Forum Discussion

Nomad

Feb 07, 2014

Refill fresh water - simple task?? no, not for me!!

Oh here we go on another Bob adventure....

Living in the TT in Alberta in temperatures lower than anyone has any business living in...... People actually choose to live here - LOL?

Well, at least they do it in a stick and bricks with some kind of a fighting chance of staying warm!

But Bob? No - he ain't smart enough to to find warm accommodations.... Yeah its a decision. Gimme my TT!

Anyhow,

Being careful of my water usage and all that because I know and understand that in spite of being careful, I accept the fact that my tanks hangin under the rig are in fact, frozen... I have a heat tape on the dump pipes, but! Why even think they may be fluent enough to dump? No! Not gonna happen until a random chinook blows through this frozen tundra and thaws things a bit!! :B

So I climb out of bed this morning and grimace that the amount of garlic I blended into last nights dinner. Chomp chomp chomp, yeah drymouth!!! Wow Bob, don't breathe on anyone - they will surely perish!

Hey! Maybe I could breathe on my tanks and melt them in their entirety and let it flow baby, let it flow!!!

Yeahhhhh probably won't happen....
It is frozen out here! Everything is frozen, everything! haven't seen the family jewels in a while either... Not sure where they went - LOL

But it is really cozy in here inside the TT. Gobbling down the propane at a startling rate, I do stay warm! $47.25 a pop and I keep it heated. Yeah, a refill every 2 days and I'm warm.... $47.25!!!

Oh! So where was I going with this?

Fresh water, yeah, fresh water. I go to brush whats left of my teeth this morning and I hear that all to familiar multi rapping of the water pump cuz its sucking air! OK, whatever, I have to get to work. Grab a bottle of water, scrub the teeth and head out for the day.

I get back about 7 PM and yeah it's cold out there. I have visions of crankin the stat and thawing out the bones! Yeah baby, gimme some heat! Never mind the fact I had the D/A crankin down the highway at a speed faster than posted to get here sooner.... No cops, didn't get busted, all is well.............

So, back to the TT, climb in and wind up the stat. Warmth baby, gimme some warmth!

Thirsty, need water. Oh four lettered word, yeah the fresh water is dry. Time to fill the danged thing up.

Inside the shop I am set up at is a Koi fish pond and a hose thingy to keep the fish happy. OK, grab my fresh water hose, 50' of it hook it up and run it out... Too short. No probs, grab my pair of white 25's - one of them reaches. Lets go now.

Grab the key - open the door..... hey it worked! Key not frozen.

Grab the fresh water cap and ..... and..... and... WTH? this baby ain't coming off.

Into the TT and grab my best friend by the throat!! My heat gun and a cord!

Heat heat heat heat baby heat, finally get the cap off, whew, I'm set.

No! wait, the filler neck is solid ice! Another adjective I can't print here.

Hit it with the heat gun and wait wait wait.

Impatience sets in. Put the heat gun in closer. OK, ice is finally melting but so is the plastic threads on the filler neck.

Ack! back off Bob! don't melt your filler neck! Too late, it is melting, backoff Bob....

I haven't had dinner yet. In fact, I haven't had lunch yet. Breakfast? a choco glazed donut from Timmies... With the coffee.....

C'mon Bob, fill your tank and get it over with.

So I finally get the stupid cap off and make a hole through the ice for the hose.

Run the hose out, hook it up, turn on the water and smile. ahhhh yeah now I can brush my teeth!

Finally I get my fresh water tank filled. Oh! that was easy!!!

Remember, it is 547 degrees below zero and everything is frozen solid. I saw a peculiar fog in the air. It was the breath I exhaled yesterday. Hmmmmmm..........

OK, gotta wind up the hoses. They are like rigid sticks. Drag them inside the shop, close the door and start the struggle! Finally get the danged things coiled and shove them back into the storage bay, from the inside of course because the outside access is frozen solid and I have big chunk of foam insulating it. Can't get the door open if I wanted to. Unless I used a big giant wrecking bar to get the friggin door open...........

Am I done yet?? I sure hope so. I haven't eaten since that greasy donut this morning.

