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Johnp292 · 12-31-2015, 07:12 PM

I'm having a frustrating issue with the fresh water tank on my 97 Bounder 34P. It started as a slow leak around the hose where water is drawn from the tank. I fixed that by sealing it with Goop. But now I have a major leak from either under or behind the tank. I'm worried that I may have damaged something when applying the Goop, as I had to remove a small wood block to apply the sealant around the fitting and the tank might have moved. The leak must be near or at the bottom of the tank, as the entire contents will leak out. I should note that there had always been a leak when filling the tank, but that leak would stop when the hose was turned off. I'm assuming that the filler hose enters at the top of the tank, so that can't be my problem. I'm assuming the leak must be at some sort of connection, since I doubt the tank spontaneously sprung a leak. But...other than the part of the tank I can see when I open the cabinet door (and no leaks there), I can't figure out how to access any other part of the tank. Can anyone help?

BFlinn181 · 01-01-2016, 09:59 AM

You might have to remove the tank to be sure it's not split, cracked, or a fitting is cracked or leaking. Check with an RV shop and see if they have experience with removing the tank. You might have to remove the panel in the wet bay to gain access. If so, be sure to take photos and label every connection you remove.

A previous owner could have over-filled the tank, causing expansion and damage to the tank or fittings.

Johnp292 · 01-01-2016, 03:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BFlinn181

You might have to remove the tank to be sure it's not split, cracked, or a fitting is cracked or leaking. Check with an RV shop and see if they have experience with removing the tank. You might have to remove the panel in the wet bay to gain access. If so, be sure to take photos and label every connection you remove.

A previous owner could have over-filled the tank, causing expansion and damage to the tank or fittings.

Thanks, I'm trying to avoid taking it to a shop if I can. $150 an hour here.

My worry is, it does not appear the tank will fit through the access door. I'm concerned that Fleetwood may have built the floor over the tank during manufacturing and that there isn't an easy way to remove it, but I'm not sure if that's the case or not. In my RV, the wet bay is in front of the rear wheels on the drivers side. You can access the grey and black tanks there but not the fresh tank. The fresh tank sits behind the rear wheels and is accessed from the passenger side with the fill port on the drivers side. The tank itself extends across the entire rig with a larger section on the passenger side. It has a floor under it and can't be accessed from under the RV either, unless there's a way I haven't found yet.

BFlinn181 · 01-01-2016, 03:57 PM

I know RV service labor is ridiculously expensive, especially when you take into account the lack of care and skill. I suggested going to a shop to see what they'd do to remove the tank then take it home and do as they said.

Now if they say we have to cut open the floor, or remove the side of the RV, I'd rethink the whole thing.

Johnp292 · 01-04-2016, 10:47 AM

Yeah, I could try that. I suspect the local dealer will just tell me to bring it in so they can look at it. I was hoping to find someone here who might have some experience with the issue before going through all that. Just getting the RV out of storage and to the dealer takes over an hour each way. Before the end of March I will need to take it to the same general area for emissions inspection, so if I have to I might be able to do both in one trip.

navigator336 · 01-04-2016, 03:28 PM

If you know someone with a long borescope you might be able to inspect the tank from the inside. Going through the tank drain might be the best access point. The cheapy borescopes are about a meter long, but you can buy extensions for some of them that will give you up to about 5 meters of length. I don't know how maneuverable they are so getting the right inspection position might be hard.

The tank in my Fleetwood appears to be built-in like you describe yours. I've wondered how I could get to it if ever necessary. I'll be interested to hear if there is a way other than cutting a hole in the floor.

Peterd503 · 01-31-2016, 02:43 PM

I removed my water tank on my 2000 Bounder. Had to remove a body panel to remove the tank. Then I had some plastic welding done and reversed the procedure. That was 3 years ago and so far all is well.

Johnp292 · 02-09-2016, 01:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peterd503

I removed my water tank on my 2000 Bounder. Had to remove a body panel to remove the tank. Then I had some plastic welding done and reversed the procedure. That was 3 years ago and so far all is well.

Thanks....was removing the body panel as simple as taking out the screws around the inside frame of the compartment door? On my Bounder, it looks like if I remove the door assembly the tank might fit through the opening.

I found all the connections to the tank by looking in through the access opening for the water pump, but I have no idea how to reach them. How did you disconnect and reconnect yours?

I'm still hoping I have a leak at a connection point but I haven't had the rig out yet to put some water in and watch the connections. If it does turn out that that's where the leak is, again, I don't know how I'm going to reach the connections to fix it.