We’ve heard it said that, “RVing is fixing things in beautiful places.”
We find that maxim to be Oh. So. True!
In 2019 we chased the cause behind water dripping along the seam of the lower body panels of our 2017 Airstream Classic and making the water pump growl every twenty minutes to recharge the system. We chased that leak for five months!!
3600 miles into our current trip and this morning we looked at each other and said, is the pump really supposed be making that noise a few times a day? This is a new pump. Hmmmmm…..
It turns out, No.
Last night’s cold weather left us in no doubt — there was an icicle hanging from the bottom of the Airstream. Exactly where the old leak was. We got this! No searching for five months.
We pulled the bottom panel off the dinette next to the fridge — and discovered the hot water line to the exterior shower was dripping. Two years ago the leak damaged the electronics down here — so we propped the Firefly control panel on top of a Tupperware container, tightened a hand screw, and squashed a towel in the space to absorb the spilled water.
This seems to happen when the roads are especially rough — which we had in New Mexico and Arizona. Our plan is to replace (beef up) the teflon tape on the fitting and monitor it.
The water seems to drip down the space between the floor and the wall insulation — so we don’t see the telltale inside on the floor unless it has been leaking for a long time. Maybe we will add it to our departure checklist. 😉
We just thought we would offer this tale in case it happens to someone else. The clips on the dinette are so strong that the first time we were leak hunting we thought we could not access that space. We’ve learned: pull strongly!
David, doesn’t it seem there is always something to fix. After 6 years on the road, I agree that having to fix something in some of the most beautiful places is a joy. Really. A week doesn’t go by without me fixing or tweaking something, but we wouldn’t trade this lifestyle for any other. Thanks for sharing your adventure finding this leak.