OK, I get the hoses put away, get back in the TT and yahoo1 I have fresh water!!

WOW man, that was easy!!

Oh the simplest of tasks are how you say in English?
SO SIMPLE!!!!!!

Oh,and now I can make me something tO eat!!!!!!

But now my fresh water tank is full.

Grey tank???? Yeah well, yunno..........

Seeking Advice

45 Replies

pianotuna
Nomad III
Feb 08, 2014
Hi Bob,

Thanks--but I'm afraid it is a case of damhik. My cold weather time line, precedes yours.

I did do a five day stint in Calgary where the high was -27 c and blizzard conditions made the solar useless. I had a generator--and no shore power. I was away for most of the day, so to cut down on power consumption I used the stove as a blue flame heater, not so much for the heat--but to "fool" the thermostat so I would not come back to dead batteries.

I'd come home and start the generator--turn on all the heaters I could support and turn up the furnace. Then I set a really LOUD mechanical timer--so that I would not fall asleep by accident with the generator running. Since that RV was a class C diesel (Citation Supreme), I also ran the block heater. After it got warmed for 2 hours I'd start the engine...and drive to the gas station to fill up the generator and gas can.

Wobbly wide web access was via a cell phone calling a dial up isp--so the speed was 1/4 regular dial up. I could stream audio from BBC successfully back in those days on that narrow a "pipe".

The coldest I've been out in is -37 C. Both Moving Sue and Photo Mike have me beat--they have been camping at -40.

BobsYourUncle wrote:
Don, you're just a wealth of information!!!
I learn something new every time I read one of your posts!
Mike_LeClair
Explorer
Feb 08, 2014
Would be indeed awesome to have a cuppa with you. We are actually South of Edmonton, in the Pigeon Lake / Falun area. We boondock from May to September on the Hobbema Ermineskin Res. working at menial labour so I can earn enough diesel dollars for momma and I to travel South for the winter. My brother lives in Red Deer and we have many friends in the Calgary and Cochran areas. We will be in Osoyoos at the 'Nk-MIP RV Resort in April and then back home to Alberta.

Cheers!

Mike
BobsYourUncle
Nomad
Feb 08, 2014
Mike LeClair wrote:
Well, Bob, we were in Lake Havasu City today at the "Winterfest Street Party" and I managed to get a sunburn. We do not miss the Alberta winter at all and I concur with the notion that you are off the wall nutz. We ain't goin home until the end of April and hopefully, by then, the winter will be finished. All we have to do then is put up with the dreary and wet joys of "Spring".

Love reading about your escapades in the frozen turd North.

Cheers Man!

Mike

Well bring back some sun for the rest of us here in frozen winterland.
As for your sunburn.... aw gee!

Yeah maybe I am nutz but I do enjoy the RV in any conditions. In the summer I'll be gasping for air, wishing I could run the AC. That is if I am still here. I could be here a lot this year. THe economics in BC for me are rather pitiful.

Don't think I will get as far north as you, but if I do, I'll buy you a coffee. I have a cousin just out of Leduc, so may run up to see her some time...
Nothing in Edmonton I want to see. I lived there in 67-68.
Mike_LeClair
Explorer
Feb 08, 2014
Well, Bob, we were in Lake Havasu City today at the "Winterfest Street Party" and I managed to get a sunburn. We do not miss the Alberta winter at all and I concur with the notion that you are off the wall nutz. We ain't goin home until the end of April and hopefully, by then, the winter will be finished. All we have to do then is put up with the dreary and wet joys of "Spring".

Love reading about your escapades in the frozen turd North.

Cheers Man!

Mike
BobsYourUncle
Nomad
Feb 08, 2014
pianotuna wrote:
Hi Bob,

Actually that's exactly why a radiant heater will work. It doesn't heat the air--it heats the object it is pointed at. I had to use one to get my cord storage box open, and in the past have used it on the fresh water access door.

From "how radiant heaters work: Infra-red energy is commonly thought of as heat but infra-red energy only creates heat when it is absorbed by things with mass. For example, infra-red energy generated by the sun travels through space relatively unaffected until it strikes the earth's surface where it is transformed into heat energy."

