Posted 2007-07-14 11:10 PM (#63900) Subject: grey tank and plumbing issues
Veteran
Posts: 192 Location: Kentucky
I own a 4-Star trailer and love it but I ruined the grey water tank in my trailer which also damaged the entire pipe system. I went to a 4-Star site to see if they could fix it but they said that it wasn't their issue and I needed to contact the interior installers. I purchased the trailer used and know that this company is in N.C. which would be a very long trip even if I could locate the company. Is there no universal tank that could be used? Would an RV company or some place like Camping World be able to repair it for me and order a new tank? Thanks for any information.
Posted 2007-07-15 1:00 AM (#63903 - in reply to #63900) Subject: RE: grey tank and plumbing issues
Expert
Posts: 1205 Location: Arkansas
Yes. An RV repair facility can fix you up. They see this stuff all the time, horse trailer or RV all the $ame to them! Good luck, this should not be to difficult to get worked on close to home.
Posted 2007-07-15 11:00 PM (#63928 - in reply to #63900) Subject: RE: grey tank and plumbing issues
Veteran
Posts: 192 Location: Kentucky
The building where I kept my horse trailer lost the roof in a storm last fall so I had to park my trailer in a building on another part of the farm. The building was full of other equipment, has a double retaining wall at the entrance and a pole barn directly behind it. I couldn't park it in the building straight and I couldn't back it out completely because of the pole barn so I had to angle it and then pull around in the opposite direction. Apparently at some point I must have run over the lower end of the retaining wall and made a hole in the grey tank. I didn't think that I had damaged any of the other pipes but at a campground last week the pipes burst. Fortunately it was 2 am so I was in the trailer and able to get the water off before I had interior damage. Long story.
Posted 2007-07-16 2:13 PM (#63977 - in reply to #63900) Subject: RE: grey tank and plumbing issues
Veteran
Posts: 247 Location: La Crosse, WI - God's Country
Two options: Do-it-Yourself or take it to an RV shop.
As previous posters have stated, it's all more or less standard stuff. The tricky part is finding a tank to fit your space. We found decent prices as rvsurplus.com and ordered our replacement tank from there. All of the fittings, etc. are standard ABS plastic, and the tank company can put the sensors in the tank for you - so that's all there is to it.
The tough part is the work. It's a lot of work, doing the removal/demolition, crawling around cutting pipes, cementing, wiring, fastening, and strapping. We were quoted about $1000 to have the work done from where we got the trailer. We did it ourselves (2 tanks and fittings) for about $425. If you can find the tanks cheaper, you're in even better shape.
Feel free to ping me with any questions directly, I may be able to help you avoid some of the headaches and pitfalls if you go the DIY route.
Posted 2007-07-18 11:09 AM (#64065 - in reply to #63977) Subject: RE: grey tank and plumbing issues
New User
Posts: 2
Location: west milton,ohio
hello, I have a sundowner and iam going to replace both grey and black tanks as they both leak. any helpful suggestions would be greatly appreciated. thanks bubbles
Posted 2007-07-18 1:53 PM (#64069 - in reply to #63900) Subject: RE: grey tank and plumbing issues
Veteran
Posts: 247 Location: La Crosse, WI - God's Country
Just some general thoughts...
When removing the old tanks:
The black water/sewage tank will have two openings in the tank. One for the toilet and in all likelihood one smaller one for the vent which should run to the roof. The toilet mount is either cemented in place, or if you're really lucky the original installer used threaded mounts for at least that connection.
The grey tanks for sinks, etc. usually have a vent that's part of the sink drain assembly.
You will likely need to do some cutting - plan ahead when you're cutting pipes so that you'll make the cut in a location that you'll be able to re-join most easily and with minimum waste of tubing/joints/connectors.
Once you've got your tanks, you can plan your hole locations and fittings. Measure five or six times, cut once.
The tank supplier should install the sensors in the tanks. Save the nuts from your other sensors, the new tank doesn't always come with 'em.
Supplier should include the fittings for the tank openings too.
I needed to use a rubber joiner with two band clamps from the hardware store for my sewage vent pipe.
