Uh, oh...needs more than a bandaid

Topic: Uh, oh...needs more than a bandaid (Read 185 times) previous topic - next topic

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August 15, 2018, 01:16:16 pm

After a recent outing I've had the rig in the driveway doing some cleanup & noticed a wet spot under the unified drain…I'd not yet drained the black & gray tanks, since I do that on the pasture at the farm.

Upon further examination, it appears I've hit something

(I've not been down any of the sorts of roads that some share adventures on, & don't recall hitting any road debris/etc., so no idea what I did or when). The unified dump valve is pushed up to the point that it's barely visible under the edge of the rig & there's a small crack in the edge of the fiberglass panel (the first ouch, since she was was repainted last year--fortunately, not terribly visible

).

The monitor on the range hood indicates the gray tank is filled to the first idiot light, which makes sense with a couple of showers/brushing teeth/dishwashing/etc. , but the black tank shows as empty. The campground had a really nice bathhouse for depositing solids & I never put paper down, so the only thing in the black tank was liquid, but it should have the first light lit. I ran water…water…water down the toilet 'til the first idiot light lit, & when I went out to look there was a steady flow a bit upstream from the dump valve (hard to tell exactly where, since the original owners had that lumpy spray insulation applied); it took less than five minutes for the idiot light to go out, so it was a pretty good stream. I dumped in some clorox & more water…water…water just because I didn't like the idea of being in such close proximity to the effluent (even with gloves & old farm clothes…ick

) when I slid under with Dad's creeper, but this is obviously something far beyond my skill set. I had Ladeze on my mental agenda for September (I need a good break from whacking brush & some howling good fun), but I can't go anywhere that includes dry camping until I get this fixed…not the sort of trail I want to leave going down the road.

I called Kansas RV in Chanute, KS, who had replaced my hot water heater/pump after my initial winterizing debacle the first year I had her. They were really good about letting me lurk just to learn & very pleasant to deal with, but their earliest appointment isn't 'til October 30, though they put me on the call list in case of a cancellation. I've heard too many bad things about Camping World (& the one time I stopped at the one in Odessa east of KC, just for a look-see, I wasn't very impressed--the staff person was more like a Walmart clerk & not terribly knowledgeable about the merchandise).

Since Vince & the Mothership--& Larry Wade--are too far away for consultation, this is a plea to the cult in the midwest...have you discovered any RV techs/repair places you might recommend? Texas is good, since I could also visit family in Denton & Ft. Hood environs (& I suspect, with snowbirds, there may be more facilities than up here in the boonies), but I see pins elsewhere in Missouri as well as Nebraska/Iowa/Illinois/etc. Many thanks for any suggestions.

Apologies for such a long post, but many thanks to all the wizards & knowledgeable folks out there.

Lynne