Water leak!

Topic: Water leak! (Read 1146 times) previous topic - next topic

Water leak!

May 03, 2018, 12:19:35 pm

Cleaning my air hose for storage when I noticed the curbside floor below was wet, very wet! At first I thought it might be from the roof air, 'cause we'd been running the rear hard for a week. Put a fan in there to dry it out, but no cigar. Oh, oh, maybe a inside leak? Turned the shore water off and ran the aux tank/pump, it 'cycled' after a couple of minutes and the search was on. Pulled all my stuff out of the roadside bay and crawled into the 'Joey Bed'. There it was, a sign of leaking down the wall and a stain (from the salt in the water softener) on the JB rail. I reached up under the wiring and felt a drip, JUST BELOW THE HOT WATER HEATER! Pulled the drawers out and OMG, wet with slime & mold. The lower fitting had been leaking for who knows how long? Tightened both fittings, put a dish under it overnight, bingo, no leak! Cleaned the floor and sprayed bleach all over. The fact of the furnace duct line being there, prolly saved more damage because of the heat. If the coach had not been a little low in front, I would not have found it until it was too late. A good reason to fire the pump every once in a while!

Re: Water leak!

Reply #1 – May 03, 2018, 01:10:48 pm

Hey Mike, had that deal going on a while back. Keep a eye on it, I ended up replacing both fittings.

Re: Water leak!

Reply #2 – May 03, 2018, 01:23:13 pm

X2......It goes on my 'to check' list! Another thing I noticed when I went to drain the HWH was the PVC plug was leaking slightly. It never ends..............

Re: Water leak!

Reply #3 – May 03, 2018, 02:45:43 pm

Just dealt with the plastic plug issue too. The water heater would not stay lit plug was spraying water on the burner tube. Do yourself a favor go down to the grocery/hardware/feed store there in town and get you a new plug and Teflon tape before you mess with it. 1/2" NPT

Re: Water leak!

Reply #4 – May 03, 2018, 03:36:20 pm

Mike,

If you want something to coat the wood in that area to protect it from water try Abatron's LiquidWood.

It's a two part epoxy that you brush onto wood and is absorbed. It hardens soft/punky wood, and it also protects wood from being damaged by water.

LiquidWood® | Abatron, Inc.

You can purchase it from Amazon.

Chris

Re: Water leak!

Reply #5 – May 03, 2018, 04:01:32 pm

So, what fitting/hose is the SOURCE of the leak? By the mineral buildup, it is certainly shore water.

Do you have a good pressure reducer in the line into the coach? What PSI are you running?

Re: Water leak!

Reply #6 – May 03, 2018, 04:18:05 pm

Chronic basement water leaks make your coach a prime suspect for rust and destroyed metal...you might have FT or MOT pull the lower fiberglass pan to see if you have bulkhead rust. It can be a huge silent killer of support.

Jim

2002 U320

Re: Water leak!

Reply #7 – May 03, 2018, 05:14:44 pm

Yup, water in the basement floor can be a BIG problem.

But, with the location of the water heater on the U240 it is a long way from either bulkhead. Absolutely worth pulling down some of the basement floor fiberglass to check AND absolutely dry it out.

"Least difficult" place to do that on the U240 is to open the floor beginning at the generator hole (air vent) which is just forward of hte water heater.

Again, Mike, please verify that you are using a water pressure reducer.

Re: Water leak!

Reply #8 – May 03, 2018, 05:50:28 pm

Quote from: wolfe10 – May 03, 2018, 05:14:44 pm

Yup, water in the basement floor can be a BIG problem. But, with the location of the water heater on the U240 it is a long way from either bulkhead. please verify that you are using a water pressure reducer.

I don't think we have excess pressure, but a in-line PRV is a good idea. I think, since we are so dry here, (10% & less), I'll not worry about tearing into any part of the coach, the wood is not rotten or even 'punky'. I'm just glad the drips found a way for me to spot it!

Re: Water leak!

Reply #9 – May 03, 2018, 06:22:11 pm

Your coach, but any water that migrates into the basement structure can NOT evaporate, even in very low humidity conditions.

Were it me, I would open it up (peel back the aluminum aft end of the generator air intake-- even if you have to buy a couple of feet of aluminum angle) and make sure it is DRY.

And, ABSOLUTELY, fit a pressure reducer set properly. The west is worse with high PSI, as they raise PSI to compensate for elevation. NOT a problem on the Texas Gulf coast where a freeway overpass is the highest elevation you will see.

