# Leak help



## aless (Jul 29, 2010)

Hi. We're about to leave tomorrow morning on our 10 month trip around Europe. We have picked up our van and are at my father's house ready to go. And then this evening I just noticed a leak below the van. It's streaming fairly quickly. We did fill up the water tank a little while before I noticed it happening, but I also noticed a wetr patch under the van this morning but thought nothing of it. At that time the water tank was completely empty, so I don't know if that would be relevant. Also soon before noticing the leak my wife had been using the water inside to clean the shower. I have included some pictures to show the leak and the location. It is front right, a little in front of where the door is and a foot or two from the side. The model is a Dethleffs A 5981. We are going to a mechanic friend of my father's in the morning who can usually fix anything. But if anyone has an idea of the cause or what to do perhaps we can leave on our trip as scheduled. Thanks in advance for any help.


----------



## trevorf (May 16, 2005)

Is the leak underneath your hot water boiler? Its probably the automatic frost protection valve opening to drain out the water and prevent frost damage.
Look around the boiler and you will find a red push/pull knob.




Trevor


----------



## aless (Jul 29, 2010)

A quick addendum. I just went and looked and the leak had stopped. So I went inside and ran the tap for a few seconds and it started to pour out of that spot again. In case it matters, we are on a slight slope towards the front - the valve to empty dirty water is in the back. So clearly it is our dirty water leaking and not our water supply. Does this sound right? And if so, is that something easy for a mechanic to seal? Any suggestions on what should be done? Does it look like we'll be able to leave as planned tomorrow. Hope so! Thanks again.


----------



## inkey-2008 (May 24, 2008)

You best bet is to get under the van pin point where it is coming through the van then get in side to stop it.

With all the cold weather it is either the frost protection drain opening as pointed out or a burst pipe or water tank. 

Andy


----------



## mikeyv (May 23, 2007)

If it's waste, just take a bucket and pop it under the leak before using - plenty of people do that anyway, especially in freezing conditions - if you can open the drain and catch that as well as the leak, even better.

Hopefully your man will fix it anyway, but it certainly wouldn't stop me going if he can't.


----------



## moblee (Dec 31, 2006)

Did you drain it all awhile ago ?

If you did, perhaps you have fully closed them again.


----------



## aless (Jul 29, 2010)

Thanks for all the responses. We emptied the grey water earlier today. Where it's leaking from is nowhere near where the grey water draining happens. It seems to be coming out from somewhere it's not meant to under the van, streaming around the metal area, forming and pooling on the bottom of the metal area, before then dripping down. I'll look for a red knob around the boiler - hopefully that's all it is.


----------



## peribro (Sep 6, 2009)

It certainly sounds like a leak from the waste pipes. To make absolutely sure it is that and nothing to do with the pump pushing fresh water around, fill up a bucket from the house supply and tip it down the sink in the van. If it leaks you know it is that. Does it only leak from your sink? What about your shower? If only the sink, then you've got to trace the pipe run until you find it. I had a leak recently that was a push fit connection that wasn't properly in. Took me an age to find it and no time to fix it so you may be lucky.


----------



## altom (Sep 12, 2009)

aless said:


> So I went inside and ran the tap for a few seconds and it started to pour out of that spot again. .


That answers your question. You turned the tap and the pump started pumping water into the Truma water heater. As the safety button was down then water will come gushing out of the heater. Reset the button (pull it up) making sure that it stays up either by having the warm air heater on or by using a clothes peg!

If you do that problem solved go on your holiday...wish I was on my way too!!


----------



## JohnGun (May 15, 2009)

altom said:


> aless said:
> 
> 
> > So I went inside and ran the tap for a few seconds and it started to pour out of that spot again. .
> ...


altom, best bit of info on this thread.


----------



## tramp (May 25, 2005)

slightly off topic but a great bit of advise when looking for leaks etc.

tip 1 ltr of coloured water [ food colouring ] down each drain in turn with different colour to see if its a central leak or specific to a certain drain.

if you get a multicoloured drain its the "smarties man" :lol: :lol:

sometimes the drain from the dumpvalve were it connects to the pipe exiting the van comes loose , so the water drains along the chassy to the lowest point  But very rare though.


----------



## erneboy (Feb 8, 2007)

The ideas suggested hold good providing your water pump is activated by micro switches in the taps. If it is pressure controlled instead any leak would prevent pressure being built up and therefore the pump should run all the time regardless of the taps being switched on.

I thought most modern vans would not use micro switches in the taps.

Just a thought, Alan.


----------



## rosalan (Aug 24, 2009)

All of the advice seems good and relevant but without the full facts of your water condition (drained or not drained) and whether the problem increases with the pump switched on (system pressurised), it is somewhat difficult to know what is going on.
I had a leak earlier last year with water running out like yours but the problem was nowhere near the drip. In my case it was a push fit that had opened up behind a panel and like your problem was I am sure easy to fix, once the actual source is located.
For what it is worth, the drip looks too messy to be part of the drainage design.
Alan


----------



## aless (Jul 29, 2010)

Sorry for the delay following up. We haven't found wifi for a couple of days. The problem was indeed the frost protection. Spot the newbie. Thanks to everyone for all the information. We set off as planned. Caught our first sight of the Pyrenees today, heading into Basque country tomorrow.


----------

