1995 Bounder Fuel (gas) leak

[tunabob]

Question, is it ever normal or acceptable for gas to leak out of the top of my fuel tank near the filler hose. We filled the tank and it was topped off all the way. My son parked in front of his house and leveled the RV. It was warm but not really ho out 75 to 80 maybe. The next morning his neighbor knocked on his door and said there is gas pouring out from under the RV. Took me a while to get there, by the time I arrived (2 hours) the leak had stopped but there was a big stain on the street and the from in the filler area was wet and stained. I crawled under and when I pushed on the filler tube with the play in the hanger I got fuel to come out but just a little. I brought it home and this AM there is not a leak. I have a mobile mechanic coming later to access the problem. We did have the tank out over a year ago the replace the fuel pump. Hoses and clamps are new. Thanks.

[tunabob]

So thought I should post on the result. Called a mobile mechanic. He smoke tested and found leak where the filler goes into the tank. Both the hose was not pushed all the way on and the hose clamp was loose. Pushed the hose on (skinny helper did) and tightened the clamp. Smoke test again with not leak. Just made a 800/900 mile round trip and all is good. Thanks all. Now for question for my next fix.

[tunabob]

Thank you all, it was topped off and that caused it to leak after fuel expanded some, but it did also expose that the rubber 90 going in the tank was both not pushed all the way in and the clamp needed tightening.

[luv2tup]

Having owned a 1995 Bounder on an F53 chassis for 15 years, I can assure you a healthy fuel system (tank) should not leak!

Leaks occur by overfilling, rust caused holes or loose fittings after replacement/repairs.

[MrWizard]

True
But not the point I was making
A gas station pump will shut off
It will not top off all the way to the fill cap
Car or truck
That is done manually by the person filling the tank
Do that forced top off, with this design, and you the driver create the problem

[Gdetrailer]

RLS7201 wrote:

MrWizard wrote:
On the Ford chassis the tank is behind the rear axle, the filler inlet is behind the license plate ,
The height drop from gas cap to tank entry is very shallow, with a very long filler inlet hose,
Topping off the tank at the inlet, results in an Over Full tank and 8 ft of inlet hose that is full of gas, it Will leak, No IFS ANDS or BUTS

Mr. Wizard, the filer location is not a function of Ford but is located by the final manufacture. Yes Fleetwood does locate the filler behind the license plate.

Richard

AND if it "leaks" it IS the fault of the RV manufacturer, not the vehicle manufacturer!

I can assure you, more modern chassis even that long remote filler must not leak what so ever.. Any SLIGHT LEAK WILL FAIL EMISSIONS, PERIOD! Aftermarket manufacturers cannot "bypass" required emissions systems and the tank test is a required test for emissions.

[RLS7201]

MrWizard wrote:
On the Ford chassis the tank is behind the rear axle, the filler inlet is behind the license plate ,
The height drop from gas cap to tank entry is very shallow, with a very long filler inlet hose,
Topping off the tank at the inlet, results in an Over Full tank and 8 ft of inlet hose that is full of gas, it Will leak, No IFS ANDS or BUTS

Mr. Wizard, the filer location is not a function of Ford but is located by the final manufacture. Yes Fleetwood does locate the filler behind the license plate.

Richard

[MrWizard]

Double post

[MrWizard]

On the Ford chassis the tank is behind the rear axle, the filler inlet is behind the license plate ,
The height drop from gas cap to tank entry is very shallow, with a very long filler inlet hose,
Topping off the tank at the inlet, results in an Over Full tank and 8 ft of inlet hose that is full of gas, it Will leak, No IFS ANDS or BUTS

[Egor_sRV]

Have to agree with above.
This sounds similar to what I found on my '98 Bounder.
Gas leaking at different times, mostly on full tank. Had trouble with generator dependability. Pulled tank and found rubber gas line to generator rotting with cracks. Replaced with new line, fixed both generator problem and leaking of driveway.

[naturist]

It is never acceptable or normal for gas to leak out anything like that. It is a fire hazard, plus it tends to rot asphalt creating potholes. Sounds like rotten rubber to me, too.

[Matt_Colie]

Bob,

Those of us with classic coaches (read OLD) deal with this all the time. I will bet you that some of the rubber in the fuel system is shot. Actually, two things, that is a sucker bet and it is probably all shot. It goes bad just like tires. It will age out no matter what you do.

What to do about it?? Only one thing will be successful.

Take it apart and replace all the rubber with new. Those of us with classic coaches have all had to do this. Some of us more than one because the first only lasted 20 year and so I got to do it all again. This time I was sure to use alcohol tolerant materials.

Matt

[Gdetrailer]

DrewE wrote:
If the fuel is coming out the filler solely where the pump nozzle fits, that doesn't sound too off to me; it just means you overfilled the tank and left no room at all for expansion or sloshing. It's not wise to top off to the very tippy top; stopping at the first or maybe second click-off of the pump is appropriate (provided, of course, your filler is arranged so that it doesn't prematurely shut off when there's still many gallons worth of empty space in the tank--if it does that, it usually means the gas lines from the filler to the tank are not properly routed or are pinched or something). Besides the possibility of gas coming out, this is a good way to harm the vapor recovery system by having the recovery canister be filled with liquid gas.

If it's leaking from the hose or connections between the hose and other parts, yes something ought to be fixed: either a loose connection or a worn or damaged hose, most likely.

:h

There is something wrong about this statement..

Even IF the tank has been overfilled, it should never leak, especially not at the filler cap which sometimes on older vehicles had a check valve to let air in. Older vehicles often had a vent at the top of the tank which had a small vacuum line run up to the engine compartment to a vapor recovery tank lined with charcoal that would absorb excess fumes from the tank, that tank was way above the filler neck. Those fumes then were slowly introduced to the engine while it was running.

Newer vehicles have similar vent on top of tank but the vapor recovery system is often located near to the tank just above the tank but lower than filler cap.. This setup, you can accidentally swamp the vapor recovery system if tank is overfilled but the LEAK would not be at the tank.

Fuel systems are a "sealed" system and have been since well before the 1970s, fuel and vapors stay IN and when you use the fuel there is a check valve in the system which allows AIR to enter the tank. When vehicle is not running the check valve that allows air in must close.

Newer vehicles add to the system by checking the tank periodically for LEAKS via a vacuum/pressure test, don't get the filler cap on correctly you will get a CEL or if equipped a filler cap light..

OPs MH needs looked at to find and fix the leak which is most likely a loose hose clamp or rusted out filler pipe.

[MEXICOWANDERER]

Only for temporary Emergency


Rub bar soap into cracks and fractures.

Your's doesn"t qualify 😞

[DrewE]

If the fuel is coming out the filler solely where the pump nozzle fits, that doesn't sound too off to me; it just means you overfilled the tank and left no room at all for expansion or sloshing. It's not wise to top off to the very tippy top; stopping at the first or maybe second click-off of the pump is appropriate (provided, of course, your filler is arranged so that it doesn't prematurely shut off when there's still many gallons worth of empty space in the tank--if it does that, it usually means the gas lines from the filler to the tank are not properly routed or are pinched or something). Besides the possibility of gas coming out, this is a good way to harm the vapor recovery system by having the recovery canister be filled with liquid gas.

If it's leaking from the hose or connections between the hose and other parts, yes something ought to be fixed: either a loose connection or a worn or damaged hose, most likely.