Winterizing tips for living in RV, in frigid climate?
Hello everyone, on Sept 8th my dogs and I will be heading to my new 2.3-acre undeveloped property in Bonanza, Oregon (Klamath County). We will be living in my 1986 Fleetwood Bounder 27-foot motorhome that I purchased recently. The elevation of my property is 4,156 feet and the winters there range from cold (32 degrees, 2-3" of snow), to VERY cold (sub-0 temps, 2+ feet of snow). My top priority was security and I now have my dogs (a lab and a pitbull), guns (12-guage shotgun and a .357 mag) and fence materials in place. My next area of concern is preparing for the cold months. I am preparing for the worst, cold and rough. I could be a lot more prepared if I had more time and money, but I'll have to make do with what I have. I'm hoping that you experienced cold weather RV'ers can enlighten me on any further measures that I can take to help make this winter more bearable for my pooches and I.
My thinking is that if I have a heat source (2-3 sources would be ideal) and a sound defense against the five heat-loss factors (radiation, convection, conduction, respiration and evaporation) then we should be ok.
Heat source- My motorhome has a furnace that I have not yet checked to test it's functionability, but I will do this in short order. I believe it runs off of the 10-gallon propane tank that came on the motorhome and I also have an empty 5-gallon tank that I can fill. I have two 4,000-watt generators that can probably run the fan motor (as well as extra heavy-duty batteries I've added to motorhome battery bank). The 15-gallon propane capacity probably won't last long, however I do not plan to use the hot water heater. I also have a 23,000 BTU kerosene heater with lots of back up fuel. I was also wanting to entertain the idea of having a wood-burning pit outside the RV, with a large heat deflector behind it to kick heat back toward the motorhome, HOPEFULLY without the smoke and CO. If anyone has an idea for accomplishing this, please let me know.
Heat-loss defense- I have an abundance of thermal clothing (Iraqi desert grade) that a buddy passed down to me when he got out of the military. I have flannel sheets and down comforters on the bed. The floor is completely carpeted. I am planning to replace the curtains with a thicker oven-mitt type of material. I believe the rig is pretty well insulated within it's walls. When I get down there I will do a search for any gaps/heat loss areas and cover/fill those. I am also going to figure out some sort of snow-deflector for the roof above (again, if anyone has any cheap and easy ideas for this). I have two ceiling fans/vents I can turn on to suck out condensation when cooking.
Well, that is the basic outline of my setup. I'm sure I have some holes in my planning and I'd appreciate any input you all might have for me. Any tips, tricks, wisdom and criticism (constructive only please) is appreciated. Thank you! Mike
My thinking is that if I have a heat source (2-3 sources would be ideal) and a sound defense against the five heat-loss factors (radiation, convection, conduction, respiration and evaporation) then we should be ok.
Heat source- My motorhome has a furnace that I have not yet checked to test it's functionability, but I will do this in short order. I believe it runs off of the 10-gallon propane tank that came on the motorhome and I also have an empty 5-gallon tank that I can fill. I have two 4,000-watt generators that can probably run the fan motor (as well as extra heavy-duty batteries I've added to motorhome battery bank). The 15-gallon propane capacity probably won't last long, however I do not plan to use the hot water heater. I also have a 23,000 BTU kerosene heater with lots of back up fuel. I was also wanting to entertain the idea of having a wood-burning pit outside the RV, with a large heat deflector behind it to kick heat back toward the motorhome, HOPEFULLY without the smoke and CO. If anyone has an idea for accomplishing this, please let me know.
Heat-loss defense- I have an abundance of thermal clothing (Iraqi desert grade) that a buddy passed down to me when he got out of the military. I have flannel sheets and down comforters on the bed. The floor is completely carpeted. I am planning to replace the curtains with a thicker oven-mitt type of material. I believe the rig is pretty well insulated within it's walls. When I get down there I will do a search for any gaps/heat loss areas and cover/fill those. I am also going to figure out some sort of snow-deflector for the roof above (again, if anyone has any cheap and easy ideas for this). I have two ceiling fans/vents I can turn on to suck out condensation when cooking.
Well, that is the basic outline of my setup. I'm sure I have some holes in my planning and I'd appreciate any input you all might have for me. Any tips, tricks, wisdom and criticism (constructive only please) is appreciated. Thank you! Mike
