Great Horned Owl
Well-known member
At the beginning of this winter, there were a few warmish days forecast just before we were planning to leave for Florida. I decided to take advantage, and fill the water tank. It would certainly be more comfortable to have water onboard during our three days of driving. what could go wrong?
Well, the forecast was wrong. The night before we left, the temperature dropped into the low 20s, and the tank froze up. Fortunately, I had not run the pump, so I sisn't expect there to be any damage to water lines or fixtures, and I hoped that the tank had not burst. When we stopped on the first night in Tennassee, the temperature was above freezing, so I turned on the pump, and opened a faucet.
the pump ran, but no water came out. I figured that the tank must still be frozen, and went to our bottled water supply.
When we got to southern Florida, the temperature was in the 70s. The tank had to be thawed out, so I tried again. The tank ran, but I could get nothing but a trickle of water out of any faucet. There was plenty of (now liquid) water in the tank, so I concluded that the pump wasn't working properly. I must have gotten some water into the head , and when it froze, it damaged something.
I hoped that it was nothing worst than a dislodged diaphragm. I* pulled the pump and disassembled the head. It looked perfectly normal. It should have been delivering water. I was puzzled. the pump was running and pumping, but moving almost no water. Could there be a tiny split in the line from the tank to the pump, so it was sucking air? It didn't seem likely, but I couldn't think of anything else.
The line wasn't easy to access, but I managed to cram my head and shoulders into the cabinet so I could see it. Much to my surprise, the line was completely flat. When I had turned on the pump with a still frozen tank in Tennassee, the pump must have developed enough suction to flatten the line. After a 70 mile round trip to the nearest hardware store, I replaced the line, and everything worked fine. There was no other damage to the system.
Joel
Well, the forecast was wrong. The night before we left, the temperature dropped into the low 20s, and the tank froze up. Fortunately, I had not run the pump, so I sisn't expect there to be any damage to water lines or fixtures, and I hoped that the tank had not burst. When we stopped on the first night in Tennassee, the temperature was above freezing, so I turned on the pump, and opened a faucet.
the pump ran, but no water came out. I figured that the tank must still be frozen, and went to our bottled water supply.
When we got to southern Florida, the temperature was in the 70s. The tank had to be thawed out, so I tried again. The tank ran, but I could get nothing but a trickle of water out of any faucet. There was plenty of (now liquid) water in the tank, so I concluded that the pump wasn't working properly. I must have gotten some water into the head , and when it froze, it damaged something.
I hoped that it was nothing worst than a dislodged diaphragm. I* pulled the pump and disassembled the head. It looked perfectly normal. It should have been delivering water. I was puzzled. the pump was running and pumping, but moving almost no water. Could there be a tiny split in the line from the tank to the pump, so it was sucking air? It didn't seem likely, but I couldn't think of anything else.
The line wasn't easy to access, but I managed to cram my head and shoulders into the cabinet so I could see it. Much to my surprise, the line was completely flat. When I had turned on the pump with a still frozen tank in Tennassee, the pump must have developed enough suction to flatten the line. After a 70 mile round trip to the nearest hardware store, I replaced the line, and everything worked fine. There was no other damage to the system.
Joel
). I had no idea an RV water pump could generate that much vacuum pressure. Do you have pex pipe? Glad you were able to fix the problem relatively easily. Happy travels!
