Water Tank Deformation Warranty Issue?

[dlenhert]

I’ve had several water tank issues since buying my 2023 FC 23FBT last summer. First it wouldn’t fill more than about 20%. Turns out the intake hose was too long with several bends in it. Dealer cut it to size. After this it would fill to about 50%. Turns out one of the bends had developed a crease. Dealer replaced the hose and was then able to fill it to 100%.

After picking it up from the dealer I drove directly to an RV park about 45 miles away. I hadn’t realized it yet but there was still 100%+ water in the tank. I ran into a section of highway with some bad pot holes but didn’t think too much of it until I got to my site. While setting up I discovered the water tank full, so I just started using the onboard water. After using considerable water the meter still showed 100% full. After 3 days use it finally read 96% full. Clearly something was a miss. That’s when I remembered a KYD episode about their bulging water tank. Sure enough my tank was bulging and the back side of the tank was strangely puckered.

I called the dealer who said bring down right away. They agreed it was warranty issue so they documented everything and took pictures to send to the factory. After 8 weeks I just heard back today that they think someone jacked it up on the tank and that it is my responsibility. To be fair they are not denying it yet but have asked the dealer for more and better pictures. The dealer says it’s clear to them that the tank hasn’t been impacted or jacked up on but will provide better pictures. They may have to pull the tank, at my expense (if denied), to see just what’s going on inside.

I guess my question is has anyone had their water tank repaired or replaced under warranty? Did you get a run around from the factory?

I told the dealer that I’d pay to have support straps added. The dealer suggested the straps go on the inside tank instead of the outside enclosure. I’m not sure what the inside tank is made of. I’d be concerned about the strap rubbing.

Thanks for any thoughts or advice.

[uncle_bob]

Hi

First off, "fill the tank and make sure it works" is on the dealer's check list. They are supposed to make sure it works long before you ever see the trailer. There's always things that can / might happen between the factory and arrival at the dealer.

These same tanks go in every AS made. They don't self destruct. They last a long long time put in without any additional this or additional that. There's no need to redesign the system.

Best guess about what happened to your tank: Somebody got the bright idea to put a pressure fitting on the fresh water intake. They blasted it with "city water" sort of pressures. The tanks (and hoses to them) are not set up for having that done. One would *guess* that this is part of why the factory just might want more details.

Just a bunch of totally random guesses. I have absolutely no way of knowing what actually happened ....

Bob

[dlenhert]

Thanks Bob! Yes, I can see the dealer doing this to test the hose replacement. Was never a problem before that, but then again it was never completely filled before then either. No one has touched the trailer except the Airstream dealer since it arrived from the factory. Since it doesn't actually leak I can see just living with it, except the sensors appearently no longer report actual results which seems kind of important to me.
Thanks again Bob for your comments,
David

[CBWELL]

There are no threads on the water tank fill!! I don't know how they could put a pressure fitting on a straight piece of plastic tubing, unless they wraped a piece of cloth around a air hosw and applied pressure, but this would not bulge the tank as there is an air intake beside the fresh waater fill. Tank has to be vented!!

[AlbertF]

Originally Posted by dlenhert

I told the dealer that I’d pay to have support straps added. The dealer suggested the straps go on the inside tank instead of the outside enclosure. I’m not sure what the inside tank is made of. I’d be concerned about the strap rubbing.

Thanks for any thoughts or advice.

The tank itself is plastic. The box that holds it is galvanized steel sheet metal. There should be expanded polystyrene insulation in between, because the water tank enclosure should be heated by the furnace.

As has been noted, if everything is the way it should be, these tanks should last for decades.

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by CBWELL

There are no threads on the water tank fill!! I don't know how they could put a pressure fitting on a straight piece of plastic tubing, unless they wraped a piece of cloth around a air hosw and applied pressure, but this would not bulge the tank as there is an air intake beside the fresh waater fill. Tank has to be vented!!

Hi

Unless their "fill" gizmo covered that vent as well as mated with the water intake port.....

Why would somebody try a high pressure blast? "There's probably an obstruction and we'll blow it out".

Bob

[sfranklin]

You need to fill the fresh water tank slowly. The air displacement from that tiny vent pipe is insufficient if you fill the tank with a 1/2" garden hose shoved into the filler neck at full volume. Also never walk away and let it spit out out for long after it gets full, esp if you are filling the tank at full blast. Not good things can happen.

There have been a few documented cases where not only did the tank deform from the pressure, but the floor, I saw actual pictures where it started to buckle the floor above the tank from the expanding fresh tank.

I do not think they put a pressure fitting on it, but a large hose, turned to max volume can restrict the displaced air trying get out and the results are similar.

