Radiator Hose

[Ken Sair]

Last week we sprung a leak in the radiator hose that goes down from the overflow tank into the radiator apparatus. It had rubbed against the steel frame. Our 07 Contessa has 80,000 miles. Anyway, we were very fortunate in that we discovered it when checking into a campground in Northern CA. Long story short, it was the wrong hose for the application. The line on our coach, 2007 Beaver Contessa was a hydraulic suction line. Rubber inside, a metal layer and rubber exterior. The metal is to prevent the hose from collapsing when sucking coolant from the overflow tank back into the radiator. After 3 hours and 7 stores I finally found a 6' section of radiator hose at a NAPA store.

Here is the problem. This hose is wrong for the application. The Glycol in the coolant had eaten away the interior rubber. It was very gooey, like a gummy bear. The heat had basically glued the hose to the fittings and were very difficult to remove. The coolant we lost had some rubber chunks in it and who knows what got into the radiator itself. The hose was for hydraulic fluid, not engine coolant.

Just an FYI for those out there with similar coaches and model years. If Monaco did it one, it most likely did it to many.

Ken Sair

[Joel Ashley]

That same hose sprung a leak on our Monterey when it was less than a year out of the factory.  The Monaco tech at Harrisburg had a custom one made to replace it, and did some re routing and padding of all related hoses to protect them.

Joel

[Sean Donohue]

SO the original hose was being eaten by the glycol?

[Ken Sair]

Yes Sean. The Glycol was melting the inside rubber.

Ken

[Mike Nunn]

Ken,  Is the one hose from the overflow tank the only one you suspected of being the wrong hose? There must be more hoses in the system, but maybe not that size?  I just had that hose changed this year at the cat dealer because the hose was cracking at the  end but i seen no sign of the hose coming apart, nor did the cat dealer say anything about it not being the wrong hose, and am fairly sure he put the same exact hose back on. I suppose I should get someone else to check it. Mike

[Ken Sair]

Mike, the only other one I saw was the large one lower left. its bent and only about 8" long. It looked good. Of course, the one that broke looked good. But the minute you bent it even slightly there were cracks galore. I suspect Monaco used that type of hose specifically as it is a suction line. The theory being the radiator would suck coolant back out of the overflow tank and a collapsed hose would prevent proper flow. I only discovered it because it rubbed a hole in it on the frame. I suspect there were wire ties there and now gone letting it rub the frame.

FYI the mechanic that did the repair said all else looked good given the age/miles. I suspect Monaco went with the non-collapsible hose instead of regular radiator hose. Tx for asking, this will prompt me to call Monaco and inquire about any other hoses that are similar material.

ps, loving my new Michelins. Thanks for the info on Monaco-Int.

Ken

[Don and Kathy DuCharme]

Ken
We had a similar problem a year ago.  The hose developed a slow leak where it connected to the overflow tank.  We took the coach to Cashman cat near Las Vegas for other reasons, and they noted the hose problem and recommended we replace it.  They did not say the original hose was improper, but it was implied.  They replaced it with a blue 1 1/4 in. Silicone hose.  A bit pricey ($158.88), but they believed it to be the proper hose. In fact, it took an extra day in the service center because they had to order the hose. I assume you have yours taken care of, but perhaps others well face the same problem.
Don

[Ken Sair]

Don, ours is indeed repaired (mine had leaked earlier at the connection with the overflow tank). I was able to get the correct hose at a NAPA store in Redding CA. The mechanic and one vendor (hydraulic hose Co.) flat out said it was the wrong hose for the application. So I suspect at least all 2007 Contessa's and maybe other models have the same hose as ours. It may also be a function of time as we are full timers with 80,000 miles.

Ken