Re: Water leak!

Reply #10 – May 03, 2018, 11:40:32 pm

My favorite water pressure regulator after trying many (including whole house style): Fixed Regulators: RV Water Filter Store

Re: Water leak!

Reply #11 – May 04, 2018, 07:43:10 am

Had a tiny leak when we first bought four years ago. Searched and searched. Never evidence of great volumes. Had the bulkhead bolts inspected. Seemed solid. Finally peeled the underbelly skin. What a mess. Beneath the water tanks radiating outwards complete deterioration. From the fuel tank back to the rear bulkhead completely rebuilt. Source of leak was a weep at the OEM "spun in" nipple at the drain pipe on the fresh water tank. Had been going on long before we purchased. While apart the shower drain pipe/P-trap was also a source. Added silicone stops to make sure we don't sit on tires at full air dump (about 5/16" above).

Re: Water leak!

Reply #12 – May 04, 2018, 08:34:30 am

Brett I have had a leak behind water hose reel. Where would be best place to remove belly skin and what should I need to put it all back
Thanks
Chris

Re: Water leak!

Reply #13 – May 04, 2018, 08:47:49 am

Chris,

Start by looking around the drop down door in the wet bay. Also, look carefully from on the ground, looking up at the white fiberglass underbody. Look for signs of rust jacking-- where the box beams are more pronounced than in other areas of the coach. Also, look at the bolts/beams where the vertical basement bulkheads are bolted through the basement floor.

Re: Water leak!

Reply #14 – May 04, 2018, 08:57:11 am

Chris, as Brett said what got me to have the coach lifted and the underbelly stripped was the noticeable "printing" of the steel tubing against the underbelly skin. It felt tight and solid but. Also turned out there was plywood in the areas beneath the water heater and pump bay. Saturated like a sponge.

Re: Water leak!

Reply #15 – May 04, 2018, 10:58:10 am

Quote

Start by looking around the drop down door in the wet bay.

I suspect most older Foretravels are heavily rusted in this area. I have had three buses and all three had rust there. Two were southwest coaches that spent almost their entire life in a dry climate with no evidence of rust anywhere and one was a northern coach which had a botched bulkhead repair already done. On the first two (320 and 300) I just removed the aluminum cladding, cleaned it up best I could and sealed it. On this one (270) I had Motorhomes fix it correctly. It required removal of some rusted metal and welding in new metal for that area. There is just no way to fix it without exposing the area from below.
jor

Re: Water leak!

Reply #16 – May 04, 2018, 01:44:48 pm

Brett, when inspecting the underside of coach, how far forward should one peel back the fiberglass sheeting starting from the rear bulkhead? I'm in the early stages of doing this now. I find light rust on the box beam that's attached to the angle iron but no rust jacking as of yet between the angle iron and the box beam. I plan on pulling the glass back about two feet to see what the rest looks like. Should I go further forward or just till I find no rust/ probably just answers my own question.

Re: Water leak!

Reply #17 – May 04, 2018, 01:56:15 pm

Yes, peel until you find solid metal. Until you start opening it up, you won't know unless gifted with X-ray vision.

And, depending on how much degradation you find, you may be able to treat it (both outside and spray inside the beam) or if really bad, cut out the affected area and replace with new box beams.

Re: Water leak!

Reply #18 – May 04, 2018, 01:58:05 pm

Rbark, if I where going to take the bottom down I would go at least to the front of the wet bays. When I get ready to have mine done that's where we'll start.

Re: Water leak!

Reply #19 – May 04, 2018, 02:02:58 pm

Bruce,

Ya, since the wet bay is the most aft section of the basement, if you open it up from the bulkhead end, you will very quickly see if you need to go forward of the wet bay forward wall. Again, rust jacking of the transverse bulkhead at the forward side of the wet bay is a pretty good indicator.

Re: Water leak!

Reply #20 – May 04, 2018, 04:45:18 pm

Quote from: wolfe10 – May 04, 2018, 02:02:58 pm

rust jacking of the transverse bulkhead at the forward side of the wet bay is a pretty good indicator.

O.K., I know 'rust never sleeps', but what is 'rust jacking'

Re: Water leak!

Reply #21 – May 04, 2018, 05:01:11 pm

Mike,

Just "google" rust jacking. Lots has been written about it. Nothing new here and nothing unique to Foretravel, RV's, etc. But because of the thin walls of the box beams in the floor structure, it doesn't take as much degredation to bring structural integrity into question.

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