Community Forums

JulieGwyn · 05-09-2020, 11:44 PM

New to RVs.

My husband and I purchased our Alpine 40 ft 2000 about a month ago from a private party. Our first trip this weekend. Every time we run water in the bathroom sink or kitchen sink, water is coming out onto the kitchen floor from under where the stove is.
Being so new, we just don't know what to do. Call a plumber? We pulled the drawers out but cant see any water leaks and it is dry there. Any ideas or suggestions would be so much appreciated!

paul65k · 05-10-2020, 02:52 AM

There is a connection under the cabinets, under the cooktop in your year coach that is where the sink as well as the shower and vanity sink come together and then go into the gray tank.

Candidly it's not very easy to reach and is a stress point when the slide is moved in and out.

If you look under the cabinet you should be able to see the connection and affect the necessary repair(s).

1st thing to do is pull everything out from under there and see if you can see the leak source when running water

JulieGwyn · 05-10-2020, 06:47 AM

Thank you Paul. IF that turns out to be the issue, Is there a standard part fitting for all coaches that I need to replace and if so, do you know where we would get parts?

paul65k · 05-10-2020, 07:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JulieGwyn

Thank you Paul. IF that turns out to be the issue, Is there a standard part fitting for all coaches that I need to replace and if so, do you know where we would get parts?

Julie, unfortunately you'll really need to identify what is leaking down there. It could be that a fitting has come loose or one of them may have cracked, there is a flexible hose under there that allows the plumbing to move with the slide.

Once you identify exactly where the leak is you can find a repair part.

If it's the flexible hose I have heard many will use one of the flexible pool hoses that are used with a vacuum if this is where the leak is.

If it's one of the actual fittings you may be able to use one of the rubber drain fittings that can be used to attach drain lines with clamps on either side.

Once you get it opened and have pinpointed the actual leak, post up a few pics here and we can give you some additional help.

Tom and Patty · 05-10-2020, 07:59 AM

Home Depot, Lowe's or Menards will have what you need. The hardest part is getting a body to fit and work in the tight space. Good luck, we are here to help.

c_oneil · 05-10-2020, 08:04 AM

The fresh water and drain plumbing in your coach is all pretty much all standard residential type construction with parts available at Home Depot, Lowes or any hardware store. The drain system is ABS pipe. The fresh water supply is PEX tube. If you are not a DIY person you could try to find a RV repair service or a handyman type guy that is willing to work on plumbing. The difficulty for anyone doing the work is the access is very tight and can be extremely frustrating.

Old Scout · 05-10-2020, 08:36 AM

What Carter said-----however, where the water is existing on to the kitchen floor is not typical nor is the bathroom sink usually involved--hummmm.... the most likely culprit is the flexible hose connection[s] between the slide and the back of the shower wall enclosure. With age, the flexible hose gets less flexible and puts too much strain on the connections….hose clearance is tight and access is miserable....but many of us have been there.….good luck....keep us posted!

whalepirot · 05-10-2020, 10:15 AM

As when checking leaky toilets, it might help to ID the leak source by using a small amount of food coloring in the water from one sink, then see if it's leaking.

Many of us have downloaded and printed schematic diagrams of the various systems, drain, fresh water, electrical, for reference. Some of this came with a large folder from the PO of our '07.

I have these also, for the somewhat different, older models, which could be e-mailed in pdf format.

Ljwt330 · 05-10-2020, 11:36 AM

I have been looking a the plumbing schematic for a 40' which, I believe, matches yours (Unfortunately I cannot upload the graphic). It does not appear that the vanity is connected to the drain system for the kitchen so I cannot see how running water in the vanity should cause a leak under the galley stove. The vanity is actually plumbed into the drain line for the shower which then enters the grey tank through a different opening than the galley sink.

Can you confirm that the vanity actually causes a leak under the stove area?

It makes perfect sense, however, that the galley sink is the issue, where the flexible pipe connects to the rigid ABS, as others have mentioned.

paul65k · 05-10-2020, 03:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ljwt330

I have been looking a the plumbing schematic for a 40' which, I believe, matches yours (Unfortunately I cannot upload the graphic). It does not appear that the vanity is connected to the drain system for the kitchen so I cannot see how running water in the vanity should cause a leak under the galley stove. The vanity is actually plumbed into the drain line for the shower which then enters the grey tank through a different opening than the galley sink.

Can you confirm that the vanity actually causes a leak under the stove area?

It makes perfect sense, however, that the galley sink is the issue, where the flexible pipe connects to the rigid ABS, as others have mentioned.

Actually it makes sense. In the 2000 models, the cooktop is where the sink was moved in the later models so that's where the flex drain comes in from the bathroom/vanity area to then work it's way to the gray tank

JulieGwyn · 05-11-2020, 01:15 PM

After we left the RV park, we drove it back to its parking garage. We have an apt on the 27th to have someone look at it for us. Decided to have a full inspection done also to see if there are any other little nuisance we can catch. We will one day be as brave as you all seem, jumping in and fixing ourselves, but “Howie”, official name for our coach...(House/On/Wheels...yippIE)...lol
Is too new for us to feel comfortable to do so yet.
I am amazed at how wonderful you all are at jumping in to give guidance, REALLY COOL. A big Thank you to you all. It makes you feel like you are not so alone not having a manufacturer to fall back on. Wish I could find a picture of the piping on our rig...nothing out there on the web so far :(

Ljwt330 · 05-11-2020, 01:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JulieGwyn

After we left the RV park, we drove it back to its parking garage. We have an apt on the 27th to have someone look at it for us. Decided to have a full inspection done also to see if there are any other little nuisance we can catch. We will one day be as brave as you all seem, jumping in and fixing ourselves, but “Howie”, official name for our coach...(House/On/Wheels...yippIE)...lol
Is too new for us to feel comfortable to do so yet.
I am amazed at how wonderful you all are at jumping in to give guidance, REALLY COOL. A big Thank you to you all. It makes you feel like you are not so alone not having a manufacturer to fall back on. Wish I could find a picture of the piping on our rig...nothing out there on the web so far :(

No shame in being hesitant to dive into RV repairs. Do what makes you comfortable.

Still, it's good for both of you to know how things are supposed to work, and the most likely causes when issues arise. That's why asking questions here will make you forearmed when dealing with whomever winds up doing the actual repair. It's always good to be able to understand just what the tech is going to do and why.

One last thing. Can you answer my previous question about whether or not the vanity (bathroom) sink actually causes a leak under the stove in the galley? This is for my curious mind and further knowledge. As stated, from what I could determine, the vanity sink is not plumbed into a common pipe with the galley.

Thanks, and glad to have you on the forum.

JulieGwyn · 05-11-2020, 03:46 PM

Thank you All! We have decided to have Lassen in Albany Oregon Service for now. Not brave enough to dig into it yet. I really appreciate how amazing you all are.
Have a wonderful week! I will let you know what it was. Are you guys still collect the manuals and stuff? I hav all the original paper work on this coach.

JulieGwyn · 05-11-2020, 03:50 PM

I know for sure the shower had no problem. I am 50% sure it was both. We had the water set up out side and the pump on too for a while. Didn’t realize the pump didn’t need to be on. Not sure if that would have made a difference or not.