Flooded 2018 Solitude 374TH with Blank Tank Flush

[Canyonlight]

If the Amish craftsman that installed the roof vent cut the vent pipe short so it didn't seal to the vent cap on the roof, water and effluent could have backed up the vent pipe and leaked into the roof cavity. It wouldn't take much of a gap, 1/8 inch would flow nicely yet still ventilate to outside. It's my guess that's exactly what happened. I've read of someone that left their black tank flush on and had water running onto the roof and over the sides which is what should happen if the vent clears the roof and is sealed.

My heart goes out to the OP and if adjusters find the above, IMHO GDRV should shoulder some responsibility.

Attachment 20438

Kim - I suspect you are right on. A picture posted by the owner or insurance adjuster of the vent pipe opening with the cap off could be quite telling.

Dan

[Rnatho]

Kim - I suspect you are right on. A picture posted by the owner or insurance adjuster of the vent pipe opening with the cap off could be quite telling.

Dan

I'll be sure to mention this to the adjuster and see if they can get a pic when they tear it apart.

[minnow101]

Please, please, push your insurance company for it to be totaled. Do not settle your claim immediately. Mold can take time to get going. Your ins. co. May try and get you to settle asap. If you settle too soon and mold gets going(which it will), you might be in a world of trouble. There really is no way to get your rig mold and bacteria free if as you say, you had effluent coming thru the ceiling light(s).

With a small child you don’t want to take a chance with respiratory issues from mold spores.

[Da Breeze]

If the Amish craftsman that installed the roof vent cut the vent pipe short so it didn't seal to the vent cap on the roof, water and effluent could have backed up the vent pipe and leaked into the roof cavity. It wouldn't take much of a gap, 1/8 inch would flow nicely yet still ventilate to outside. It's my guess that's exactly what happened. I've read of someone that left their black tank flush on and had water running onto the roof and over the sides which is what should happen if the vent clears the roof and is sealed.

My heart goes out to the OP and if adjusters find the above, IMHO GDRV should shoulder some responsibility.

Attachment 20438

Sorry Kim..

I don't buy that for a NY minute !
Even IF that were the case, effluent would've leaked UNDER the TPO roofing as well which WOULD obviously be a manufacturers defect...
However... it is even more unlikely since there is a mounting escutcheon between roof and top of flange.

I cannot fathom GD and the RVIA protocols don't have a fail-safe built into a sanitary system to avoid fecal contamination.

I am NOT positive.... as I've never disassembled one YET !!!
but just thinking out loud. [emoji2955]

Michael G

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

[minnow101]

RVIA protocols? Other then the “build ‘em as fast and as cheap as possible”, I doubt RVIA cares a rats whisker how these rigs are or aren’t vented.

[JCZhome]

Please, please, push your insurance company for it to be totaled. Do not settle your claim immediately. Mold can take time to get going. Your ins. co. May try and get you to settle asap. If you settle too soon and mold gets going(which it will), you might be in a world of trouble. There really is no way to get your rig mold and bacteria free if as you say, you had effluent coming thru the ceiling light(s).

With a small child you don’t want to take a chance with respiratory issues from mold spores.

I agree, completly.

However, even though it was fresh water, it came out of the toilet so it's still considered "black water". From my mold remediation training (for residential and commercial buildings), because they can't remove and replace everything that the water touched it will have to be totalled. If they don't total it, like the possability (and probability) of mold several months down the road....they also run the risk of somebody getting one of the blood born diseases that black water causes.

I've read of other people having this issue and where they called the insurance company, it was always totaled.

[JCZhome]

Well, I’m an idiot. I thought I turned off a water hose we had on a Y connection, but I turned on the sewer flush with the tank closed. I left to the grocery store, returned an hour later to water gushing out of the rear of the trailer and the interior flooded. Water was even coming out of the ceiling lights. We are full time RVers and I’m still sick to my stomach that I did this. We have dried everything we can, but we unscrewed the underbelly and there is water in there. Insurance adjuster is coming to assess the damage to tomorrow. Has anyone ever done this? What should I expect to hear from the adjuster? Thanks in advance for your advice.

What did the adjuster have to say?

[Chiefblueman]

I'll admit I haven't pulled a vent completely out of my roof, but I do have 3 of these on my 315. Popped the cap off and I can see how this easily could have happened. Watched some You tube so now I'm a real armchair expert! The replacements were all 2 pieces, no escutcheon underneath, just the device itself that seals to the pipe above "grade" and a cap. One video showed how easily this could have happened. Go to the 30 second point.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GTnnP-BfTBE

You don't have to buy it and I respect your opinion. Just wanted you to know I wasn't making a flip analysis. I do see evidence of how this could have occurred.

I also have a vast knowledge of craftsmanship errors on my trailer. Currently having to deal with craftsmanship "errors" made when the walls were replaced. So far GDRV is standing behind it and is picking up the tab for all.
I have finally been able to accept the fact that I own a
BUILT ON FRIDAY/MONDAY TRAILER
twice

[KirbyRVA]

I'll admit I haven't pulled a vent completely out of my roof, but I do have 3 of these on my 315. Popped the cap off and I can see how this easily could have happened. Watched some You tube so now I'm a real armchair expert! The replacements were all 2 pieces, no escutcheon underneath, just the device itself that seals to the pipe above "grade" and a cap. One video showed how easily this could have happened. Go to the 30 second point.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GTnnP-BfTBE

You don't have to buy it and I respect your opinion. Just wanted you to know I wasn't making a flip analysis. I do see evidence of how this could have occurred.

I also have a vast knowledge of craftsmanship errors on my trailer. Currently having to deal with craftsmanship "errors" made when the walls were replaced. So far GDRV is standing behind it and is picking up the tab for all.
I have finally been able to accept the fact that I own a
BUILT ON FRIDAY/MONDAY TRAILER
twice

First, so sorry this happened to the OP. Hope her insurance company does the right thing and gets her a new trailer.

Using the word 'craftsmanship' when describing how our trailers are made (applies to most brands I'm sure) is certainly a bit of a joke. Things you can't see are thrown together without regard for real organization or proper function, IMO. It is surprising to me that most things seem to work in my rig.

I can also see (especially after watching that You Tube video) how fluids that might rise to the top of the tank vent could make their way into the roof cavity. In the video, the fixer didn't put any sealant between the vent pipe and the collar before he installed the cap. Fluids that might rise to the top of that pipe would surely hit that cap and back wash into that space between the pipe and the collar.

Hopefully OP has learned a valuable lesson. I never leave my flush hose attached and never leave it unattended when I am doing a back flush.

[315RLTSinPA]

I would have sealed the pipe to the roof and the pipe to the collar. Any unsealed gap on the roof is a potential leak.