City Water Inlet Leaking: 2012 Scamp 13 STD - Fiberglass RV
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Old 10-24-2016, 05:05 AM   #1
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Name: Wendy Lee
Trailer: Scamp 13' Standard
New York
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City Water Inlet Leaking: 2012 Scamp 13 STD

Hello Everyone,
I'm hoping that one of you might have encountered this problem before on our FG trailers and has some further insight.
When winterizing last month, I observed the antifreeze to squirt out the city water inlet. I tried to reseat the check valve, and at first it wobbled around in there, water/antifreeze still squirted out. After a couple more tries, I think I got the O ring to seat in behind the plunger OK, as it merely dripped a little, but I'm not quite sure.
I've watched videos online of folks replacing the city water inlet on standard trailers (one even had PEX inside), and it seems that for our units, one would have rivets on the outside to drill out first, rather than screws. Then it looks like you get behind the plastic fitting on the outside with a putty knife to loosen old butyl. The videos I've seen is that they simply unscrewed the brass male end of the old fitting, and screwed on another with PTFE tape.
Probably not that simple on our rigs with the PEX, right? I'm just concerned that if I take it to an RV shop, I'll have more concerns if they don't do the PEX right inside and it leaks. It's a very tight squeeze in there to work (I have a Scamp 13 standard), as the PEX is under the sink counter inside a skinny cabinet door.
I also assume you can't just take out the plastic retainer ring, pull out the plunger, O ring and spring, and replace from the outside?
A thread I read on an Escape forum says to never push in that plunger while system is pressurized. Since I'm not all that learned here, does that mean while the fresh water pump is on? Once you've used the pump, seems to me the system is pressurized.
I replaced the washer/screen (which wasn't dirty, but the rubber washer was all compressed and otherwise I felt it should be replaced). In the end, I did get the plunger to move down straight, releasing water and/or anti-freeze), but it still seemed to drip some (although not squirt out).
Trailer is in storage now, but I know this is probably going to come back to haunt me in spring, and of course, it won't work then! If this is simply screwing on a male brass threaded fitting from the outside with PTFE as the standard RV videos show, and drilling out/replacing rivets, I probably can handle it. PEX tubing and fittings, I am clueless about.
Does anyone have a step by step thread they've posted on just this repair, in case it's what I face come spring time? I wonder if my plumber would take his tools outside for me at an hourly rate....ha ha!
Even from the RV videos, it doesn't look like you can simply replace the check valve itself, but with my pea brain, I surely don't understand why. All help/advice is appreciated as I want to think about and prepare for this come spring time, along with my new tire plans.

Sincerely,
Wendy
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Old 10-24-2016, 06:31 PM   #2
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Name: Charles
Trailer: Scamp 16
Ohio
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When you un winterize in the spring it might solve the problem when you hook city water back up. It may have some debris preventing a good seal. Meanwhile screw the cap on tight.
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Old 10-24-2016, 06:46 PM   #3
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Trailer: Escape 19' sold, 21' August 2015
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You don't say how you winterized. Did you remove water from behind the screen inside city water? That is one winterizing step. You push on a little valve (or maybe there is another name for it), maybe the valve you are referring to, and it releases some water. This is what we do on Escapes anyway. Don't know if the same is needed for Scamps.
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Old 10-24-2016, 07:12 PM   #4
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Name: Wendy Lee
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New York
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I winterized in what I assume is the same way as most folks, I guess. I used the 12V water pump to run antifreeze through the system, after having drained the water out first, and then backfed antifreeze through the hot water line by covering my hand over the faucet with both hot and cold on.

Yes, I did push in on the plunger after winterizing to get that little squirt of antifreeze. But what I had been noticing is that when I was pumping antifreeze through the system initially, with the fresh water pump, the antifreeze was running out the city water inlet at quite a rate. I continued to keep trying to get the O ring to seat itself, but the plunger was slopping around in there, with no tension. Never had that problem before. The spring seemed to have no spring. After a couple attempts and otherwise monkeying around with it, I did seem to get the proper tension back into the plunger and it wasn't so sloppy, so I'm assuming the O ring seated itself. I'm just not sure at this point if I got lucky at the end and all is well (inlet only dripped a little), or if I'm looking at a replacement in spring.

My bigger question lies in the installation. If I do need to replace the city water inlet, from the videos I saw (conventional trailers, one with PEX), it seemed like they unscrewed the old inlet on the outside of the trailer (ours are riveted, requiring drilling out), got off butyl, unscrewed the brass male fitting from the city water inlet from what looked like a plastic fitting on the end of the PEX??, and then screwed the new water inlet back on, butyl, etc.

I admit in all honesty that I know nothing about how PEX works, or the fittings, other than I've heard you need a special crimping tool for it? I'm just trying to learn from folks here who have experienced this, as I'm thinking I may be in for a replacement. If the darn parts can be replaced (take out retainer cap, spring, plunger and O ring) and put in new, heck, I'm all for it!

I did read somewhere that you shouldn't push that plunger in while the system is pressurized? Assume that means while the pump is on?
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Old 10-24-2016, 11:03 PM   #5
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Trailer: Escape 19' sold, 21' August 2015
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Your unit is not really old. I would call Scamp and describe it to them.
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Old 10-25-2016, 06:13 AM   #6
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Name: Wendy Lee
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Hi Cathi. Thank you for that suggestion. I will call and see what Devon says.

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Old 10-25-2016, 07:25 AM   #7
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Name: Gordon
Trailer: 2015 Scamp (16 Std Layout 4) with '15 Toyota Sienna LE Tug
North Carolina
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CampyTime View Post
..
My bigger question lies in the installation. If I do need to replace the city water inlet, from the videos I saw (conventional trailers, one with PEX), it seemed like they unscrewed the old inlet on the outside of the trailer (ours are riveted, requiring drilling out), got off butyl, unscrewed the brass male fitting from the city water inlet from what looked like a plastic fitting on the end of the PEX??, and then screwed the new water inlet back on, butyl, etc.
...
On my 2015 model the city water inlet appears to have a screw-on type of adapter to the PEX so the procedure that you outlined sounds right. It should be a straight forward repair with no special plumbing or PEX tools required.
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Old 10-25-2016, 05:44 PM   #8
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Name: Wendy Lee
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Hi Gordon and Cathi,

I want to thank you both. I called Scamp and the procedure is as I thought, only unscrewing the pex fitting (black) from inside trailer first, then all the rest I outlined.

Looks like the valterra inlet is what scamp uses from the pics on their website and Amazon. I'd buy from them but their darn shipping charges are so high. Looks like a scamp #66 rivet from my old notes.

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Old 10-25-2016, 05:51 PM   #9
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Name: Gordon
Trailer: 2015 Scamp (16 Std Layout 4) with '15 Toyota Sienna LE Tug
North Carolina
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Originally Posted by CampyTime View Post
Hi Gordon and Cathi,

I want to thank you both. I called Scamp and the procedure is as I thought, only unscrewing the pex fitting (black) from inside trailer first, then all the rest I outlined. ...
Good to know. I'll make a note of this for the time I need to do the same repair.
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Old 10-25-2016, 06:52 PM   #10
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Name: Wendy Lee
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I'm glad then that my question ended up helping another. That's the wonderful thing about this forum. Thank you again.

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