Plumbing pump on 76 Newell

[Capnted]

The plumbing on my '76 has been changed so many times I have no idea how it was originally done. I'm trying to plumb the pressure pump back in & can't figure out how to do it since there's no filler on the fresh water tank--just the hose that comes out the bottom. It fills & empties through the same hose.

All the diagrams i find show the logical solution--fill through the top & attach the outlet at the bottom to the pump. Is it as simple as running the water from the city water connection through the pump backwards? I have valves set up for that. Or do I need a valve to isolate the pump while I fill, then allow the water from the tank to flow to the pump by closing one set of valves & opening another? I hate to make it so complex that I need to consult notes before filling or using the tank. it seems simple when I'm thinking about it, but when it comes to actually running pipe (pvc) I don't see how it will work.

We've been living in the '76 for more than a year. It's been a good friend. We've been connected to city water til now, but plan to boondoggle a little on our way back to Florida from northern MN.

Thanks

Ted

[prairieschooner]

The Freshwater Tank on our '82 is filled through the bottom of the Tank. There is a Ball Valve that Isolates the Supply of City Water until this is wanted otherwise the City Water is able to go to the other facets chosen through a Pressure Regulator. I always try to use a Filter on the Supply just to help keep the supply cleaner.

I have added a Water Filter to to a dedicated Faucet so that we can have Purified Water for making Coffee, Dogs and the like. This Dedicated supply uses the 12 Volts DC Pump to keep that water coming from our Freshwater Supply and not the Shore Supply.

[chockwald]

My '82 fills through the bottom, and runs to the pump through the same fitting. I have a series of gate valves that I open and close to fill the tank, receive city water, or then use the pump to distribute throughout the motorhome if not connected to city water. I'll take a picture this weekend and send it to you. I think a lot of the older Newell's were set up this way.

[prairieschooner]

hey Clarke are they Gate Valves? we have Ball type.

[Capnted]

Thanks. Great responses. At least I know it takes valves and I'm not missing something obvious & simple--or a hidden filler opening on the top of the tank.

When I plumbed a new hot water tank, I left a couple of stubs with gate valves on them, so I think I've got it. I added a "T" to the main line to either push water into the tank from city water or route water from the tank into the pump.

I found the air vent by overfilling the tank.

I suspect that with a couple of well-placed check valves it might be possible to change from city to tank and back without making manual valve settings, but this will work.

It occurred to me that if we all pooled our manuals & Newell or someone in the group scanned them, we would have a wealth of info on classic coaches. I have a lot of the original paperwork on mine, but no plumbing diagram.

When I win the lottery, I'd like to at least move from the 70's to the 80's. But sometimes it's fun to pull into a campground & have people recognize the magic Newell nameplate even tho it's more than 30 years old.

Ted

[encantotom]

these pictures may or may not help.

tom

[wallyarntzen]

If your still in Minnesota you can contact me and I may be able to help you or you can come and look at my coach. I am located in Elk River and there is a 78 Newell that I used to own in this park. I had the same engine that you have when I owned it but the last owner changed it to a 6V92. I suspect that the water supply is similar to what yours should be.
I think the 78 is now for sale but I do not know what they are asking for it.

[jwe648]

This is the Fresh Water Tank and plumbing on my 74' project.. which is setting on rotten plywood.. now that's fun!!!! I hope...

[chockwald]

Here are pictures of my plumbing setup with gate valves. The first picture shows the pressure regulator and the intitial gate valve that is opened to let the city water into the system. The second shows the rest of the gate valves. In the second picture the red valve on the right is for a water faucet that I use to pump water into the black water tank to flush it out. The red valve on the left opens to let water into my water purifier. The upper right black valve is used to drain water out of the system, and so the black valve located center bottom. The black valve, upper center is opened to send water to the house water pump. The upper left black valve opens up to either allow water to flow to the water pump, or to receive city water to fill up the tank (water pump valve is closed when this is happening). Anyway, that how my system is set up....really rather intuitive, for me anyway.

[HoosierDaddy]

Here's my "after" picture. It looked similar to jwe648's when I started. I totally gutted it and replaced the steel floor. I then lined it with fiberglass laminated plywood before installing the custom made steel holding tank and the original Stainless water tank.

[Capnted]

Don't know if I ever responded to your 2006 post!

Where in IN are you? Just bought '83 in Anderson and visited family in Wabash. Headed for MN.

Ted

[HoosierDaddy]

Hi Ted,
We are about 30 miles Northwest of Fort Wayne right on US Hwy 33 (The Lincoln Hwy) Our web-site has a map....

www.kimmellhouseinn.com