Invention needed

A big shipping box (Corrugated paper) and a 100 watt caged lamp (Incascedant drop cord type use a rough service lamp in the drop cord)

Put the box over the hydrant. and the lamp inside but make sure it does not touch anything that can burn. Set it in a metal pie plate or some such

Dennis12 wrote:
They have already invented it. Its at 84 lumber. Go in and tell them you need a heated garage

Kinda hard to move that from campground to campground........I have one at home.....

"and our electric heated water hose froze at the faucet"

Heck, I don't leave the water hose connected period. Use it only to fill the fresh tank...avoids lots of potential issues.

They have already invented it. Its at 84 lumber. Go in and tell them you need a heated garage

Bob Vaughn wrote:

DownTheAvenue wrote:

Bob Vaughn wrote:
Some one needs to invent a waterproof mitten to protect the water faucet including the handle as one night the faucet handle could not be shut off because it was frozen open

Someone has invented it, and it is called a heat tape. They come in many different lengths- merely wrap it around the pipe to be protected and plug it in. Complete with a thermostat, it only turns on when temperatures approach freezing to prevent the water in the pipe from freezing.

Wrong response.......I had my heated hose hooked up and on but the faucet was very close to the ground and the handle was exposed to the cold air and it froze.....Once it thawed and I wrapped it with a towel every thing was ok except the towel was sopping wet....

I am sorry, but apparently you don't understand or I didn't make myself clear. The handle and possibly the pipe the handle is attached to froze because your heated water hose did not protect anything except that hose. There was no heat generated at the spigot or beyond into the ground, just the hose itself. Therefore, the water in the hose remained unfrozen, but the supply to the hose froze. A heat tape wrapped around that pipe and the spigot and handle would have prevented it from freezing just as your heated hose kept water in the hose only from freezing.

We camp in the winter all the time. Wrap the faucet in heat tape and cover with a survival blanket and wrap it up with a bungee cord. We also use a heated hose.

valhalla360 wrote:
Campgrounds open in the winter often use frost proof valves. The actual valve sits a couple feet below the surface and only the activator is above ground.

Frost proof faucets work well, but only if you shut them off and unhook the hose so the water can drain back down below the frost line. Freezing temps are uncommon enough in northern Florida that you're not likely to find many campgrounds willing to make the investment in them.

How about one of these from Home Depot or Lowes?

Home Depot and others carry those foam faucet covers that could be modified to allow a hose to exit. Should help to localize and concentrate the heat provided by the hose. Sort of like your towel idea only a bit more elegant.

Freezing temperatures can reach several feet underground so everything from down there to the inside of your RV needs to be heated. I stayed in a campground that had the best solution, the owner locked the hydrant handle and you had to ask to have it unlocked to fill your tank. If you leave the hose attached after filling you were asked to leave.