Newmar and RV newbie: Water in storage leaking problem

[martinr]

Second day with a Newmar and first post :-) I already love this forum by the way

We bought a used 1998 Mountain Aire and tried the fresh water hookup.

When the water starts flowing, the second to last compartment on the same side receives a lot of water leaking from somewhere up that I can't see. It is falling down super rapidly. No sign of water leakage inside the home though.

The water pump is off, the propane water heater is off as well. Am I doing something wrong? Did a couple of searches, didn't find the answer elsewhere or in another thread.

Any idea? Thanks!
Martin

[Skip426]

Sorry your here with problems.
I don't know the water system lay out in your coach , so I can't really provide and good help.
I will ask a few questions though.
Did you do the winterizing of the coach or was it done by a shop or the previous owner?
Is the leak near the hot water tank ? Under the shower or any sink area?
Is any water system tubing visible in the bay that's getting the water into it?

[spsm]

Anything that's got to do with water "shut it down", don't use your bathroom either. If your handy, start investigating for the problem, if not , find a Newmar dealer, or someone equal and let them handle it. That would be your best bet. Sounds like a line has let loose. Good Luck

[martinr]

Should have investigated more before posting. More info:
We have a 33.5 feet. Diesel puller.

The water is leaking from under the water heater. The floor is dry, so it is probably leaking between the floor and the compartment ceiling, right on top of the diesel tank.

Don't know if that helps :-)

[Skip426]

Turn the valves on the water heater to the by-pass position and see if that stops the leak. Could be the tank wasn't properly winterized and has split.
Or the tank drain is still open , but that leak should be outside.


BTW: If you click on the " Quick Links " drop box below your welcome message, go to " Edit Signature" and type in your coaches info , it will automatically appear below your posts, as mine does below on this one, and you don't have to enter it every time.

["007"]

Welcome to the forum and irv2, Martin.
Here is a Brochure and Owners Guide for you.
You probably need this information also.
You have a Freightliner chassis with a 210 HP front engine.
At the end of your OG you will see plumbing layout of your coach.
The WH looks like its set on floor of kitchen sink area or in the bathroom cabinet, I would look in there and see if floor is now wet and for any leaks from plumbing of the WH and maybe a low point drain valve that maybe open.
There maybe a wood panel hiding the WH in cabinet.
If everything is closed you may have a leaking HW Tank.
Below in my signature are links to many more for your Newmar.
Enjoy the forums and let us know how your making out with your leak.

[brobox]

You can see where the water is leaking from....but we cannot. A picture would really help others to help you. My first guess without seeing it sounds like a pipe froze and split over the winter.

Welcome to the forum and I hope we can help you out.

[martinr]

Thanks everyone for the help and 007 for the links as well :-)

Problem found and fixed. Turns out the first owner had a water pipe bypass installed to go around a broken line. I unknowingly sent the water in the wrong pipe, good thing it was all in the compartments and not on the floor!!

Now I know better and I'll never touch that switch again!

I feel like I'll learn a lot in the coming weeks and months ;-)

[plasma800]

Welcome to the world of RV'ing.

I have 3 more "water" tips for you.

1) Open up the access panel to the back of the water heater. Inspect the hoses that connect the hot and cold water to the heater. If the ends are plastic (white plastic screw knobs) - replace them immediately with metal ended faucet hoses. The plastic is not only cheap to begin with, but with that HOT HOT water right on it all the time the water heater is operating, the plastic gets brittle, and when it breaks - you have a problem.

2) Don't leave the water pump on when you are not in it. Just get into the habit of turning it off, city water too, when you leave. If the system is under pressure by the pump or city water, you leave, a fitting busts, you have a real mess on your hands! Matter of fact, I never actually connected to city water. Maybe I was just lazy, but I would simply gravity fill the tank and operate from the pump.

3) Inspect the hoses at each sink, and if you have a panel to see the shower connections, go ahead and look. These are again, just cheap faucet hoses that are easily replaced by Ace Hardware stuff.

Welcome to the world of RV'ing (and head scratching )
http://www.irv2.com/forums/f54/glad-...ke-223615.html

[martinr]

Thanks plasma800, I read your thread, we'll begin improvements soon, I'll check this for sure!