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Phil P.
Phil P.- Topic
Phil P- Topics - 17
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Hello
When someone came to the door I left the water running in the kitchen sink.
I got back in the trailer just in time t hear a bang noise and the trailer shook.
I assumed the gray water tank had failed. However after removing the basement wall and the outer portion of the belly cover I find no leaks.
What I did find in the belly is one of the straps for the gray tank has failed.
My question is this strap OEM or added by the previous owner?
Here are pictures of the top and bottom of the wast tanks.
Thanks
Phil P
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- expired-member
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Usually the tank is supported on steel angles at the top. The straps are secondary supports to prevent the tank from dropping out on the highway if it falls though the steel angles.
Flanges that protrude from the top edge of the tank that sit on the steel angle.
Phil P- Topics - 17
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Thanks again Alloy
You are correct that is how these are mounted by the flange at the top of the tank.
However it is apparent the bottom cover has been remove and replace several times. The straps in the picture are not very securely fastened and have pulled loose at both ends. This makes me think there have been problems with the gray tanks for a long time.
The gray tank level indicator works quite well so we plane on not letting the gray tank get more than 2/3 full before dumping.
Looking at the plumbing the drain system is quite small (not in diameter) so it is easy to clean the gray pipe out with very little water after we dump the black tank.
Phil P
expired-member- Topics - 86
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If it gets worse the flanges on the tank can be reformed using a torch if it is removed from the trailer.
Phil P- Topics - 17
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- Total - 86
Alloy
Thanks again
The way this unit us put together it will be a very time consuming job to remove the tanks.
I can’t even reach the pluming connections on the top of the tank it will require removal of large portions of the basement floor and possibly even the cutting of some of the steel structure to get to the top of the tanks.
I am going to nave to modify the shower drain plumbing to move that bladder type of P trap to a place where it can be removed for cleaning. This will also require a modification of the basement wall so I can reach it and the fuses on those circuit boards without emptying the basement.
We have now discovered there is an odor inside the trailer when the black tank gets close to full. This is quickly corrected by dumping the tank.
Phil P
CLOC-AdminI just removed the underbelly on my 2015 LS38RS and found the exact same metal straps beneath the tanks. I also have an black water odor when the tank gets close to full. That is the reason I dropped the plastic underbelly beneath the tanks thinking that I may have a failure in the black tank. No problem was observed, no cracks or evidence of water leaking from the tanks. My odor also goes away when emptied so I filled the black tank to the point where the toilet burped when flushing, still no leak or failure present. I will be interested in what if anything you find on yours regarding the odor.
B.W.Gentry
Owner/Admin
2007 Carri-Lite XTRM5
Breckenridge, TXsubframe- Topics - 18
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I know that the odor issue has been brought up in the past. One thing to look for, is the vent pipe being installed or slidding to far into the tank so when the tank gets filled to a certain level the tank can’t vent. So the venting of the tank is from the toilet causing the odor until the tank is dumped. Rich
CLOC-AdminThanks for that information. I will look into the vent location and depth into the tank. That certainly makes sense!!
B.W.Gentry
Owner/Admin
2007 Carri-Lite XTRM5
Breckenridge, TXjlsr- Topics - 15
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Our LS also has those belly straps. We finally got around to redoing the underbelly on ours as it had been tore up by previous owners . David put extra metal bracing under the tank and attached to the frame. We reinsulated under there , fixed the black tank valve that the PO had screwed up and then David made a brace to hold the belly pan in place because they had messed that up too. It had a hole in it where it was obvious it had been drug across the pavement . All good now tho !
2015 Lifestyle Luxury RV LS36FW FBP
2019 GMC 3500HD Denali Dually
TrailerSaver TS3 air ride hitchPhil P- Topics - 17
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- Total - 86
Thank all of your for you input
jlsr
I purchased this Lifestyle because of the heavy frame and house structure integrity. This unit sat outside in the Florida weather without any PM for 18 months. I figured when I purchased it I would spend about $20,000.00 doing the water intrusion repairs. It looks like that water damage was minor and did not require the replacement of part of the floor and one end wall of the door side slide. It went as well with the massive water leak at the top of the front cap. We were able to repair that as well without removing the front cap.
It now looks like the waste tanks well be a big ticket item. We now notice a sewerage odor when the black tank gets over half full. From what I saw when I had the basement wall down this model will require major disassembly in the area between the steps to the bedroom and the wall location to get to the plumbing to remove these tanks. Both the black and gray have problems that have been ongoing. The plastic cover on the belly side has been off several times as is evident by the number of broken screws and cracks at mounting holes probably from not supporting the cover during reinstallation.
My wife broke her ankle just a few days after we brought this trailer home. It is 18 steps to get in the stick house and only 3 steps to get in the Lifestyle so for the last 4 weeks we have been living in the Lifestyle. At least this is showing the needed repairs.