It does probably take longer than the heat gun...but it's warm inside your rv--and not too nice outside.

I've even toyed with the idea of using a tripod stand (a la music stand) to hold the radiant heater at the best position for thawing stuff out.

BobsYourUncle wrote:
But the heater won't do anything for the fresh water fill. Gotta use the heat gun for that. It'll freeze out there no matter what.

Don, you're just a wealth of information!!!
I learn something new every time I read one of your posts!

Thanks for that one!

Maybe one day I'll boot out to Sask and meet you in person. I have various relatives around the area including a wonderful cousin in Regina. More in Hodgeville, Maryfield and Moosomin
pianotuna
Nomad III
Feb 08, 2014
Hi Bob,

Actually that's exactly why a radiant heater will work. It doesn't heat the air--it heats the object it is pointed at. I had to use one to get my cord storage box open, and in the past have used it on the fresh water access door.

From "how radiant heaters work: Infra-red energy is commonly thought of as heat but infra-red energy only creates heat when it is absorbed by things with mass. For example, infra-red energy generated by the sun travels through space relatively unaffected until it strikes the earth's surface where it is transformed into heat energy."

It does probably take longer than the heat gun...but it's warm inside your rv--and not too nice outside.

I've even toyed with the idea of using a tripod stand (a la music stand) to hold the radiant heater at the best position for thawing stuff out.

BobsYourUncle wrote:
But the heater won't do anything for the fresh water fill. Gotta use the heat gun for that. It'll freeze out there no matter what.
BobsYourUncle
Nomad
Feb 08, 2014
pianotuna wrote:
Hi Bob,

Two words (again)

Radiant heater

So much easier than standing out in the cold with a heat gun.

I added a 120 volt outlet in my hose storage area. A 500 watt heater on a TC-3 thermocube with a switch inside the RV works like a charm.

In a real pinch I can use the anti freeze valve before the pump to suck water from an 8 liter container.

I hope you drained the hose before putting it back in storage.

I'm glad you are getting warm weather. Mine has been...diverted to Calgary.

Next time I'm in Rona, I'll have a look at the radiant heater. I didn't forget, just haven't been to a store in a bit.

I work to much - but this forum preserves my sanity!! :B
But the heater won't do anything for the fresh water fill. Gotta use the heat gun for that. It'll freeze out there no matter what.

I noticed today there is a lovely ice waterfall running down the side of my TT below the water door. It matches the one from my HWT. It burps and farts out a little water from time to time, so I have icicles hanging off the bottom of the TT. Gotta reach in there and twang the pressure relief valve once in a while to stop it from dribbling....

I should take pictures of all this fun stuff!

Yeah I drained the hose before putting it away. Storage area is under my bed. I put some 1 1/2" SM around the door from the inside to slow down the cold. I have access by lifting up the plywood base under my mattress. It has a hinge and a latch to hold it up. I stuck some Fome-Cor across the wall at the head of my bed so the sheets don't freeze to the wall. yeah, well...... it helps.

Winter RV'ing is a hoot! Florida does sound nice though.....
BobsYourUncle
Nomad
Feb 08, 2014
Deb and Ed M wrote:
Chris Bryant wrote:
Don't worry about the family jewels, 'cause I can clearly see you're nuts :)

ROFLMAO!!!!! This thread was funny enough (Bob - really, I'm sorry your misfortunes have been so entertaining) but this just topped everything :-)

Well everyone, go ahead and throw the comments at me! I laugh loud and hard about the situation too.

No matter what happens in my RV adventures, I always laugh at it.

Have to admit though, I nearly frowned when a wind came up and tore my awning off and stored it on my roof for me. But I had to laugh when I saw my friends scrambling to try and hold the thing down! It really was quite comical!

So go ahead and laugh at my expense - I'm with you! :B
BobsYourUncle
Nomad
Feb 08, 2014
D & M wrote:
Bob, did you ever consider the Gods of Winter Camping don't like you?

Yes that has been a consideration, but see Chris's comment about me! :B
Cloud_Dancer
Explorer II
Feb 08, 2014
He makes it sound like he's braqgging. Wish I could do that.