Meet the Toilet from Hell!!!!

[Kurt & Ann K.]

Gina,
This is supposed to be a holiday weekend , but it appears as if you've turned it into a ...!?
Will you be writing an addendum for toilet repairs for the Burro Owner's Manual?
The plumbing valves under the McMansion kitchen sink look more like standard hardware store items than RV types. I wonder if they've been changed? There are a few things about your McMansion which don't resemble the usual RV way of doing things. Some of which may be improvements, and some of which look like "3rd world" imagination at work because the "correct" products were not at hand. Using chains to support the holding tanks being a case in point.
"Into every life a little rain must fall", and we are hoping you have a relaxing time for what remains of the weekend.
Kurt & Ann K.

[Per Walthinsen]

The tanks on mine are also supported by chains, but they didn't seem to have hurt them any. I've slid pieces of aluminum angle-"irons" in there to distribute the weight at the tank edges and used turnbuckles to tighten the chains so they would not allow the tanks to move around. Seems to work.

[Gina D.]

It is a "transition" rig, one that was being produced at the time of ownership change.

I am sure they used a "whatever is available that day" approach. I bet thier vendors were not too happy at having to fill orders for a new guy, or they wouldn't give him the same credit that the old owners did, so he had to improvise.

The GOOD bathroom news Kurt. I took off the killer trapping latch and put on a proper sash latch that will stay out of the catch when inside the bathroom.

(The former owner put on an upside down window sash latch on the outside of the door that would fall down into the catch if the door was closed "Just Right" and it would trap him in the john )

[Kurt & Ann K.]

Gina,
The existence of that latch on the shower door had slipped my mind. Glad you fixed it. Entrapment in the bathroom would not be enjoyable.
Progress is being made.
Kurt & Ann K.

[Kurt & Ann K.]

Per,
My concern was primarily the edges where the links appeared to rub the most. Straps with some type of insulation to prevent chaffing would likely be a more secure and less expensive solution, but "different strokes for different folks".

Gina, you appear to have a pretty good handle on discovering and curing the few poorly engineered quirks. That talent helps to make you such a valuable employee at your employment.

Fixing and improving are enjoyable parts of owning an RV. FGRV's make it possible to concentrate mostly on "creature comforts" rather than correcting design and material flaws.

Enjoy...
Kurt & Ann K.

[Donna D.]

I will drill a pilot hole then use an electric jigsaw with a carbide-granule blade to cut an access panel through the fiberglass behind the toilet (two layers close together). I will then hinge and trim the panel in wood and put a lock or catch on the inside. You will soon find out that leakage from the shower is a non-issue in that area.

I think Per has a good idea....when you need to work on the pumbing, access is important! I know Nancy (in Oregon) had a hatch put in their Scamp's shower area, so they could access some extra storage.

Since I don't have the woodworking talents that Per has, I'd probably go with a Marine Access Hatch: Imtra Marine Products

[Gina D.]

I may do that

This morning, my ribs ae bruised, my inner arms arm bruised, and my ego is flattened. I will NOT be defeated by a toilet!

BUT... just when you have a game plan (Pull the danged thing again and go down the hill to the evil Camping World..) Things got a little worse.

Yesterday, I was out there in a T-Shirt with the curtains closed to keep the heat down.

This morning, I wake up to a blanket of snow! To add insult to literal injury, all my stuff is outside beside the trailer, all my bins, the drying carpet, my tool box, AND.. the big table from the back. I am thinking it is sponging up every bit of water from the 4" of snow it's sitting in as I type. (I was going to store it anyway.. I guess no big loss until I go to sell the thing)

Since I have extension cords strung together to get power up the hill to the trailer (Don't worry, they get unplugged when I am not in attendence) I cannot work on it today for fear of being electrocuted.

I think the weather man is more evil than my toilet.

Where is my remote control?

[Per Walthinsen]

There are already four remote controls in my trailer, which is about four too many. Want some?

Since you are too smart to try to wrench the toilet out of there so you can see what you are dealing with, I have the following data for you project:

If you put a caliper on the valve threads (at the end) it measures 13/16th" in diameter. It is definitely a tapered plumbing-type thread, the type which routinely gets goobered up with teflon tape. I'd still go with the PEX fittings if it were me.

[Gina D.]

I leave my calipers at work.

Thanks. I am thinking a stop by at Walts RV in Fontana may be the best bet. No doubt they know exactly what I need, they have it in a little bin somewhere, and they won't charge me a dime for it.

They are like that. "Come back when you need to spend real money" is what they always say when I get little trinkets from them.

[Christi W]

They have portapotties now in the cutest little hassock shape that doubles as a footstool

[David Schroeder]

I may do that

This morning, my ribs ae bruised, my inner arms arm bruised, and my ego is flattened. I will NOT be defeated by a toilet!

BUT... just when you have a game plan (Pull the danged thing again and go down the hill to the evil Camping World..) Things got a little worse.

Yesterday, I was out there in a T-Shirt with the curtains closed to keep the heat down.

This morning, I wake up to a blanket of snow! To add insult to literal injury, all my stuff is outside beside the trailer, all my bins, the drying carpet, my tool box, AND.. the big table from the back. I am thinking it is sponging up every bit of water from the 4" of snow it's sitting in as I type. (I was going to store it anyway.. I guess no big loss until I go to sell the thing)

Since I have extension cords strung together to get power up the hill to the trailer (Don't worry, they get unplugged when I am not in attendence) I cannot work on it today for fear of being electrocuted.

