Gray dump handle, AWOL

[mikec557]

You buy a used rig and you take the little things for granted. You look for big problems, hoping to find none.

And thus I did not realize the gray galley pull handle was nowhere to be seen. Both the handle and the rod or cable are no longer present. I can see a small hole in the spray foam insulation about 4 inches to the right of the hose dump connector. The hole is 1/4~3/8 diameter. I'm guessing that is where the handle used to be.

I can't see much peeking past the coroplast, I can see the foil duct from the furnace when looking through the hole. I think that's the duct that heats the underbelly.

Does anyone have any pictures of the inside of this or similar rigs? What are the odds it's only a rod/handle problem and not a gate problem? Do the rods come in different lengths?

At a campground where I can't do any work for awhile.

Rig is a 2020 26RBSWE.

Here's a couple pics of what I have..

Thanks for your thoughts
Mike

[chuckster57]

Rods and handle kits come in various lengths. They are all the same threads and diameter.

[mikec557]

Rods and handle kits come in various lengths. They are all the same threads and diameter.

Thanks Chuckster. That's good to know.
It's killing me to not be able to see the inside so I can figure out what or how to repair it. Maybe when we get to the next campground I can get a better look.

BTW, what brand do you think this is? Or are the rod/handle kits universal?

Thanks again
Mike

[chuckster57]

Most likely a Valterra brand, but the handle/rod kits are universal.

[mikec557]

Most likely a Valterra brand, but the handle/rod kits are universal.

Thanks. I'll start looking for those parts. Maybe I can repair this at the next campground.

Mike

[Dave W]

Keystone uses both Valterra and LaSalle-Bristol dump valves. To me, the Valterra are better as they use a single pull wire which doesn't stretch vs the others stranded cable. If the other dump valves have Valterra cast on the handle's surface, you may just need a new cable which are avilable via AMAZON. Unfortunately, that cable by itself isn't much cheaper then an entire valve.

One positive - you can probably cut and reroute then lube a new cable to pull easier as I did hen replacing a couple sticky valves on our 5er

[mikec557]

Keystone uses both Valterra and LaSalle-Bristol dump valves. To me, the Valterra are better as they use a single pull wire which doesn't stretch vs the others stranded cable. If the other dump valves have Valterra cast on the handle's surface, you may just need a new cable which are avilable via AMAZON. Unfortunately, that cable by itself isn't much cheaper then an entire valve.

One positive - you can probably cut and reroute then lube a new cable to pull easier as I did hen replacing a couple sticky valves on our 5er


Thanks. Some days I am so brain dead... I didn't think to go see if either of the other two handles have a manufacturer name on them. I'll do that this morning. I already ordered a two rod and handle kit from Amazon. Hopefully it will provide what I need. My previous 5er had cables, I believe this TT has rods.

I'll report back with the solution and pics when I get it resolved.

[Voyager]

I lost one of my handles as well, I cut open the coroplast to gain access, then went to the local hardware store and bought a piece of threaded ready rod, and cut to length added some thread lock, you can buy different handles that fit at the same store, used Gorilla tape to close up coroplast, it’s been two years still going strong.

[mikec557]

Most likely a Valterra brand, but the handle/rod kits are universal.

Thanks again Chuckster for answering my otherwise dumb question about what brand do you think it is. DaveW, above, suggested I look at the two handles I still have to see what brand they might be...

Which pointed out how unobservant I can be. Note the second picture in my first post... In big letters on the big round cap, it reads: Valerra. I should have known the answer before I even asked.

Thanks again for the time you take to answer my questions and the questions of others.

DaveW, thanks to you as well.

[flybouy]

Thanks again Chuckster for answering my otherwise dumb question about what brand do you think it is. DaveW, above, suggested I look at the two handles I still have to see what brand they might be...

Which pointed out how unobservant I can be. Note the second picture in my first post... In big letters on the big round cap, it reads: Valerra. I should have known the answer before I even asked.

Thanks again for the time you take to answer my questions and the questions of others.

DaveW, thanks to you as well.

The Valtera on the cap is just the cap, that doesn't mean the valves are also Valtera. One would think they bought all the fittings from Valtera but it is Keystone so......:whistling:

[Dave W]

The Valtera on the cap is just the cap, that doesn't mean the valves are also Valtera. One would think they bought all the fittings from Valtera but it is Keystone so......:whistling:

The pull handles on our Montana have Valterra cast on them plus the valves themselves have Valterra cast on the housing but you wont see that unless you pull the belly cover down. They also have lock nuts to keep them in place. I suspect that Valterra pull cable will work with LaSalle-Bristol and vice versa

I repurposed one used cable pull assembly and housing as a throttle controll on a used lawnmower I bought.

OP - that cable on ours was just bent over to hold it in place through a hole in the valve operating rod along with a hand tightened nut for the housing while the replacement Valterras have a set screw along with that nut. Not a big deal but could be confusing at first look

[mikec557]

As promised, here's the follow up.

I bought a Valterra kit on Amazon that had a 6in and 9in rod, and handle. As others have noted, there is not really anything brand specific with this kit. The key is that it has 1/4-20 threaded parts. Also, I didn't study the blade valve to identify what brand it was... I was too busy sweating the big stuff.

I cut the underbelly on two sides, creating a three sided trapdoor that hinged on the forward/front side of the trailer, about 12x12 inches, and I placed the hinge side about even with the old rod hole which was about 4-5 from the gray tank drain cap. The gray tank is literally pressing down against the inside foil and the coroplast, so you must be careful not to cut too deep as you slice the coroplast with a razor knife.

I was glad to see the threaded stud on the blade valve was not only present, but looking like new. I was fairly certain the handle was not broken off from the outside because there was no sign of damage... just a 1/2 hole in the foam where the factory foamed around the rod that was there at one time.

Using both rods made the handle protrude about the same distance as my other two tank handles. The aluminum tubes have a female thread on one end and a 4in piece of 1/4-20 ready rod in each, such that you could use that rod to lengthen the overall piece provided you use a 1/4-20 jam nut as appropriate. The kit came with a couple, but you should have more on hand in case you need them.

I cleaned both edges of each cut side with rubbing alcohol. I cleaned about 2 inches on each side of the cut giving me about a 4 inch wide clean surface for taping. I used a couple strips of Gorilla tape (black not clear) over the two cuts. Boy does that stuff stick well. I'll keep an eye on it, but I think that will be sufficient to keep the trapdoor closed.

Hope this helps someone else in the future. I have learned a ton of stuff by reading through what others have done. Thank you to all the other posters I have learned from.

Mike

[notanlines]

Mike, thanks for the update and the details. I know other RV'ers will benefit from it in the future.