i'm an idiot

[andanotherthing]

Been cleaning out the water tank on my hylo and despite thinking i was being careful i must have over filled the tank as the well behind the drivers door is flooded with water. i have dried out this area but have a couple of questions:

1) would the water have gone anywhere else, and if so how do i dry out the rest of the van
2) i thought i was being careful... but could someone give me tips to avoid doing this again?

Regards,

Dan

[yamaha]

I would think it would pay you to borrow / hire a de-humidifier and leave it running in the van for a few days - can't see it drying out naturally this time of the year.

Mike

[alan]

The only way water can get from your water tank to the well behind your seat is, if you left the screw cap that seals the tank, which is under the bench seat immediately behind the drivers seat, undone/loose.
When filling your water tank, make sure this cap is screwed tight. Fill the tank quite slowly, there is a hole in the feed pipe to the tank, through which, when you reach full capacity, water should trickle out of near the vehicle sill below the tank filler. If you carry on filling, provided you have the inside water tank cap screwed tight, the only place water will overflow is back through the filler cap.
I use a small diameter filler pipe, so there is room for water to get back out of the filler hole.
Water would have only gone over the edge of the bench seat and under the drivers seat I would have thought. Check the underside of your bench seat.I recently put a load of wet equipment under the drivers seat, when I removed the items the carpet was really saturated. I drove the van with nothing under the seat for awhile, with the heater setting on the feet position.

[Chrissy and Martin]

You're not alone! I did the very same thing towards the end of last year. After removing as much as i could with a towel the rest dried out no problem.

It also happened to me whilst trying to freshen up the tank. I still don't think I've purified it sufficiently to have it as drinking water. The tea just doesn't quite taste right!

I had another go yesterday when I put about ten Milton tablets in for an hour or so and then flushed it through twice. Haven't tasted it yet, so can't say if it worked. At least I never flooded the van this time.

Does anyone else find they can't use the water in the tank for drinking?

[kriss63]

I dont like using water from the tank - I'm looking to take the water tank out, (but to save it just incase we sell the van). It tastes horrible

if i need water for the pots, i always like to wash in warm water boiled from the kettle.

I always get fresh water from the camp site, but then again i am not that well travelled and not had much experience away from a campsite such as wild camping where more water storage may be needed

[viv]

We are going to take out our water tank as we never use it. We always use fresh water from the site and keep a bottle filled in the fridge and use kettle water to wash up. We would not wild camp so no problem for us.

We would of course keep the tank in case we ever needed it. It can go in the attic with the tent etc.

[andanotherthing]

thanks for the advice. i still don't think i understand why the van floods where it does when you over fill the tank... seems a bit of a design flaw that the solution to overfilling the tank is to pour water down the back of the seats! the only place that i could see water was behind the drivers seat...so hopefully thats the only place that flooded...i think i will try the dehumidifeir or leave the heating on for a bit of piece of mind.

[alan]

There is no design fault, have you found the water tank inspection cap under your bench seat ? If that is screwed down tight, the only place water will overflow is through the hole in the FILLER PIPE or back out of where you are filling the tank, both of these will empty OUTSIDE the van.

[andanotherthing]

hi alan,
the inspection cap was definately secure, and the level of the tank didn't go down overnight after i brimmed the tank. i assumed that the overflow was the cause but maybe i have a loose connection or split pipe somewhere, which leaked in to the van whilst filling?
access to the filler pipe doesn't look easy...can anyone explain what i need to remove to check all the water filler pipes?
regards,
dan

[ant]

Hi Dan.
The panel fitted next to the tank ( under the window effectively) need to come out. I would check the filler pipe itself, if it is a clear one with copper coloured reinforcing I suspect it has failed, there was a dud batch of that pipe a few years ago. If its a grey pipe it's probably not the culprit.
Ant

[martinw]

Hi Dan

I had the same problem a few years ago.

Cant remember exactly what was wrong but I think it was a split in the tank connector for the filler hose, which I repaired with Araldite and so far (touch wood) it has been OK.

Empty the tank by turning on the tap, then remove as much of the water out as you can with a small plastic cup through the top opening, I can just get my hand in there holding such a cup, and tip it out of the window, tedious but necessary to avoid another flood, BUT you will still loose some water so have some towels ready

It is not easy to get to so the tank must be removed, by removing the bracket(s) that secure it to the floor and easing it out part way so that you can get to the pipe clips, one filler and one breather and the water pump, It might be easier if you take off the pump be for removing the brackets. Don't forget to isolate the pump from the electric be for removing the wires.

Just a thought, it may not be a split, it may be that the plastic "nut" that holds the connectors on to the tank has come loose inside, but you will have to remove the tank any way to do a proper job.

Also check ALL pipe connections, tightness of clips etc. as any one that is not secure will cause a flood.

One last tip, I found that when tightening the large top cover the sealing "O" ring tended to crimp up and not seal it properly, so I put a THIN smear of Vaseline on it to make it slid into place better

.Hope this is of some use, if I can be of further help just ask.

Martin

Just seen Ants reply, I don't have a panel next to the tank and my filler pipe is black?? So perhaps mine has been changed at some time, also mine is a C15 is yours?----just done a search and you don't have a C15 but what I said might be of use if not to you it may help others M