Community Forums

dennismhamm · 05-03-2015, 05:56 PM

Does the Alpine coach have a built in water pressure regulator/reducer? some rv parks have high water pressure and was wondering if we need to use one at the water connection? Also if anyone would know what the water lines in the coach are rated at?

Thanks

the_vfox · 05-03-2015, 06:10 PM

I carry one with me, I don't have an Alpine. Better safe than sorry.

TeJay · 05-03-2015, 06:25 PM

Ours is rated at a maximum of 50 PSI. That's probably fairly standard but yours may be rated lower.
Be aware that the little brass cheap things that they usually give you when you buy a camper are not really regulators. They restrict the flow. Yes they will lower the max pressure but they do it by limiting the flow. That means you don't get as much water pressure and flow. A good regulator will cost you up wards of $50.

Also be aware that if there is a check valve in your system it also acts to restrict the water flow. Do you have one??? They are usually located where you connect the water hose from the CG. Look inside the hole. You may see a screen. Take your finger and poke around a bit and if you can get water to back flow from the opening then you have a flow restricter. Why do I know this?? Because ours made an awful vibrating noise when the water flowed through it. You could feel the thing vibrate. I gutted the valve and the noise went away. We also had a good increase in water flow. We have a real regulator on the unit and it's at 50 PSI but now it has much better flow than before when we had 50 PSI of pressure.

TeJay

Docschro98 · 05-03-2015, 07:18 PM

With a restriction through a fitting (not a pressure regulator or reducer) there is a drop in pressure while there is a flow thru it. Once the flow stops the pressure equalizes on both sides of the restriction. (Pascal's Law)
The point being is one needs a pressure reducer to protect your RV from high pressure. Do not rely only on a "restrictor". Additionally, anything installed inline in your system will reduce the flow rate through it. The more, hose, fittings, devices, filters, softeners etc that you have the less water you will have available at any outlet.

Old Scout · 05-03-2015, 07:25 PM

No built-in regulator but a check valve in the "city water" inlet--piping is PEX but not sure what the fixtures might be rated for. Get a good regulator with a gauge--allows you to see what is going on, better thru-put......

DrDaveMA · 05-03-2015, 07:38 PM

I have an adjustable gauge that I have set at 60 pounds, anything less flows through, anything about is reduced to 65. They are available at CW.

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Dave, Bobbi and Fenway

dennismhamm · 05-03-2015, 07:54 PM

anybody know of a good brand regulator to get?

Terry W · 05-03-2015, 08:26 PM

I made my own, I bought an adjustable Watts regulator and a pressure gauge at Lowes. I added a male and female hose connection and a little bit of hose on each end for flexibility and good to go. Plenty of volume and you can adjust it if necessary. The pressure gauge is useful also. Very happy with it, no flow restriction. Cost was about $35-40 if I remember correctly.

Terry

Jeff and Cheryl · 05-03-2015, 10:59 PM

Watts makes a great water pressure gage/regulator. I set my at 60psi. Had 2 times prior to adding it where the park pressure was to great and a four-way valve on the hot water tank gave way. Too much hassle/mess. Should have learned after the first incident.
There is printing on the pex pipe that says pipe is rated at 115psi. BUT the system is only as strong as the weakest link.

bcbowers · 05-04-2015, 09:29 AM

"Also if anyone would know what the water lines in the coach are rated at?"

I do not know the exact maximum PSI for the PEX tubing but I use 65 PSI as the maximum because the original ShurFlo 5.7 GPM pump was rated for 65 PSI maximum. Therefore, I "assumed" that 65 PSI was OK and that's ample water pressure for most people. I use an adjustable regulator with a pressure gauge set for 60 PSI maximum.

dennismhamm · 05-04-2015, 09:41 AM

bcbowers, what brand of pressure adjustable regulator do you use?

Janet and Todd · 05-04-2015, 11:03 AM

We bought this one and it looks to be on sale right now.

Adjustable Water Regulator - Lead Free - Valterra A01-1117VP - Faucets & Inlets - Camping World

Mr_D · 05-04-2015, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TeJay

Ours is rated at a maximum of 50 PSI. That's probably fairly standard but yours may be rated lower.
Be aware that the little brass cheap things that they usually give you when you buy a camper are not really regulators. They restrict the flow. Yes they will lower the max pressure but they do it by limiting the flow. That means you don't get as much water pressure and flow. A good regulator will cost you upwards of $50.

TeJay

The only time that is true is if the water is flowing, when static and not flowing the pressure will be equal on both sides of a flow restriction. That's why barely opening a valve doesn't work either.

I carried a Watts unit for many years and the Magna came standard with one. So, one less thing to carry.

lanerd · 05-04-2015, 11:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Janet and Todd

We bought this one and it looks to be on sale right now.

Adjustable Water Regulator - Lead Free - Valterra A01-1117VP - Faucets & Inlets - Camping World

We've had this one for several years now and works just fine. We set ours to 60lbs.

As an added thought, most of us (due to bad experiences), turn off the water at the spigot whenever we leave the mh and then turn it back on when we get back. One broken connection can really make for a bad day.

Ron