California 6.1 Water Issue

DavidBoothby001 · May 30, 2022

Hi all. I picked up my cali ocean 6.1 last week and though I would fill and empty the fresh water tank before using for the first time.

After filling and then starting to drain to my horror I noticed water pouring out of the boot where the boot catch is!

The van was on a slight upward incline so not sure if this was an issue? But it has ended up with me having to remove the trim at the back of the boot where the catch is to dry out the pool of water all by the release mechanism and rubber seal. I have noticed using and endoscope that there is a slight drip from the inlet pipe where it joins the tank but this doesn’t seem to be enough to cause water pouring over the boot rubber from the inside under the grey floor.

Thinking it could be the drain valve? Is there anyway I can see if it is connected correctly to the tank?

I have seen another post where they have had a similar issue when on a slope but the thread stopped before they identified the cause.

Any help much appreciated. It’s put real downer on the new car before I have even had a chance to do a trip .

Hawthorn37 · May 30, 2022

DavidBoothby001 said:
Hi all. I picked up my cali ocean 6.1 last week and though I would fill and empty the fresh water tank before using for the first time.

After filling and then starting to drain to my horror I noticed water pouring out of the boot where the boot catch is!

The van was on a slight upward incline so not sure if this was an issue? But it has ended up with me having to remove the trim at the back of the boot where the catch is to dry out the pool of water all by the release mechanism and rubber seal. I have noticed using and endoscope that there is a slight drip from the inlet pipe where it joins the tank but this doesn’t seem to be enough to cause water pouring over the boot rubber from the inside under the grey floor.

Thinking it could be the drain valve? Is there anyway I can see if it is connected correctly to the tank?

I have seen another post where they have had a similar issue when on a slope but the thread stopped before they identified the cause.

Any help much appreciated. It’s put real downer on the new car before I have even had a chance to do a trip .

Yes we get this if the near side is higher than the off side (so the drain outlet is slightly raised). Water seems to run within the bumper left to right. Since this first experience I make sure the drain side is lower. No issues then.

WelshGas · May 30, 2022

DavidBoothby001 said:
Hi all. I picked up my cali ocean 6.1 last week and though I would fill and empty the fresh water tank before using for the first time.

After filling and then starting to drain to my horror I noticed water pouring out of the boot where the boot catch is!

The van was on a slight upward incline so not sure if this was an issue? But it has ended up with me having to remove the trim at the back of the boot where the catch is to dry out the pool of water all by the release mechanism and rubber seal. I have noticed using and endoscope that there is a slight drip from the inlet pipe where it joins the tank but this doesn’t seem to be enough to cause water pouring over the boot rubber from the inside under the grey floor.

Thinking it could be the drain valve? Is there anyway I can see if it is connected correctly to the tank?

I have seen another post where they have had a similar issue when on a slope but the thread stopped before they identified the cause.

Any help much appreciated. It’s put real downer on the new car before I have even had a chance to do a trip .

Hawthorn37 said:
Yes we get this if the near side is higher than the off side (so the drain outlet is slightly raised). Water seems to run within the bumper left to right. Since this first experience I make sure the drain side is lower. No issues then.

I’ve included a diagram of the California water tank and drainage system.
the only way I can see water getting into the boot area is due to a ? Leak in the connections from the Drainage Valve 13 and the combined Gas Dropout/Tank Drain Outlet 21.
Are you sure the water is draining into the Boot or into the Bumper?
There is a plastic under shield that can be removed that may give access to the pipes if they are below the floor pan.

Hawthorn37 · May 30, 2022

I don’t get where the water drain pipe open end is? The flexible hose 16 seems to have a circlip onto the water tank.

If the left side of the van is lower / level then I get a steady stream onto the floor. If it’s higher than the right side then the water tracks across (within the bumper I believe). I just thought that this is how it goes. Maybe I’ll reverse the van onto two levelling ramps so I can see better - need to drain it soon anyway.

