[Peter]

Good catch buddy you maybe able to replace it with the newer style one its round and brass and is smaller and has no bolts like that one they come on the newer coaches starting at about year 2001

[David]

Soapy water sprayed on the parts that make up our air systems is commonly used to find leaks. But some owners may not know that there’s a better way if you’re willing to spend a couple hundred bucks to make the job much easier. I’ve carried an Inficon Whisper Ultrasonic Leak Detector in my bus for years. It just makes the job of finding air leaks much easier. It will show you your leaks as you locate and check each of the air fittings and air valves that make up your system.

It is available on Amazon.

[Archived]

While an ultrasonic leak detector is a valuable tool, it is only one of the ways to detect leaks and it is not always effective, and it does require some understanding of what you are listening for and hearing. I have had mine through three coaches but there are other equally effective ways.

Listen for a leak. Big leaks announce themselves and if necessary a stethoscope is an easy way to isolate them.

Soapy water is great because if there are a lot of fittings and devices in one area, like the typical steer compartment you can spray the fittings and literally in seconds find a lot of leaks.

Some leaks you cannot easily isolate. I have 21 air circuits identified on my coach so far and using a global search, regardless of the method is time consuming because you do not know where to begin or where to look. With each circuit capable of being shut off, hearing air through the valve (no tool required) after it has been shut off for a while lets you know which circuit is leaking.

The final way of chasing leaks is when you are down to the nitty gritty. In that case you pressurize the system you think leaks at its origin and with a pressure gauge on the device used to pressurize it you look for the pressure to drop. You then move down the system to the next fitting or device and repeat the pressurization until you reach the end or the final component. Once you reach the point at which the pressure does not drop you are at the source of the leak.

The ultrasonic leak detector will not work on rubber devices such as the bellows on the belt tensioners or air bags. It will work on the fittings. It will detect internal leaks in valves such as the Norgren valves. It will als check electrical circuits and you can “hear” internal arcing such as in a contactor or relay that is failing.

Leaks suck and there is no silver bullet to finding them.

[Andre]

Well, I guess you can find fault with everything if you look hard enough. And I suppose a better method of finding air leaks can always be found. My intent with the post above was simply to make other members who may not know about the advantages of using an Ultrasonic Leak Detector aware of it. I did not say it was a silver bullet, all I said is that it can make the job of finding air leaks a lot easier…………..

[June]

Any method used to find leaks is a winner. I have used an electronic stethoscope for years and at times I miss the leak with the stethoscope and find it using soapy water. Yet other times it’s just the opposite.

Aux leaks used to drive me nut’s, now I just deal with small leaks and accept the fact they’re going to happen and it’s just part of the joy’s of bus ownership.:)

[Doug]

Chuck, I wasn’t trying to find fault but did want to alert others that what appears to be a simple, foolproof method of leak detection has limitations.

I have had one for many years and a lot of people have borrowed it to chase down leaks that were difficult to find or undetectable using other methods, but I did not want folks to think it is the answer to all leak detection.

I still start out with soapy water and progressively go through the various methods because there is not a single ideal way to chase leaks.