Black Tank #2 Drain Pipe Making Contact With Suspension

[El_Supremo]

Not sure if this is a plumbing problem or a suspension problem, but since the pipe appears to be damaged I figured I would start here. We just finished up a 3 week, 2,000 mile trip and while on the road home I noticed that the 3” elbow coming from black #2 looks like it’s hitting the suspension while towing. The black caulk/sealant where the pipe exits the underbelly is allowing some free play of the pipe. My best guess is that when we hit a bump and the suspension compresses, the pipe moves a bit and makes contact with the leaf spring. If this continues much longer the elbow will have a hole in the side and black #2 will be out of commission. Anyone else experience this? Need a fix and the dealer can’t get us on the schedule before our next trip. Sorry pic is rotated when I upload for some odd reason.

[FT4NOW]

I wonder of that's caused by the zerk fitting on the wet bolt. Could turning the bolt in the other direction fix the problem? Hard to tell from the picture.

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[El_Supremo]

Looking top-down, it’s definitely hitting the zerk and the bolt head. Zerks are inline with the bolts so not possible to rotate to gain clearance. The pipe must have dropped or moved somehow. Raining so can’t crawl under for a better pic right now.

[FT4NOW]

I didnt mean rotate the bolt, I mean remove it and stick it through the opposite side. You'd have to evaluate the clearance and see if that's a possible solution.

I would think if the pipe dropped, you'd have some leaking grey or black water somewhere, or at least a very bad smell somewhere. You could always pop some of the coroplast down and see if you have any indication of water leakage.

Did that CRE3000 and wetbolts/HD shackles come stock on your trailer? If you upgraded, maybe there wasnt enough clearance for the thicker shackles and longer bolts?


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[huntindog]

I too think that the zirk is what is hitting. Turning the bolt around won't fix it as the bolt protrudes thru the nut.... Might even make it worse. I do not see a good fix to this. The best fix would be a new tank installed so the elbow isn't that close. The down side is this is the most expensive and hardest fix. (BTW, I think this is likely happening during low speed backing manuvers. That shackle will flex quit a bit sideways then)
A simple fix would be to remove the zirk and replace it with a plug. The cheapest and easiest fix.The downside is that it may not provide enough clearance, and you would need to reinstall the zirk everytime you grease it.

Another fix would be to lose the heavy duty shackle and replace it with a standard one... The downside to this is obvious. But the cost would be reasonable, it is not too hard, and it would probably work.

Thats all I got.

[El_Supremo]

Thanks for the responses. The suspension is stock, trailer is 3m old so still under warranty. I’ll probably remove the zerk and plug the hole until the dealer can fix it properly. Maybe temporarily zip-tie the elbow as far away from the suspension as practical.

@huntindog, the elbow is part of the tank itself? Not good…

[huntindog]

Thanks for the responses. The suspension is stock, trailer is 3m old so still under warranty. I’ll probably remove the zerk and plug the hole until the dealer can fix it properly. Maybe temporarily zip-tie the elbow as far away from the suspension as practical.

@huntindog, the elbow is part of the tank itself? Not good…

Possibly. They generally slap it together as fast as possible. It starts out as a tank with just a 3" drain hole, then the fittings are glued to it. So it ends up as one piece... Maybe it could be taken apart, but the grey and vent lines go into openings that are drilled in from the top. Those lines probably cannot be moved much if at all, because they most always go up thru interior walls. So in order to reposition the tank so the 3" drain plumbing exits the corplast further away from the suspension would mean that the grey/vent lines need to be moved to a different location on the tank. Although patching the holes can be done... As a practical matter it would be much more effective cost/timewise to just start over with new parts

[FT4NOW]

I would drop the coroplast and take a look at how its plumbed. On my Momentum three of the tanks went to a common header before it came out of the coroplast and that would have been easy to move the entire drain line over a few inches. Havent dropped the coroplast on my Reflection yet. Lowes has a 3" rubber coupling that works on the sewer pipe to reconnect it if you have to cut it to move it over. I've used 2 of those couplings on my Momentum and never had a leak.

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[huntindog]

Being a 2021, the good news is it is probably under warranty..... The bad news is it is probably under warranty.

[Ynot4me2]

I agree with most of what's been said. Drop the coroplast enough to see if it can easily be fix. I suspect it just needs to be shorten a little. If so and you are willing and able to do it yourself then great. If not then it might be a real long wait for a warranty repair depending on your dealer or local mobile tech.

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