Heat on vs winterizing

I used to leave all the cabinets open and had an oil filled electric heater with a "no freeze" setting that would turn it on at 36*F. I never drained the W/H or any of the lines cause we used our camper all the time. Never had a problem even when it went down into the teens.

NCMODELA wrote:
Thank you guys. I figured since it had the four seasons package it would be ok to leave heat on. One question though. It did get to 29oc overnight here once really early in the season and it caught me by surprise. I had not drained the water heater or turned the heat on. How would I know if I caused a line to freeze up and blow? Is this likely for one night below freezing?

I would not be concerned about one night that got down to 29deg. It takes time for water to freeze solid. Now if it only gets up to 35deg each day and 20 each night, that is a different story. Regarding the heat. Since it is a four season trailer, turning the heat on low would be fine. This works well if you only get below freezing occasionally. If you live in a climate that routinely gets down into the 20s at night and may not make it above freezing in the daytime, should definitely winterize.

$5 worth of antifreeze and 15 minutes of time vs...how much did your 2017 RV cost?

If it doesn't have one, plumb in an antifreeze line just before the pump with a 2 way valve and a few feet of hose:
- Normally, the valve pulls water from the fresh water tank.
- Flip the valve and stick the hose in a jug of antifreeze. Then run each fixture (hot & cold) until they run pink. Should take 1-2 gal and then dump the rest in the traps.

You might get by if the forecast calls for 29F or they might be wrong and it hits 22F and you get freeze damage. Just not worth it.

If you want to do the blow out, fine but make sure you really get all the water out. With the Antifreeze you have a visual indicator that the line is winterized when it runs pink. With air, it can leave water in the system and you don't know until the leaks start.

NCMODELA wrote:
Thank you guys. I figured since it had the four seasons package it would be ok to leave heat on. One question though. It did get to 29oc overnight here once really early in the season and it caught me by surprise. I had not drained the water heater or turned the heat on. How would I know if I caused a line to freeze up and blow? Is this likely for one night below freezing?

I have been winter camping in all my RV's. I like to protect (as best I can) all water lines that come in contact with an outside wall. I have moved (re-routed) lines away from walls and added pipe insulation to wrap the lines. I usually camp with water in my system (with heat on) down to zero. Those times when its -20/-30F, i blow out the system and use the heated bath house at the campground. During those times, I dry camp in the RV and use my Curve electric toilet with windshield washer fluid in it to flush. The portable toilet is easy to dump its 5 gal cassette type tank in any bathroom or porta-john. The Curve toilet has a base that secures it to the floor.

If you had a freeze:
You would know, the line, toilet or water pump could crack then leak when thawed.

The term 4-season is just a term used by mfg.'s to make people think they can use it all year round in the Arctic. 4 season in your area is not the same as 4 season in Maine or Canada. Some rv mfg's are better than others regarding 4 season protection.



29F for a night in an rv with no heat is not going to be a problem. My unheated rv interior is normally 10F warmer than the outside air as per my digital thermometers.
Test your unit by leaving a few bottles of water inside the trailer, see if they freeze, i think you will be surprised.

After you blow out the water system and add anti freeze through it, you could drain out (blow out) the antifreeze and be ready for your next outing.
Having a winterization kit (by-pass kit on the water heater and water pump) will help make it an easy process, otherwise, use a hand pump as already suggested.
Once you put the antifreeze through the system it's protected, if you remove the antifreeze , it's still protected and you will have no residual taste in your water lines. Also, there would be NO residual water in the system to freeze. There is really no reason to leave to antifreeze in the system.

What you need to protect:
Your lines, faucets, water pump, black tank sprayer, toilet and outside shower should have antifreeze put through those places.
Also add a cup of antifreeze to the sink and tub traps. You could also put some in the empty holding tanks so the dump vales get some protection.
It's normal to have a little water left at the bottom of the water heater after draining it, there is room for that water to expand. (its like a big thermos bottle).
Doing all this will take 20 mns and 1 or 2 gals of non toxic rv antifreeze.

ScottG wrote:

gbopp wrote:
Get a RV Blow Out Plug. Use your compressor to blow the water out of the lines.
Pour RV antifreeze in the traps and you're good for freezing temps.

It's quick and easy. You can get blow out plugs on Amazon or any RV store.

X2. Then just run the water pump dry for a minute. There wont be enough moisture left anywhere to cause any harm.

X3 to this and don't forget to blow the Black Tank flush lines.

I used the blow method for four years with our current 32' 5er, took about 30 minutes using the on-board air compressor on the TV.

We would camp through out the winter, and most of the parks didn't have full hook ups. This would make flushing the lines very difficult, We never had an issue with lines freezing. I would not re-winterize until the next sub freezing overnight temps, or I was going to be out of town for more than four days. some winters winterized four or five times, one winter only needed to do it once.

The 29 you experienced in the early season, is one degree higher than I would use as a trigger point.

using this method, we were able to take off for weekend getaway in less than an hour and fifteen minutes from getting off work, to pulling out of the storage yard.

Is having a broken water line worth the chance that you might be able to take your RV out on one more weekend trip?

Small diameter plastic hoses for water lines, and cheap usually not tightened properly plex fittings, just waiting for a small amount of water to freeze so they can blow apart.

Weather man can predict aboving freezing temps, but we all know that is NOT a guarantee and we all have often seen temps drop below freezing in the middle of the night even though the weather man said it wouldn't. :R

And the repair cost is not just to fix the water lines. It's the huge cost of all what the water will damage.

Leaving heat on will not protect all your water lines.

I use the method of pouring antifreeze in fresh tank and pumping it thru out all the water lines. That way "I" know every inch of the water lines, water pump, toilet are filled with antifreeze.

Ok thank you. For those that blow out their lines. What psi do you set the compressor to not destroy the hoses

After our last planned trip before winter, I just go ahead and winterize the camper. I use antifreeze pulled through the pump and blow out the black tank flush with air. Takes about a half hour.
We take our own drinking water separately so don’t care about antifreeze in the lines. Never has seemed to take long to clear the lines, anyway.
If we decide to go somewhere, we just go. Then just rewinterize when we get back. I’ve winterized a few times before we left the warmer campground if it was too cold at home.
It definitely shouldn’t keep you from enjoying your camper when you can.

Ok so 3 gallons of antifreeze in the fresh tank and then use water pump to push through system and blow out black flush with air. Will 3 gallons of antifreeze be enough for the fresh tank to pick up?

NCMODELA wrote:
Ok so 3 gallons of antifreeze in the fresh tank and then use water pump to push through system and blow out black flush with air. Will 3 gallons of antifreeze be enough for the fresh tank to pick up?

I would not do that! You will be tasting antifreeze for a long time. You can set your compressor to 40 or 50psi and blow out the lines easily.
Barney