Be very aware of things that could interfere with the pipe location - like drawers and any other hardware.
For fastening the tank, I prefer square drive (Robertson) self-drilling screws. If you can't get those, try hex head (nut head) screws. Phillips or slotted are a pain, don't bother with those.
Be sure to use plastic straps in addition to the screw mounts of the tanks.
Let me know as you have questions - hopefully I can share the fruits of my experiences and help you avoid some of the pitfalls.
Posted 2007-07-18 2:00 PM (#64070 - in reply to #63900) Subject: RE: grey tank and plumbing issues
Veteran
Posts: 192 Location: Kentucky
Everyone seems so knowledgeable about this plumbing. My experience with plumbing is to occasionally use a plunger at home. I am supposed to take my trailer to the RV place tomorrow so we can see if they can find a grey water tank to fit my trailer. I am hoping for the best.
Posted 2007-07-18 2:59 PM (#64075 - in reply to #63900) Subject: RE: grey tank and plumbing issues
Veteran
Posts: 247 Location: La Crosse, WI - God's Country
Good luck at the RV place. The RV places around here only seemed to be able to get square/odd/standard RV tanks - not the long, skinny, shallow ones that I needed. I even provided part numbers from THEIR suppliers and they fell flat.
Posted 2007-07-19 9:11 PM (#64153 - in reply to #63900) Subject: RE: grey tank and plumbing issues
Regular
Posts: 62 Location: Western Wisconsin
Since we're on the subject, I have a question. We are replacing the grey water tank due to a previous owners neglect to make sure ALL the water was out of the pipes before winter storage... anyhow, the pipe that drains into the grey water is directly under the shower and it appears we will have to tear the shower out to get at it to cut it so the tank will drop down. Any helpful suggestions??? We'd prefer not to go that route obviously. It's a Bearcat conversion if that helps at all.
Posted 2007-07-19 9:26 PM (#64154 - in reply to #63900) Subject: RE: grey tank and plumbing issues
Veteran
Posts: 192 Location: Kentucky
I took the trailer to the RV place and they are going to measure and see about getting a grey tank for me. They seemed to think that the pipes breaking were not created by the break in the grey water tank but was probably caused by a build up of water pressure from the connection of my hose to the water faucet at the campground. They seemed to think that since the pipe broke at 3 am that it was the water pressure because no one was using water at that time and it allowed full pressure through the faucet. They are going to install a pressure valve to prevent this from happening in the future. Has anyone ever heard of this?
Posted 2007-07-19 10:20 PM (#64156 - in reply to #63900) Subject: RE: grey tank and plumbing issues
Expert
Posts: 1205 Location: Arkansas
Yes. I use a water pressure regulator between my hookups and entry into the LQ. Not saying that is what happened to you, but they make these regulators to help lower the water pressure from various sources to one acceptable for RV plumbing etc,...
Posted 2007-07-20 8:22 AM (#64167 - in reply to #64153) Subject: RE: grey tank and plumbing issues
Veteran
Posts: 247 Location: La Crosse, WI - God's Country
Sometimes you need to be creative as to the best way to get at the cutting. I'd first consider any other way to get a saw (hacksaw, sawzall, coping saw) in there - keeping in mind that you'll need to be able to reach enough to put it all back together.
Your "next-to-last resort" which isn't all that bad would be to cut up the grey tank since you're not going to save it. Cutting it away would be easier than taking apart the shower, I'd think. Just be glad it's grey and not black - YUCK. Leave enough to reconnect the new tank - that's where those rubber unions with the stainless hose clamps might come in handy...
Be safe and think a step ahead and you'll get it taken care of.
Posted 2007-07-23 12:32 AM (#64251 - in reply to #63900) Subject: RE: grey tank and plumbing issues
Elite Veteran
Posts: 736 Location: Western WA
I'd like to hear more about the city water pressure valve. I usually just hook the hose up to my city water inlet on my trailer at the show grounds. Should I be concerned about water pressure? How do I tell if I have a pressure valve already installed in my trailer?
grey tank and plumbing issues
