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  1. #1
    Site Sponsor BeerBrewer's Avatar
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    Winter travel and winterizing your RV

    I know that this may seem like a crazy question to be asking given that this is a start of the RV season, but bear with me. We are new RVers and we are beginning to plan a trip or two down south for next winter (January-March) and we heard that reservations fill up fast in the popular areas, so we need to plan ahead. Since we live on Long Island I'm going to have to winterize our travel trailer in October and de-winterize whenever we get to where we plan to visit, which shouldn't be an issue. My concern is the trip back from the south in winter, I'm worried about the RV freezing up on the way home. So I'm assuming that I'd have to winterize before we leave to come home or at least at the last stop where its warm. Is this the case? I've read that you can winterize water lines with an air compressor much like I do with my in-ground sprinklers and use potable anti-freeze on drains. Is this method better or worse that only using antifreeze?

  2. #2
    Site Sponsor sande005's Avatar
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    I normally do both when at home- blow out all the lines, then pump in antifreeze. But, that is kinda a belt and suspenders thing. If on the road, coming back to a cold climate, I'd just do the antifreeze thing. It's only a couple of gallons, and easier to deal with than lugging along a biggish compressor for the trip. As long as you make sure that everything has antifreeze in it (outside spray ports, etc.) there will be no issues. (I do have a small compressor for tires, but no way would it be enough for the plumbing).
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  3. #3
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    I second what sande said. That’s what I would do. Joe

  4. #4
    Big Traveler Calbar's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by BeerBrewer View Post
    I know that this may seem like a crazy question to be asking given that this is a start of the RV season, but bear with me. We are new RVers and we are beginning to plan a trip or two down south for next winter (January-March) and we heard that reservations fill up fast in the popular areas, so we need to plan ahead. Since we live on Long Island I'm going to have to winterize our travel trailer in October and de-winterize whenever we get to where we plan to visit, which shouldn't be an issue. My concern is the trip back from the south in winter, I'm worried about the RV freezing up on the way home. So I'm assuming that I'd have to winterize before we leave to come home or at least at the last stop where its warm. Is this the case? I've read that you can winterize water lines with an air compressor much like I do with my in-ground sprinklers and use potable anti-freeze on drains. Is this method better or worse that only using antifreeze?
    I have done both. For a trip in the middle of winter I drain the lines and antifreeze the night before so I don't have to deal with it when it really cold out at home. If it is the end of the season such as late March/Early April I check the weather at home and if it is warm enough blow out at home and if not blow out the night before I leave.

    Rob
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  5. #5
    Site Sponsor Steven@147's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by BeerBrewer View Post
    I know that this may seem like a crazy question to be asking given that this is a start of the RV season, but bear with me. We are new RVers and we are beginning to plan a trip or two down south for next winter (January-March) and we heard that reservations fill up fast in the popular areas, so we need to plan ahead. Since we live on Long Island I'm going to have to winterize our travel trailer in October and de-winterize whenever we get to where we plan to visit, which shouldn't be an issue. My concern is the trip back from the south in winter, I'm worried about the RV freezing up on the way home. So I'm assuming that I'd have to winterize before we leave to come home or at least at the last stop where its warm. Is this the case? I've read that you can winterize water lines with an air compressor much like I do with my in-ground sprinklers and use potable anti-freeze on drains. Is this method better or worse that only using antifreeze?
    Good idea to plan and reserve early. Around here (Austin TX) the campgrounds fill up fast with snowbirds and transient workers. If your going to FL, pleasure snowbird capitol of the US, I'm sure its even worse making reservations. Me, I would like the desert southwest for something different. Don't get me wrong South TX is great, but I would like to spend sometime in AZ or NM.

    I would just do the antifreeze. Pretty easy to set the nautilus panel for weatherization and just suck the antifreeze in, great point about the exterior spray ports, don't forget those. Also if you have clothes washer water lines pump some Antifreeze through them as well. Keeps them cleaned out anyway.
    I might buy a couple gallons of RV antifreeze at your home and carry them with you. Sometimes around here (south central TX) late in the winter season it can be a little hard to find. They don't keep the shelves stocked with a lot of RV antifreeze. It only gets cold enough to need it but for maybe a couple weeks here, if at all. Can find it locally at like tractor supply or Walmart early in the winter season. Heck seems like they are transitioning to spring and summer stuff on the shelves earlier every year.

    Enjoy your RV and enjoy escaping the winter months for the warmer climate.
    Last edited by Steven@147; 05-30-2019 at 09:55 AM.
    Steve & Tami Cass - Escapee's, FMCA Members, Texas Fulltimers Since July 2020
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  6. #6
    Long Hauler D2Reid's Avatar
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    We live in ours full time and travel in the winter. During times when we are moving during sub-freezing winter I don't do anything while traveling. But, there are a couple of things I do.
    1. I leave the gate valve on the end of the sewer hose open. Should there be a minor seep from holding tanks it doesn't get frozen up blocking the sewer hose.

