Leaks. Leaks and more Leaks!

[2psnapod2]

I have been fighting a leak in my basement area. Seems like every-time I go into the storage area, I find more water. Nothing in the basement is destroyed since everything in there is in totes.

I take the wall down and fix a leak here and there. Even replaced the pump. Went to Lowe's and purchased a tool to replace a couple of fittings, but still have a leak. It is never the same leak but from another area.

This time the fitting that goes into the pump, that has the 2 O'rings on it, and a Tee in the line above were the culprit. How do you fix this fitting going into the pump. Looks like the O'rings are ok, I might change them anyway. Any ideas here? And as far as the other leaks, do I need to replace all the Tee fittings behind the UDC. I was thinking that I would at least be able to do this in stages. But at this point I am getting tired of all the leaks.

Also where can I get some of the red and blue Pex?

Any suggestions on this would be appreciated.

 

[lwmcguir]

Menards cary the red and blue pex. Lowes and Home Depot may as well. It is fairly still and high grade material. You can order it but it is rather cheap in 25/50 foot coils. I have used it plumbing another bath room in the basement. Works well and you can use the standard copper compresson rings. Have had more leaks than I would like in the Augusta as well. Got another one now to fix as well at the three way valve in the UDC.

 

[Willym]

For the pump fitting leak, I presume that it is on the Shurflo fitting. The O rings may have a very small nick in them, or the pump female fitting may be damaged. I've had success with leaking O rings by just cleaning the fittings and then lubricating the O rings lightly with a little petroleum jelly or soap. If you can find some new O rings, then even better, but the lube may help them to seat and seal.

 

[westxsrt10]

Have you checked your pressure output of the pump? I replaced my pump with a higher pressure Shurflo (55psi+) expecting more water output but all I got was leaks. The stock pump only puts out 40-45 psi but no leaks in the piping system.
Silicone grease works well on O-rings.

 

[rebootsemi]

Sounds like the guy that put your unit together (plumbing) was having a bad day, ripe it out and replace, get it over with. Use Rectorseal 5 on threaded fittings.

 

[jbeletti]

Michael,

Are you running a pressure regulator? When I was at your CG, the owner told me they have 125 PSI water pressure and insisted I used a regulator.

Jim

 

[JohnDar]

Unless you have a need for 25' of colored PEX, you can buy a 5' section of white PEX at Lowe's for making small repairs. I bought a section and used about a foot of it to fix a small fitting leak. The rest is tucked behind the basement wall...just in case.

 

[2psnapod2]

Michael,

Are you running a pressure regulator? When I was at your CG, the owner told me they have 125 PSI water pressure and insisted I used a regulator.

Jim

Jim yes I am running a regulator. Its a Ventura set at just under 60 PSI's. I purchased it just after I moved into here.

 

[tex1976]

I had the same issue with multiple leaks. The big problem is someone at the factory used white water hose to run from the PEX elbows to the panel. The compression rings were not made for this and all are leaking to varying degrees. I went ahead and bought a role of PEX and all of the fittings and replaced it all. I have now noticed an increase in water pressure since then and no more leaks.

 

[jimtoo]

Hi Tex1976,

Welcome to the Heartland Owners Forum and Family. We have a great bunch of people here with lots of information and all willing to share their knowledge when needed.

Thanks for your info. That's what the forum is about... sharing and learning from each other.

We are almost neighbors, I am 90 miles South.

Enjoy the forum.

Jim M

 

[Birchwood]

The tees behind the panel on our Pinehurst were cracked after the first year and had to be replaced.
Since then one of them have leaked and the ss hose clamps had to be tightened.I think it was
probably due to the cold weather contraction.I am like you with all items in the basement being in totes
or elevated.Low pressure leakes are not to damaging.

 

[tex1976]

Howdy Jim,

Thanks for the welcome and have found several answers to my questions on these forum threads.

Of course 90 miles in Texas is the same as being next door.

Jerry

 

[Duramax1]

From your signature it would appear that you should still be under warranty.

Go back to your dealer and let them solve your problem.

 

[tex1976]

Yes, still under warranty. However just a short time after setting up was hit with unexpected hospital visit and long term recovery. That being said the dealer does not do onsite work of any kind emergency or not. And these leaks could not wait for me to bring it to them.

 

[Rustyfire]

Thanks TEX 1976 I thought I was going nuts having so many leaks in a new rig. I am having the same problem with the same hoses. Where they go from pex to half inch then the fittings to the by passes almost every one was leaking. Did a quick fix but will definately be buying pex and pex tools then figure a better system. I have had several rigs but this is the first one I have ever had a leak in. We bought this 2011 used so no warranty.

 

[recumbent615]

One Piece of advice - if you do purchase Pex piping - do not store in the light for any length of time - store it in a black plastic bag - UV light causes the pipe to break down over time. it is possible to find straight pipes in 10 and 20 foot sections at your local local plumbing supply house - but not all of them carry them. Also I would suggest you either go with the copper ring or crimp ring. The expanding type pex is best for heating systems and honestly it is a pain to use. I converted my whole house to PEX including the FHW system a few years ago - and I use the Copper rings for domestic water and Expansion connections for the FHW system...

I've never had a pex fitting leak - I also plan to replace all of the connections in my rig this spring. I may also replace all of the connectors with brass -

Good luck with your leak remediation efforts.

Kevin

 

[JJOren]

Unfortunately, we have had numerous leaks with our new Landmark. Taking them back to the dealer for warranty repair is a 200 mile round trip so have just been repairing thme myself. All of mine have been in the same area....on the back side of the water panel. Without exception, the leaks have all be in a new type of hose clamp. I've been replacing them with the old stainless screw type clamp and the leaks disappear. I'm told that this new type of clamp has been used through out the industry and is creating problems most everywhere.

 

[2psnapod2]

As of now we do not have any leaks. The main leak that I finally found was the city water filling the fresh water tank and emptying out the fill port. Since I could always find small leaks on the various fittings, this problem evaded me for some time. I have plugged the hoses going into and out of the pump and have not had a lead in some time. Had it to the dealer and they changed some of the clamps to hose clamps on the white hose. But after I got it home, it leaked again. Disconnected the pump and no leaks. I purchased a check valve from Shurflo and will have the dealer install it the next time I'm there. No big issue with not having the pump since i'm on city water for now.