Camping in cold temps, bad idea?

Lows of 27F isn’t playtime for a newbie. Read, talk with those experienced and be careful. Frozen water pipes and lines are expensive to fix. Consider going water system dry.

Have plenty of foam tape or duct tape to seal up your door etc if the wind blows. That's when things really get cold.

True Story. This was around 1971 give or take a year.> Temps in Lower Lower MI hit -40 and then some (past -40 in the negative direction) Propane would not vaporize. Fuel oil gelled.. Many people .. Er.. Froze their... you know what.

One gentleman in I think Wisconsin had made a bet.. He claimed (in advance) that on what by coincidence turned out to be the coldest night in a long time He'd be comfortable in a sleeping bag in a pup tent on the xx Green at the local golf course.. And he had the most comfortable night's sleep of anyone in that town... (He had the proper bag you see.. artic grade).

As for me.. Well we had heat (natural gas) where I was so it was not too bad but then I went to Church, where the sign said "For your health and comfort the FUEL fund deserves your generous support" It was Fr's annual State of the Parish financial sermon...

He explained how the parish had had to invest in a physical (heat) plant due to the closure of the commercial steam plant that used to serve Downtown Battle Creek (MI) and how for the first time in the Parish history they had to borrow money to do it.. But Greyhound had decided some land the parish owned that was not good for much other than wearing out lawn mowers (Land there is terraced and the parish owned land on 2 levels. this was the lower level and a fairly narrow strip) was the perfect palce for a new Bus Station.

So the boilers are paid for
They don't work... but they are paid for.

MAN was it cold in church.

You are planning on more caution that you will need. With hookups no big deal at all. You can use a little ceramic heater to keep the rig in the 50s easily. Your plumbing will be protected. You can often get some solar gain by keeping your big windows open and facing them south.

YOu can use electrical heat tape on your plumbing or just take your chances in those kind of temperatures.

Thanks for all the replies so far, I'm planning for full hookups, there are a few RV campsites in NH that operates all year round. It sounds like I should be OK if I make sure I have the furnace running on propane during the drive (it's only 2-3 hours away), disconnect the city water overnight, and maintain the storage compartments closed as much as possible, did I miss anything?

If you're actively camping, aside from the propane (and 12V) usage, you shouldn't need to take any special precautions in that sort of weather with your RV. Obviously you don't leave the water hose connected overnight--and probably the campground would have shut off any water hookups at the campsites already anyhow.

I've camped in roughly similar conditions in my motorhome, which I think is similarly equipped for cool weather use (though possibly more poorly insulated). If you have single-pane windows, they will let out a good bit of heat.

Where you may need to be a little more cautious is in the storage before using the trailer, and after it's used but before it's winterized. A few hours a few degrees below zero during the night, when the average temperature is warmer, won't cause problems; however if it gets colder you need to have the heat on or the system winterized. Similarly, a long drive through sub-freezing conditions (with the furnace turned off, especially) could be problematic.

Do be aware that there is a good bit of variability in weather in New England; some years are milder than average, some more severe. It's entirely possible to have snow sticking around on Thanksgiving. Your RV should be able to handle that; but you might not enjoy the process.

27F? Easy with electric power. Just know where the closest propane store is and what hours they are open.

You'll need full hook-ups. Your propane use will go through the roof without it.....and keeping the tanks from freezing will require juice too. 12v won't cut it.