DavidBoothby001 · May 30, 2022

Thanks all. I tried again on a levelling ramp and water still seems to come out all over the place but not sure if still going inside. Still pretty damp so trying to dry it our. It looks like there is no pipe on the drain, just a hole. I found a picture of a tank on eBay and just looks like a round hole for water and gas. Perhaps when on a slight angle this gets inside the car.

The two pictures are one of the tank underneath from a pic I found on the web the second is where I found water pooled inside my van. I had to remove the boot catch shrouds as you can see to mop it up as there was a pond need the boot catch and behind the rubber seal

WelshGas · May 30, 2022

Hawthorn37 said:
I don’t get where the water drain pipe open end is? The flexible hose 16 seems to have a circlip onto the water tank.

If the left side of the van is lower / level then I get a steady stream onto the floor. If it’s higher than the right side then the water tracks across (within the bumper I believe). I just thought that this is how it goes. Maybe I’ll reverse the van onto two levelling ramps so I can see better - need to drain it soon anyway.

If you look in the Gas Locker there is an opening in the base, the gas dropout, Part 21. The drainage tube connects to that part. So gas or water drop down from that point onto the plastic under shield.

WelshGas · May 30, 2022

DavidBoothby001 said:
Thanks all. I tried again on a levelling ramp and water still seems to come out all over the place but not sure if still going inside. Still pretty damp so trying to dry it our. It looks like there is no pipe on the drain, just a hole. I found a picture of a tank on eBay and just looks like a round hole for water and gas. Perhaps when on a slight angle this gets inside the car.

The two pictures are one of the tank underneath from a pic I found on the web the second is where I found water pooled inside my van. I had to remove the boot catch shrouds as you can see to mop it up as there was a pond need the boot catch and behind the rubber seal

View attachment 93748

View attachment 93749

View attachment 93750

The part in red is the Water Tank drain outlet and the Gas Locker Dropout, Part 21.

If the plastic under shield is removed you should see the opening. I presume if not properly positioned or blocked then water might drain onto the boot floor.

DavidBoothby001 · May 30, 2022

That’s brilliant. Thank you. That’s what I was thinking. Would have thought there would be a hose on it or the sort of washer you see on a toilet cistern.

I’ll try to have a look under the cover and report back.

Thanks again for your help.

WelshGas · May 30, 2022

DavidBoothby001 said:
That’s brilliant. Thank you. That’s what I was thinking. Would have thought there would be a hose on it or the sort of washer you see on a toilet cistern.

I’ll try to have a look under the cover and report back.

Thanks again for your help.

No, no hose it just drops out onto the plastic under shield and runs off that. Depending on the orientation of the vehicle the water runs off the back of the tray if nose up or the front if nose off. The tray stops road gunk blocking the dual outlet.

flying banana · May 30, 2022

Surely a dodgy drain exit would only leak if yhe ball valve was open? If that valve is shut and your filling the tank to overflow like i do,then it could be the filler neck itself that is detached ? Remove the filler cap and have a look and a play with a hose pipe. Don't worry too much about the wet boot floor, I flooded mine a couple of times with a failed shower valve. Dried out fine but do dry it thoroughly or mould grows on the chair bag

Trudi · May 31, 2022

We had this.
The valve near the gas bottle wasn't opened properly and water poured out from above the rear bumper.
Once we opened/closed the valve properly it was fine.

DavidBoothby001 · May 31, 2022

flying banana said:
Surely a dodgy drain exit would only leak if yhe ball valve was open? If that valve is shut and your filling the tank to overflow like i do,then it could be the filler neck itself that is detached ? Remove the filler cap and have a look and a play with a hose pipe. Don't worry too much about the wet boot floor, I flooded mine a couple of times with a failed shower valve. Dried out fine but do dry it thoroughly or mould grows on the chair bag

I thought it might be the filler initially as there seems to be a few reports of it leaking. I tested by brimming the tank and leaving it overflowing and can see a small drip (see photo - used an endoscope), but nothing that would have created the volume of water that ended up in the boot. I’ll just try and tighten the clip and see if it stops the drip

I have also drained the tank again on the flat and don’t seem to get additional water in the boot. Seems to be a combination of a raised front and the tank being drained with the cap off.

