in the lines. Even after running for a while. No sign of leaks at the pump. My though is that I have a leak in the intake hose under the tank and it can't get primed. Any thoughts
Don, I believe you're right about the intake having a leak. I hope it's not a crack in the plastic right at the fitting. Fill the tank with more water and see if you can find a leak down near the tank.
More than likely the suction line from tank to pump has a hairline crack , especially since you said the lines were frozen at least once . Attach a rope to one end before you pull it out so you will have a pull line for the new one . First thing to do is double check all the connections and make sure they are tight , it doesn't take much of a leak on the suction side.
More than likely the suction line from tank to pump has a hairline crack , especially since you said the lines were frozen at least once . Attach a rope to one end before you pull it out so you will have a pull line for the new one . First thing to do is double check all the connections and make sure they are tight , it doesn't take much of a leak on the suction side.
I am going to check all of the connections today. But if they are ok, how do I get to the other end of the suction line to disconnect it and pull it out with a rope attached. Can I do this by taking off the square steel plate under the trailer. Will this expose where the suction line connects to the tank?
I do not see any leaking under the trailer even with water in the tank. You would think if there is a hair line crack in the hose under the tank it would leak. If all else fails can I drill a hole in the top of the tank next to the inlet hose and then insert a section of Pex tubing down along the inside bottom of the tank and use this as the suction line to the pump. I guess the problem would be sealing the spot where the Pex enters the tank.
Yes , removing the steel plate will expose the other end of the hose where it connects to the tank . The leak may not look like much more than condensation . The hose is old and prone to dry-rot , especially at the connections where the clamps are. Had this on mine last year , didn't replace the hose yet , just cut off an inch and reclamp. This is also where I installed a drain valve. Depending on where your pump is located this hose should not be very long , maybe 3 ft . If you can move it back and forth it should pull right out. The replacement hose needs to be stiff enough not to crush under suction.
I've had several cracks in hoses that didn't leak just sitting there full of water, but as soon as the suction started, they leaked air in like crazy. I guess air has a lower surface tension than water...
My much newer A/S has a drain underneath for hot and cold water - surely yours does too. Wouldn't it drain the fresh tank if you opened these and drove the A/S over some bumpy roads?
Or of course there's always a siphon. Buy some clear plastic tubing small enough to fit down the fill hole and suck away until you see the cruddy water coming, then drop it to the ground.
I think those valves are for draining the pipes above the floor , at least on mine they are . Don't believe they will drain the fresh water tank.
I've had several cracks in hoses that didn't leak just sitting there full of water, but as soon as the suction started, they leaked air in like crazy. I guess air has a lower surface tension than water...
Zep
I cut off a small section from the pump end of the intake hose and reconnected everything and still the same sputtering problem, air in the line. So I disconnected the hose and then connected a clear hose that I had and put the other end in the water tank. Turned on the pump and a steady stream of water.
So there must be problems down under the tank with my hose. Is it possible to take the square metal piece off from the bottom, disconnect the hose and then pull it out with a new section of hose connected to one end. If so which end.
Yes, take the bolt out and the metal plate will drop down.
Unfortunately I can't help further, as I have not closely inspected how the hose ties into the tank. However, just knowing that the hose travels under the tank, I'd disconnect it at the tank end and then push on it JUST A LITTLE to see how easily it moves. If it seems like it's a clear shot, I'd feed new hose in from the open plate end, then if you have a helper, he/she can grab it when it appears in the cavity under the sink and help pull additional length up to where your pump is.
You're going to take this risk on your own--I'd hate to advise you to push or pull in one direction and you wind up not being able to get the hose to go all the way through
Others have recommended that you attach the new hose to the old hose and use it to pull the new hose through. I don't know.
Never-the-less, once you get the hose through to both sides (tank fitting and pump), make sure you insert a "T" fitting in the hose in the vicinity of access exposed by the metal plate, then a short length of tube from the "T" to the tank fitting. Put a cap on the "T" and now you've got a way to drain the tank. I've been contemplating putting an inline valve in the same location, that is somehow accessible through the plate, so that I can just open the valve without removing the plate in order to drain the tank. Haven't quite figured that out yet.
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