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Vic_Bc's avatar
Vic_Bc
Explorer
Nov 29, 2014

First time Winterizing. Couple questions

So I should have done this way sooner so I'm in a little bit of a pannick mode here as it's supposed to drop to -2 tonight and I'm a little worried.

I have drained my fresh, black and grey water tanks but ran into a problem when trying to remove the drain plug for the water heater. I have never used the water heater once since I bought it (4-5 months ago) it's always been in the off position but right the the plug is stuck in there pretty good and I won't be able to find the right tools until tomorrow to drain it. Just hoping I'll be OK for the night.

As for pumping through antifreeze before I actually go ahead and start the process I wanted to check with you guys about a couple things.

WATER HEATER:
From the videos I have seen you need to turn off the valves so water does not get into the heater. I have located the back of my heater and there are two valves. Do I switch both of these off?




As for the water pump, I found an old tube that looks like it was used in the past to do what I'm thinking. I'm not sure which hose exactly pumps the water but my instinct tells me it's the one I have circled in this picture. Am I on the right track?


  • camper19709's avatar
    camper19709
    Explorer
    Nov 29, 2014
    If your hot water tank is full of water why not just turn it on for the night. And turn the heat on inside?
  • burnmark's avatar
    burnmark
    Explorer
    Nov 29, 2014
    Can't tell from your picture, but if you look at the pump, there may be arrows indicating flow. Otherwise, you should be able to deduce it by looking at where the fresh water tank is, and where the hoses are going.
    -2 C isn't much of a threat to freeze things up. You could leave a little heat on with the cupboards open if you're worried, until you get your stuff together to winterize.
    You can isolate the HWH by turning two valves off, and one on usually. If you are worried, I would open the stopcock to avoid having the tank closed off. One time I had an issue with a fitting because I left water in the hose and shut off the valves to the HWH.
    You may want to open taps and pump some air through to blow out your lines. Good to do this with the stopcock on the heater open, and then close those valves once you blow it out.
    I suggest that at -2 C, you open doors, and run a little heat. Then get your parts and do it properly instead of rushing it.

    m

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