Check valve noise

TeJay · 04-11-2015, 12:04 PM

I've done a search on this noise and there was one post. I've got a friend with a new WBGO and it does the same thing. So it may be unique to WBGO.

When city water is hooked directly to the inlet the check valve makes a horrible high pitched winning noise. It's done it since the coach was new. At first I thought it was the regulator but it's still noisy with the regulator removed. It's coming from the check valve right behind the hose connection. With water flowing I can reach behind the area, grab the line and feel the vibration.

My question is does the valve have to be in there? I'm assuming it's there so water does not run out after the hose is disconnected. I guess is would drain any water in the lines. Exactly how much water would drain out I don't know.

Are there other types of check valves that could be put in the line that may not make noises?? I'll assume that some manufacturers of things that restrict water flow do check them for noises. Since one is altering the flow rate that can and will cause noises. The noise is not bad from inside the coach but I know our neighbors can hear it. When I walk between coaches I can hear it. I don't like to or want to make the neighbors angry.

I'll do a search for a different valve. This has to be an issue with other folks but I'd like to know what others may have done. No use re-inventing the wheel.

I'd appreciate any input or ideas.

Thanks,
TeJay

grtharris · 04-11-2015, 01:12 PM

TeJay, I have the same wet bay setup as you do and ours makes very little noise. What I do have is a "Camco 90" Brass Hose Elbow" installed at the inlet which may help by changing the water flow through the check valve.
O, yes it must be there , it is on the pressure side of the water system.
We rented a MH in Alaska a couple of years ago and it was really loud.

stuhly · 04-11-2015, 01:31 PM

It may be a backflow preventer.

TeJay · 04-11-2015, 02:34 PM

Yes it is a back flow preventer but the darn thing makes a horrible squealing sound all the while you are using it. As I said we can't really hear it to much but I'm sure everybody else does. I also have to explain that my DW has awfully good hearing. She hears at 67 what the normal person at age 15 hears. She always has. Neither of her folks ever needed hearing aids. Alas it is something that we, she, & I have to contend with. She hears the TV at 12 and I have to have it at 35 or louder.

I do need a brass 90" fitting so I can mount the regulator as well. Anything is worth a try. I'll google Camco fitting.

Thanks for the responses. We are in a downtime mode for a few weeks so it's time to get some RV MODS & upgrades done.

TeJay

puttin · 04-11-2015, 02:38 PM

Yes, the check valve needs to be there, it prevents coach water from getting back to the hose faucet. Before I replaced mine, I got a manual ball valve and brass adapter and just screwed it to the existing one that was bad. When I disconnected the city water I just turned the valve knob 90 degrees and it shuts off all the flow from your rv. I could have left it like that as a permanent fix but finally decided to replace it. I still have my setup in case something else happens or if there's another rv'er in need.

Bug512 · 04-11-2015, 06:18 PM

Like other posters have said you do need the check valve.
The purpose of it is so when you are using your water pump / freshwater tank and do not have a city hookup, water will not come out of that hose attachment.

Personally I place the regulator at the hose bib / city water hookup, reason is I do not want to subject my hose to the higher pressure that some campgrounds provide.

Maybe give that a try next time out or call Winnebago and look to get the check valve replaced.

spanuts · 04-11-2015, 08:49 PM

yep ours makes that noise also

WBandJ · 04-12-2015, 03:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by grtharris

What I do have is a "Camco 90" Brass Hose Elbow" installed at the inlet which may help by changing the water flow through the check valve.

We also use a 90 elbow and do not hear any squealing when attached to city water supply. When winterizing, I use an air compressor to blow out the lines and the check valve does squeal then.

TeJay · 04-12-2015, 05:00 AM

Poster #2 and #8 above both used a 90" bend and have no noise. I need one so I can attach the brass regulator. Maybe that's a solution. I realize the noise is a vibration but from several experiences over the years those can be fixed.
We had a Chrysler Van in the 80's. When you turned on the AC it hummed. Their fix was to put a 4 LB weight around the rubber AC hose. You's adjust it's position until it reduced the vibrations. Ford also used a heavy weight on the end of the AT tail shaft to reduce vibrations. Also there is a weight on most front CV axles also designed to reduce vibrations.

