---
title: "Apex fresh-water tank supports pull off the frame"
kind: "owner-report"
recall: false
brand: "coachmen"
model: "apex"
year: 2018
slug: "coachmen-apex-fresh-tank"
url: "https://www.rigfixhq.com/issues/coachmen/apex/2018/coachmen-apex-fresh-tank"
markdownUrl: "https://www.rigfixhq.com/issues/coachmen/apex/2018/coachmen-apex-fresh-tank.md"
---

# Apex fresh-water tank supports pull off the frame

Owner reports are not official NHTSA recalls. Each report cites a public complaint, bulletin, forum thread, or manufacturer page. It is not a failure rate, a diagnosis, or a repair procedure.

**Owner report** · Frame · 2018 Coachmen Apex

## Symptoms

NHTSA complaint ODI 11424075, filed July 9, 2021, on a 2018 Coachmen Apex, says the fresh-water tank supports broke loose from the frame and the tank fell, held up only by wiring and hoses. The owner wrote that this happened at a fill station, that the tank had to come off before the trailer could be moved, and that the supports were held by small number-10 Tek screws whose heads sheared. The owner wrote that a dealer, All Star in Sherwood Park, Alberta, said they had seen the same thing. Complaint ODI 11670729, filed July 2, 2025, on a 2018 Apex, says a small angle-iron beam under the fresh tank was fastened to the frame with sheet-metal screws, the threads stripped, and the beam fell while the tank was being filled and the trailer was parked. On the Forest River Forums, an owner of an Apex Nano 193BHS wrote on June 29, 2020, that the fresh tank was bowing, and that the cross supports were held by screws the owner backed out. The post does not state a model year.

## Likely causes

Both 2018 complaints say the tank supports were held by screws, and that those screws sheared or stripped. The forum post describes screws holding the cross supports on an Apex Nano whose tank had bowed. The owner of that post also wrote that the tank may have been overfilled. That is the owner's guess. The posts do not show one loose screw on every Apex.

## Common fixes

Before a trip with water in the fresh tank, look at the supports under the tank if the belly is open enough to see them. A support that has pulled loose is what the 2018 complaints describe. If the tank is sitting on the ground or on the hoses, do not tow it. The 2021 complaint says the tank had to be removed before the trailer could be moved. That was that owner's situation at a fill station, not a procedure. The forum owner added plywood supports and put the straps back with 1/2-inch self-tapping screws so the screws would not pierce the tank. That is one owner's modification, not a Coachmen repair. Ask the dealer to look at the tank mounts and to say whether the visit is warranty before the next trip.

## DIY difficulty

Looking at the supports is something the forum owner describes. Putting a dropped tank back, in the 2021 complaint, meant taking the tank off the trailer. The plywood supports are one owner's modification, not a measured procedure.

## Parts needed

No Coachmen part number is named. The complaints describe number-10 Tek screws and sheet-metal screws in an angle-iron support. The forum post describes the screws that held the factory cross supports.

## Warranty notes

This is not a recall. The 2021 complaint says the dealer had seen the same thing and does not say Coachmen paid. The 2025 complaint does not record a warranty decision. The forum post is an owner modification and does not record a warranty decision. A complaint is not a coverage decision for another Apex. The year on this page is 2018, which is the year both complaints name. The forum post does not give a model year.

## Sources

- [NHTSA complaints for 2018 Coachmen Apex (ODI 11424075 and 11670729)](https://api.nhtsa.gov/complaints/complaintsByVehicle?make=COACHMEN&model=APEX&modelYear=2018)
- [Forest River Forums thread on Apex Nano fresh-tank supports held by screws](https://www.forestriverforums.com/threads/apex-nano-fresh-water-tank-mod.322213/)

Year page: [2018 Coachmen Apex](https://www.rigfixhq.com/issues/coachmen/apex/2018)

HTML page: https://www.rigfixhq.com/issues/coachmen/apex/2018/coachmen-apex-fresh-tank