One case of many that I've heard about:

https://www.airforums.com/forums/f44...ank-33300.html

If I hadda guess, the dealer shoved a 1/2" or 3/4" hose into the fill, cranked the valve to full, walked away and when they got around to finding it was full, pulled the hose and thought nothing of it. Just a wild guess. In 25+ years filling these tanks as I mentioned, never had a swelling issue, even if I let it run a few minutes past water spitting out the fill neck.

[dlenhert]

[/QUOTE]If I hadda guess, the dealer shoved a 1/2" or 3/4" hose into the fill, cranked the valve to full, walked away and when they got around to finding it was full, pulled the hose and thought nothing of it. Just a wild guess. In 25+ years filling these tanks as I mentioned, never had a swelling issue, even if I let it run a few minutes past water spitting out the fill neck.[/QUOTE]

A good guess I think. Hitting some pot holes on the highway with a full tank probably didn't help. The puckered in area on the back of the enclosure is a little concerning, as well as the water level sensors being off. I'll have to run some level tests to see how far off it actually is.

Thanks for the feedback.

[sfranklin]

[/QUOTE]

A good guess I think. Hitting some pot holes on the highway with a full tank probably didn't help. The puckered in area on the back of the enclosure is a little concerning, as well as the water level sensors being off. I'll have to run some level tests to see how far off it actually is.

Thanks for the feedback.[/QUOTE]


Those would have had to have been some grand canyon sized pot holes and even then, unless you bottomed the trailer out, which it doesn't sound like you did, they filled it too quick and it expanded. There should be some straps holding the tank in, or at least that's how it was on my older unit. My new unit it's all enclosed, but it could very well have expanded enough to pop one of the two metal straps holding the tank or that I think were still used to hold the tank up. Once they pull the cover, it'll be pretty clear. Tanks can't expand on their own and with no physical signs of contact.....

[uncle_bob]

Hi

Ok, *could* you pressurize the tank? Let's assume the answer is yes.

Some math:

for each 12" x 12" section of tank wall, you get 144 square inches. You have a lot of sections like that in the tank.

If you get to 1 pound of pressure, you have added 144 pounds to the load on that wall.

If you get to 10 pounds of pressure, you get to 3/4 *ton* of pressure.

Get up to the 100 pounds of pressure many campgrounds seem to think is "just fine" and that one tiny section is close to 7.5 tons of added load.

Put water in through the nice large fill opening and let it out through the tiny pressure relief opening, you have a lot of drop through that relief opening. At 100 pounds pressure in, even if the opening is not blocked, you just might get most of that 100 pounds "in the tank". (Open one faucet at home and you still have pressure on the rest of them ....).

At 1 pound pressure, the tank probably is ok. At 10 pounds, I'd bet you get things deforming. Long long before you get to 30 (let alone 100) pounds, your tank disintegrates.

Bob

[dlenhert]

The 'pot holes' were just rough patches on the highway, nothing too unusual. I just figured that along with having a100%+ fill would explain the deformation. When the dealer saw it, he thought it had shifted and considered it a warranty issue. The factory is balking but has asked for more and better pictures. I'm taking it back to the dealer next week so they can do this. If the tank integrity is good, I can live with it I suppose. I am concerned as to why the fill level sensors seem way off. I assume it has to do with the deformation.

[sfranklin]

Originally Posted by dlenhert

The 'pot holes' were just rough patches on the highway, nothing too unusual. I just figured that along with having a100%+ fill would explain the deformation. When the dealer saw it, he thought it had shifted and considered it a warranty issue. The factory is balking but has asked for more and better pictures. I'm taking it back to the dealer next week so they can do this. If the tank integrity is good, I can live with it I suppose. I am concerned as to why the fill level sensors seem way off. I assume it has to do with the deformation.

We've all been on rough roads. RVs are designed for being on smooth and not so smooth roads. Many are not designed for off-road, which you were not doing. Could the tank have shaken loose from a strap and torqued itself into the cover? Sure and that would be a warranty issue? If the dealer simply filled it too fast and it distorted, that's on the dealer.

My point is, none of this, seeing it from your description, is your fault.

I've traveled with full water tanks for over 25 years on all types of roads. Have I been lucky? Perhaps. But I don't see from what you've posted that this is an out of pocket for you in any way.

[dlenhert]

Originally Posted by sfranklin

We've all been on rough roads. RVs are designed for being on smooth and not so smooth roads. Many are not designed for off-road, which you were not doing. Could the tank have shaken loose from a strap and torqued itself into the cover? Sure and that would be a warranty issue? If the dealer simply filled it too fast and it distorted, that's on the dealer.

My point is, none of this, seeing it from your description, is your fault.

I've traveled with full water tanks for over 25 years on all types of roads. Have I been lucky? Perhaps. But I don't see from what you've posted that this is an out of pocket for you in any way.

Thank you for your feedback. Factory reaction to this has made me feel like it is my fault somehow. I'll post an update once better pictures have been sent and get their response.