Fresh tank drain okay when temp in the 20s?

[rmcrowe]

We are going to be camping soon in southern Utah and the temps are projected to be in the low 20's for a few nights (daytime highs in the upper 40s). This is an imagine 2500rl so not as robust as some trailers, but it appears people have done this with success.

My specific question: I see a freshwater drain below the freshwater tank that sticks down about 6 inches below the coroplast and has a gate valve on the end. Is this at risk of freezing and getting damaged? If so does anyone have any solution for this (hopefully that is quick and easy)?

Thanks in advance,

Bob

 

[Chewwi]

We are going to be camping soon in southern Utah and the temps are projected to be in the low 20's for a few nights (daytime highs in the upper 40s). This is an imagine 2500rl so not as robust as some trailers, but it appears people have done this with success.

My specific question: I see a freshwater drain below the freshwater tank that sticks down about 6 inches below the coroplast and has a gate valve on the end. Is this at risk of freezing and getting damaged? If so does anyone have any solution for this (hopefully that is quick and easy)?

Thanks in advance,

Bob

It certainly is at risk of freezing. As to potential damage, I know of one gentleman locally who forgot to drain his fresh water tank last winter and had no damage even though we had cold weather several mornings down into the upper teens. That was with his RV in storage (i.e., no heat).

You could enclose the fresh water dump valve with some form of insulation and/or add some heat tape to protect it. Even a 100 watt incandescent light bulb somehow enclosed with the valve should protect it from those temps. If you go with the light bulb, ensure the enclosure is not flammable material.

 

[WhittleBurner]

Some water in the fresh water tank wont hurt anything even if it freezes. There is enough room in the tank for the expansion when the water freezes. The lines to and from the tank would be a problem.

 

[rmcrowe]

Thanks, I think I'm going to give this a try: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08JGQ49XC/ - I don't suspect it's going to help a great deal but it's easy and cheap and hopefully sufficient for just a few hours a day of freezing. It looks like it will probably fit (maybe).

 

[rmcrowe]

Some water in the fresh water tank wont hurt anything even if it freezes. There is enough room in the tank for the expansion when the water freezes. The lines to and from the tank would be a problem.

I will be running the heater, and I have a lamp in the pass-through (actually in the area where the water pumps is) so hopefully the the lines won't freeze. We are boondocking so no water hookup anyhow - the tank will be mostly full I'm sure it won't freeze in that short time.

I was mostly worried about the drain tube which looks like its made out of PVC and has a gate valve on the end of it. I'm going to put one of those faucet socks on it and hope for the best. I have tried searching here for members that might have experienced problems with this - but either my searching skills are poor or there have not been any reported.

Thanks for the response.

 

[GeoffnCheri]

Your experience may vary but I will relate ours. 4 nights where overnight temps were 22 to 24 degrees. Daytime temps in mid 30's. Day one we filled our freshwater tank full and then disconnected the FW hose. Used the furnace at night set at 55 degrees when we went to sleep just to keep the basement warm. We had electric so we used ceramic heaters in the coach. We had no issues, of course I was new and never considered the fresh water drain.

Of course my job was also to wake up first and adjust the thermostat and turn on the fireplace so the coach warmed up before the wife got out of bed.

 

[rmcrowe]

Your experience may vary but I will relate ours. 4 nights where overnight temps were 22 to 24 degrees. Daytime temps in mid 30's. Day one we filled our freshwater tank full and then disconnected the FW hose. Used the furnace at night set at 55 degrees when we went to sleep just to keep the basement warm. We had electric so we used ceramic heaters in the coach. We had no issues, of course I was new and never considered the fresh water drain.

Of course my job was also to wake up first and adjust the thermostat and turn on the fireplace so the coach warmed up before the wife got out of bed.

Thanks, that is great feedback. Turns out we have the same job

 

[Richter]

You could also pick up an outside faucet cover from one of the big box stores. Probably less than the one you are looking at on Amazon. The one that I am thinking of is a styrofoam cover with a hook on the inside and a pull strap on the outside. You pull the strap back, into the cone area, then hook it over the faucet. You then tighten it up by pulling on the outside of the strap. You should be able to hook it to the drain valve handle where, if you were using it at home, you would be hooking it to the faucet.

Here is one from Home Depot...

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Standard-Outdoor-Faucet-Cover-1980/204759226

 

[jasonandkimv]

We camped a week in late December with temps in the teens at night. We burned a lot of propane keeping the underbelly warm. We always had running water available from the holding tank. One cold morning I tested that fresh tank drain valve and after a 6" long ice cube dropped out, the water flowed fine. No trouble for me operating the valve that day still in freezing temps. Hope this is always the case, but I like the idea of a faucet sock.

 

[Heavysledz]

Your experience may vary but I will relate ours. 4 nights where overnight temps were 22 to 24 degrees. Daytime temps in mid 30's. Day one we filled our freshwater tank full and then disconnected the FW hose. Used the furnace at night set at 55 degrees when we went to sleep just to keep the basement warm. We had electric so we used ceramic heaters in the coach. We had no issues, of course I was new and never considered the fresh water drain.

Of course my job was also to wake up first and adjust the thermostat and turn on the fireplace so the coach warmed up before the wife got out of bed.

If you have a Coleman Mach A/C and have the AirXcel thermostat that looks like this one, They make a direct replacement that is Bluetooth so you could theoretically turn up the heat from the warmth of your bed!

 

[12gage]

Nervous- First trip- Cold temps

We’re planning on taking our Momentum 25G on it’s maiden voyage this weekend and I’m getting nervous about low temps and freezing. Friday High 43F Low 25F, Sat High 56F Low 29F, Sun High 62F Low 32F.
1. Should I be overly concerned since temps will only be freezing for a few hours each day?
2. Should I just use the gravity tank or does it make a difference if I use city water supply?

I’m picking up that folks are putting a foam outside water spigot insulator over the low drain points. Some of the large chemical hand warmers last 18 hours. Anyone ever throw a couple inside the foam spigot insulator?

 

[TheRealRoland]

We've been tent camping for a long time, and occasionally hit the freezing temps. One particular night was 19F as a low... Exped Downmats, couple good winter sleeping bags, and some head cover to minimize the heat loss. The next morning, just get the banked coals to fire up some kindling and then hot water in minutes

I was surprised last week, when we had hopefully the last frost in SW WI, that when it was 55 degrees in the trailer, it felt COLD inside! I guess the tent camping experience is very quickly becoming a faint memory of how cold it can get without a trailer around you.