Help-toilet no longer connected to fresh water!

[billrector]

Currently on the road with our new 2017 FC (FB). We have been experiencing a leak at the base of the toilet. Today, I decided to look at it and see if I could determine the cause and fix it. I found the leak was right under the fresh water connection to the toilet. My first thought was to check the nut that threads onto the toilet and it was loose enough that I could turn it by hand. I thought “problem solved” as I tightened it. Then all hell broke loose as the tube going through the nut and into the toilet just came out and pressurized water started spraying everywhere! I had my wife turn off the water supply until I could turn the black valve to stop water flow.

As you can see in the picture, the plastic nut with wings to hand tighten came right off the tube! How is this possible as there is no way to get it back over the rib in the tube where it is suppose to be?

How do I fix this without cutting off the clamp and putting the nut back on from the back side?

Also, the water that came out is very warm? Why would fresh water to the toilet be warm?

Please help as I currently have no water going to my toilet!

[Bill M.]

I can not see the picture. Do not think it matters. You need to cut the line and put on a new fitting and maybe will need a extension piece of line. Even if you could get the old one back on it failed once and will again.

Now would be a good time to go to Lowes and get familiar with PEX and the fittings and the clamp tool.

Or get the PEX and the press on fittings (Shark bite?).

Hopefully you can get to the fitting without having to remove the toilet.

Do not think about putting it back exactly like it is now. Think about making it work well and how you can get to the fittings.

Bill

[billrector]

Hi....not sure why picture did not show on the original post. Maybe I did not wait long enough to load?

[Adventure.AS]

In the meantime, you can flush the toilet with water from a bucket.

[jdalrymple]

Take the nut and the photo to Lowes or the like and they can help.

It can be fixed with the press-on sharkbite type fittings.


Regards,


JD

[mandolindave]

But here are somethings to keep in mind or at least think about.

1. My restoration guru guy said that the toilet ( AND spray wand !!! ) is a place where winterization is often NOT done well enough, or overlooked.

2. Those nylon (?) compression fittings are tricky. I THINK ??? that they are graduated threads ( are seem to be ) so they get tighter as you go. You kinda have to keep tightening them to just past the point of leaking. If you tighten them too much, they can self destruct. ( or at least be unusable and leak)

3. Can you see any cracks in the threads or nuts on any of the components?

4. It's a new trailer. I am thinking the installers at the factory get a feel for tightening the the nuts just so. BUT what if there is a flaw or irregularity in the fittings.

5. MAYBE ?? the fitting was tightened just enough to not leak but not tight enough to not vibrate loose?

[YippieKiYa]

The water was warm... Are you working from your tanks, or hooked-up in a park? If you're hooked-up, is it warm outside/your hose is in the sun? That might explain the warm water as I'm sure a fair amount of water came out when the line separated.

If you're on your tank supply, have you had the heat on?

I'm betting the nut with the wings started to crack, which led to the leaking, and that tightening it completed the failure. I've had that happen before on other plastic fittings. Lots of other good advice regarding replacement fittings. Might need to go to an RV or marine store/dealer to get a correct fitting for the toilet. If you have to remove the ear clamp/oetiker clamp, the easiest way is to take wire cutters and cut perpendicular to the band right through the middle of the ear. Then you can peel it right off. You can replace it with another ear clamp or even a traditional hose clamp to get you by.

[delrossa]

I agree with all. Lowe’s has the exact fittings that Airstream is using now. They are black pex fittings.
You can buy individual fittings or a bag of 10.
I would buy the crimping tool or maybe they would rent it to you. The tool is great. You compress the stainless clamp until the light on the tool comes on.
Easy fix.

[donabston]

Looks like you are still in warranty. If you don't want to tackle it....Airstream, Inc has a list of authorized repair centers, if you are not near a dealer. I had a similar problem years ago that was repaired quickly under warranty.

[JohnTF]

You need to reach in with a hook to pullout the seal in the wing-nut , if it was lose enough [ and no other damage { can not see in that pic.}] , the wing-nut's hole should fit over the protrusion on the right angle piece , after the seal is removed , then the seal slides on & over the protrusion / seam , then that point on the elbow is the stop point of inserting into the threaded valve .
The tapered thread is called a pipe thread , vs. a straight machine thread .
When ever I do any maintenance or repairs to any water , gas-line , I do the same as on code for housing - put valves on all point of use , so that the next time any service or repair , you are not having to eliminate any other function , like if in winter and have issue with stove - you do not have to shut down furnace etc. , that is just plain cheap & bs of Airstream .

[chili4u2]

The valve could have ruptured as well if not winterized correctly. Some valves retain just enough water to freeze and fail. We had a similar leak, which I believed was from the fitting and found later was not. While I started with tightening at the fitting, nothing seemed to improve. In our case I did not overtighten, but could see how it might occur. End result was a new valve and while the fitting may or may not have been bad, it got replaced as well. Total fix cost less than $35 DYI.