Going to do some more investigating today as seems pretty fundamental issue if it drains inside if car on a slight incline!

Not great for a week old premium vehicle!

DavidBoothby001 · May 31, 2022

Trudi said:
We had this.
The valve near the gas bottle wasn't opened properly and water poured out from above the rear bumper.
Once we opened/closed the valve properly it was fine.

Hi Trudi. You mean the red handled drain valve?
How odd that it leaked if not fully open / shut!

Have you ever had it again?

WelshGas · May 31, 2022

DavidBoothby001 said:
Hi Trudi. You mean the red handled drain valve?
How odd that it leaked if not fully open / shut!

Have you ever had it again?

I can see how that could happen. The Water/Gas outlet, Part 21, sits over a hole in the vehicle floor. I don't know if it is sealed to that floor. If the drain valve is opened fully you get a high volume low pressure water flow, but if the valve is opened only partially a low volume high pressure flow which may give turbulence and allow water to spray onto the boot floor surface.
A bit like a water hose with no nozzle , partially closing the hose end with your finger produces a high pressure jet.
Maybe Part 21 should be sealed to the floor hole.

DavidBoothby001 · May 31, 2022

WelshGas said:
I can see how that could happen. The Water/Gas outlet, Part 21, sits over a hole in the vehicle floor. I don't know if it is sealed to that floor. If the drain valve is opened fully you get a high volume low pressure water flow, but if the valve is opened only partially a low volume high pressure flow which may give turbulence and allow water to spray onto the boot floor surface.
A bit like a water hose with no nozzle , partially closing the hose end with your finger produces a high pressure jet.
Maybe Part 21 should be sealed to the floor hole.

Found the issue!!

More shoddy factory work!

Here are pictures looking down from the top and underneath the van. You can see underneath there is a plug attachment that is held on by the T bar. This is supposed to be aligned with the hole in the tank but clearly it isn’t! So when draining half goes in the van and the other half into the boot!

Going to drop it back to the dealer and get them to sort it as I can’t be bothered to take the plastic tray off etc.

Looks a simple as undoing the t bar and reseating the plug so it aligns and then tightening.

Glad I found it. I wonder how many others have a version of this issue. Kind of glad mine had a big leak or it could have gone unnoticed for months!

DavidBoothby001 · May 31, 2022

DavidBoothby001 said:
Found the issue!!

More shoddy factory work!

Here are pictures looking down from the top and underneath the van. You can see underneath there is a plug attachment that is held on by the T bar. This is supposed to be aligned with the hole in the tank but clearly it isn’t! So when draining half goes in the van and the other half into the boot!

Going to drop it back to the dealer and get them to sort it as I can’t be bothered to take the plastic tray off etc.

Looks a simple as undoing the t bar and reseating the plug so it aligns and then tightening.

Glad I found it. I wonder how many others have a version of this issue. Kind of glad mine had a big leak or it could have gone unnoticed for months!

View attachment 93771

View attachment 93772

View attachment 93773

Glad the gas didn’t leak too

Hawthorn37 · May 31, 2022

DavidBoothby001 said:
Glad the gas didn’t leak too

I’ve checked my van out, and it’s exactly the same. The drain is misaligned. Not as much yours is @DavidBoothby001 but still enough to cause a problem. When opening drain valve on a slope (near side lower) the water goes down the bit that is aligned (Photo below is upside down). Try it the other way, or on the level, water comes into the car. I’ll get it booked in for attention. I’m surprised the outlet isn’t sealed, or at least have a short tube fitted.

