Water leak (1 Viewer)

[golly]

Stuck without the van this week, last time out noticed water in the cupboard under the sink. Couldn't get a good look as there is a board at the back of the cupboard, squinting through the small gap in the board, all I could see were lots of pipes and push fit connections and the water boiler. Off to the dealer. As I suspected one of the push fit connectors was leaking, the damp levels on the cupboard walls and floor were very high as you would expect, I think it must have been leaking since we got it (new in May). It is now in the dealers with a de-humidifier running for a week, if they don't reduce god knows what will need to be done, ? new floor, ? new cupboard. Hope they get it sorted as we want to get away next week.

 

[Al-Di]

ouch,

 

[voyagerstan]

dream on !!STAN

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[pappajohn]

Ventilation, ventilation and more ventilation dries out damp....not dehumidifiers.

They work very well in a sealed environment but all its doing is drying the naturally moist air being drawn into the van from outside via vents etc.

 

[stcyr]

Good grief, May? Money-back time!!!!

 

[PP Bear]

What a nightmare!!! Hope it's sorted and sorted properly.

This sort of thing could lead to long term heartache. Then it's out of warranty and the dealers don't want to know.

Push for all you can and good luck. No motorhome that was new in May, should be back in a dealers for damp!!!

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[golly]

Good grief, May? Money-back time!!!!

Well we will see what happens when I go back in a week.

 

[voyagerstan]

no excuse for bad workmanship . what happened to pre delivery checks ? agree with papa garage workshop will be nice and dry though.STAN

 

[cakey]

Normally the first sign of a leak/problem is the pump working when there are no taps open. was that not the case?

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[Tootles]

no excuse for bad workmanship . what happened to pre delivery checks ? agree with papa garage workshop will be nice and dry though.STAN

Pre-delivery checks?? What's them?? Spoken to more peeps this year with serious problems in new vans then ever. 99% could have been sorted if picked out during a serious PDI.

 

[PP Bear]

Pre-delivery checks?? What's them?? Spoken to more peeps this year with serious problems in new vans then ever. 99% could have been sorted if picked out during a serious PDI.

I'm with you Tootles, how many times have we read about brand new vans (costing an arm, leg, kidney and half the other leg too) coming out of dealers with faults - Autotrail springs instantly to mind and I own one

Fridges that have NEVER worked, should have been recalled and never fitted, entertainment systems that just don't work, doors that don't close or fit correctly, panels that don't line up, dampness...the flipping list is endless and shouldn't be started in the first place

Also have to wonder on a few things:
If I were a manufacturer I'd be scouting all the forums to see what the feedback is and then change the problems so that they don't occur in the first place. That's good business surely.
Also, what's happen to carrying out staged inspections throughout the build process. Old experienced guy, sorting out the trainees, apprentices, or shoddy workers and the improvements would be vast

I'm still surprised (and hugely disappointed) when I have to do maint on my autotrail, only to find they've fitted screws that are the wrong length, haven't bitten or are at a silly angle and therefore not clamping like they should do. Don't even start me on the shoddy wiring with looms hanging everywhere, running unprotected over metal or sharp edges and just waiting to short out, plus doors that are poorly cut for recesses on locks etc

We can't help but be mad, sad and addicted to our beloved motorhomes, but nothing like this should ever happen, not EVER

I mean, a new motorhome in May and already back in the dealers for damp......I'm furious for poor
Golly and can't help but think he'll end up having the wool pulled over his eyes and fobbed off, only to suffer later with it all Fingers tightly crossed that this isn't the case

Shouldn't have been water in there in the first instance!!!!

 

[golly]

Normally the first sign of a leak/problem is the pump working when there are no taps open. was that not the case?

The pump did occasionally come on for seconds, told it was pressure switch needing adjustment.

