My Leaky New Winnebago

[Dallas Steve]

I bought a new 2020 Winnebago Intent 30R on March 13, 2020. By April 13 it started to leak. I found puddles of water in the service compartment and the two storage compartments in front of the rear wheels. I took my belongings out and dried them and left the compartments empty until I can buy plastic containers.


I observed that water was dripping from the ceilings inside the storage compartments. Not a gush of water, just a drip that would leave maybe 1/4" of water in the compartments in 24 hours. I noticed the water appeared to be brownish when I would towel it out. Now it has a smell that reminds me of ammonia. My wife said it smells like bad toilet smell.


So I'm guessing it's coming from the toilet/black tank connection, but that's just my guess. I called the Winnebago dealer in Georgetown, TX, Crestview RV, and they said I would have to leave the rig with them for a day or two while they check it out and then it might be several weeks before they can get it fixed. We live in the RV full time and will have to stay in hotels.


I contacted Winnebago customer service. In the spirit of helping their customers during this difficult time they basically said I have to accept whatever the dealer offers. We're planning to leave Georgetown soon for cooler weather. Maybe I will try the dealer in the next 30 day park we stop at.


So what can I ask you? Are there any easy fixes I might try? Should I throw in the towel and call a mobile RV tech? I knew before I bought it that it would probably be hard for me to get warranty service in this situation, but I thought Winnebago made a better product. I didn't expect a major water leak after one month.


If somebody wants to buy this beauty I am a motivated seller. It's really a nice rig if you don't mind a smelly water leak. Is it that hard to have a good seal from the toilet tank? Maybe that's really not the problem.

[Topsail]

No idea where the problem is but I seem to remember someone else had a similar situation and it turned out to be the vent connection at the tank. It was loose or not sealed. Something like that. So sorry for your trouble especially since you're full timing now. This might be a good time to get a competent service tech as you mentioned. Good luck.

[Dallas Steve]

Originally Posted by Topsail

No idea where the problem is but I seem to remember someone else had a similar situation and it turned out to be the vent connection at the tank. It was loose or not sealed. Something like that. So sorry for your trouble especially since you're full timing now. This might be a good time to get a competent service tech as you mentioned. Good luck.

Topsail


Thanks for the reply. Do you mean a vent connection on the black water tank? I wouldn't know where to start. Like you say, I may need to call a tech. I asked Winnebago what happens if they black or gray water tanks overflow and they said they just back up in the toilet or shower. Maybe that's not the whole story? Maybe I should try contacting the toilet mfgr: Thetford.

[Topsail]

I am referring to a vent that comes off of the black water tank. Check the schematic drawings for your specific model and look at the black water tank plumbing.

It is possible to have a leak path coming from the toilet seals. Study the diagrams even if you are not comfortable doing the work. Knowledge really is power.

Let us all know if you need more help and how any repairs go.

[Topsail]

I just took a look at the diagrams for your RV. Here are four possible leak points going into the black tank on your coach. They are the lavatory sink, the toilet, the roof vent and the dump connection. You can find your drawings by checking the Winnebago links found within this forum. You will find them under the following:

General Maintenance and Repair

Sticky: Winnebago Electrical & Plumbing Diagrams

[Topsail]

http://www.winnebagoind.com/diagram/2020/000173616.pdf

Hope this works. I'm learning how to work with links and I'm not very good with it so I figured I'd practice on you. Haha

[BobC]

Given your situation, it's probably worth it to find an independent RV repair shop. I'd at least pay for an hour or so of labor to ID the problem and go from there.

[Dallas Steve]

Topsail


Thanks for all that work. I had found a similar schematic yesterday:


http://www.winnebagoind.com/diagram/2020/000173617.pdf


It looks like your link is the water out system and my link is the water in system. On your diagram I'm not sure what the last page shows, but I think it's a diagram of the black and gray tanks, the final stop on the journey out.


Bob


I'm leaning in that direction since this is probably damaging the coach some with water. I don't want to leave it untreated for very long. How much should I expect to pay for an hour or 2 of checking out the problem? I might have them look at the automatic step, too. This new Winnebago has more than its share of problems, I think.

[Topsail]

Yes, that last page is a drawing of the black and gray tanks side by side with the dump valves tying into one port. Like you that ammonia smell is what leads me to think its a black tank leak.

Any of the black tank connections could be suspect. Hopefully it's just water and by the time you see it its just some dirty water and nothing to do with the black tank.

[Beeman744]

Hello. I bought a new Intent in Dec. and used it first last weekend. I found that i have the same leaks that you have. Did you find where the leak was coming from? Any help would be appreciated.

