Flickering lights

[Hinsonator]

Hey everyone, I have a 2004 Springdale travel trailer. When I am connected to city water, everything functions as normal. However, when I am not connected to city water and using the tank, the lights rapidly flicker dim to bright and there is a noticeable clicking noise coming from the tank area (I’m guessing the water pump?) when running any water. Hoping to get some potential remedies! Thanks in advance.

The trailer has the stock lighting which I believe is incandescent? This issue doesn’t happen with any other functions aside from the water.

[Marinerjoe]

Originally Posted by Hinsonator

Hey everyone, I have a 2004 Springdale travel trailer. When I am connected to city water, everything functions as normal. However, when I am not connected to city water and using the tank, the lights rapidly flicker dim to bright and there is a noticeable clicking noise coming from the tank area (I’m guessing the water pump?) when running any water. Hoping to get some potential remedies! Thanks in advance.

The trailer has the stock lighting which I believe is incandescent? This issue doesn’t happen with any other functions aside from the water.

You don’t say if you’re on shore power or running off battery. However, that shouldn’t make a huge difference. The water pump is 12v, as are your lights. And on a 12v system, when a load is applied (i.e. your pump), the voltage drops, even only a little. That’s causing the lights to flicker. A thing that could be making your problem more noticeable could be the age of your battery. Most flooded lead-acid batteries only have a 3-5 year lifespan. It MIGHT be time to replace yours.

[Canonman]

Joe is on the right track. The key is that when you are connected to city water you are probably connected to city or shore power as well. I'd suspect the battery is not 100%.
Having shore power and the converter being the main 12 volt power source will likely not cause the lights to flicker. If the lights don't flicker when using shore power then it's more likely the battery. Take it to an auto parts store and have it tested. Costco or Good Sam will do this as well. If it's weak, they are a good place to buy a replacement

[dutchmensport]

I agree with the low battery theory. When you are connected to city water, you are not running your on-board water pump at all. So of course, it is not turning on and off, and of course, no flickering of the light.

Flickering lights like that are the first sign you battery is not charged 100%. And the more it discharges and/or if the battery if failing and simply not holding a charge, you'll notice the lights in your camper get dimmer and dimmer.

Another thing, if you water pump is cycling on-off and you are not running water anywhere, your water pipe system is loosing pressure. A few things could be going on.

First, you could have a water leak somewhere. It takes only about 2 ounces of water to flow and the water pump will turn on. There are no pressure tanks, like in a house, unless you've had one installed. Hard water lines don't have room for expansion, and there is a little air pocket at the top of your water heater tank to allows some pressure change. Still, it takes only 2 ounces and the pump will cycle.

You could have a physical leak somewhere, dripping just a tiny little bit. The most common places are the water heater over flow pressure valve, or the water heater drain plug (anode rod). Second would be the toilet. It could be leaking, and you'll never notice 2 ounces in the bowl. Third, the water pump itself might be failing. It has it's own built-in check valve that prohibits water under pressure from flowing backwards, back into the fresh water tank. If the water pump is failing, it could (and they do), let water flow backwards, back into the fresh water tank. Again, only 2 ounces to drop the water pressure (flowing back into the water tank), and the pump turns on.

In my previous Keystone Outback travel trailer, I had a pump that did this. I replaced it with a new one. When I took the old out out, I examined it and found out it has 2 bolts that held on the propeller housing missing. I found one of them laying on the floor in the camper, and never did find the last missing one. Those missing screws allowed the water to flow backwards.

[sourdough]

OP the prior comments are on track. If you haven't already you can replace the incandescent lights with LEDs and cut the load on your battery (and flickering).

[Customer1]

Does this happen with the faucet partly open or when fully open? If the faucet is partly open it could be causing the water pump to rapidly cycle off/on/off.