Winter Water Use December 10, 2017, 08:54:41 pm Hi Everyone,We will be traveling south to Florida after Christmas and am wondering the best way for water use. We are 2.5 hours north of St. Louis (current night temps around 20) and am curious what others do for winter travels.She is currently winterized.Should we run dry until we get to above freezing weather to fill, or are we safe to fill the water tank the day we leave and only use when we get to above freezing weather? We will be staying in the LD while traveling so we will keep it warm for comfortable traveling as well as overnights.Also, should we winterize on the way home before we hit freezing temps? I typically use compressed air so I can easily do this during travels on the way home.Looking forward to your thoughts!Thanks so much, Paul
Re: Winter Water Use Reply #1 – December 10, 2017, 10:07:44 pm Where is your fresh water tank, and what weather do you expect your first few nights out?I have been out in the upper 20s without much problem - fresh tank under the bed, and didn't worry too much about the waste tanks - they will thaw at home if necessary. One trip on US95 in Nevada was down to 15 overnight. No problem with the fresh tank. Did add extra blanket insulation to block off the cab space. No clue about on the way home.safe travels.
Re: Winter Water Use Reply #2 – December 10, 2017, 10:10:30 pm Quote from: pjh4064 - December 10, 2017, 08:54:41 pmHi Everyone,We will be traveling south to Florida after Christmas and am wondering the best way for water use. We are 2.5 hours north of St. Louis (current night temps around 20) and am curious what others do for winter travels.She is currently winterized.Should we run dry until we get to above freezing weather to fill, or are we safe to fill the water tank the day we leave and only use when we get to above freezing weather? We will be staying in the LD while traveling so we will keep it warm for comfortable traveling as well as overnights.Also, should we winterize on the way home before we hit freezing temps? I typically use compressed air so I can easily do this during travels on the way home.Looking forward to your thoughts!Thanks so much, PaulIf you are keeping the inside always warm, then the water tank won't freeze so you could fill it and use it while on the road. As long as the holding tanks are not totally full, it won't matter if some water froze in them. It soon will thaw out.As for returning, I'd check the temps to find out what they will be when you get home. As long as they are not in the teens, you could probably make it home and winterize. I can't guarantee that, however.Chris 1 Likes
Re: Winter Water Use Reply #3 – December 11, 2017, 10:26:45 am I always put some RV antifreeze in waste tanks to keep them from freezing completely.
Re: Winter Water Use Reply #4 – December 11, 2017, 12:19:42 pm Hi Neighbor,We do lots of winter camping, but none in a LazyDays yet :-(We also have an indoor fresh water tank so temperature is not a major issue.We flush with RV antifreeze. We tend to avoid using the grey tank in the cold - capture in tubs and dump, use wet wipes to clean.Using commercial campgrounds makes life easier, though boon docking is an option.Happy Trails!
Re: Winter Water Use Reply #5 – December 12, 2017, 12:45:06 pm I don’t think the fresh water tank is much of an issue. What might be a problem is a cold spot in some location where the plumbing runs. We had this problem boondocking on a cold spring night in northern British Columbia when outside temperatures got down to the low 20s and we had no heat overnight. Should have stayed in the RV park we’d passed up.