[Dallas Steve]

Originally Posted by Beeman744

Hello. I bought a new Intent in Dec. and used it first last weekend. I found that i have the same leaks that you have. Did you find where the leak was coming from? Any help would be appreciated.

Beeman


That's very interesting. I haven't found the cause and I haven't found anyone to check it out yet. It's not easy to get warranty service here and more difficult because we are living in the rig full time and planning to head north tomorrow. When we get to Arkansas next week I'm going to try to get them checked out.



Are your leaks draining into the storage bins like mine? I don't see any signs of water inside the home, only below the floor into the storage bins. Does your water smell foul too? To me mine smells like ammonia and it looks brown like maybe it came from the black tank.


If enough of us are having this problem maybe we can get Winnebago to do something about it - something like find the cause and push us to the front of the line for service. Probably not. So far they have not been helpful for me. Have you contacted them?



I'm glad you posted. Please keep me informed of anything you discover and I will do the same for you.


Steve

[Beeman744]

I am back home from my first trip and can now start trying to find the leak. I am going to empty the storage compartments. Then I will start by running the shower water to see if it is coming from there. Thanks for your reply. I will post as I go.

[rvbud]

Thoughts and suggestions...

1. Check that the ring clamps are tight for the tank discharge at both the point where the discharge is connected to the tank, and to the valve. I had a similar problem and found a loose ring clamp...a little difficult to reach the clamp at the tank...you may need an angled screwdriver.

2. The seal between the toilet and floor may also be a good place to look. Easy enough to loosen and check the seal. If the toilet is loose our mounted improperly, that would allow waste to flow on the outside of the discharge drain.

3. Have any modifications been made that would have had someone using a drill that could have penetrated the tank? (Trust me, I speak from experience...dumb move on my part when installing a solar system controller! Fortunately, it was the fresh water tank and easy to plug.)

4. Does the water appear even after emptying your tank? In other words, does this happen whether the tank is empty or full?

5. Any chance you can do a super job of flushing the tank, and I mean really clean, then putting some dye or "pink stuff" into the tank by way of the toilet (for color), and then check to see if the colored liquid comes into the storage area?

[pubtime]

These are screen shots from the Winnebago Interactive parts catalogue of the Black tank in the 2020 Intent 30R. You can see it from above and from the side. Hope this helps you visualize it for what you need to do or at least where you need to look to see where the connections are.


Unless your tank is full to capacity it's not likely (in my thinking) that anything is coming from the toilet, vent or sink. However a small leak in that 3 inch discharge pipe (especially if it smells like Ammonia or worse) could be the culprit.


Hope this helped


Jim

[SaltLife]

Originally Posted by Dallas Steve

I asked Winnebago what happens if they black or gray water tanks overflow and they said they just back up in the toilet or shower. Maybe that's not the whole story? Maybe I should try contacting the toilet mfgr: Thetford.

They're correct, sorta. Grey water will overflow into your shower. I can vouch for it with 2 different rigs. As far as the black water, I never had it overflow, thankfully. I've read on this forum, I believe, that it will go out the roof vent making a mess. I've yet to hear the toilet itself overflowing.

Lack of warranty support seems to be very common. You bring it in and they seem to get put on the backburner for months. And it's not uncommon for new rigs to have multiple issues .

Some tech to look at for an hr or 2, you're looking at $100+ per hr....

[Steve W]

We had a similar issue and found that the flexible rubber gasket connecting the solid plastic piping had cracked. It is simply held on by a standard metal 3" screw type hose clamp. Since it is a newer rig and the rubber hose probably hasn't had time to deteriorate, you might just check to see if the clamp needs to be tightened. Note that there is an identical flexible black rubber connection on both sides [e.g. grey & black water].

[Dallas Steve]

Wow! These are some great replies. I still don't have a solution, but I will let everybody know when I do. I have one small update: Before today water was basically only on the driver side back storage compartment. Today we took the rig on the road for 2 hours and there was water in the storage compartment on the other side; not a lot, but more than in the past when it was almost dry. Any new ideas based on that?



I want to reply to each of you, but right now I'm a little busy. I'll start with:


rvbud:


Great suggestions. I especially want to try emptying the tanks like you say, cleaning out the dirty water, then put some Tidy Bowl in the toilet and see if the blue shows up in the overflow. Is Tidy Bowl safe for an RV toilet?


pubtime:


Those are great illustrations. Are there more somewhere for the Intent 30R? I may save them all.

[pubtime]

Originally Posted by Dallas Steve

pubtime:


Those are great illustrations. Are there more somewhere for the Intent 30R? I may save them all.

