Low Water Pressure on City Water

manyman297

Still trying to figure this out. Water pressure is fine on pump with both hot and cold (cold is slightly higher pressure than hot but I understand that's normal).

When connected to city water the pressure overall drops pretty dramatically. I've cleaned out the Alde mixing valve which was a bit dirty. That seemed to help a little but the pressure is still low. I've only hooked up on city water at our house this season which provides about 60psi from the tap. I'm then connected to a Camco water filter and 40-50psi pressure regulator. From there it goes to a hose and into the T@B.

This has been our setup for the last two years and I haven't noticed an issue. Could the check valve on the Nautilus cause pressure issues? Or is it something outside the T@B causing the issue? 

pthomas745

Try it without the Camco?

manyman297

@pthomas745 Yeah, it could be that. It's a new filter but maybe there's a blockage? Those filters have never been a problem before.

One other thing. I had to connect two garden hoses together to get the length needed. Not sure if that matters (probably not). 

krsmes

You can pick up a water pressure test gauge at Amazon/Lowes/HomeDepot pretty inexpensively to see what the pressure is after your filter and regulator: https://a.co/d/8BY9NjL 

pthomas745

Hmmm...we have plenty of electrical "voltage drop" charts on the Forums, but we don't seem to have a water pressure hose loss chart!

manyman297

Forgot I had a pressure gauge. Did some initial testing and it might be my pressure regulator. It was showing 25psi while another one I have on hand was showing 40psi. Need to actually hook it up to see if that’s the issue. 

Mickerly

The blue plastic, cylindrical Camco things can disassemble for cleaning. Pull the rubber washer out. Push from the other side with your finger, a plastic piece comes out of the center. Clean both in hot soapy water. It will fill with mold and dirt after a while. Many people throw them away when they get dirty, but they are easy to clean. Cleaning at least once per year will prevent most issues.

The other bit that could be confusing, they are just a restrictor to reduce pressure. They don't regulate. I know it says "50psi regulator" on the package, but they just restrict flow. There are no moving parts. Plumbing running full pressure of 160psi will be restricted to 50psi or about 1/3. So a 70psi hose will reduce to about 1/3 or 25psi or so. A real regulator will be a larger brass thing with a bell shaped housing and an adjustment screw on top. Those can be set for a predetermined pressure.

Maple_Geek

Don't know if this is of any help but my 2022 TAB320S has an included inline pressure restrictor that I suspect is having an undesirable effect on the flow...especially when I also add a variable water pressure regulator.

manyman297

@Mickerly That’s exactly what I suspected…that these pressure regulators are just flow restrictors. I tested both a brass and plastic one I have and both read about 25-30psi coming off a 65psi city connection. 

So…I think I’ll bite the bullet and buy a proper regulator that I can dial in the pressure. We don’t use city water much but next time we do I’ll buy a real regulator. The sink pressure was pathetically weak and I think the pressure is so low that it was allowing air into the system through the Alde air bleeder valve (the one on the top side of the main Alde unit. 

manyman297

Quick update. I bought an adjustable pressure regulator off Amazon and the pressure is much better. I set it to about 47psi and it’s no longer a drizzle. We had to deal with it for an entire week on the road which wasn’t fun. Takes a lot longer to wash dishes with low pressure. 

The hot water is still much lower pressure than the cold though and this is especially noticeable with the shower head. It’s by no means a dealbreaker but the cold water pressure is much better. 

stepheng

I had an issue with the in-line regulator leaking on my 2022 320S BD.  I was at the Terlingua rally and Marvin was there from NuCamp. The installed regulator was not the right one on my 2022.  It was an 80 PSI regulator and was supposed to be 45.  Seems the manufacturer sent the wrong parts to NuCamp at some point.  I've always used an external regulator an will continue to do so. I removed the internal regulator. Here is the connection after removing the regulator.

stepheng

@manyman297 Do you have a link for the adjustable regulator you purchased from amazon?

manyman297

@stepheng Here you go:

RVGUARD RV Water Pressure Regulator Valve, Brass Lead-Free Adjustable Water Pressure Reducer with Gauge and Inlet Screen Filter for RV Camper Travel Trailer https://a.co/d/5ESDu9x

stepheng

@manyman297 Thanks for the link.

RVMike

@manyman297, please do not let that device freeze.  I have experience with that.  I went back to the cheaper straight through brass one(s).  

Mike

manyman297

@RVMike Thanks for the heads up. I’ll make a note to bring it in during winter. I noticed it holds a fair amount of residual water even after shaking it out.