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[Tootles]

I went out of my way whilst in Jockland earlier this year, just to garner opinions. Apart from this PDI thing, the main gripes concern the dealers willingness to snatch the cash, and then their unwillingness to even answer the phone if they think you have problems. No after sales service, fobbed off with false promises, 'the guy you need is..............' never there.
They just forget when you drive away......
However, is this the dealers, or the manufactures putting pressure on them??The biggest gripe's seem to be about Bailey, and terrible faults in their (very expensive) so called prestige motorhomes. Endless lists of faults, mostly plumbing problems, like pipes never even being connected.

 

[joner8888]

Push fit connectors -----why don`t they spend a few £ more and fit compression joints that are physically tightened up to stay put .

 

[golly]

Ventilation, ventilation and more ventilation dries out damp....not dehumidifiers.

They work very well in a sealed environment but all its doing is drying the naturally moist air being drawn into the van from outside via vents etc.

Well I have a really good damp Meter and I will be checking it before they box the cupboard in again and if it's still damp there will be some serious renegotiation

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[golly]

Push fit connectors -----why don`t they spend a few £ more and fit compression joints that are physically tightened up to stay put .

Especialy when they are in an environment that bounces around like a bouncy thing

 

[Tootles]

Especialy when they are in an environment that bounces around like a bouncy thing

Or, as a friend says of his MH..."Like a jelly on springs".

 

[cakey]

You have my sympathy, clearly bad information. Hope it was the supplier who told you that, it makes him even more culpable. Pump working, taps turned off, the first thing to look at, is the water tank empty, if not look for a leak!!!

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[Barclaybasher]

Push fit connectors -----why don`t they spend a few £ more and fit compression joints that are physically tightened up to stay put .

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It's not the push-fit fittings - it's the push-fit fitters !

I love em - just mark the pipe to make sure the pipe is pushed home fully - not doing that is almost always the problem.

Plastic fittings in a moving environment are better than a rigid metal to metal connection - IMO


And if a plumber/fitter can't fit a push-fit what hope has he with a compression joint?


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[Terry]

Simply because they use plastic pipe that cannot stand the pressure of a compression joint -called progress but I often think the old hose and jubilee clips were better They are like most places where they buy the cheapest fitting they can and then it's you the end customer who finds the faults (note you and not me-self build rools as JJsays)-
The guys on the production lines are little more than Monkeys taught to do there bit and basically don't care because it's not there van -management are happy to sit on there arses and let things go instead of keeping there eye on the ball-The sooner they get taken to court and vans start to get rejected the sooner people will wake up and smell the coffee
I will have to find myself a job (widows pension ends)come next year so may put myself forward as a final inspection-er at one of the big makers Cannot see me lasting long or being popular with any so called work force -Perhaps as a consultant would be better(pop in and out-get paid a lot)or better still carry on as I am
terry

 

[maz]

As I suspected one of the push fit connectors was leaking

You have my sympathies, golly. When I got my van it was back and forth to the dealers every few weeks with water leaks from various horrible plastic connectors and manifolds. Not push-fit ones but ones with ridged screw-on connectors. Under-tighten them and they leak; over-tighten them and they leak. Drive van any distance and they loosen themselves and leak. Apparently the same type of connectors were used in Euramobils at one time - and their manual said to check connectors after each trip! At least with the Euramobils you could easily get to the connectors. With my van you'd have had to dismantle the bathroom cabinet every time!

Luckily I always noticed the leaks as soon as they happened (as already said, water pump cutting in is the clue if actual water not apparent) - and became expert at dismantling the bathroom cabinet to temporarily sort the problem. But of course, this sort of emergency DIY repair should not be needed in the first place.

After about the fourth or fifth water leak I lost patience and insisted that all the nasty plastic connectors and manifolds were replaced with traditional T-connectors and jubilee clips. Since this has been done I haven't had a single water leak (touchwood!) - and the van is in use all the time so the water system sees plenty of activity.

Hope you are able to get your van sorted out quickly.

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[Ralph-n-Bev]

The pump did occasionally come on for seconds, told it was pressure switch needing adjustment.

