Sink cabinet water damage

[Bill and Earline]

Five years ago we had a slight persistent leak beneath our sink that turned out to be the absence of caulk when the sink was first installed.

When we took ours in to Chilliwack after the 2015 Osoyoos rally, the problem was found and fixed. Just wouldn't want you to overlook this possibility.

I like the idea of an adjustable pressure gauge/reducer, and will probably get one. I have the simple one, and would never connect up to any hose connection without some type of reducer, especially a private well.

Bill

[davidmurphy02]

Originally Posted by BlueIndigo

I am not using the pump, but I am using the water heater both electric and gas to have on-demand hot water. Yes the trailer is connected to the water source here on property (it's not city water, it's from a well)

Are you using a pressure regulator on your city water connection? Some city water connections can be very high pressure and that can cause leaks.

[stratos175]

No expert here but would agree with others. Wet board is not the worst thing that can happen to your trailer as long as you control the problem and that needs to be priority number one. Where is leak coming from?
You have been given several good suggestions and I would try them and hopefully you at least figure out what is leaking.
I would open windows in your trailer and leave cabinet doors open also fan blowing out to help suck out moister. If you have some fans I would also have them blow on affected areas to help dry them out.
Trust me many more things will happen, great group of people and company (Escape) that will help get this figured out.

Enjoy the journey.

Steve

[Rossue]

Originally Posted by Bill and Earline

Five years ago we had a slight persistent leak beneath our sink that turned out to be the absence of caulk... Bill

That was the cause of a recent leak for us as well. Our 21 is almost five years old now so at some point this becomes a maintenance issue.

[Calicia]

This is a photo that eti sent me. It is of the part under the sink that frequently leaks. Mine leaks when heating water.

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by BlueIndigo

I am not using the pump, but I am using the water heater both electric and gas to have on-demand hot water. Yes the trailer is connected to the water source here on property (it's not city water, it's from a well)

One troubleshooting technique could be to put water in the fresh water tank and pressurize the system with the pump. A properly working pump will cut out at 55 psi so no worries of any over pressurization of the piping. Make sure the system is purged of all air by running a faucet. With no water use if the pump remains off for a good period of time then your supply piping is likely tight and I would look closer at the drain lines. For example I was just camping this weekend and the outside shower shutoff on the handle (old style) still allows water to drip if the faucet handles aren't closed. The pump would cycle every minute or so because this was relieving the system pressure. If you have a leak it will do the same.

[Perry Butler]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

One troubleshooting technique could be to put water in the fresh water tank and pressurize the system with the pump. A properly working pump will cut out at 55 psi so no worries of any over pressurization of the piping. Make sure the system is purged of all air by running a faucet. With no water use if the pump remains off for a good period of time then your supply piping is likely tight and I would look closer at the drain lines. For example I was just camping this weekend and the outside shower shutoff on the handle (old style) still allows water to drip if the faucet handles aren't closed. The pump would cycle every minute or so because this was relieving the system pressure. If you have a leak it will do the same.

Have found the pressure side was leaking using this method on at least three of our campers. Two times it was the cheap faucet and one leaking at the water heater.

Also use a pressure regulator because too many campsites have to high a pressure because their lines were too small to handle the number of sites. Have actually had one campground tell us this when we arrived, and with a refundable deposit would put a regulator on your spigot.

Enjoy,

Perry

[jeffrow]

As a long time boat owner I am in the habit of not using shore based water systems. I always filled my fresh water tanks and let the pump handle the distribution duties. The reason for this was in the event of a break in the freshwater line, it wouldn’t sink an unattended boat.

In a trailer you would suspect a leak if your pump pops on for a bit every so often on its own.

[Ron in BC]

Originally Posted by jeffrow

As a long time boat owner I am in the habit of not using shore based water systems. I always filled my fresh water tanks and let the pump handle the distribution duties. The reason for this was in the event of a break in the freshwater line, it wouldn’t sink an unattended boat.

The same as us, never hooked up city water.

Ron

[Ron in BC]

Originally Posted by BlueIndigo

I am not using the pump, but I am using the water heater both electric and gas to have on-demand hot water.

I don't really understand this comment. You have both electric heating and the propane heating on at the same time? Why?

Lot's of good advice given. Track down the leak, step by step. It's doubtful any long term damage has been done in such a short time. I'd put a heater in the area and make it bone dry.

Ron

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by Ron in BC

... You have both electric heating and the propane heating on at the same time? Why?

Using both heat sources provides faster recovery
... that's the usual reason.

[Ron in BC]

I could maybe see that if there was a family of six and they all wanted showers but I've never even come close to having hot water heating time an issue, even with the two of us.