DavidBoothby001 · May 31, 2022

Hawthorn37 said:
I’ve checked my van out, and it’s exactly the same. The drain is misaligned. Not as much yours is @DavidBoothby001 but still enough to cause a problem. When opening drain valve on a slope (near side lower) the water goes down the bit that is aligned (Photo below is upside down). Try it the other way, or on the level, water comes into the car. I’ll get it booked in for attention. I’m surprised the outlet isn’t sealed, or at least have a short tube fitted.

View attachment 93786

Shocking how such a basic thing is missed!
Good you’ve found it too. I wonder how many people have the same.

I’m actually glad it leaked a lot on the first go as could have been months of just a small amount selling under carpet if not.

Let me know how you get on. Mine is going in 8am tomorrow and I’m going to watch the technician fix it (not that I don’t trust them

).

I’ll post an update tomorrow!

Hawthorn37 · May 31, 2022

DavidBoothby001 said:
Shocking how such a basic thing is missed!
Good you’ve found it too. I wonder how many people have the same.

I’m actually glad it leaked a lot on the first go as could have been months of just a small amount selling under carpet if not.

Let me know how you get on. Mine is going in 8am tomorrow and I’m going to watch the technician fix it (not that I don’t trust them ).

I’ll post an update tomorrow!

It may be a while before we can take the van in to the workshop - Nottingham I think is the closest. Interested to hear how you get on.

DavidBoothby001 · Jun 1, 2022

Hawthorn37 said:
It may be a while before we can take the van in to the workshop - Nottingham I think is the closest. Interested to hear how you get on.

Hi. A quick update. I popped into the garage first thing and it took about 30mins for them to get everything aligned where it should be. It was as simple as popping the plastic shield off underneath, listening the T-Bolt and then aligning the plastic drain parts and tightening back up.

The garage commented that they are seeing more issues since covid as the factories try to catch up on production, which isn’t so good!

Hope you get yours fixed soon.

Hawthorn37 · Jun 1, 2022

DavidBoothby001 said:
Hi. A quick update. I popped into the garage first thing and it took about 30mins for them to get everything aligned where it should be. It was as simple as popping the plastic shield off underneath, listening the T-Bolt and then aligning the plastic drain parts and tightening back up.

The garage commented that they are seeing more issues since covid as the factories try to catch up on production, which isn’t so good!

Hope you get yours fixed soon.

Got mine booked in - earliest slot - late June!
Did you try draining the water tank btw?

Trudi · Jun 1, 2022

DavidBoothby001 said:
Hi Trudi. You mean the red handled drain valve?
How odd that it leaked if not fully open / shut!

Have you ever had it again?

Never touched it since
I empty the tank with puriclean in it by flushing it through the taps to clean it and empty at the same time.
Darent touch it again.

DavidBoothby001 · Jun 1, 2022

Hawthorn37 said:
Got mine booked in - earliest slot - late June!
Did you try draining the water tank btw?

Yes. Tried it and all good now it would seem. No sign of ram coming through. We tightened the clips on the filler pipe too for good measure!

DavidBoothby001 · Jun 1, 2022

Trudi said:
Never touched it since
I empty the tank with puriclean in it by flushing it through the taps to clean it and empty at the same time.
Darent touch it again.

Could be worth you shining a torch down where the gas bottle goes and see if your drain is misaligned as well. If it is it’s a really easy fix.

Hawthorn37 · Jun 24, 2022

The Sheffield Van Centre sorted out my leak this morning, within 30 minutes of arriving. The technician took a look at the photo and said he knew exactly the issue and how to fix it - not uncommon! He unfixed the bottom plate, aligned it, and tightened it up again. 10 minute job.

He also said he’d had one van where the part 21 had no hole formed from the drain inlet, so the tank wouldn’t drain at all, and he’d needed to drill it out.

California 6.1 Water Issue

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