Insulating the interior pipes

We have a National Tradewinds and to my knowledge, the bays are not heated. Sooooo we put a heater in one bay with a fan to circulate the hot air throughout the bays. I plug the heater and fan into a separate 110 source and run the cord to the RV. My bays are normally 4-5 degrees warmer than the actual outside temp and this procedure seems to work quite well.

We use an electric controlled heater in our bus which we set at 65 degrees. So far that arrangement has worked for us and we have seen temps down to 20. We have not had any issues with frozen pipes. I can't say what might happen in colder weather but we can always turn on the LP heater of which we have 2 to warm up the house more which I think might help warm up the basement. Like everyone else has said the spray insulation is not the best solution for keeping pipes warm.

schlep1967 wrote:
I'm not sure why so many are against insulating the pipes in a heated space. It can not hurt anything to do so. And if your RV has any air infiltration around those pipes on a below freezing windy night, that insulation will be the difference in having or not having frozen pipes.

I grew up in PA with a father that was a plumber. I've seen frozen pipes on many occasions. All it takes is a hairline crack in a block wall for the below freezing air to make a nearby pipe freeze solid.And this happens in heated sticks and bricks homes every winter.

I don't think many are against insulting the pipes but expressed that there is no benefit in doing so in a MH that is being lived in. The mere heat of using it will preclude freezing of the interior pipes.

Now granted there may some extreme condition where it could be an issue but, in that case, there would be many additional precautions that would need to be taken.

Personally, I've been in temps below 0 and windy with no issues at all and as long as were were keeping the coach interior above 65 at night the bays were still well above freezing....in the 50's.

GGeorge wrote:
I was wondering if it would be a good idea to insulate the hot/cold water lines running thru the coach with a can(s) of "Great Stuff". My biggest fear is frozen pipes when trying to take a shower at 6AM on a cold morning. Has anyone done this? Does anyone recommend this?

Thank you,

GGeorge

I can answer that. Sadly the hard way.. NO. it is not.

Now depending on where the pipes lie you might work a layer of Fiberglass or other foam insulation bewtween the pipe and the outer wall.. This includes the type you cite (Great Stuff). HOWEVER. Do not cover the pipes on the side facing the inside of the RV.

Years ago I had insulation added to my house, they buried some of hte pipes in the stuff. Result was the pipes froze.. You see, heat from INSIDE the house could not reach the pipes but the cold did.

I had to cut out the wall, remove some of the insulation then put Fiberglass (Not my favorite thing to work with) between the pipes and the OUTER wall then restore the inside wall. under the sink.

That worked. They never froze again. Because they could "See" the house (inside) far better than the outside.

Putting insulation between pipes and floor or outside wall however is a good plan. Just do not fully cover.

pianotuna wrote:
Hi schlep,

The reason is that if you do insulate and then have an accidental freezing it may be MUCH harder to thaw out.

schlep1967 wrote:
I'm not sure why so many are against insulating the pipes in a heated space. It can not hurt anything to do so.

Its no like the insulation is that hard to remove if you should have a freeze-up. If you have power to run lights, you can run the furnace to keep the basement warm. Its a personnel choice, I doubt that it will harm anything. If you really go WINTER CAMPING where the max temp may get up to the 20s, it wouldn't hurt.

Hi schlep,

The reason is that if you do insulate and then have an accidental freezing it may be MUCH harder to thaw out.

schlep1967 wrote:
I'm not sure why so many are against insulating the pipes in a heated space. It can not hurt anything to do so.

I'm not sure why so many are against insulating the pipes in a heated space. It can not hurt anything to do so. And if your RV has any air infiltration around those pipes on a below freezing windy night, that insulation will be the difference in having or not having frozen pipes.

I grew up in PA with a father that was a plumber. I've seen frozen pipes on many occasions. All it takes is a hairline crack in a block wall for the below freezing air to make a nearby pipe freeze solid.And this happens in heated sticks and bricks homes every winter.

I would not insulate water pipes in a coach! Put a string of Christmas lights in the area you described and they project enough heat to keep that area warm.

I agree with others...no benefit in insulating water lines inside a MH that is being used. Normal living will keep them above freezing under most conditions.

We use too dry camp a lot, with both a 27' TT and our current MH. Our experience is that the split foam pipe insulation does help in cold weather. With our TT, we had trouble first with the kitchen water freezing at night, and found it was from the drain lines that hung down under the trailer. When the drop lines are frozen, we could not remove them to drain the ice out, and restore flow. We insulated the drop lines, and put ball valves on the drains. The next item we had trouble with was the outside shower. This was just a plastic cover over the shower, and it would freeze very easily We cut a piece of foam to fit in the compartment and actually never removed it after that. We had the holding tanks freeze up one time and could not dump at a dump station. I re-plumbed the dump valves so they were between the frame rails and extended the valve handles through the frame, for actuation. I then insulated the area where the holding tanks were located with 8” bat insulation, and covered it with galvanized sheet metal, with a removable cover for access. This had 2 positive results, 1 no more freeze up, and 2, it really towed better, and was more stable in winds. If we had kept the trailer, I would have done the entire bottom of the trailer for the added benefits.

Yes, even in the MH with heated basement, insulating the water pipes does help,both winter and summer, and also dampens and vibrations for the water pump. If you are heating the living area, our basement stays above freezing in all the weather conditions we have been in.

If you use spray foam regardless of brand it will be a nightmare if you or anyone else ever needs to work on the plumbing