Again thanks for the ideas. Nothing like experience to fix many issues.

Also there's another thread here, "2012 Vista 30T". Several Vista owners are sharing MODS that we've done on our units. Some interesting stuff perhaps worth checking.

TeJay

DrJAG · 04-12-2015, 08:53 AM

I also have a 90 deg elbow at my inlet and do not have the noise. I can't say if I have it without the elbow or not.

grtharris · 04-12-2015, 09:05 AM

TeJay, you can pickup the 90 deg elbow at Walmart in the RV section.

TeJay · 04-12-2015, 11:24 AM

grtharris,
Thanks for the info about the 90 deg fitting. After Church this morning we stopped at Lowe's. I could not find an elbow but did talk to a guy who knew something about plumbing. I got enough stuff (Pex fittings and extra Pex hose) to maybe remove the check valve and install a ball valve to act as a check valve when not connected to city water. I may try the 90 Deg fitting to see if it makes a difference only to find out if it will really stop the noise. However I'm also thinking that the check valve does restrict the flow of water into the coach. I'm thinking that because we've been to CG's that had between 40 and 50 lbs of pressure yet the shower has never seemed to have much pressure. At least it does not change much. That's why I'm thinking the the CV restricts the flow. If I remove it or just gut it the water flow should increase. We do have a regulator so I'm not worried that we'll blow a line from high pressure.

TeJay

TomandGloria · 04-12-2015, 11:51 AM

I have the 90 degree elbow and still get the noise. Never knew what it was till reading this thread. My BIL Bounder does not do it, so I wasn't sure where to start. Is it time to replace the check valve?

TeJay · 04-12-2015, 06:28 PM

Been busy for the last few hours. I got a 90 deg fitting and it made very little if any difference in the noise level. So the next step was to remove the check valve. It was not real easy and I'll explain. You will be dealing with the Pex fittings. I guess they are not bad except for this. To get the metal ring off you just cut it with a pair of wire cutters. Not real easy but. OK the metal ring is of now how do you get the Pex tubing off the fitting. That was a bugger. The tubing is fairly thick and it is also stiff. The work location is never good. Very little room. I could just barely see the fitting and light was not good. The Pex tubing is pretty stout. You will not pull the tubing off the fitting so now what. I thought of heat. That would work except the fitting is also plastic. Get it to hot and more that what you want may melt. I ended up using a Dremel tool with a cutting wheel and two flat bladed screwdrivers. I scored into the tubing and cut a hole through the tubing but away from the fitting. I got 1 then 2 screwdrivers into the tubing and broke it open. I finally got the check valve out by taking the three screws holding the hook up onto the panel. To gut the valve I had to drill the check valve out. I put everything back together and no noise but the added benefit is the water pressure as I suspected was the best it's ever been.

Now what about a check valve. My guess is why chance the trouble and work to put in another CV in that will maybe make noise??? Maybe no CV is going to be quiet and most will probably still restrict water flow. My answer is to get a simple ball type shutoff valve and put it between your regulator and the hose hook up. I want to leave my regulator hooked up until I winterize. Connect a shutoff valve onto your regulator where you are going to hookup the city water. When you disconnect the city water hose just shut off the city water by turning the ball valve. That is the same as a check valve. BENEFITS: 1. A check valve (ball valve) is still there to prevent water from leaking out when the CW is not connected. 2. Much better water pressure, 3. You've eliminated the noise.

A little about the Pex stuff. Some recommend always changing from plastic to brass. That makes sense. When I replaced the fittings I had a leak. I thought the plastic valve got scored by the dremmel cut off wheel. The fact was the Pex clamp was not tight. You can spend $17 to buy a pex clamping tool or just use some right angle wire cutters. Check U-tube for some video's.
If you think it would be good to change the fittings to brass here's the problem. I was going to just change the "T" behind the CV. Once you start cutting fittings you can't stop. Take the clamps off to pull the fitting and you have to cut the tubing. Now you have to take the cut tubing out at the next fitting so on you go to the next fitting. Since there is no easy way of removing the tubing from an existing fitting you end up going from fitting to fitting. I think you get the idea.