    2. When we stop to go potty or eat lunch I will turn the heater on for a few minutes, it doesn't do a lot, but it helps some. I have a little thermometer in the RV that shows max/min temp for the last 24 hours, using this method and staying in the RV at night the inside temp of the RV will drop to about 45 in a 5 hour time frame.

    3. I leave the tank heaters on. My truck supplies juice to the RV during travel, something that I had to set up by adding a fuse to the fuse box.

    The key to my success is the relatively short time that we drive. Folks that drive 12-14 hours a day will have difficulty.
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  7. #7
    Site Sponsor BeerBrewer's Avatar
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    We live on long Island, so we could technically drive south for 5 or 6 hours (Washington DC area) in winter and still see freezing temperatures. I guess I have to leave the lines winterized on the trip down and only use the toilet (adding flush water manually) until we get far enough south. Could I pour some antifreeze into the gray and black tanks while traveling, so they and the waste lines don't freeze?

    On the trip back I guess I'd have re-winterize the lines at our last warm stop before hitting the frozen north. We'd have to stop somewhere around Washington DC, I guess we could stay in a Motel of sorts because we wouldn't be able to use the toilet, even manually because I don't have anywhere to dump the tanks near home. I've yet to find dump station locally.

    Unfortunately our trailer does not have tank heaters. I assume these are DC powered. Is it difficult to add them? Do they draw a lot of power?
    Last edited by BeerBrewer; 06-19-2019 at 06:36 AM.

  8. #8
    Setting Up Camp gregpallen's Avatar
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    My wife and I live in Michigan and we are spending winters in FL in the RV so I can appreciate your concern. I don’t think there is really a best way to winterize as both will work but to minimize hauling several gallons on antifreeze around I prefer the compressor method. I have the Vair portable compressor that I carry with me for tire pressure maintenance etc. Vair makes a winterizing kit that makes it convenient to hook up to your potable water system. I find turning on the compressor set at about 30 psi and then opening each faucet, sprayer, shower etc. one at a time until water is completely expelled is both convenient and less messy compared to pumping antifreeze. I also always pour enough anti freeze in each trap to protect them. The other aspect is be sure to drain the hot water tank and open up your low point drains. I added valves from Home Depot to replace the low point drain plugs that come with the RV. Finally make sure all of your holding tanks are completely empty.
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  9. #9
    Fireside Member Cqyqte's Avatar
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    We live in Ontario, Canada and travel south in January and stay to the end of March. The distance south at that time of year requires us to stop the first night down in a motel with semi-truck parking as there are very few campgrounds open along the route until south of Pennsylvania. The second night gets us into warmer weather during the day, but near freezing at night, so we stay in a KOA and dewinterize as soon as we arrive. If the night time temperature is a degree or two below freezing things are fine, if way below that we don't dewinterize until the third day south, where we would usually camp for a couple of days in a campground near a Camping World or other RV supplier, which would allow us the ability to gets parts to repair an issue caused by faulty winterization. After spending two months in warmer parts we start planning our return to the frozen tundra of Ontario. We use Weather websites and forecast models and KOA and Good Sam's apps to select campsites along the route home. The last couple of winters will have tended to follow I95 north as the weather is somewhat warmer and less vulnerable to sudden winter storms than the western side of the Appalachian's. As above we will travel north to a point where the night temperatures threaten water system freeze ups. When that point is reached we winterize when we get to that campsite and use campground facilities to wash. The last stop before Canada has mostly been north of Pittsburgh where we pull into a motel for the night, to rest before pushing home the next day. The stretch from Pittsburgh to home can be a crap shoot, sometimes clear sailing other times, freak whiteouts with the famed last snow falls of the winter arriving quickly. The last two stops we spend time identifying any and all thing liquid or food related items that need to come out of the trailer when we arrive home, as we Canadians can get two more months of freezing temps before winter gives way to Spring.
    Last edited by Cqyqte; 07-13-2019 at 08:04 AM.
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  10. #10
    Site Sponsor Cate&Rob's Avatar
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    Antifreeze is easy and is a "sure thing" for winter freeze protection. When I rebuilt my entire water system, I first blew out the lines with compressed air. I was amazed at how much water was still in the system! Some get away with this because Pex will survive freezing with water inside. But, some devices and fittings will not. Blowing out the lines with air at the "city" connection, leaves water in the pump and the lines to and from it. Blowing out the lines before using antifreeze can also cause problems because when the pump encounters air, it will have a difficult time drawing in antifreeze. Best to do what the the manufacturer and the dealers do for winter shipping or storage. Start with the system full of water. Drain the water heater and put it on bypass. Draw in antifreeze until all the water in all the pipes and faucets is displaced with antifreeze. This also fills the drain traps with antifreeze. Don't forget to purge the outside shower and the low point drains. This only takes a gallon or two of antifreeze and a few minutes . . . and you don't have to worry about how cold it might get. $10 well spent.

    Rob
    Cate & Rob
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