This happened with ours when we first bought it. But it wasn't an internal leak. It was the outside shower tap . We'd looked all over inside and couldn't find anything. It was driving us mad. Plus we were worried where it may be dripping.
Turns out it was the outside shower attachment thing. We only found this out in - temps when an icicle formed on it . Sorted.

 

[chaser]

When we had our new to us van there always seemed to be a drip from roughly under the shower tray, but nothing serious, couldn't see where it came from , anyway long story short , I did away with the wash basin and cupboard and had to move the taps on doing so one pipe just fell out! So on investigation it turned out the pipes just pushed in then a small screw thing went in to hold them in a slot, well this one pipe couldn't have been pushed far enough in from new as when I looked through all the service history this drip had been mentioned on every service, and numerous bills for fixing it were included, but could never have been found with the cupboards in, so they were charging every time for doing nothing. And they were bills for upwards of £100 every time.

 

[golly]

Bugger, bugger, bugger, update re water leak, Van has been in dealers workshop for a week, went in today and damp levels in floor and cupboard still off the scale. Its going down to Auto Sleepers for new unit and floor repairs, won't know exactly till it gets back (3 weeks). I have told them if I'm still not happy when it gets back I am rejecting it as not fit for purpose

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[tambo]

You have my sympathy, clearly bad information. Hope it was the supplier who told you that, it makes him even more culpable. Pump working, taps turned off, the first thing to look at, is the water tank empty, if not look for a leak!!!

My pump comes on for a few seconds every so often ....has done for the entire time I've owned it but no sign of any leaks

I was also told it's just building up pressure

 

[golly]

My pump comes on for a few seconds every so often ....has done for the entire time I've owned it but no sign of any leaks

I was also told it's just building up pressure

I would check very very carefuly I was told it was the pressure switch needing adjustment

 

[tambo]

I would check very very carefuly I was told it was the pressure switch needing adjustment

Oh don't worry il be doing just that on Monday ( working all weekend) im now worried the bloody things been leaking for 10 months .....

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[mitzimad]

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It's not the push-fit fittings - it's the push-fit fitters !

I love em - just mark the pipe to make sure the pipe is pushed home fully - not doing that is almost always the problem.

Plastic fittings in a moving environment are better than a rigid metal to metal connection - IMO


And if a plumber/fitter can't fit a push-fit what hope has he with a compression joint?


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i doubt if any one resembling a plumber was involved in building the van

 

[golly]

Update to the water/damp problems I had with my new van. Finally got the van back from Auto Sleepers yesterday, They have stripped all of the units from the offside of the van which involved removing the oven, sink and even the upper cupboards (because of the way the units are fitted) Floor vinyl lifted, floor dried out and vinyl relaid. All the upright sections of the units replaced, water system pressure tested and units refitted. I have been over it with my damp meter and so far all seems well. I now need to get away in it to give it a good old try out, having missed all the fine weather in September, I hope October is reasonable.

 

[Allanm]

We went away in our 7 month old AS Broadway in February. A few days into our 3 weeks away, Mrs A was washing up and noticed her feet were wet.
Out came the screwdrivers, towels and torch ( it was 8pm)
I found the problem. The kitchen sink drain waste pipe had come apart at a push joint behind the bottom of the cooker. It wasn't a push fit joint, just a 1.25" pipe that hadn't been pushed together and sealed.
My only method of repair then was to push the pipe together and wrap Gorilla Tape around the joint.
We then spent a couple of hours mopping up and using a hair drier to dry the floor ( thank goodness for a decent inverter)
2 and a half weeks later when we were home, I took the joint apart, cleaned everything and used plastic pipe glue to seal it properly. No residual damp, thank goodness.
I didn't bother taking it to the dealer because I had fixed it and knew it was done properly.
The van is going in to AS shortly for another unrelated repair, I will get them to double check the floor and joints, but I am happy it was only a short term leak and it is now dry.
Still very poor that this van joint was released from the factory without the waste pipe joint being sealed properly. Poor quality control or just poor quality workmanship.
Allan

Edit... our water pump turns on for a second every now and again too. No leaks though

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