Strange Leaking plumbing issue

[Spizzer]

All, we are on the road and have developed a strange (to me) plumbing issue. Our 07, 34 ft Journey has the kitchen on the driver's side with the slide, so when the slide moves, so does the sink. A few times when the slide is retracted, grey water runs out of the top into the sewer dump bay into the bay, maybe a 1/2 to one gallon worth. The whole time sitting and using the sink there are no leaks.

I've looked at the plumbing diagram and it shows a flexible hose between the sink and tank. If I remove the laundry bin, I can see the drain pipes going into the gray tank, but not the flexible one. From under the sink I can see everything going through the wall, but again not the flexible one.

My questions are: what kind of failure would only cause it to leak intermittently when the slide is moved? Is there an easy way to get to that flexible hose?


Thanks for your help....

Jeff

[Spizzer]

I got the leak fixed!!! Made my day for sure! Here is what it was all about:

The leak was dripping on top of the grey water tank, which has indentations and insets on top. They would fill up with grey water and when the slide is brought in, the last motion is to lift the back up as it seats. This would cause the waste to flow off the top of the tank into the waste dump bay.

To find it, I bought a turkey baster and through the laundry bin I had access to the top of the tank. I sucked out over two gallons of grey water, just off the top of the tanks! I then removed the two drawers to the left of the sink and could reach in and feel the flex hose down to where it attached to the top of the waste tank. Letting the water run, I could feel it dripping out at the point the flex hose attaches to the black plastic fitting on the top of the tank. The drawer holes are really too small to work through, so I removed the shelf under the sink and the panel in the back left side. After positioning the slide in the right position, the leaking fitting was accessible through that panel. I verified visually that that is where it was dripping from.

It turns out that the male end of the flex hose screws into the black tank fitting. I think over time with temp swings and the slide moving in and out, the threads slowly backed out. I tightened it, and the leak stopped. WHat a relief that I didn't have to go out and try to find parts! Put it all back together and now I am back on vacation.

I'll add some pictures I took when I can get them loaded.

Thanks for all your help!

Jeff

[Spizzer]

wildmanbaker wrote:
Jeff, could you possibly take some pictures of the repair process with some descriptions and post them back here for others to learn by? This may become a problem for anyone with a kitchen slide.

I'll try to do that. I just looked the best I can and everything is dry best I can tell, so will get to it when I some time.

Jeff

[wildmanbaker]

Jeff, could you possibly take some pictures of the repair process with some descriptions and post them back here for others to learn by? This may become a problem for anyone with a kitchen slide.

[Spizzer]

Thank you guys for the responses. I'll dig into it to see what I can figure out. What you describe makes sense.

Jeff

[easlingn]

I had the exact same problem with my 2005 model and found the PVC hose from kitchen sink would kink when the slide is extended causing a crack in the hose. When the slide is in the leak is worse. On mine I removed the 2 drawers left of the sink and with a flashlight I could see it. It was quite a job to replace and if you are not handy and with some pretty good tools I would suggest a good RV repair facility. I removed the panel under the left side of the under sink cabinet to gain access and then was a real struggle to get to the problem.

I would also recomend sooner than later as the sink water can cause a very bad odor problem that is very difficult to clean up.

[dougrainer]

1. No, there is no easy way to get to that flex line for repair
2. You should be able to remove drawers and false undersink area cabinet panels to gain access to see the flex pipe
3. The odds are the flex pipe has developed a small tear where the pipe opens and close when extending and retracting the room. This is a common occurence on the slide flex piping for the drains.
4. It is not unusual for it to seem intermittent. It all depends on how and where that split is in the flex pipe. Doug