Question for you technical people (1 Viewer)

[Coolcats]

I identified the pipe from our Bathroom sink was leaking whilst we were away, I spoke with a dealer who stated they would charge the princely sum of £99 per hour to identify where the leak was and to fix it which may require the removal of cupboards and bathroom. the pipe in question drops directly from the Sink to the floor, you cannot access this from the right hand side as this is where the Truma boiler sits under the bench the wall behind goes all the way to the wall and no access hatches.

Removing the drawers on the left hand side reveal a heating pipe emerging and visibility of some cable tidies and visibility of the hot/cold water pipes but the access hole is to far back and small to reach through.

So when a dealer says removal of the bathroom do they mean removal of the toilet or toilet and shower base for access

I removed the thetford panel above the toilet roll holder and took a picture looking straight down, also pictures from the left side where there is minimal access.

Does anyone know what the white pipe with the lid is for?

Any help will be most appreciated

 

[eurajohn]

Pipe with lid is heater ducting.
The convoluted grey pipe will be a waste pipe.

 

[Portland]

The pipe with the lid is I believe a Truma heating system junction plus I think you'll find the hot and cold pipes are in the convoluted tube, if that's correct then pull the pipes out and feel if they are wet, if so the leak is above so you should be able to fix it

 

[Googlebot]

Open toilet locker and look for some trim you can remove. Often that enables you to access where you need.

 

[Threesheded]

I have a Hymercar Yellowstone van with the same bathroom arrangement and this also happened to me. The sink waste down pipe consists of an unsupported vertical pvc pipe push fitted onto the bottom of the sink drain you may be able to reach in from the removable panel to the right of the sink and manipulate it back on. Mine had dropped right off and was not retrievable by me. I spent half a day tring to remove the fascia boards around the sink unit wthout causing any damage and had to give up on that approach. I ended up having to remove the shower tray which also involved removing the toilet, tambour door, wooden trims on sides of bathroom (these are glued, albeit poorly). The shower tray has sealant underneath but with a little persistance and care it can be removed without damage. It is a time consuming job. The downpipe is connected to two fittings at the bottom to enable it to turn through 90 degrees, I was surprised to see the fittings had been duct taped together to keep them connected (so dont believe all you hear about the quality of german vans) and from there to a flexible pipe to the trap inlet to the waste tank. I replaced the rigid pipes with spiral hose from the drain all the way to this connection (Putting a sleeve on for the 90 turn) and made sure it was supported near the sink waste connection. I also took this opportunity to connect the exhaust of the thetford toilet to the vent in the van skin that was there for this purpose as I discovered it was not connected to the vent, just venting above the vent itself. A bit of flexi hose sorted that out. Dont forget to check that all the tubular plastice supports under the ply base supporting the shower are all in place and supporting the base, acouple of mine had fallen over. When replacing the shower tray I cleaned off the old mastic and replaced it with some non setting mastic I also pre-emptively taped a windescreen removal wire around the periphery of where the shower base with the ends accessible once the lower facia panel has been removed to aid removal in the future. Replacing the door side trims rether than gluing I elected to screw them on since they may have to come off again. I ran a small bead of silicon down the join where the trims meet the wall inside the shower. Replacing the tambour door is a right pain but also gave me the opportunity to check the condition of the slats and epoxy a bit of damage I had noted.

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[berni109]

I know you have said it's the waste pipe but are you sure.
It look to me as if you have a pull out shower head tap. Thought I had a leak from tap tails or waste turned out the connection on the pull out tap had come slightly loose. Might be worth a check.

 

[Coolcats]

Pipe with lid is heater ducting.
The convoluted grey pipe will be a waste pipe.

Thank your confirming, I did wonder if it was

Open toilet locker and look for some trim you can remove. Often that enables you to access where you need.

Thank you

The pipe with the lid is I believe a Truma heating system junction plus I think you'll find the hot and cold pipes are in the convoluted tube, if that's correct then pull the pipes out and feel if they are wet, if so the leak is above so you should be able to fix it

Thank you

I know you have said it's the waste pipe but are you sure.
It look to me as if you have a pull out shower head tap. Thought I had a leak from tap tails or waste turned out the connection on the pull out tap had come slightly loose. Might be worth a check.

Yes I am sure, I placed a Endoscope down the centre of the waste and you can see it just flaps about. I have had leaks from the tap tails but you remove the silver pin and push them back. when they leaked you could see drips in to the cassette area outside and then access the through the small hatch. Thank you for your response.

