is it possible to overfill whitewater tank?

[thekennys]

yep!!!!

turned convience center lever to fill whitewater tank and got busy and forgot.
went inside rv and the rear floor was buldged up
switched lever back and removed the fill cap and niagra falls a 2" flow out 3' for a while. floor sort of settling back but not quite right
what have i done?
mikey

[MIMF]

HUH? Doesn't the fresh water tank have an over flow hose that shoots the water to the ground when the tank is full? Am I missing somethink? Why would the floor be buldging up?

[thekennys]

i don't know about a overflo but there is a small vent line to let the air out
i think that ethe vent couldn't keep with the shore fill volume so the tank ballowned pushing the floor up
at least the tank didn't leak or explode
mikey

[pineranch]

When I pulled "the give your neighbors a laugh" stunt, water flowed out the overflow next to the manual fill and ran down the paved street in front of the RV.
Mike

[HOOK]

When I want a full tank, I always allow it to run out of vent. Some times it gushes out when moving , but never had a floor problem. Think I'd blow air through tank and see if I hear it coming through vent. If no air flow, check vent line for obstruction. IMHO , Larry.

[snfexpress]

Thinking about it, and your year of 5er, what might have happened is that the air vent couldn't keep up with the inflow and so the pipe between the fill/overflow may have burst. You may see it in the driver side rear where the recliners are. Look for a carpeted cover piece on the inside. Remove it by locating the screws and removing.

Let us know.

[Ozz]

Wow Mikey, sorry that happened.
Does the tank hold water now? It is probably still leaking, but after it stops, see if it is holding. I can't imagine that it isn't split, BUT, if it expanded enough to break the plywood flooring (bubble up the floor) and didn't burst, it may be OK.
The flooring won't come back flat.

[Exnavydiver]

Being ADD I ALWAYS do stuff like this. So whenever I fill the fresh water tank I open the door to the hose fill and take the cap off. Since the fresh water tank has NO roof vent and most city supplies will far exceed the vent capacity I leave the fill cap off to help release enough pressure to avoid a burst tank. it also gives the neighbors time to yell at me

[Gkerlin]

I do the same thing Dave. CRS you know.

[DQDick]

On our rig the air vent won't even vent the air at the rate the water comes in. By the time I've switched the valve on and leisurely walked to the rear of the rig and taken the cap off a good deal of pressure is released. My guess would be, along with others, that you expanded the tank until you popped the floor up.

[MIMF]

At this point, that is what I'm not understanding. My vent and over-flow tube are one in the same. It is about 3/4" in diameter and comes thru the underbelly just in front of the axles. When I fill the tank, I know it is full the instant I see water starting to trickle then squirt from the tube down onto the ground. So, my thinking is that, if the tank is expanding and pushing up on the floor, which it can do, that tube or, vent must be plugged.

[Ozz]

I have to go with Mikey, Michael and Dick on this one, the overflow just couldn't keep up with the pressure. But, there is always the possibility that the vent is not operational.
Mikey, what is the current status of the tank?

[thekennys]

Hi there I finally got back to the computer and got up, 1 cup of Joe down.. ( what is Joe?) anyway
MIMI my fresh water tank is in the rear of the RV just in front of the rear bumper if keystone thought i needed one, as i think of it it is a tank with two hoses coming out the top to the freshwater fill hatchey place, one hose is the filler Faith a cap on it, the other is a air vent with a screen .
Mike I'm in a state park next to the camp hosts That is right three sites full of eagle eyed couples who are very conscientious, believe it ..after i set up having to walk onto the empty site next to mine around trees etc they came and raked out my messy footprints in the sand ( way back machine ... Pat Boone love letters in the sand..not permitted here..) anyhow no clapping from the peanut gallery
Michael & Kat are spot on and fortunately hoses held, Yellowstone old faithful sideways happened when i got the nerve to remove the filler cap (fortunately it didn't hit me in the eye as it flew out onto the zen raked sand sculpture)
Exnavydiver we must be related
Ozz the state is the tank is full and not leaking as well as the hoses are flushed out and clean.. the floor is not right but neither are we.
so what is the damage, not having ben there i suspect the tank sits between two floor joists with 2 straps on the underneath and the plywood floor on top. with the tank holding are the joists bent or worst broke free from the frame, popping the floor up over it in the middle back just pop the screws through the mdf or did the break off? and how much structural value is there there ?
more to come I'm sure
mikey

[DQDick]

When I've taken the factory tour it appears that those rear mounted tanks are sitting as you suggest between the floor supports, strapped on the bottom and open to the floor on the top.

[Illini Trekker]

At the least you should give those strap a look? Guess there still working if you filled the tank up. But by removing the lower cover you could get a better look at the damage.

[7.3Ford]

Mikey,

Whenever I fill the fresh water take from the convince center, I take the cap off the tank. It is to easy to get distracted.

Here are some pictures I took at the Factory tour in 2011. I think the rear stabilizer is the main support holding the tank in there.



Fresh Water Tank



Galley Tank



Grey and Black Tanks

[c214dick]

I think I read or saw something that the fill cap should be removed when using the fill feature. That way the pressure and water build up are released. At least that's what I do.

[thekennys]

i'll drop the cover and look at straps and post result
it'll be about a week
thanks everybody
miley

[Overlord]

According to Darryl at the Factory Service Center, the official line on the proper way to fill the fresh water tank is to take off the manual fill cap (for improved tank venting over just the small screened vent that is there) and using the power fill in the convenience center, go watch the tank level monitor inside the trailer, and shut off the power fill when the monitor reads full.

He mentioned several times that you should not keep filling the tank until water comes out of the manual fill port or vent, and as soon as the monitor registers full, go out and switch off the power fill lever.

Stand there in front of the tank meter, and don't allow yourself to be distracted(unless it is something very serious, say, a nuclear attack perhaps),until it's done filling.

It's one of those 1-beer jobs that is not too hard to get done.

[Ozz]

Overlord, That would be good advice, but I think our confidence level is pretty low on the accuracy of those factory tank gauges.
A seasoned RV'er can probably stand next to it and listen for the correct 'Gurgling' sound, telling us when it is close.
The key is to not get distracted and let it over-fill.
Easier said than done...
I use an egg timer and fill the Black tank with the tank cleaner. 6 minutes is safe. 7 is about full.
Haven't timed the fresh water tank fill, it is always at a different level.