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Tony_B's avatar
Tony_B
Explorer
Dec 29, 2017

Tanks and Pipes Below Freezing Weather

I have a Denali 293RKS with the Thermal Package. I am under the impression that as long as the furnace is running to keep the RV at 65*F inside, my tanks and pipes wont freeze at temps of 10-12*F. Is this a good assumption or was the salesman full of balogna? The dealership didnt answer my e-mail and the customer service guy was as useful as balls on the pope.
What is your strategy to keep pipes and tanks from freezing?

Thanks in advance
  • Tony B wrote:
    GordonThree wrote:
    10 degrees for an hour or two in the morning, or 10 degrees for weeks on end?

    It makes a big difference.


    here is the forecast highs and lows:

    Today 40/20
    Sun 31/12
    Mon 24/11
    Tues 28/16
    Wed 43/17
    Thur 34/20

    Do i need to winterize and what do I have to do?
    I am new at this and I have the thermal package, but not sure I trust it
    We will be living in it during this period as we are full timers

    Thanks in advance

    I would get a heated water hose. I had to get one while at Cedar Hill near Dallas several years back when temps running like the forecast.
    Might want to get extra propane cylinder & make sure you have auto-change gas valve.
    Leave some heat blowing in basement & if hooked up to the campgrounds electric add a space heater.
  • GordonThree wrote:
    10 degrees for an hour or two in the morning, or 10 degrees for weeks on end?

    It makes a big difference.


    here is the forecast highs and lows:

    Today 40/20
    Sun 31/12
    Mon 24/11
    Tues 28/16
    Wed 43/17
    Thur 34/20

    Do i need to winterize and what do I have to do?
    I am new at this and I have the thermal package, but not sure I trust it
    We will be living in it during this period as we are full timers

    Thanks in advance
  • Repairing busted pipes is a miserable chore. Do what ever you can do to avoid damage.
  • We have weathered lows at night in the 10 - 11 degree range with high winds for five nights. We ran the main furnace (set at 68 inside) and had a ceramic heater on a ThermoCube in the basement to supplement. We still had frozen water lines to the kitchen island which is amidships. Not everything under there is protected to the same degree. During that "incident," I cut a flap in the underbelly, thawed out the Pex lines, put the foam noodle pipe insulation over as much as I could and put two layers of Reflectix between the Pex lines and the underbelly. We haven't had a problem since then. We've also stayed farther south at that time of the year.

    Rob
  • When temps get to the 10 degree mark, my camper has been winterized a long time before and dry camp with no running water. My trailer has the Polar Package, but I don't trust or believe it! I do know, a great deal of heat goes to the underbelly of the travel trailer. If I unhook one of the air ducts from the furnace and let it blow inside the living area, instead of traveling through the ducts, the inside of the trailer warms up and stays warm much faster. I do this after I've winterized. If I have not winterized yet, I leave that one duct still attached to the furnace.

    But, I'm not taking any chances. I winterize and if using the camper, revert back to tent camping days with water from a container, cat baths with water heated on the stove, and a port-a-potty instead of the trailer toilet. Works for us, and doing the winterizing give me peace of mind. I'd rather NOT test the waters and see where the limitation is. It's not worth it to me.
  • “What is your strategy to keep pipes and tanks from freezing?”

    My strategy is to never take RV advice from a salesman or dealership. Why should they answer you in written form? Liability! And 65 is too hot inside for me and my TT when it’s 10 to 12 outside...Condensation.
  • 10 degrees for an hour or two in the morning, or 10 degrees for weeks on end?

    It makes a big difference.