Hot water in caravan

martin and jo

hi all,

am new to caravaning i have bought a swift challenger 470/2se 1992 am having trouble with getting water to the hot tap everything is connected except for one pipe which is taped up, i have been looking on internet to see if i can get a image of the water
heating and the piping but with no luck can anyone help please.

many thanks

martin&jo

KjellNN

That taped up pipe is likely the reason.

Caravan water system will be pretty straightforward,  Water comes in at side of van then pipe splits to supply cold to kitchen and bathroom and cold feed to water heater.

Then from water heater a pipe will run to the hot taps in kitchen and bathroom.

Do you get any water at all from the hot taps?

Can you access the tap tails and trace the pipework back towards the water heater ?

Where is the pipe that is not connected to anything?

Are there any wires coming from the taps?  If so, you have microswitches which activate the pump.  If any of those are broken, opening that tap will not turn on the pump.  Does the pump run when you try each hot tap in turn?

KjellNN

Do you have the handbook for the van?

If not, you can download from Swift, here is the link.....

http://www.swiftgroup.co.uk/help-and-advice/more-information/handbooks

Unfortunately the oldest one in the archive is year 2000, but it will maybe give you an idea of the systems.  Electricals tend to change faster than the water side of things.

KjellNN

Swift also have their own forum, SwiftTalk, which is good for advice, so you could join up on there too.

commeyras

Martin, as KjellNN says taped up pipe probably the problem.  No end should be taped they must go somewhere - a tap or heater then tap.  Just a thought, maybe a previous owner has put a cold only tap where once there was a mixer one.  If you bought your caravan
from a dealer and it is still under any sort of waranty, back to him.  Try the following

Any water from hot taps?

If yes - is heater on. If on gas you should hear it; if electric after a few minutes you should feel the hot exit join getting warm.  If water does not heat up problem with heater - could be a fuse or connection somewhere.  Are you doing this with a battery
in your caravan - a 12 v is needed.

 If no; have you closed the drain valve!  Try again and turn a hot tap on, is the pump working.  If it is wait for a solid flow of water from the tap, do this for all hot taps and shower.  If water but not warming up problem with heater.

commeyras

Martin.  How are you getting on with your problem?

martin and jo

hi all thankyou for your replys i wont have chance to look at caravan untill weekend but will let you all know,i think it is the pipe which is blocked off as when i turn hot tap on the pump starts and i can hear the water being pumped but then stops as if
it is being blocked.

if i could just find a picture of the layout of the piping that would be great.

many thanks martin

 

KjellNN

I'm afraid you are most unlikely to find any pictures.

Caravan pipework really is very simple, best way to figure it out is to start at the water inlet and follow each pipe.

I would also get a bucket, untape the end of the pipe and see if you get any water out of it when you turn on a hot tap.

As to why anyone would cut off the water to the hot taps (is it ALL the hot taps, you must have 3 of them), one reason could be a leak in an inaccessible place like somewhere behind the shower.

martin and jo

no leaks,i will try it with a bucket and see if water comes out and will follow each pipe,it is the hot taps that dont work one in kitchen and the shower room i dont know why they would block it off but thankyou for your help on this matter

KjellNN

Sorry, I meant a leak from a tap, or a pipe, that the previous owner was unable to fix, so disconnected the water instead, not a leak from outside.

It is a scenario I have heard of before, so if you manage to connect everything up, just be careful to check all along the pipework.

ValDa

They may have blocked it off because it was left with water in over  the winter, the water froze and expanded, and 'blew one of the seals'  which caused the a leak.  Instead of replacing the problem tap or junction they may have just taped up the feed to
any of the hot taps.

As had been said, you need to trace the supply from the inlet, through the heater, and onwards, to find where the problem is.  Most parts are easy enough to replace, and not too costly, so you should hopefully soon have a working system!

martin and jo

thankyou for your post,i am going to try all of the ideas that members have come up with and will post at the weekend after i have tried all of them.

hopefully i will have a working system at the weekend ?

BrianandElaine

we have found with our swift charisma that we do not do things in a set order then we get no hot water coming through! ie if I am being impatient.   I need to keep my hands off the water taps etc until the aquaroll it filled up and connected.  Once this
has been done I can then switch on the pump and the hot water will eventually come through.  First trip of the season is always the same and we make sure we do things correctly.   We actually called the dealer the first time as we were stumped why no hot water
coming through plenty cold but not hot - easy remedy unplug electric hook up from bollard and wait 5 minutes then plug back in - duly did that and it worked hot water.   Not sure if maybe something as simple as this but might be worth a try.

martin and jo

thankyou for the information i will definately try your idea.

martin and jo

hi everyone

I have found out where the pipe goes, it was taken of due to aleak on the element on the water tank heater which kept on tripping out the fuse i have ordered all the seals which should be here on tuesday and then will replace and all should be working but
i do have running water to all taps. i would like to thankyou all for your help in this matter.

martin and jo