plastics. weight?

[packnrat]

well i am pissed.
i dropped the coin (many hundreds of USD, really... these things cost a shirt load, close to a whole weeks pay, -tub, shower wall-) to replace my bath tub and shower, the plastic around the drain broke shattered is more like it.
but now that the "new" is in .. guess what the new tub broke before i could use it, had some weight in it while going down the rd to camp.
no the drain was not pushing up on the bottom of the tub. plenty of clearance under it. the piping has a rubber hose so there is some flex.
but the cheap plastic broke in the same area. got a bunch of glue now, looks ugly. need to check, been letting the epoxy cure good first.
only have found plastic tubs online or in catalogs. is there a better unit. (NOT PLASTIC) cast alu, with a painted liner? cast iron?? sure will be heaver. but do not care if it holds up to being used.
going to look under the flooring to see if maybe a different run for the drain.

[D_E_Bishop]

Wouldn't XX be great?

[RGar974417]

My Dad was in the plumbing business many years. I worked for him at one time and the tub manufacturers would not honor the warranty of the tub if any addition blocking was added under the tub. The tub is supposed to flex.But there are some materials that should not be used in RV's because of the flexing that occurs as the trailer moves down the road.For instance, trailer manufacturers use ABS drain pipe instead of PVC because ABS is more flexible than PVC. So not sure what materials you used or how they were installed but perhaps that could be the problem.

[Grit_dog]

Dude, that really stinks! I can't imagine what would cause that unless the support under the tub floor was not adequate or you had a lot of weight in the tub. My only suggestion is ensure the support is adequate when you make the next repair.
If you replace with a shower, maybe you can save some $ like you're thinking. I'm sure this is frustrating.
I don't typically go looking for other "excuses" for a problem but there may be some real merit in cheap plastic. Although, old one cracked and now new one lead more towards installation problem.

FWIW I just googled rv bathtub and it looks like the standard 40" ones are about $140. Maybe another option and not as pricey?

[packnrat]

under the tub is a foam board then a plywood support, this gives room for the plumbing above the floor of the coach.
so no weight on the plumbing, it free floats in air. the basic p trap and line to flow water down and to the tank.
no room for me to get under there. get to work on my back, with one arm going through a access hole. to do all the work blind under the tub.
but that is just screwing together the plumbing.
if i have to remove again. it will cost a bunch of money. but maybe i will change to just a shower, seeing as the tub is way to small for everything except a small kid, and i got's none of those.
been raining hard past week. but next should be dry. will get out and check then, as i also need to work on my heater.

[Ralph_Cramden]

2" extruded foam cut in blocks and wedged in tight works wonders for under the shower bases and tubs.

What you're dealing with today is LCI bought some plastics companies, Kinro and Agile a few years back, and proceeded to do what they do with everything else. Corner the market,cheapen the product, and put anyone else in that area of business out of business in Indiana.

[ScottG]

I always reinforce the floor of mine by adding wood blocking underneath.

[MFL]

Is there any support under the tub, between tub floor and floor? I had a tub in previous FW that had SOME support, but still did flex more than I liked. It never did crack though. My current shower stall has fitted foam support under shower, and around drain.

Frustrating to replace, only to have it happen again! Hope you get it figured out!

Jerry

[eHoefler]

What kind of weight did you have in the tub going down the road?? Any weight will be multiplied significantly bouncing up and down while going down the road.