There are, all the components of your RV are there. You have to use Internet Explorer only, and add the viewer (it's located on the left side of the screen below Service parts list. It takes a while (at least for me) to learn how to move around those screens, zoom in and out and see exactly what you want to see but it can be done. This is the Winnebago interactive parts list location. Pick your year, then model (after you load the viewer (32 or 64 bit depending on version of Windows you're using)).


Parts Catalog.


If there's any other view you'd like (and you haven't figured out the viewers) let me know what you're looking for and I'll see if I can pull up a view of it that will help. Had a lot of problems with water leaks in my 2015 Suncruiser so I've been on these a lot looking for locations of leaks.


RVbud had a great suggestion that you check that ring clamp behind your dump valves to make sure it's tight. It's just a large rubber hose that sits between 2 ABS pipes and held on with standard automotive type hose clamps (bigger than most). If those are loose, or the pipes have moved you may have leakage there. Since it's at the bottom of the tank (or near that anyway) a loose clamp might account for your putrid water problem. I also like the idea of cleaning the tank and dying the water in it to see if it is the Black tank.



If you have room then you might also want to slide some craft paper (or something like an old grocery store bag) under the valve and drain for a short time and see if you see any wet spots (assuming the leak is really slow), that won't necessarily indicate the location of the leak (it could be following a pipe until large enough to fall), but a couple of wet spots right below a connection or ABS weld might warrant a second look at the pipe or hose above.


Good luck with the parts catalog.



You can also see a lot about your RV at the Winnebago wiring diagrams and manuals page located here. https://winnebagoind.com/resources/manuals/


Jim

[Dallas Steve]

Pubtime


When someone talks about a leak in the black tank or gray tank area I'm thinking that, in my case, if that's where the leak is then the ceiling above the storage compartment wouldn't be collecting water which drips into the storage compartment because water can't go uphill. Or am I not understanding where the ring clamp behind the dump valves is located?

[pubtime]

I don't know how the tanks are situated in your wet bay, I can only look at the diagrams. I'm only guessing that the leak would be there because that valve and sleeve around the ABS is at the bottom of the tank, the toilet, sink and vent are all hooked into the top of the tank, and reasonably shouldn't leak unless the tank is full, or maybe being driven around and sloshed a lot. I'm also assuming that it is the black tank because you smelled ammonia and your wife thought it was black water.


Look at the diagram I put here, the one showing the tanks from the side. You'll see your drain valves at the back of that black pipe pointing toward you. Just to the left of the Drain valve you can see a gray area of pipe between the drain valve and the tank. This is the rubber pipe (sleeve) that's held on with two ring clamps. I assume they use rubber there to give a little play when we're driving. Look up there if you can and make sure that both ring clamps are tight.



If you're getting water on the ceiling area above your tanks and you're not moving then it does not seem likely that the water is coming from the black (or gray tank for that matter) because unless splashed, you're correct water will not flow upward. That's why I suggested paper under the valve, sort of like we used to do with cars, drive over paper then later look at where the liquid was and what color it was to help identify slow leaks.


You might also want to shoot an email to Winnebago ([email protected]), they usually answer within 24 hours and they've always been helpful (as best they can because they only have our questions to base their answer on) to me.


For example, my recent water catastrophe was discovered when I removed the panels from the wet bay. As I removed screws on the top several gallons of water flowed from the overlying rail that runs the length of the RV. I also looked at the bathroom behind the location of the leak, under the sink and shower and saw no evidence of water. Winnebago suggested that I remove the trim from outside, reseal and seal the screws that held the trim on too. I did. When I returned home I removed this panel again, and a couple more gallons of water came out. I searched for weeks for the location of the water (mine was clear) but never saw where it came from, nor evidence of a leak, I was thinking gray tank, or pipe leak, but the water was clear and had no discernible odor.


One day I went into the RV, turned the pump on and heard it cycling every five to seven seconds so I knew for sure I had a fresh water problem. I then was able to remove the wall panel behind the shower valve and water was pulsing out of the connection, following the pipe to the outside wall, then flowing into the rail behind the wall. I hand tightened the connection and the leak stopped. The water was discovered more than 5 feet away from where it was leaking, never damaged the paneling behind the leak, and until I messed with it never saw water under the shower.


Leaks are annoying, but discoverable. Winnebago missed the call because I missed the leak, but when I emailed them after the pump was pulsing they told me which panel was removable and it was easy to locate.


Again if you need any other views from the Winnebago catalog let me know and I'll see what I can get.


Jim