My DW and I are planning to make our first trip South this winter in our Class C with no basement and the unit winterized till we get far South enough to de-winterize and tour parts of Texas.Since we are used to having our plumbing working and warmer weather I am a bit fearful that we may do something wrong or cause some damage to our rig. Figure we could maybe use the toilet with a plastic bag in it for temporary needs at night or something and then dispose of it when appropriate while we are travelling South. Figure I will leave the hot water tank empty by keeping the bypass valves in place even when we get to Texas so we do not have to worry about the tank freezing up on us. Our fresh water tank is inside our unit, under our bed, so I think that will be okay.When we are driving South we should be fine with the engine heat and if we stop at a campground we would hope to get electric but maybe not.Since our Class C is not setup for cold weather camping I am hoping that we can survive such a trip. Would appreciate any and all suggestions from folks who have winter camping experience, especially in units that do not have basement tanks and other winter protective devices, etc....

IMO you are over reacting just a bit. I know it is better to err on the side of caution but really how many days/nights are you going to spend in a hard freeze area. Unhook your hoses at night, keep your rig interior warm, open up cabinets where plumbing comes in, put a 100 watt light bulb in your wet bay and you should be good down to an hour or two in 25 degree temps. If it gets above freezing during the day you should be good to go even with tanks full and water heater operating.

Maverick,Thanks for the feedback... Not sure what a wetbay is??? I do not have a basement area as my holding tanks, black and grey are exposed under my rig.

I travel in very cold weather all the time. I start out with empty black and gray tanks, add a gallon of non toxic to each to protect the dump valves and drain pipe. I will use the toilet normally, but would flush with some antifreeze. I try and stop at a CG that has a heated bathhouse with laundry or get a site with full hookups. I use the on board water tank if I need to then re winterize the next morning. no need for me to do dishes due to sandwiches, paper plates, microwave dinners etc. I did it for 3 days once, heading up north instead of south.:h:S

I have to transit below freezing temps on my way to Mexico from Canada each year. I simply stop every couple of hours at a rest area and bring the interior up to 70. That keeps everything fine.

I also think you'll be find. By the looks of the maps, its a pretty straight shot south. Just check the weather before you leave and use it as your guide. If the forecast is for bad weather, wait it out. Once we got caught in a freeze. We learned a lot of lessons from that, but the only thing that happened was that our outside hose froze and we had to wait it out before we could leave. Invest in a small electric heater for night times and let it run keeping the water pipes warm. We put that silver stuff (used to reflect sunlight) in each window and that helped keep the heat in. We bought a roll at Home Depot and cut them to fit, but I saw on facebook that you could use bubble wrap and water and that would work also. Neat trick.

Winter Travel - First time - Tips - Suggestions??

18 Replies

Parrothead_Mike
Explorer
Nov 15, 2013
I think one night in a motel and the next at a campground where you can dewinterize your RV will do it. We left SW Michigan at about 11 a.m. on our way to Florida, spent the night in Bowling Green, KY, and late the next afternoon we were just north of Troy, Alabama where we found a nice FHU campground. This way you don't have to worry about overnighting in the RV. There are plenty of rest areas along the way for potty breaks.
John_S2
Explorer
Nov 15, 2013
Roy and Lynne, Yes, that is definitely the plan... Gonna check the weather map before we leave home to make sure we have a couple of days driving without any bad weather hitting us... Do not want to head out into a storm front. We will definitely use paper plates, etc.. while snacking on the way down and plan on a few restaurant meals (Cracker Barrel?) along the way... I do not want to have to winterize and dewinterise along the way.. It is too much of a pain.. Figure on only doing it once when we are far enough South... Do not want to use motels as we are bringing our bed with us and have to pay for the gas along the way to do that..... thanks for your suggestions folks...
Cobra21
Explorer
Nov 15, 2013
If you are really unsure you could use a motel for 2 nights on the way
down and back.
Roy_Lynne
Explorer
Nov 15, 2013
I also think you'll be find. By the looks of the maps, its a pretty straight shot south. Just check the weather before you leave and use it as your guide. If the forecast is for bad weather, wait it out.
Once we got caught in a freeze. We learned a lot of lessons from that, but the only thing that happened was that our outside hose froze and we had to wait it out before we could leave.
Invest in a small electric heater for night times and let it run keeping the water pipes warm. We put that silver stuff (used to reflect sunlight) in each window and that helped keep the heat in. We bought a roll at Home Depot and cut them to fit, but I saw on facebook that you could use bubble wrap and water and that would work also. Neat trick.
Tequila
Explorer
Nov 15, 2013
I have to transit below freezing temps on my way to Mexico from Canada each year. I simply stop every couple of hours at a rest area and bring the interior up to 70. That keeps everything fine.
weathershak
Explorer
Nov 15, 2013
I travel in very cold weather all the time. I start out with empty black and gray tanks, add a gallon of non toxic to each to protect the dump valves and drain pipe. I will use the toilet normally, but would flush with some antifreeze.
I try and stop at a CG that has a heated bathhouse with laundry or get a site with full hookups. I use the on board water tank if I need to then re winterize the next morning. no need for me to do dishes due to sandwiches, paper plates, microwave dinners etc. I did it for 3 days once, heading up north instead of south.:h:S
John_S2
Explorer
Nov 15, 2013
Maverick,

Thanks for the feedback... Not sure what a wetbay is??? I do not have a basement area as my holding tanks, black and grey are exposed under my rig.
MaverickBBD
Explorer
Nov 15, 2013
IMO you are over reacting just a bit. I know it is better to err on the side of caution but really how many days/nights are you going to spend in a hard freeze area. Unhook your hoses at night, keep your rig interior warm, open up cabinets where plumbing comes in, put a 100 watt light bulb in your wet bay and you should be good down to an hour or two in 25 degree temps. If it gets above freezing during the day you should be good to go even with tanks full and water heater operating.

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Winter Travel - First time - Tips - Suggestions??

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