Phil
Phil P- Topics - 17
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Hi
That’s 4 steps to get in the Lifestyle.
Phil P
jlsr- Topics - 15
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Looks like a very nice rig Phil ! We love ours. When we bought ours it had pretty much sat unattended for over a year. It was an owner surrender repo. The original owners had stripped out all the electronics and furniture but the dealer we bought from replaced furn and tvs etc so that is all new. These are really nice well built rigs.
As far as tank locations go one tank is towards the front basement and another is behind and right of it. We can see the tops of tanks by taking out the rear wall of the front basement.
One thing we have noticed is the tank sensors do not reliably work so we are careful when filling fresh tank. We know when it’s just the two of us we can go about 6 days before having to dump them. Sometimes they register empty after dumping, sometimes they don’t. Other than that it’s been a great RV. We have owned it 2 years.
I am sorry to hear about your wife’s accident. I hope she heals up very soon !
Best regards,
2015 Lifestyle Luxury RV LS36FW FBP
2019 GMC 3500HD Denali Dually
TrailerSaver TS3 air ride hitchJohnD222- Topics - 8
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Before you go through effort of removing tanks, I would suggest that you go up to the roof and remove the black tank vent cap. It is a very old and common problem for the vent pipe to be too short and the hole through the roof too large allowing gas venting into the space between the insulation and the roof. Actually feeds back into the a/c vents, particularly when the shower exhaust vent is on. Extend that pipe above the roofline, use Eternabond tape or other caulking to make a tight seal between the pipe and the roof, and add a 360 vent cap on top. The latter is just a few dollars more than a cheap oem cap and works much better.
Older units allowed access to that vent pipe via opening up the wall by the stairs. Zip tying the pipe to the 2×2 we, studs keeps it from falling into the tank. This can also be done from below behind the rear black wall in the main storage area, but not as effective.
Also, the grey tank has no roof vent. There are cheap plastic one way vent caps under the kitchen and bathroom sinks and also on the washer dryer drain pipe. Put a good one in and it will last for 10+ years – a cheap one 2 or 3.
Overloading a grey tank with the drain closed is a whole other kettle of fish.
Good luck.
JohnD222
Based in Florida except summer
2013 36FWS Lifestyle (our great 2010 Cameo 36FWS has happy owners)Phil P- Topics - 17
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- Total - 86
Thanks to both of you.
Jlsr
I am considering installing the tank sensors for the gray and black tank made by Garnet they are stick on that you put on the outside of the tank. I have seen some post on other forums about them and they seem to work better that the probe type. I figure on mounting the primary indicator in the basement wall. If they work as advertised then mount a remote over the door in place of the present indicator.
Our tanks are side by side with the black tank being the front one and the gray tank being the rear one. The top of the black tank is only visible thru the holes in the basement floor that the pipes go thru. To even get a look at the rest of the top would require removal of the tank or cutting part of the basement floor out.
2 more weeks and wife can go back to being house wife so I don’t have to spend so much time doing cooking and house cleaning. LOL
JohnD222
Thanks the crew that has been doing the roof work will be out sometime in the next week or so and I will have them look at the vent.
If I remember correctly I believe the gray tank is vented to the same vent as the black tank.
So far I haven’t seen any indication of leaking in either tank if we can correct the odor problem I will spend the time and money to put better straps under the tanks for support.
Now I have a question for both of you.
This unit has washer and dryer we are considering on removing them. They are so small I don’t see the advantage of having them.
What do you all think?
Phil P
CLOC-AdminI dropped the plastic beneath the grey and black tanks and found no evidence of leaks present. I replaced the fiberglass insulation and buttoned it back up. I then installed a. 360degree siphon vent cap on the roof vent which vents both the grey and black tanks. I have had this on for over a week and the black tank is almost full. As of now I seem to have eliminated the black tank odor in the front storage area and inside the 5th. Hope this is all it takes to correct the problem.
B.W.Gentry
Owner/Admin
2007 Carri-Lite XTRM5
Breckenridge, TXJohnD222- Topics - 8
- Replies - 518
- Total - 526
Phil,
This is off topic from tank smells, but regarding your question about removing the W/D…
Lots of folks love them. If I was in one place for 5 months or never had access to decent laundry facilities I might want one too. We have all of the electric and plumbing prep, but my wife and I would not give up the storage to put a W/D unit in today. So much easier to go to laundromat or campground laundry and load up 4 to 6 full size washers and get that done in 40 minutes and return and ditto for the dryer. Less than half a day for 2 weeks of laundry.
JohnD222
Based in Florida except summer
2013 36FWS Lifestyle (our great 2010 Cameo 36FWS has happy owners)
expired-member
CLOC-Admin
subframe
jlsr
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