Given the OPs problem, the first thing that I'd do is go to one heating source and if I was trouble shooting I'd turn the water heater off entirely for a period of time.

Ron

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by Ron in BC

IGiven the OPs problem, the first thing that I'd do is go to one heating source and if I was trouble shooting I'd turn the water heater off entirely for a period of time.

As long as excessive pressure due to the water heater is a possibility, I agree.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by BlueIndigo

I am not using any pressure regulator. The pressure reducer that ETI gave me was reducing pressure too much. Trailer is connected to the well here on the property, so it's different than at the city water systems that campgrounds use. With the pressure reducer there was no water pressure in the trailer at all.

Lots of campgrounds are on wells. The term "city water" can misleading, since it really just means water supplied under pressure from an outside source; the source can be a well, a lake, or tank, and the pump can be run by a municipal utility, the campground, or anyone else. Campgrounds are notorious for excessive pressure at some sites because of the plumbing issues already mentioned. Regardless of the source, a pressure regulator works without unreasonably limiting flow, unless it is defective.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by Calicia

This is a photo that eti sent me. It is of the part under the sink that frequently leaks. Mine leaks when heating water.

That's an adapter with a barbed end for the trailer's PEX piping (hot or cold) to the inlet of a fixture, presumably the faucet. It's hand-tightened, and could come loose with the vibration of a moving trailer. Of course if it leaks when the water heater is heating, the hot water pressure is going too high for the connection. The water heater might need more of an air bubble in the top to cushion the pressure rise.

[War Eagle]

A properly working water pressure regulator should only limit the maximum pressure allowed past it. It should not drop pressure to zero. Also, do you frequently pull out the galley sink spray head? If so, and if not re-seated properly back into position, water can run down the flexible pull-out hose, down through the faucet base and onto the cabinet shelf below. At least it will in the model installed in our 21'. Been there, done that. I'm not sure, but water from wet hands might even run down the hose and onto the cabinet shelf below even if the spray head is properly seated.

[Vermilye]

I don't know if they still do it, but in my August 2017 21 Escape put a back flow preventer valve on the cold water inlet to the water heater. If you heat very cold water to temperature, the pressure on the hot water side goes up quite a bit. If the hot water connection at the kitchen sink starts to leak before the pressure relief valve on the water heater, that could cause your problem. I keep my pans in the cabinet under the sink & discovered about 1/4 cup of water in a frying pan a couple of times. Hard to find where it was coming from because it stopped by the time I discovered it.

I talked with Reace about the leak & his suggestion to tighten the hot water connection at the sink solved the problem. I've had to retighten it again after a year.

The reason Reace gave for the addition of the back flow preventer is to protect the pump from high pressure as the water heater heats.

[padlin]

I think using your trailer with city water without a regulator is a bad thing unless whoever removed it verified the pressure is in the area of 50 lbs or less.


1st off I'd turn off the water heater, then I would go get another pressure regulator, not using one may well be your problem, and it would be your problem, not ETI's. Or as mentioned fill the fresh tank and use that instead of the city water connection.


If doing these 2 steps solves the leak then turn on the water heater and see if it starts leaking again to isolate which the problem was.


I occasionally use both the gas and electric heaters, but only once in a blue moon. Do you take long showers where you run out of hot water?

[BlueIndigo]

Thanks everybody for very helpful suggestions.

I think that you guys are correct and it is the pressure problem. The water drips when it is not being used. I notice that the condensation is coming from the hot water connection too. So maybe it is also related to the water heater. I am going to turn off the water as you recommend, and use the pump and will leave the heater on to see if the problem goes away. Right now when I left it was an electrical heater only, so I don't see how adding or not adding gas to it is a problem.

So this would also make sense because when I was at campgrounds I was using pressure regulator, and there were no leaks. So I assumed that plumbing was safe after that, and it never even occurred to me that this may happen. Also when we were connecting the water here on the property, it was my landlord who removed the pressure regulator; we were not getting any pressure in the trailer when it was installed. Which leads me to believe that the pressure may be too low for this pressure regulator, but too high for the pipes, so I would need to get the one that's more sensitive and adjustable, as was recommended by someone above (Thanks for that, I would never have thought of that idea).

I am going to tow the trailer to a shop to have them redo the cabinet, and look at the floor. It is definitely rotted on the bottom, mold forms in 24-48 hours after moisture intrusion and this has been going for 4 weeks.

Thanks again, and I will let you know if I discover anything else.

[John in Santa Cruz]

maybe this well water has a lot of sediment in it, which clogged the pressure regulator and is causing leaky valves in your faucets?