Holding Tank Leak

[ricere]

Since I do a lot of my own maintenance on our 2006 Newmar Kountry Star Diesel Pusher, I have noticed for a while one of the panels underneath the holding tank area was bulging while the rest of them were perfectly flat.

This bulge has gradually gotten worse during the last few years. Nothing underneath was wet and there was no indication of a leak.

I figured something has caused the insulation inside that panel to swell and yesterday I decided to remove the panel and check it out.

Inside was insulated with regular styrofoam insulation. After removing the panel and insulation, I discovered the plywood floor of the compartment had been wet for a long period of time and the plywood was badly deteriorated and so soft I could actually stick my finger through it if I tried.

By the absence of smell and moisture on the outside of the panel, I figure the leak is fresh water and extremely small, and has been on going since the coach was new.

This will be an expensive repair. I am going to check with Newmar at the next rally and see if it may be possible for Newmar to give me some help with this repair. We purchased this coach new and have owned it for nearly 8 years. However, I have noticed the insulated panel bulging since the second year of ownership, but didn't have any idea of what could be the cause.

Have any of you other Newmar owners had this problem? If so, how did you fix it?

Thanks

["007"]

Here is a thread that sounds exactly like yours in a search.

[ricere]

Originally Posted by 007";1853576][B][URL="http://www.irv2.com/forums/f103/enclosed-holding-tank-area-leak-88766.html#post825303

Here is a thread[/URL][/B] that sounds exactly like yours in a search.

Thanks, 007. One of those posts is mine from a couple of years ago when I was concerned about the panel bulge underneath the coach and I removed the peg board while installing an outside TV. I couldn't find any leak then and everything in the holding tank compartment looked great then. However, the panel underneath was swelled and bulging. Couldn't figure it out....until now.

The post about condensation sounds perfectly logical now. Unlike most people, we live full time in our coach and we keep our fresh water tank full almost all the time. About once per month we use the tank up and refill it with fresh water again. Keeping our fresh water tank full has saved us a lot of inconvenience over the years when campgrounds have had water supply failures.

If condensation has caused this problem, and I am 95% sure it has, then every Newmar coach made is subject to the same problem if the owner keeps water in their fresh water tank in cold weather, or even adding cold water in warm weather....over time.

The only way to solve this problem would be to install a catch pan underneath the fresh water tank during the repairs. This principle is not unlike the catch pan underneath a frost free refrigerator. The pan catches the condensate and the condensate evaporates before the condensate develops again. Without the catch pan, the condensate soaks into the carpet and into the plywood and it doesn't completely dry out until more condensate is created again. A vicious cycle that will rot any plywood over several years.

["007"]

If you brought it to their attention they may take into condensation of either changing the floor or a pan as you mentioned its sure to show up in others.
If your camping maybe advisable to empty the fresh water tank to eliminate the moisture off that tank.

[ricere]

Originally Posted by "007"

If you brought it to their attention they may take into condensation of either changing the floor or a pan as you mentioned its sure to show up in others.
If your camping maybe advisable to empty the fresh water tank to eliminate the moisture off that tank.

True. But we like to keep the tank pretty full because we have gotten used to doing it and we hate to take time to do it when we take the coach out.

I would also think most of the condensate is created when the tank is being filled and the water temperature is much colder than the air temperature in the basement. Once the water temperature reaches the basement air temperature, the condensate would slow down or stop until the tank is filled again. We do that about once per month unless we're dry camping.

Also true: it will (and I'm sure has) surely show(n) up in other units, and the owners probably have no clue.....yet. Depending on how much they use their coaches.