I think the weather man is more evil than my toilet.

Where is my remote control?

I think I've heard a sad ole country song with this same theme. Just remember that you need to mention a couple of good ol' dogs in the refrain.
"My Toilet Done Me Wrong" blues.

[Gina D.]

I believe I have a solution for the nut loosening and tightening issue.

Hose clamp. Slip a hose clamp sized correctly onto the nut. Tighten. Use the screw tightening housing of the clamp as a place to push against, making the nut turn. One could push against this with a pair of long needle nose pliers.

No trying to grip the nut. I can get a screw driver shaft in there from the side, so getting the clamp on will not be a problem.

Now, if it stops snowing enough so I can plug the extension cord in for the cube heater, I am going to try it.

[Per Walthinsen]

I wish you luck! Based on the fading memory of my own struggles I would say that if you are successful I will mentally bow down and submit to your greater dexterity and ability to get your fingers in where mine had trouble. Based on the pictures I sent you my tool was a pair of sliplock pliers, moved, say, 2 degrees at a time.

When I need to do this again I will hitch up my little jigsaw and cut a rectangle out behind "La Toilette" and be done with it. Just this side of 8 minutes, I reckon. I have rethought the door idea. I will just make a wooden picture frame style and screw it in to hide the cutout kerf, using the cutout piece of fiberglass as part of the door. You want one too?

These valves do malfunction, but that is about the only thing that can malfunction in the thing. I say prepare for the worst, but I think you are there already.

[Larry&Carrie]

I'm sorry you are having such a hard time with this...... But you sure made my day, now I don't feel so bad about the defrosting of the freezer at work. Some things that should be soooo easy just aren't.

[Gina D.]

nothing is ever easy!

I have not tried the hose clamp due to the snow. I managed to lose several electrical items in the storm, including a 70 watt invertor, my holagen lamp, a clock and several adaptors for my 15 watt solar panel and misc stuff that is no big deal, but messy. (I wouldn't have left them outside otherwise. I was more cautious of theft than water)

I tarped the floor of the trailer, got as much snow off everything as I could and put the soaking stuff in the bathroom to drain, the bins on the floor and my dishes in the sink.

I hope my charger controller survived. It is supposed to be weather proof, so it most likely did.

My arms are so sore, I don't even want to think about getting in there until next week. This time with a pillow over the lid!

[Joe MacDonald]

Gina the fitting you show looks like a fitting for a standard sink connection (bathroom) using 1/4 or 3/8 plastic pipe. I thinks somebody's been in there before you.
PS don't use teflon on plastic. it'll make it worse

[DonInChatt]

On the more universal theme of plumbing, I have often wondered why the important things that break and leak are always inaccessible next to the wall. Doesn't it make more sense to turn the toilet around so the vital stuff is facing out and accessible, and the occupant faces the wall?

[D Shubel]

Gina, I feel your pain...not physically but emotionally.

There is a website out there that contains more information than you ever wanted to know about every little thing to do with/in/around an RV. In this site there are many nuggets of information including your elusive plumbing fittings...

cut from site...

Repairs
Most older RV fresh water systems are plumbed using gray polybutylene tubing. Most connections are made using barbed connectors made of either gray plastic-like materials or brass and either aluminum or copper crimp rings. This plumbing will resemble the picture below. There have been a lot of claims that polybutylene plumbing breaks down and eventually leaks, usually at the connections. I spent some time researching these claims and I'm sad to say that there appears to be a pretty good case against the gray stuff. One thing is certain: they aren't making it anymore! It has been universally replaced by cross-linked polyethylene tubing in most newer RVs. Identified by it's white or red color, PEX is assumed to be safe and reliable. The connections are made either with Qest fittings or the familiar crimp rings as seen below.

Click for a bigger picture.
While scientific evidence is scarce, it is believed that oxidants in the public water supplies, such as chlorine, react with the polybutylene piping and acetyl fittings causing them to scale and flake and become brittle. Micro fractures result, and the basic structural integrity of the system is reduced. Thus, the system becomes weak and may fail without warning causing damage to the building structure and personal property. It is believed that other factors may also contribute to the failure of polybutylene systems, such as improper installation, but it is virtually impossible to detect installation problems throughout an entire system. In most cases it takes years for polybutylene systems to fail. While it may leak within a few years of installation, the majority of leaks start to occur in the 10-15 year time frame.



The address is http://www.ccis.com/home/mnemeth/plumbing/plumb.htm and a nice line drawing of many fittings can be found about 3/4 of the way down the loooooooonnnnng page.

Good luck!

[Gina D.]

Thats great info.. thanks! Off to the helpful links it goes!

I THINK what I have is a quest fitting that has been jury rigged.

[Gina D.]

Walts RV to the rescue!

He knew exactly what I was talking about. His first comments was "I bet it froze". I told him nothing about the elevation and freezing conditions it was stored in, but he knew what happened anyway.

He walked over to a display, pulled out a Flare-it and hit the nail on the head for repair.

I haven't installed it, but it looks like it will work just fine.

More to follow... perhaps the Diablo will be put to sleep once and for all.