[Silvr_Bullet]

It looks like the nut you are holding has broken off the ninety degree fitting. If that’s the case you will need a new fitting that incorporates each of them and a special pex tool to remove the old fitting. I would call a plumber and have him repair it and send bill to Airsteam for reimbursement.

[jshotton]

Have you tried calling the help line at Thetford? They are very helpful. Might be able to help with the problem. I have called them a few times.

[billrector]

Update-I went to Ace Hardware and had three nice gentlemen help me with Pex/Shark Bite, but unfortunately what they sold me did not fit. Tonight, I removed the top crimp to get the elbow out of the tubing and with the help of a hair dryer to heat the tube I was able to remove the elbow. It is assembled differently than what I had envisioned. Basically, the nut is only held on with a ring that is press fitted on and then the washer goes on. I was able to reassemble it using a screwdriver to press the ring in but I don’t trust it. Looked online and see the exact replacement at Home Depot
https://www.homedepot.com/p/1-2-in-B...xoCEn8QAvD_BwE
However, look at the reviews. Virtually all of them say the device leaks! I would also need to crimp in a new clamp ring but it looks like those crumpets are expensive.

I called Airstream this morning and received an email requesting my contact information and a picture of what I was dealing with. Had an email off to them by 10AM but never received an email or phone call. Very disappointed at this point. Here I sit with a toilet that only flushes with a bucket of water in my new Airstream.

[SteveSueMac]

Sorry about the frustration.

Are you near any RV sales/service center? I don't believe the toilet or pex fittings are unique to airstream. Any good RV place should be able to fix your problem and if you confirm w/AS I can't see them denying reimbursement of the cost of that or having that violate your warranty. If that feels like an option for you, call Service in the morning - talk with Brad Herring and see what he can do for you.

Absolutely annoying - stuff like this happens and when you finally get it fixed the camping smiles tend to overcome the frustrations (in my experience anyway).

I had the foot pedal snap an internal spring - a known defect in the toilet - and despite it technically being out of warranty, Dometic sent me a brand new one for free I was able to install myself. Yes, the rest of that Memorial Day weekend was a bit of a bummer from a toilet perspective, but once sorted out - the fun continues!

Good luck!!

[SSquared]

About the warm water thing. We have a similar trailer (25FB). We sometimes get unexpected warm water in the bathroom sink when opening the cold faucet. Here's what I think is going on:

--the cold water supply comes from the other side of the trailer and feeds the toilet, sinks, and water heater
--The system is evenly pressurized
--The water heater has an air bubble at the top (by design)
--The air bubble is pressurized when the pump runs, and may increase in pressure when the water heater cycles the heat

--You run cold water at the sink or toilet
--The running water is at first the water sitting in the cold lines (which may be room temp)
--The air bubble forces water out of the water heater inlet.
--The hot water flows into the cold water supply line and toward the open faucet.
--Finally the pressure drops, the pump turns on, and the pump forces cold water back into the water heater and down the cold water lines to the sink/toilet.

Good luck with the repair!

[JohnTF]

Your link is a Pex fitting , haven't seen an Airstream that uses Pex yet - they should have switched to Pex a long time ago .
There are Pex fittings that are a different diameter - that fit the polybutlene - you need the fittings & crimps for to match the poly.
The crimp tool is the same as used in automotive , as an example clamping boots on CVC axial's , and if your careful , you can reuse those crimps a few times , before metal fatigue makes them fail .
Part of the acronym that these are called , one letter is P - for polybutalyene .
Next issue is having to remove the assembly , so that you can use the crimp tool [ not enough space ] its possible that it is flexible enough to bend from behind toilet to get crimp on .
Also , if your near a big enough town / city , you could rent the tool .
But then is the training / experience to get the crimp correct ---- one of the real biggys is when your applying the crimp YOU NEED TO MAKE SURE YOU ARE EXACTLY 90* FROM THE PIPE , if not your fitting can leak , now you need the complete set of tools to remove crimps & reuse fittings .

[Mollysdad]

Originally Posted by Silvr_Bullet

I would call a plumber and have him repair it and send bill to Airsteam for reimbursement.

Send Airstream the bill? That never works. Airstream would be out of business if they (or any company) paid unapproved bills.
That's what warranty's are for, nothing more.

[Silvr_Bullet]

Not So... my HDMI wiring was separated from HDMI Plug ( not repairable ) Airstream said they would repair it but that required removing interior aluminum panels, I didn’t want to do that. I had an Electrical Engineer rewire the HDMI wiring to a new HDMI Plug ( not an easy repair, but accomplished ) Airstream reimbursed me for material and labor. I would recommend contacting Airstream and get approval for repair requested as I did. Of course you would consult them!

[Mollysdad]

Originally Posted by JohnTF

Your link is a Pex fitting , haven't seen an Airstream that uses Pex yet - they should have switched to Pex a long time ago .

Okay, glad we cleared that up.