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qhumberd
Moderator

Yet another outdoor shower not working thread

Last year I decided to take apart the outdoor shower on my 2019 Tab 400. Why, you ask? You all know why.

Anyway, I took it apart and found the hose kink thing, so I decided to reroute the hose around the standpipe. This eliminated the kink problem and only shortened the hose by a few centimetres (a couple of inches). It seemed to work, until this summer, while we were on our vacation to the Oregon coast (Fort Stevens is lovely) and I was using the outdoor shower to rinse off some sand. I heard a leak in the holding area for the hose.

When we got home, I took the shower apart again, and sure enough, the hose had come loose. OK, I thought, I'll just use some plumbers tape and tighten it properly. This worked. I also took the shower head off and increased the size of the hole at the base, as I had seen in at least one other thread here. Did that ever increase the flow of water! Great, I thought. Now we will be able to use the outdoor shower for rinsing things off, or doing certain dishes, etc.

Today, as I was getting the trailer ready to go for the last trip of summer, I filled the water tank and ran the water pump to charge the system. All taps were fine, except, of course, the outdoor shower. Nothing came out at all. I am at a loss. I do not have time before we leave tomorrow to take things apart again and diagnose what is stopping the water from coming out. I will have to do that when we get back in a few days.

So, any ideas why this suddenly decided to happen? I won't be able to check answers until next weekend (Sept 17 2022), but I would appreciate any thoughts.

Thank you for being the go to place for Tab questions!
Hopper - 2019 T@B 400
Donald S. Cherry - 2016 Kia Sorento V6 (3.3L)
Where we call home - Our House, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, North America, Earth, SOL, Milky Way, Universe
GO FLAMES GO!

Comments

  • Denny16
    Denny16 Member Posts: 5,431
    On the 2018/2019 TaB400 you have the outdoor cutoff valves under the closet floor.  Did,they get shut during your winter layover?  You might give the valves a check to make sure they are open.
     Cheers 
    2018 TaB400 Custom Boondock,  Jeep Gladiator truck, Northern California Coast.
  • qhumberd
    qhumberd Administrator, Moderator Posts: 781
    So if your shutoffs are open per @Denny16, another issue might be the release valve in the sprayer. Mine got sticky and did not want to open or close. I was able yo take off the sprayer head and clean and lube the mechanism and it worked ok until my hose at the mixer started leaking again. This was after I did the plumbers tape and retighten thing. The in and out motion of the sprayer hose just creates torque on the fitting and sooner or later it loosens


    There are a couple of versions of upgrades on the forum to a new hose connection. That will fix it once and for all. This version works great and has amazing flow pressure. Just search under outdoor shower. Have a great trip.




    2019  T@B400 Boondock Lite "Todd"
    2016 Toyota Tundra 5.7 Crew Cab
  • AnOldUR
    AnOldUR Member Posts: 1,725
    edited September 2022
    qhumberd said:
    There are a couple of versions of upgrades on the forum ...

    Not having the hose causing complications from being shoved into the compartment is a big advantage to the quick disconnect mod. Here's our version.


    Stockton, New Jersey
    2020 nuCamp T@B 320S * Jeep Wrangler
    60,865 camping miles through the end of 2025

  • Syd
    Syd Member Posts: 47
    To revive my own old thread - We are on our first trip of 2023. A week before we left, I had taken apart the outdoor shower assembly and replaced the hose. Before putting it back together I tested the shower and it worked perfectly. Put it back together and...nothing. No water coming out at all. When we get back home in a few days I will tear it down again and try to find some other solution. A family member has a different type of trailer and they took the shower out and MacGyvered a tap in its place. Since the outdoor shower is actually useless, I am wondering if anyone here has done something similar, and if so, any suggestions about what parts to get/use?
    Hopper - 2019 T@B 400
    Donald S. Cherry - 2016 Kia Sorento V6 (3.3L)
    Where we call home - Our House, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, North America, Earth, SOL, Milky Way, Universe
    GO FLAMES GO!
  • qhumberd
    qhumberd Administrator, Moderator Posts: 781
    @Syd if you have not seen my solution you may want to consider it as the quick disconnect provides a lot of flexibility in use. Mine has worked without a hitch last 2 seasons 

    not that expensive and only a little McGyvering needed
    Parts are noted below

    https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com/discussion/16114/quick-disconnect-for-the-outdoor-shower-a-success#latest

    2019  T@B400 Boondock Lite "Todd"
    2016 Toyota Tundra 5.7 Crew Cab
  • Syd
    Syd Member Posts: 47
    Thank you @qhumberd. I had not seen your hack. I will look into it as a possibility. But I think the mix valve itself is borked, so I will have to replace the entire assembly. Still, if I can get the water to flow again, this might be an affordable solution.
    Hopper - 2019 T@B 400
    Donald S. Cherry - 2016 Kia Sorento V6 (3.3L)
    Where we call home - Our House, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, North America, Earth, SOL, Milky Way, Universe
    GO FLAMES GO!
  • qhumberd
    qhumberd Administrator, Moderator Posts: 781
    Looks like you can get parts for the Fontana, including the mixing valve.

    This ITC site has the valve for about 29.00

    Good luck



    2019  T@B400 Boondock Lite "Todd"
    2016 Toyota Tundra 5.7 Crew Cab