To all of you thank you for taking the time to respond it is appreciated

 

[Coolcats]

I have a Hymercar Yellowstone van with the same bathroom arrangement and this also happened to me. The sink waste down pipe consists of an unsupported vertical pvc pipe push fitted onto the bottom of the sink drain you may be able to reach in from the removable panel to the right of the sink and manipulate it back on. Mine had dropped right off and was not retrievable by me. I spent half a day tring to remove the fascia boards around the sink unit wthout causing any damage and had to give up on that approach. I ended up having to remove the shower tray which also involved removing the toilet, tambour door, wooden trims on sides of bathroom (these are glued, albeit poorly). The shower tray has sealant underneath but with a little persistance and care it can be removed without damage. It is a time consuming job. The downpipe is connected to two fittings at the bottom to enable it to turn through 90 degrees, I was surprised to see the fittings had been duct taped together to keep them connected (so dont believe all you hear about the quality of german vans) and from there to a flexible pipe to the trap inlet to the waste tank. I replaced the rigid pipes with spiral hose from the drain all the way to this connection (Putting a sleeve on for the 90 turn) and made sure it was supported near the sink waste connection. I also took this opportunity to connect the exhaust of the thetford toilet to the vent in the van skin that was there for this purpose as I discovered it was not connected to the vent, just venting above the vent itself. A bit of flexi hose sorted that out. Dont forget to check that all the tubular plastice supports under the ply base supporting the shower are all in place and supporting the base, acouple of mine had fallen over. When replacing the shower tray I cleaned off the old mastic and replaced it with some non setting mastic I also pre-emptively taped a windescreen removal wire around the periphery of where the shower base with the ends accessible once the lower facia panel has been removed to aid removal in the future. Replacing the door side trims rether than gluing I elected to screw them on since they may have to come off again. I ran a small bead of silicon down the join where the trims meet the wall inside the shower. Replacing the tambour door is a right pain but also gave me the opportunity to check the condition of the slats and epoxy a bit of damage I had noted.

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Oh my goodness, thank you so much for sharing and providing such a comprehensive response, I need to reflect on if I am going to do this or possibly get a price from the dealer, my concern is if I damage any of the wood work its down to me if the dealer does it they have to fix it.

Well done you on working it out and on completing a good fix.

 

[Threesheded]

Oh my goodness, thank you so much for sharing and providing such a comprehensive response, I need to reflect on if I am going to do this or possibly get a price from the dealer, my concern is if I damage any of the wood work its down to me if the dealer does it they have to fix it.

Well done you on working it out and on completing a good fix.

It is a couple of years since I had to do this, and on reflection I should have taken more pictures. Since removal of the toilet would be one of the first jobs toward removing the shower tray, it may be possible with the toilet removed, and the boxing in, between the back of the lower shower room panel and the hatch in the side of the van removed. The boxing in is just screwed in via plastic blocks into surrounding panels. and reach up behind the panel (see arrow in picture) to re attach the rigid pipe to the hose tail from the sink waste if you are happy with the current arrangement and feel no need to replace the entire length. The only issue is the pipe may fall off again due to the lack of support. When I did it I did not know how the hidden elements of the shower area construction and routing of the pipework. Removal and replacement of the toilet and the boxing in was one of the easier parts of this job.
Best of luck.

 

[berni109]

Is there any chance you could remove the sink and then patch in an extra length of pipe before replacing?
Just a thought.
Alternatively do you know any gynecologists.

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[Insider]

Is there any chance you could remove the sink and then patch in an extra length of pipe before replacing?
Just a thought.
Alternatively do you know any gynecologists.

I'm not a gynecologist but I'd be willing to take a look....comes to mind

 

[Coolcats]

I realised that I had not replied to this thread but would like to thank every one who responded with suggestions

 

[Coolcats]

It is a couple of years since I had to do this, and on reflection I should have taken more pictures. Since removal of the toilet would be one of the first jobs toward removing the shower tray, it may be possible with the toilet removed, and the boxing in, between the back of the lower shower room panel and the hatch in the side of the van removed. The boxing in is just screwed in via plastic blocks into surrounding panels. and reach up behind the panel (see arrow in picture) to re attach the rigid pipe to the hose tail from the sink waste if you are happy with the current arrangement and feel no need to replace the entire length. The only issue is the pipe may fall off again due to the lack of support. When I did it I did not know how the hidden elements of the shower area construction and routing of the pipework. Removal and replacement of the toilet and the boxing in was one of the easier parts of this job.
Best of luck.

View attachment 773329

Have to say your post was very very helpful, I did remove the toilet had a good look and decided that the job and risk of damage was a little beyond me. So I asked a certain dealer I normally get my damp check with for a a quote I provided pictures discription and they even suggested the bathroom may have to come out......they quoted 4 hours which I knew was impossible and lead me to suspect they were (as I have found in the past not very competent) So I rang around a few more Hymer dealers and they all came back with around 12 hours plus parts. Which given the time and effort you put in seemed reasonable. In the end I was charged 10 hours labour and £1.67 for a new hose. Whilst this isn't 'cheap' they did a good job and obviously took on the risk.

When I picked the MoHo up the technician said his arms are still recovering, so once again a big thanks for your help.

 

[Threesheded]

Hi

Glad you have got it sorted. As you said they took on the risk, and the possibility of damaging the shower tray was uppermost in my mind when I did mine. Given the cheap and flimsy plastic they are made from I am sure the price of replacement would have been extortionate.

Happy travels.