There a lot of water pressure and no noise. I'm happy but tired.

TeJay

TeJay · 04-13-2015, 10:47 AM

Here's an update of the noisy check valve (CV) in the city water hook up. I've included 4 pics and here's how I completed the MOD.

Take the three screws holding the hose connections on the panel. You can see how it looks behind. You'll have to cut the Pex clamp at the plastic T. That's not easy but just the beginning. Once it's cut unwind the clamp. Now you have to get the Pex tubing off the T fitting without damaging the T. I used a Dremel cut off wheel. You don't want to cut into the T because it might not seal. I weakened the tubing by cutting along its length. Then I punctured the tube not near the T and inserted a flat screw driver in the tube and split it apart.

You'll have to gut the check valve. I drilled it until it fell apart. Measure your old tube and install a new one. Put everything back together.

You'll notice a shut off valve between the elbow and the regulator. That's my check valve. Just shut that off before you disconnect the CW and no water will flow out.

About the shut off valve. I had three of them laying around the garage and the last one I found sealed. Those things are cheaply made. When buying one close it and try to blow air through it. You'll find them in the garden hoses. Maybe somebody makes a better one but 2 of what I had did not hold water. Put the valve in place shut it and turn on the pump. If it's going to leak it will.

My pressure gauge says over 60 PSI. While the water was running inside I set it to 55 LBS. I guess when it's off it's higher than when flowing. I'll recheck what is recommended in the WBGO manual then reset it.

Got NO noise and a lot more water and pressure.

TeJay

puttin · 04-13-2015, 11:24 AM

TeJay,

Sometime between '08 and '14 WBGO has decided to go with clamps rather than the threaded connectors that I have. It made my install much easier. I wonder why they changed..it makes it more difficult to do your own repairs. The plastic ball valves seal much better in this application than the brass ones. I got mine at ACE and it's designed for hot water...it was a little more expensive but I feel more comfortable. Glad to see it all turned out ok for you.

ChrisKW · 04-13-2015, 11:54 AM

Sorry if this confuses the matter, but our WBGO has a check valve at the pump to prevent city water from back-flowing through the water pump and into the fresh water tank. Without that check valve, and there has been some folks that reported replacing them (like myself) if they slow leak, meaning after about three days on city water it would have filled the fresh water tank and then water runs out of the tank's overflow vent pipe under the coach. Just saying...

Chris & Deb - North Venice, FL - 2014 Itasca Ellipse 42QD - Toad: 2014 Jeep Rubicon

TeJay · 04-13-2015, 07:07 PM

Chris,
There may be a check valve at the water pump. In fact it may be a standard item as part of the pump itself or always installed in the line for just the reason you mentioned. I really don't know. What I do know is that darn CV just behind the 90 deg elbow and seen as the brass fitting shown on the picture underneath made a terrible screeching noise when the water was running. My reason for gutting the thing and doing what I did was the thought that what's to say if I replace the CV and the new one makes noise too?? That's a lot of work with no rewards.

I also recall reading something when winterizing. It mentioned that one should push in on the CV to make sure pink liquid is coming out. I'll read it again and see if it mentions its purpose for being there in the first place.

puttin, I had 4 ball shut off valves laying around the garage and all had plastic balls. The only one that sealed had a brass plated housing and a plastic ball valve.

To add one more bit of info just for the fun of it I went out to the camper and took my evening shower. A lot more water flow, pressure and no noise. Before I did this the shower was good but at times we had stayed in CG's that had lower than normal pressure and you'd have to run around in the shower just to get wet.

We do have a good shower head and can cut the flow down some so we won't drain the tank. As it was we could both take reasonable showers and not run out of hot water. I love the electric hot water heaters.

TaJay

Steve COH · 04-13-2015, 07:40 PM

Tejay,

I replaced my check valve 6 months ago, and on my Tour there was a fitting made by SeaTech that was similar to the sharkbite fittings, except it was plastic. After taking the 3 screws out, the inlet and check valve came out far enough to release the retaining ring on the SeaTech fitting.

Easy to change with these fittings.