Put antifreeze in black and grey after winterizing ?

mobeewan wrote:
I put about a quart or so in the black and grey tanks to keep the dump valve gaskets from drying out and sticking. That way I don't rip out the tee handles in the spring because the blades are stuck to the gaskets.

This is what I do. I do put more than a quart in the black tank, as I try to never let it sit dry. After running my Prestone RV through the lines, I drain the low points, putting this in the black tank also. My tank valves pull better in the Spring, than at time of put away. While there may be others that lubricate, Prestone RV works well for the seals, including the toilet seal.

Jerry

By the time I flush out the lines I have a mix of water and antifreeze in the tanks and antifreeze in the sink traps as it's the last fluid out the faucet. I dump the mixed fluid from the tanks. It wouldn't hurt to pour antifreeze in the tanks but I don't and have never had an issue.

luberhill wrote:
Great thx, just dump the half gallons down the toilet and shower ??

and all the sinks too. you want anti freeze in the pee traps too

I put about a quart or so in the black and grey tanks to keep the dump valve gaskets from drying out and sticking. That way I don't rip out the tee handles in the spring because the blades are stuck to the gaskets.

I blow my lines out and only use the pink for the P traps...pumped the pink on one TC and didn't like the effect, blowing out my lines works better for me.

Always pour a half gallon down the black and grey tank before the winter season. It's cheap insurance, and has never failed me. I hate failures.

rk911 wrote:

I always do. those tanks are never really empty. same with the WH bypass. and I slowly pour a small amount in each drain for the p-trap along with a moderate amount in the john to keep the blade seal moist.

That's what we always did, too.

Another thought: if your vent pipe is open at the top, rain can get into the tank after you drain it; and then freeze and break the pipe. And lastly - some RVs simply don't completely drain. Our previous 5er was awful about retaining water (and had the freeze-cracked drain lines to prove it)

As I run pink through each of the taps and toilet...the water is forced out and pink finally flows. This means that the p-trap should be pretty much full of pink when I'm done at each tap. All the water and diluted pink solution ends up in the black/grey tanks which I then dump and I haven't experienced any valve issues after this process. For reference we see down to about -37C in Jan/Feb so its a pretty solid freeze here. For sure getting pink to outside shower, black tank backflush, washer hose, ice maker and fresh water intake one way valve are more of my concern as water can get trapped in those lines and burst.

Daryll

luberhill wrote:
Ok so if I do the antifreeze wintwrize, after draining everything and pumping antifreeze thru they say then dump black and grey tanks last..
Should I dump half a gallon of antifreeze in each black and grey tank ??
Also I just leave the waterheater empty and the bypass lever in the bypass position ?

I always do. those tanks are never really empty. same with the WH bypass. and I slowly pour a small amount in each drain for the p-trap along with a moderate amount in the john to keep the blade seal moist.

The reason for putting RV antifreeze down the drains is to protect the p-traps from freezing. This ensures all the water is drained out of them. The antifreeze displaces the water.

However, one year on my last TT, I missed the p-trap in the kitchen sink. And yes, it froze and I had to replace it in the Spring when it leaked all over.

It was right then I realized, I could just pull the p-traps and dump them out into a bucket and DONE! Ever since then, that's how I took care of the p-traps. Only exception was the bathtub in one trailer and a shower in another, and I did have access to remove it. But it was just a bit of too much work to remove it, so I just dumped the "pink" down the drain. Never had another freeze up again.