Date:         Mon, 2 Aug 2004 10:34:29 -0400
Reply-To:     Tim Demarest <tim.demarest@POBOX.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Tim Demarest <tim.demarest@POBOX.COM>
Subject:      Re: Apparent leak between the city water hookup and the  interior
Comments: To: Tim Beidel <tbeidel@MAINE.RR.COM>
In-Reply-To:  <BDELKJNNAONJGIPFALPKAEAMDIAA.tbeidel@maine.rr.com>
Content-Type: multipart/mixed;

Plan on replacing it... I had to replace mine.

The back of the city water inlet is a fairly thin-walled plastic cylinder,
threaded to accept a brass fitting. When I took it apart on my '85, I found
lots of radial cracks in the plastic, from the threads to the outside of
the plastic cylinder. It looks like the hard brass inside the soft plastic,
coupled with road vibration and time, leads to cracked leaky plastic.

I tried sealing the old one by wrapping it with a layer of rubber tape (the
kind used to cover splices by old-time electricians before wire nuts were
invented) and a hose clamp, but it didn't reseal the leak.

Of course, you should use some thread sealing tape on the brass union that
screws into the plastic body, and seal the new inlet to the body with a
bead of clear silicone. The foam gaskets behind these inlets do almost
nothing to keep water out of your van!

Before I installed the new one, I applied the rubber tape/hose clamp to it
as well.... I'm hoping that the pressure around the outside from the hose
clamp will give enough support to the plastic to keep the new inlet from
cracking. In about 20 years, I'll know if my modification works better than
the factory original. :-)

Tim




At 10:43 PM 8/1/2004 -0400, Tim Beidel wrote:
>I tried to search the archives several times today, but never got a response
>from the server. So...
>
>When I attach a hose to the city water hookup, I get a leak from the body
>panels - from one of those holes that are intended to let water escape down
>by the chassis.
>
>I'd like to take the city water connector off and see if there is a leak
>right at the fixture itself, but it is fastened nicely with some sort of
>goop and I don't want to rip the thing out of there if it cannot be fixed
>(but only replaced).
>
>Can anyone describe what's behind the connector and where it is likely to be
>leaking? Anyone had this problem before?
>
>Tim Beidel
>South Portland, ME
>http://www.pennstatehoops.com/travelblog