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what will we need?

our current van has an internal tank and after talking with elddis i have found out that you cannot run just off the external system, you have to fill the internal tank up or if you try to use the external pump it just keeps running and will burn itself out.

so what do we need to buy to change this over? how easy is it to do? and does it involve ripping my new (to us) van apart?

Does your van have an internal pump?

My van has and it also has an internal tank.

Under the sink is a 4 valve set up which by setting the valves I can
A; Draw water to the taps/hot water heater from the internal tank.
B; Draw water to the taps/hot water heater from the external tank.
C; Fill the internal water tank from the external tank.

All the taps are pressurized.

This could be an option for you.

thanks lobey but i have checked this out with eldiss and we just cant run on external water as things are right now, we are going to have to fit a pressure system as when we use the external pump it just keeps runing even when the taps are turned off,

the taps and both pumps work as they should do when on internal water, so there is nothing wrong with either of them its just how eldiss have done this, this is the one and only time i wish we had kids with us as then they can walk back and forth to fill the internal tank as my legs are short enough right now

Hi Cobminor, The system uses a Whale self priming pump.

I have copied the relevent page from the Owners Manual and you can view it HERE.

There is a wee movie on the van at
http://www.caravanchannel.co.uk/v2players/sprintaway.html
But I don't think it says anything specific about the water system.

Hope this helps.

Hi The Fox, Is it not possible to fit a switch inside the van, connected to the pump in the external tank and then a hose from that pump into the internal tank. Then when the internal tank needs filling, you hit the switch and the water flows into the internal tank.

Afterall, if everything is working properly from the internal tank, all you need is a way of topping that tank up.

I take it that you have a guage in the van to tell you what the water level is in the internal tank.

hi fox i have the same caravan on a 2007 model i use a 40ltr aqua roll and that fills the onboard tank up  via the external pump once filled

i refill the aqua roll then hook it back up to the filler pump and just check the on board tank via the gauge and if its low just switch the pump to external

this way you have 80ltrs of water available if it freezes out side you still have useable water in the on board tank and i leave about 20% in the tank when on long journeys for hand washing brewing up etc

but the best bit of water kit is the hose you connect on a service pitch

Quote: Originally posted by LobeyDosser on 11/11/2009

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Hi The Fox, Is it not possible to fit a switch inside the van, connected to the pump in the external tank and then a hose from that pump into the internal tank. Then when the internal tank needs filling, you hit the switch and the water flows into the internal tank.

Afterall, if everything is working properly from the internal tank, all you need is a way of topping that tank up.

I take it that you have a guage in the van to tell you what the water level is in the internal tank.

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lobey the whole point of this thread is so that we dont put any water in the internal tank during winter months, as Big Al said what about the condensation build up under the bed? also if there ever was a leak of water i would rather run out and get rid of the aquaroll than have 80 ltrs of water under my bed and spreading around in the van!!!

to spell it out we do not want to have to fill the internal tank everytime we arrive on site, we want to run off the external tank as we did with the old van, yes having the internal has a few advantages, such as having a shower and not running out, being able to top the tank up while someone (me) fetches more water etc etc but there are far more disadvantages to having inside that i can see. that is the only bad design of our caravan that wehave found out.

and yes when on club sites we have the hose pipe.

Tee into the pipe between the internal tank & the pump. Take the tee to a water inlet from the aquaroll. Fit appropriate valves.and by setting them you can draw water from the internal or external using the onboard pump,.effectively bypassing the internal tank. Just make sure the pump is suitable for drawing from an external tank.

Sorry The Fox. I did not read anything about your Internal Tank "being under your bed".

I presumed that your internal tank would be like mine which is fitted under the internal floor of our double floored van. Within the underfloor locker that houses the tank is also the spare wheel, tools and any wet gear that we may have. The rest of the underfloor lockers are used as larders and storage for other van items.

All our lockers are sealed apart from the one containing the internal water tank which has a drainage hole in case of accidents with that tank.

We have had this van for 3 years now and have never seen any condensation within this locker.
Also we do not have a shower and so our internal 23Lt tank is more than adiquate for several days use.

Personally I would not be without the internal tank but then again, the way we use our van is probably very different from the way you use yours and our needs will also be different.

its 40ltrs of water in the tank i have had 3 caravans now with internal tanks  the adria for 10 years  used all the year round in all weathers no problem with condensation thats why they have  vents under the beds we as humans make the condensation 

i think leave it as it should by trying to adapt    if that leaks may be it will void your warranty for damp etc for the sake of flicking a switch to external

well the tank we have takes me 3 trips with the aquaroll to fill it, so its definatley bigger than 40 ltrs!! as for a warranty we are out of that stage of worries, thankfully seeing as its a 2006 model, only got the water ingress part left on it now.

with respect Lobey, your van is hardly comparible to normal vans is it? everthing has been crammed into the little space you have,

im now wondering if its worth doing what the eldiss man suggested and instead of changing the water system over to just t ing off the heating vent from the bathroom to blow some warm air under the bed to make sure everything stays dry and get that air circulating, that would at least save the cold draft on your feet from the bed vents.

the whole thing seemed rather strange to us not being able to use the external supply as when you look under the bed you have the tap that drains the internal tank but also one that stops that tank from filling, that would suggest that its possible to just use the aquaroll, however the electric side of it is what is giving the problems as it wont stop the external pump from running.

Quote: Originally posted by cobminor on 12/11/2009

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Lobey,

      Thanks for that, I am going to try to use electric valves and controls.

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Good luck to you.

You should be able to work out which hose goes to what, from the guide on the yellow label.