I had this problem a couple of years ago.
If it`s the same as mine .The hose that feeds the flush ,which is situated above the cassette had dropped down from it`s holding position.
I had to wriggle the cassette until it came out,then when i put the cassette back,i had to ensure the hose was back in the correct position.
You will be able to put the blade back ,once you get the cassette out.
If you have any problems ,give me a PM.
All the best

Les

 

Thanks Les! - I'll certainly take a look to see if it could be the hose that has come down, though I don't think that's what's happend.

Everything is worth checking though. To say it's a pain in the bum, would be an understatement!

 

Ah ha - first success - the cassette is out!!

I'd spent about an hour before posting but, strangely, now it's almost dark I could see some of the locking mechanism more clearly using a torch from outside the van. With a lot more fiddling inside, I was able to get the lock fully released!

Now all I need to do is see if I can repair/re-fix the blade on the cassette!

Any suggestions how to go about it please?

Thanks, Mike

 

Check the mechanism that opens and closes the blade.
We had the same problem and it was a screw come loose that held the arm that closes the blade.
From outside the van, look inside the locker on the roof area, back right hand side. It was the "saddle clamp"

see here no 28

http://www.leisureshopdirect.com/ca...ford_C-200CS_Cassette_and_Spares.aspx?pdf=3542&pdf_page_id=7898&dpn_id=-1&sch=0

 

Check the mechanism that opens and closes the blade.
We had the same problem and it was a screw come loose that held the arm that closes the blade.
From outside the van, look inside the locker on the roof area, back right hand side. It was the "saddle clamp"

see here no 28

http://www.leisureshopdirect.com/ca...ford_C-200CS_Cassette_and_Spares.aspx?pdf=3542&pdf_page_id=7898&dpn_id=-1&sch=0

Many thanks!

The mechanism in the van that opens and closes the cassette blade seems OK.

I found instructions how to open up the cassette, but haven't managed to budge the mechanism yet to get access.

If necessary, will probably try to buy a replacement cassette somewhere tomorrow, on the way to the tunnel. Then see if I can get the existing one repaired under warranty - the van is only 18 months old. Just relieved managed to extract the cassette.

 

Our van has a C250 and came with 2 cassettes. Both blade assemblies were faulty from new.

At that time the C250 was new and Thetford had no stock of parts for it. Eventually they supplied new assemblies which are easy to replace.

That was a few years ago. I imagine that by now even Thetford would have had time to distribute parts the their service centres. I suggest you ring some agents on your route and see if any of them have blade valve assemblies in stock. Double check that they are for the C250 as there is quite a range of toilets and the parts generally aren't interchangable. Good luck with it, Alan.

 

Our van has a C250 and came with 2 cassettes. Both blade assemblies were faulty from new.

At that time the C250 was new and Thetford had no stock of parts for it. Eventually they supplied new assemblies which are easy to replace.

That was a few years ago. I imagine that by now even Thetford would have had time to distribute parts the their service centres. I suggest you ring some agents on your route and see if any of them have blade valve assemblies in stock. Double check that they are for the C250 as there is quite a range of toilets and the parts generally aren't interchangable. Good luck with it, Alan.

Thanks very much Alan - that's interesting information! I always wondered if our cassette was a bit suspect from the outset, to be honest.

Anyway - the good news is that at about half-past midnight I finally managed to repair the blade mechansism and get it working again - PHEW!

So, having done some more tests this morning, I think we're going to chance our luck with it.

But thanks again for all the suggestions, which gave me the encouragement to continue to try to fix it!