Rubber Hose Sections installed in Grey Water Drain Pipe???

[darleyhavidson]

Quick question: The TT I will be taking possession of shortly has two sections of rubber hose about 10" apart hose clamped to the gray water drain pipe (approximately 2.5" diameter PVC) before it reaches the outside drain valve.

Is this normal? It looks cobbled together and the sales guy was no help. The sections of hose could be installed to add flexibility when bouncing down the highway? Or maybe the TT was towed and hit road debris and cracked the PVC pipe and that was their fix to get back to camping?

Any practical advice is appreciated.

dh

[beemerphile1]

Rubber couplers are a common way to repair DWV (drain,waste,vent) pipes.

They do NOT require the use of any sealant like the silicone you saw.

[GrandpaKip]

When I had to replace a waste valve, I wish I had thought of getting the rubber connector. It would have made the installation lots easier, rather than forcing the ABS apart enough to get the valve in between.
May be what happened to yours.
I have used a 4” version to rejoin sewer pipe here at the house about 12 years ago and it’s still there.

[Farmboy666]

On my last tt I had to fix the drain line and that’s how I fixed it. Check the hose clamps once in a while and move on.

[Edd505]

Plumbing sometimes takes a hit when tires blow. It's a drain so zero pressure and if these no leaks it should be good to go.

[MURPHY55347]

We had a 2011 Winnebago Vista class A that had 1 1/2 baths. The 1/2 bath used a macerator pump to pump its black tank over to the street side drain. It used a rubber coupler between the black tank and the macerator pump. I wouldn't loose any sleep over it.

[darleyhavidson]

JBarca wrote:
Odds are high the Fernco's are not factory supplied. They would cost more then just solvent welding the pipe.

More than likely, for some reason that gray pipe and or tank had to come out. The prior owner cut it out, and used the Fernco's to put it back together. The Fernco itself if applied right is a very good splice and will outlast the camper.

You mentioned silicone was used,

darleyhavidson wrote:
They are hose clamped in place and a copious amount of silicone was used to seal ends of rubber hose as well.

Unless they bought the wrong size, have no idea why they would have to put silly cone on that joint. They sell them in sizes to exactly fit the OD of the pipe. And that rubber against the smooth plastic makes a good tight fit along with the SS worm drive clamp.

Also, if the piping is black in color, it is most likely ABS plastic and not PVC. They sell ABS in some of the lumber yards and the cement to solvent weld it.

Hope this helps

John

You are correct, it is ABS. The material on the joint looked like clear silicone to me, but it could be something else, but I wasn't sure if there is a product that would adhere to both ABS and rubber hose.

Thanks for the reply, I feel more confident in the splices.

dh

[darleyhavidson]

Ron3rd wrote:

rrupert wrote:
It may be what is called a Fernco fitting which is used to join sections of pipe which could have been repaired. Rather than cementing the parts together they are used. If done correctly there is nothing wrong with it. They are commonly used in plumbing.

Link:Fernco

x2, what you are seeing is not necessarily a bad thing.

Those couplers are actually used a lot in repairs. My old trailer had a bad dump valve that needed to be replace, and it went into a "Y" fitting (long story), but the Fernco fitting was the best way to do the repair. Otherwise I'd be opening up a can of worms, dropping the tanks, etc. Lasted many, many years. They're used in homes to and if used in the right application last for a long time.

Good to know. Thanks for the info.

[midnightsadie]

not bad at all, gives the pipe some flex as your going down those highways.

[azrving]

My son bought a used TT and the abs galley tank was cracked at the tank flange because the pipe and elbow were long and poorly supported. After repairing the and tank I cut the pipe and installed a rubber hose connector to relieve the strain on the tank. If most any of them had a hose near the tank you just about gut the drain pipe off the rig when hitting something etc and not most likely not hurt the tank.

[JBarca]

Odds are high the Fernco's are not factory supplied. They would cost more then just solvent welding the pipe.

More than likely, for some reason that gray pipe and or tank had to come out. The prior owner cut it out, and used the Fernco's to put it back together. The Fernco itself if applied right is a very good splice and will outlast the camper.

You mentioned silicone was used,

darleyhavidson wrote:
They are hose clamped in place and a copious amount of silicone was used to seal ends of rubber hose as well.

Unless they bought the wrong size, have no idea why they would have to put silly cone on that joint. They sell them in sizes to exactly fit the OD of the pipe. And that rubber against the smooth plastic makes a good tight fit along with the SS worm drive clamp.

Also, if the piping is black in color, it is most likely ABS plastic and not PVC. They sell ABS in some of the lumber yards and the cement to solvent weld it.

Hope this helps

John

[Ron3rd]

rrupert wrote:
It may be what is called a Fernco fitting which is used to join sections of pipe which could have been repaired. Rather than cementing the parts together they are used. If done correctly there is nothing wrong with it. They are commonly used in plumbing.

Link:Fernco

x2, what you are seeing is not necessarily a bad thing.

Those couplers are actually used a lot in repairs. My old trailer had a bad dump valve that needed to be replace, and it went into a "Y" fitting (long story), but the Fernco fitting was the best way to do the repair. Otherwise I'd be opening up a can of worms, dropping the tanks, etc. Lasted many, many years. They're used in homes to and if used in the right application last for a long time.

[darleyhavidson]

rrupert wrote:
It may be what is called a Fernco fitting which is used to join sections of pipe which could have been repaired. Rather than cementing the parts together they are used. If done correctly there is nothing wrong with it. They are commonly used in plumbing.

Link:Fernco

Thanks for the Fernco link! This is exactly what it is. There are two of these joined sections. They are hose clamped in place and a copious amount of silicone was used to seal ends of rubber hose as well.

I wish I could "multi-quote" on this forum so I could address the other previous comments. But I will do my best to answer your comments:

-Used trailer, bought AS-IS
-No Warranty
-Sorry, I didn't think to snap a picture of the pipe
-I gave the dealership a laundry list of items to address (the grey water rubber hose issue was included) during a Pre-PDI look
-Dealership is currently fixing/replacing items (new tires, fixing trim, replacing exhaust fan, etc.) on camper that were previously identified
-The PDI will be held in the near future

dh

[rrupert]

It may be what is called a Fernco fitting which is used to join sections of pipe which could have been repaired. Rather than cementing the parts together they are used. If done correctly there is nothing wrong with it. They are commonly used in plumbing.

Link:Fernco

[GordonThree]

A picture is worth a thousand words. A PDI is also worth a lot.

Fill the gray tank with clear water and see if the sewer pipes are leaking.

Are you buying a used trailer "as is", or is there some warranty attached, or is this a new trailer?

x2 agree with SoundGuy, never seen anything like it on a new trailer.