Re: Winter Water Use Reply #6 – December 12, 2017, 10:16:34 pm I think the key is to keep the inside of the rig warm, either with shore power or with the furnace. If you keep the inside at about 70, outside temperatures of 20 should not cause any problems.Ken F in NM 1 Likes
Re: Winter Water Use Reply #7 – December 13, 2017, 12:59:16 am Freshwater tank isn't much of an issue, since it's quite a mass when full. The vulnerable part is the valve. Metal is quite thermally-conductive, it's well outside the insulated envelope, close to the (colder) ground. If it freezes and cracks, it usually won't leak until it thaws. Perhaps going down the road; you don't notice until the next night with 'oops, no water'. A lightbulb-based heating solution would protect it -- something like a small halogen spot or IR heat lamp.Holding-tank-wise, the valves, outlet pipes, and external p-trap (if you have one) are the bits at risk first. Tanks themselves are pretty flexible, tough, and take a while to freeze if full enough that expansion would cause damage. Antifreeze injection just after emptying will help protect valves and outlet pipes. Pour AF down drains to protect traps. Chip
Re: Winter Water Use Reply #8 – December 13, 2017, 12:29:15 pm As others have mentioned I keep the fresh water system winterized using instead bottled water from gallon and five gallon containers. When I have to flush the toilet I do so with antifreeze. I also pored a gal of antifreeze in each, the grey and black tanks. This was in hope that as waste water froze it would float above the pvc dump pipes and into the larger holding area of the tanks. It seemed to work. I know there was waste water in both tanks and that RV antifreeze does not work like car antifreeze. This worked well last Feb-Mar when I went to Denver to be greeted by nighttime temps falling to less than 10 deg. 1 Likes
Re: Winter Water Use Reply #9 – December 14, 2017, 08:26:09 am I'm with John. We carry bottled water with us and use RV antifreeze in the toilet until we are south of freezing temps. Even though we are sometimes south for several weeks, we do not un-winterize while gone. No problems with the toilet system, and use campground showers, and campground water by using the empty bottled water bottles. No need to winterize again for the trip home. Works for us. 1 Likes
Re: Winter Water Use Reply #10 – December 14, 2017, 11:32:50 am Just to be sure I understand, you are using your gray tank during freezing weather after first dumping in a gallon of antifreeze.Freezing waste water in the gray tank then doesn't do any harm? I assume you are putting minimal water into the gray tank.Frank
Re: Winter Water Use Reply #11 – December 15, 2017, 10:08:54 am Frank, we avoid putting water down any of the sinks or shower when winterized, therefore the gray tank remains empty. Otherwise, this would induce water into the plumbing and could cause problems in freezing temps. We do induce "fluids" into the black tank via the toilet, with some RV antifreeze as a chaser. The black tank is large enough that even if there was some freezing, there is plenty of room for expansion, so no likely damage. I hope this answers your questions. 2 Likes
Re: Winter Water Use Reply #12 – December 15, 2017, 12:10:08 pm I try very hard not to introduce fresh water into the gray tank. After I dump the gray and black tanks I put about a gallon in each of them. The black tank gets emptied more often than I would if I was summer camping. The grey tank gets left alone unless water is accidentally poured down a sink. In that event I flush the fresh water with antifreeze to take care of the sink's gooseneck, and then dump the gray tank. Finally I add another half to one gallon of antifreeze just in case there is fresh water sloshing around in there. Again the idea is any ice that forms will form in islands inside the tank where it has room to expand rather than in the pipe that runs from the dump valve to the tank. 1 Likes
Re: Winter Water Use Reply #13 – December 15, 2017, 07:55:40 pm I truly appreciate everyones suggestions....please keep them coming!We will use antifreeze for flushing and will wait until south to charge the water system. We will then winterize on the way home....draining the water heater and using compressed air for all water lines is simple and takes minimal time. Antifreeze then in the plumbing p-traps as well as making sure there is plenty in both holding tanks after they are emptied is simple as well.Thanks so much, Paul 1 Likes
Re: Winter Water Use Reply #14 – January 05, 2018, 07:45:31 pm Hi Everyone, we had an outstanding vacation to the Florida Keys!!Thanks again for all suggestions as all went extremely well. We left Quincy, IL right after Christmas in -5 actual temperature. We stopped in Chattanooga and charged the water system using the water tank with the temps in the low teens (interior kept around 65 and cabinets open). During travels, we kept the water tank approx. 1/4 full for use and made sure the grey and black tanks were drained before we left our site in Chattanooga. We then were able to use as we typically would until better weather. On the way home, we also used the system as on the way down (1/4 tank of water and grey and black tanks empty when leaving warmer weather) and we watched the exterior temps. Once it started to get colder we only used antifreeze for flushing. We stopped north of Nashville last night (mid teens) and filled the water tank and again used everything overnight as we typically would. The only issue we had was when we arrived last night, the grey tank valve had some ice on the outside and was a little difficult to open. If I had put a little antifreeze down the drain the morning before, I am sure it would have been fine.We winterized there this morning and now are home again to -6 tonight. We have traveled and camped for many years but this was our first trip leaving and returning in extreme cold. We have always wanted to take a winter trip and It actually was very easy with some preparation and thought.Thanks again, Paul 3 Likes
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