My waste water tank is 1/2 full and the gate valve will not open. I am only assume that the rod has seperated from the valve inside the housing. I have bought a new valve but how can I drain the tank without dumping all the water inside the undercarriage floor . Anyone have any ideas , thanks.
Dan Daniel. 1996 u295
If you can use a long small dill bit, go up inside and drill a hole in the gate. Otherwise you will have to tilt the coach, and break some bolts loose to slowly drain it. Catch it with a pan. Put rags on both side to create a dam to guide it out.
Feel fortunate it's the gray, not the black! ???
The drill bit you want is called a pulley drill. They are mostly sized and used to tap drill the hole on a pulley hub, as the drill tip has to reach thru the hub and yet the drill body be long enough to be driven from beyond the diameter of the pulley sheaves. There are drill extensions where you lock the drill in the extension with the set screw and the other end of the extension goes in your driver. But good luck on finding one of those in a hardware store.
BTW
They make spring (flexible dills too) you could then make the corner to drill the flap, if that is what you chose to do
Being not the brightest bulb on the string, why not, if you are replacing the PLASTIC gate valve, and you can see it--just heat up a 1/4" dia piece of steel rod and melt a hole thru the PLASTIC?
Dan, can you actually see the old valve to make that assumption, or is the valve still hidden behind a panel?
I can see the valve and the rod moves in and out of the housing but the valve doesn't open.
So the rod has seperated from the actual valve, obviously.
Use a pair of pliers then and grab the top of the valve (the part the rod goes into) and pull it open!!!
Once empty take valve apart and clean it up or replace it with new.
JohnH
My bulb lit a little brighter last nite. :))
Connect an old piece of "stinky slinky" hose (long enough to reach outside the coach to 5 gallon pails) using the standard twist on end connector to the dump connection on the coach. Compress the hose length enough that then you can drill or burn a hole thru the gate valve. This way you can control where the effluent goes.
Heck, you could burn a 1" dia hole if you wanted!! A 1/4" diameter hole would take a L-O-N-G time to drain.
Assume you have tired to screw the rod back into the valve.
If the plastic of the valve is stripped, my next step would be to drill a slightly larger diameter hole where the rod goes through and try to thread a slightly larger diameter self tapping screw into the valve.
Brett, when I couldn't find a self-tapping screw long enough I have even gone to the desperate measure of altering a piece of threaded rod to become a self-tapper.
Easy enough to do if one is careful and patient and halfway good with tools.
First--select the size threaded rod one size larger than the old thread.
Second--Grind a three (3) thread taper lead on the end of the rod. Included angle about 15 degrees or down to the root of the thread and three threads long.
Third--take a hacksaw and cut a slot just around 5 degrees off parallel to the axis of the rod. Cut about 1/32 deeper than the thread form.
Fourth--File-at right angles to the saw cut--a flat down to the thread depth.
Fifth--go "retap" the stripped hole. Run the home made self tapper in about three revolutions, reverse out, then back in about six revolutions, then keep repeating in/out actions until desired depth is reached.
{Oh, I had to do it this way because my wire feed welder crapped and the DW said I was too old to get enough use out of a new one to justify the cost!!}
I was able to line the bay with plastic sheet then deprecated the gate valve and using my shop vac vacuumed out the water as it leaked out the opening. A long process but it worked. Have replaced the gate valve but am having a hell
Of a time getting the seals to seat correctly there is not a lot of room to move the pipes apart to get the valve and seals in. Taking it apart again for the 3rd time. Being on your knees is not fun, now I know why the techs get CB's for workin on our coaches.
Dan,
I have had luck with putting silicone grease on the seals face to hold them in place till I can get the valve body set.
Pamela & Mike
Yes, I use petroleum jelly. It is easier to just replace both valve seals, black and grey at the same time. Why not? Cheap insurance
BTW, having done tons of them, I always find it easier to put the seals on the pipe side, then on the valve.
Silicone plumber's grease is probably easier on the rubber parts than petroleum jelly. It is handy to have a small container along for many things.
Thanks to everyone on the replies , I finally finished the project but due to the tight quarters and way the drains are installed I had to use a small bottle jack to spread the pipes apart very slowly to get the new valve and gaskets in place . No leaks. Thanks again.
I believe the rods are molded into the valve. They aren't screwed in. At least the several I've changed on several coaches are that way. I'd be standing up when I drilled the valve...ready to move. I'd also replace the whole valve.