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Old 06-21-2011, 10:18 AM   #1
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City Water Fill Crack

I've heard other people have this problem with age or freezing, and it finally happened to me. Last year I winterized with compressed air in addition to every other method, but this still happened- the crack itself shows age so I doubt last year alone was a factor.





It appeared to be a loose line connection where the city water pressure reducer attaches, however after adding teflon tape it still leaked, so I looked again and found the collar was cracked and seeping under pressure. It presents as the water pump running periodically with no water use.

The crack was "sealed" inside and out with superglue, which gave us about two days use without leaks. It's very possible to lose the whole end or have a large enough crack that the line can't be pressurized. Fresh water loss was minor, but for a major crack and a pump left on you could pump out your whole tank.

When I find the replacement (hopefully just the reducer end) I'll probably buy two. An alternative fix would be to remove the city water fill and cap the line temporarily.
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Old 06-21-2011, 12:30 PM   #2
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Re: City Water Fill Crack

Quote:
Originally Posted by jage
When I find the replacement (hopefully just the reducer end) I'll probably buy two. An alternative fix would be to remove the city water fill and cap the line temporarily.
Given the location behind the "propane" door and if there was room, I would consider installing a ball valve with a metal quick-connect hose fitting instead of what you have (I am assuming you have hose threads in at both ends).

My van has a threaded plug in an exterior fitting on the fender behind the rear tire with no valve (other than the drain line stopcock). My "fill valve" is under my gaucho (which means more running around at fill time!). If I needed to replumb due to a broken fill fitting, I would look at moving mine to where yours is.

EDIT:
After looking at my van last night and then your pictures again, I realized that I probably have the same fill connection device you have. I now see that, in your lead pic, you have already pulled it from the round hole visible in the "propane" access opening and you are holding it in your hand. (I guess I missed that the first time while wondering how you spend 1/2 hour a day with a hair dryer viewtopic.php?f=14&t=103 )

I initially mistook the adjacent square cover in the picture as the water connection instead of the electrical connection it actually is. I need to keep these straight - it would be bad to mix these up when refilling their respective systems...
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Old 06-23-2011, 09:16 AM   #3
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Re: City Water Fill Crack

It's the standard SMB fitting. The white tube in the first pic is the fridge drain line, and the back is a hose fitting Pex line that is an upside down L of Pex. I didn't know it was a pressure reducer also until taking it apart and reading the housing.
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Old 06-24-2011, 03:00 PM   #4
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Re: City Water Fill Crack

Jage,

Sorry to hear about your leak. I had the same problem last winter. I installed a ball valve under the sink where the water fill valve enters the interior of the van. This way I can drain the exterior lines after filling the tank. I have a picture in my gallery and a post in one of the threads on the forum.

I found the replacement fill valve on line for $29.99. Sorry I don't remember which site I bought it from. If you do a search on the part number you will find it. The one Sportsmobile installs has a pressure reducer which drops incoming water pressure to 55psi. All of the replacements I found are 65psi which won't cause any problems. I called Peter at SMB West and double checked this before I ordered mine.

Good Luck
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Old 06-27-2011, 12:08 PM   #5
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Re: City Water Fill Crack

I put a check valve (SHURflo 340-001 In-Line Check Valve) in instead of a ball valve. http://www.amazon.com/SHURflo-340-00.../dp/B000BGJWF2
Pretty much does the same thing, lets me fill the tank and then drain the line with the existing drain cock.

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Old 06-27-2011, 05:13 PM   #6
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Re: City Water Fill Crack

Quote:
Originally Posted by John & Dana
Jage,

...I found the replacement fill valve on line for $29.99. Sorry I don't remember which site I bought it from. If you do a search on the part number you will find it. The one Sportsmobile installs has a pressure reducer which drops incoming water pressure to 55psi. All of the replacements I found are 65psi which won't cause any problems. I called Peter at SMB West and double checked this before I ordered mine.

Good Luck
John
SMB West installed their standard city entry ShurFlow part number 189-029-14 in my van in 2010 and it has a check valve and reduces pressure to 65 psi (not 55 psi).
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Old 06-27-2011, 08:45 PM   #7
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Re: City Water Fill Crack

Shurflo 183-029-14 $32.91 shipped from Amazon.

And I already have a drain valve immediately behind the Shurflo fill, but it doesn't completely drain the valve, just the line immediately behind it.
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Old 06-28-2011, 01:59 PM   #8
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Re: City Water Fill Crack

Interesting observation. Valves can hold water in them despite allowing gravity fed draining. May be residual water coming off walls of component(s) and sitting in a well bottom where the valve gate closes.

However, I'm inclined to go along with your theory on the crack being a result of old age (or perhaps even another theory on impact force from road vibration) since you said you have been blowing your system dry for the winter.

I will continue to use RV antifreeze for winterization, including dripping some into the system via the city water entry point (i.e., not just a fill and pump from inside the van). I also open each valve and catch a few drops in a white bottom cup after filling with RV antifreeze to verify the stuff has reached everywhere it needs to be.
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Old 01-05-2014, 06:34 PM   #9
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Re: City Water Fill Crack

Jage, thank you. This same thing just happened to me and the info to order the new part was all here, just what I needed.

The old Shurflo fill was bedded in some kind of black goo (originally from SMB Indiana in 2000). Anyone know what this is? Should I use the same goo to bed the replacement? Do I need to remove the old goo first, and if so how?

My fill is on the outside of the van, not behind a door like Jage's, if that makes a difference, but the back of the fill is exposed underneath the van, so the bedding compound seems more for neatness than to prevent leaks around the chrome fitting.
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Old 01-05-2014, 08:12 PM   #10
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Re: City Water Fill Crack

Mine is cracked too. Mine is also plumbed just like you describe, open in the back under the van. The black goo is just a sealant more for abating rust than anything else I think. any solvent should clean it up, but I wouldn't worry about finding and reapplying the same type of stuff. Just get some black (or any color) silicone, It'll do the same job.

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