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Olsy's avatar
Olsy
Explorer
Jul 15, 2020

Soggy floor and underbelly

I notice the other day that near the front of my KZ Spree Escape 170s the underbelly tarp was sagging down and full of water, cut it open and soggy wet insulation. Went back to the next section between trailer frame rails and same thing. Made it all the way to the back where I found the source (I think at least), some hit my lower awning support and cracked the fiberglass shell.

This is where the most water damage is, at the back. Rotted through plywood. I'm not sure how far it spread, the floor inside the trailer is really only squishy for about 2'×2' as far as I can tell. The problem is some of that is underneath the closet cabinets. I have a few questions

1) I think I understand how to to remove the black water tank, how do I disconnect the vent to the roof? I know what to do with the toilet.

2) After I fix the rotten plywood and stuffed in new insulation how do I repair/or replace that black tarp/membrane? I had to cut quite a few (nice and straight) places in order to get it to start drying out. I heard of using black rigid plastic but how do I get it above the trailer frame like it is now? Lastly, how would I make it water tight around the edges?
  • As far as the black tank you're probably going to have to cut the vent pipe. First drain the tank really well.

    Go up in the roof and remove the protective cap over the pipe. Make sure the pipe is loose where it goes through the roof.

    Remove the toilet and pull the screws out of the toilet flange. You will probably have to unscrew the flange from the top of the tank. On mine I used a big punch and a hammer to start the flange unscrewing.

    Now go under the trailer and disconnect the sensor wires. Disconnect the drain pipe from the valve. Get a helper or a floor jack and a square of plywood to hold up the tank while you remove the brackets.

    Drop the tank down and disconnect or cut the vent pipe. Make sure you leave enough pipe on both sides to allow you to glue a coupling back in when you reinstall.

    If you want to remove the vent pipe you're going to have to find a way to push it up and remove through the roof.