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GlueGuy
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Joined: 15 May 2017
Location: N. California
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Posts: 2629
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Topic: Fresh water tank leaking Posted: 09 Jan 2020 at 6:24pm |
Originally posted by Pod People
I just looked it up—it is called JB WEld epxy putty for plasticIt was $7.99 Vann |
I looked that stuff up at JB Weld and I either have the wrong stuff or else it specifically excludes polyethylene with the following statement:
"Does not adhere to polyethylene, polypropylene or some other plastics."
This is the stuff I am looking at:
However....
I did some more searching and came up with this stuff:
This is a glue from Loctite. In its specifications it says:
"Works well with polyethylene and polypropylene surfaces"
That is $4 for a 2 gram tube. I have no idea how large an area that might cover. It doesn't sound like much.
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bp
2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River
2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost
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Pod People
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Joined: 22 Sep 2011
Location: Chapel Hill,NC
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Posted: 09 Jan 2020 at 5:35pm |
I just looked it up—it is called JB WEld epxy putty for plastic It was $7.99 Vann
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Vann & Laura 2015 RPod 179
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Pod People
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Joined: 22 Sep 2011
Location: Chapel Hill,NC
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Posted: 09 Jan 2020 at 5:32pm |
We had a similar leak. JB Weld makes a 2 part glue system specifically for polyethelene. We bought a kit and it worked. It was instant and easy. Make sure the tank is empty and the area dried and cleaned as noted above. We found the JB Weld kit at Home Depot. Vann
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Vann & Laura 2015 RPod 179
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Prestone
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Joined: 26 Jul 2019
Location: Conroe, TX
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Posted: 08 Jan 2020 at 6:34pm |
Ok well I have some options, I’ll have to decide which one fits my skill set best . Thanks for the research and advise everybody. Now I just have to find the time.
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offgrid
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Joined: 23 Jul 2018
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Posted: 08 Jan 2020 at 4:31pm |
The fresh water tank is polyethylene. Not much adheres to it. Flame treatment improves adhesion. Clean and dry the area first, alcohol wipe, then flame treat it, then apply the adhesive. I have had reasonable success on PE with West Systems gflex epoxy which if more flexible than regular expoxies.
Good luck!
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1994 Chinook Concourse
1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft
2015 Rpod 179 - sold
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Olddawgsrule
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Joined: 20 Sep 2017
Location: New Hampshire
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Posted: 08 Jan 2020 at 3:49pm |
Originally posted by GlueGuy
There are a bunch of links all over the web about how to repair a polyurethane water tank. I just looked at this one, and it looked like it might actually work:
This one might be a better bet that could actually work in your situation. A DIY poly welding kit:
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Both these look good to me and can't see why either wouldn't work. Except for where the crack actually is.. You issue is: You're working upside down.. really tough to weld (braze)... I think I'd try the fiberglass style. If you have never brazed before, I will say again, try the fiberglass system first, you can get into a lot of trouble fast if you don't know how to braze.
Looks like you caught the 1 in 1,000 pebbles flying around under there right on the drain plug..
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GlueGuy
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Joined: 15 May 2017
Location: N. California
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Posted: 08 Jan 2020 at 2:45pm |
There are a bunch of links all over the web about how to repair a polyurethane water tank. I just looked at this one, and it looked like it might actually work:
This one might be a better bet that could actually work in your situation. A DIY poly welding kit:
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bp
2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River
2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost
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Prestone
Newbie
Joined: 26 Jul 2019
Location: Conroe, TX
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Posts: 14
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Posted: 08 Jan 2020 at 1:06pm |
Ok so it unanimous, don’t use silicon and look for someone with plastic welding experience. Any recommendation for the Houston area? No one suggested a new tank... too expensive?
I’ll try the remedy suggested for the valve reset this weekend.
Thank all
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furpod
Moderator Group - pHp
Joined: 25 Jul 2011
Location: Central KY
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Posted: 08 Jan 2020 at 12:51pm |
That is a friction welded piece. Silicone won't work. Plastic welding will. I also am of the mind it struck something.
The back filling is a bad or most probably misaligned check valve flap in the front of the water pump. Turn off the city water, open a tap, then turn on the pump. That should reseat the flap.
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GlueGuy
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Joined: 15 May 2017
Location: N. California
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Posted: 08 Jan 2020 at 11:23am |
The water back-filling when hooked to city water would most likely be a check valve problem. The location of that varies a bit depending on the R-pod model.
And Motor7 is correct, silicone would not stick very well to that plastic. I think (but am not 100% certain) that it's some kind of polyurethane plastic. Polyurethane is notorious (and or famous) for being impossible to glue. I would think your best option is to find someone that has the equipment and expertise to try to plastic weld it.
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bp
2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River
2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost
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