Name Brand RV Antifreeze contains alcohol- Rhymes with Leak
Major Name Brand RV Marine Antifreeze… now contains ethyl alcohol… Rhymes with Leak
Just a heads up to RV.net forum members that a name brand RV Marine Antifreeze that rhymes with Leak now contains what many experts believe to be a rubber seal drying ethyl alcohol. In years past, it had only contained propylene glycol, and not ethyl alcohol.
Here is what happened to me… many years ago, due to an incident that I had with a marine toilet where the use of a RV Marine non toxic antifreeze that contained ethyl alcohol had caused the rubber impellers of the marine toilet to virtually disintegrate, I switched to a Major name brand RV Marine Antifreeze that rhymes with Leak due to the fact that it contained propylene glycol instead of ethyl Alcohol. This was recommended by a very large and reputable marina as their service department had many horror stories regarding ethyl alcohol and rubber seals.
So many years later, I have continued the use of this major brand RV Marine Antifreeze with my 2008 New Vision Sportster Toy Hauler and used this product to winterize my unit last fall. This spring when I headed from the frozen north to Florida, I was surprised that my 2008 Thetford Style Plus toilet would not hold water in the bowl, and coincidentally, the water inlet valve on the back of the toilet was leaking too. This was the first time that I have ever had any issues with this toilet. So now I’m on vacation with a toilet that won’t hold water and is leaking all over the bathroom floor. Do you think that any local RV dealer had parts??? NOT! So off I went to the nearest Camping world 1 hour north in St. Augustine to buy a new Style plus… So many dollars poorer and much time wasted and I’m back in business. I didn’t think too much about it at the time, and thought it coincidental that two things would fail on the toilet at the same time, until I returned to the frozen north and had to re-winterize my unit. So I used the same major brand RV Marine Antifreeze (rhymes with Leak) that I had left over from last fall to winterize… this time, as I was winterizing, I noticed the smell of alcohol… I immediately stopped and checked the label. I was shocked to find that this large company had changed their label and now indicates that it could contain ethyl alcohol. OUCH! In my experience, only the fly by night brands had opted to use the much cheaper ethyl alcohol instead of propylene glycol… Now it was off to my local RV dealer to find a propylene based product. I actually found a empty bottle of the product that rhymes with Leak, that I had used a couple of years ago… it clearly stated that it only contained propylene glycol…
I contacted Thomas Cholke, Technical Services Manager at the company that manufactures the major brand Anti Freeze to no avail… he basically denied the claim and said that they have never heard of any problems and further that he (and I quote) even called Thetford and spoke to Kelsey who confirmed that RV marine antifreeze that contains ethyl alcohol was perfectly fine for use in their products. I found it funny that the Technical Services Manager would contact the fist line customer service representative at Thetford (not someone of equal stripes in their technical service department) and quote it as being the gospel.
So anyway, enough with my story… My point here is not to open a debate as to whether or not ethyl alcohol can or cannot cause damage to the rubber seals that are found in our RV toilets, faucets and dump valves, but rather to point out that this Major Brand RV Marine Antifreeze now contains it as I had always thought that it did not. You all can decide whether it is worth risking that it may cause damage in your unit. I can assure you that after my two experiences, I will avoid it like the plague.
Hope this long post is helpful.
Just a heads up to RV.net forum members that a name brand RV Marine Antifreeze that rhymes with Leak now contains what many experts believe to be a rubber seal drying ethyl alcohol. In years past, it had only contained propylene glycol, and not ethyl alcohol.
Here is what happened to me… many years ago, due to an incident that I had with a marine toilet where the use of a RV Marine non toxic antifreeze that contained ethyl alcohol had caused the rubber impellers of the marine toilet to virtually disintegrate, I switched to a Major name brand RV Marine Antifreeze that rhymes with Leak due to the fact that it contained propylene glycol instead of ethyl Alcohol. This was recommended by a very large and reputable marina as their service department had many horror stories regarding ethyl alcohol and rubber seals.
So many years later, I have continued the use of this major brand RV Marine Antifreeze with my 2008 New Vision Sportster Toy Hauler and used this product to winterize my unit last fall. This spring when I headed from the frozen north to Florida, I was surprised that my 2008 Thetford Style Plus toilet would not hold water in the bowl, and coincidentally, the water inlet valve on the back of the toilet was leaking too. This was the first time that I have ever had any issues with this toilet. So now I’m on vacation with a toilet that won’t hold water and is leaking all over the bathroom floor. Do you think that any local RV dealer had parts??? NOT! So off I went to the nearest Camping world 1 hour north in St. Augustine to buy a new Style plus… So many dollars poorer and much time wasted and I’m back in business. I didn’t think too much about it at the time, and thought it coincidental that two things would fail on the toilet at the same time, until I returned to the frozen north and had to re-winterize my unit. So I used the same major brand RV Marine Antifreeze (rhymes with Leak) that I had left over from last fall to winterize… this time, as I was winterizing, I noticed the smell of alcohol… I immediately stopped and checked the label. I was shocked to find that this large company had changed their label and now indicates that it could contain ethyl alcohol. OUCH! In my experience, only the fly by night brands had opted to use the much cheaper ethyl alcohol instead of propylene glycol… Now it was off to my local RV dealer to find a propylene based product. I actually found a empty bottle of the product that rhymes with Leak, that I had used a couple of years ago… it clearly stated that it only contained propylene glycol…
I contacted Thomas Cholke, Technical Services Manager at the company that manufactures the major brand Anti Freeze to no avail… he basically denied the claim and said that they have never heard of any problems and further that he (and I quote) even called Thetford and spoke to Kelsey who confirmed that RV marine antifreeze that contains ethyl alcohol was perfectly fine for use in their products. I found it funny that the Technical Services Manager would contact the fist line customer service representative at Thetford (not someone of equal stripes in their technical service department) and quote it as being the gospel.
So anyway, enough with my story… My point here is not to open a debate as to whether or not ethyl alcohol can or cannot cause damage to the rubber seals that are found in our RV toilets, faucets and dump valves, but rather to point out that this Major Brand RV Marine Antifreeze now contains it as I had always thought that it did not. You all can decide whether it is worth risking that it may cause damage in your unit. I can assure you that after my two experiences, I will avoid it like the plague.
Hope this long post is helpful.
