Leaving potable antifreeze in the system

This was my first RV, a 1969 Excel TT.

The first winter I installed the water heater bypass and pumped the pink stuff throughout the entire system and didn't have a single issue.

That following spring it seemed like it took forever to get rid of the smell and taste of it. I never used it again.

I started "flushing" the system with compressed air and just pour the pink stuff into the P-traps.

It gets down close to -20° here and I have yet to have a problem.

Now come spring time its fill the FW tank and I'm ready to go.

I would struggle leaving it in there for any extended period of time.

time2roll wrote:
Why replace it? Just blow it out with air. The air will not expand when it freezes.

x2.
Living in California I did have about 20 morning freezes a year and never used antifreeze.
Good shop vac does the job easy.

Why replace it? Just blow it out with air. The air will not expand when it freezes.

Terryallan wrote:
Guess whay i learned this year? The pink stuff turnes to jelly after a while. Yes it does. I had some in my fresh tank for a few years, and it gelled right up. I like to never got it washed out of the fresh tank.
I would suggest changing it no later than next year. If not this year. It's cheap.

I would agree with this. At the price of the stuff, just flush it out with new. It only takes a few minutes and about $7.00 to refresh it.
Then when you get it ran through the lines, drain it and don't worry about the gel problems.

billtex wrote:

jimh425 wrote:
I would change it just because it probably doesn’t even take a 1/2 gallon.

Good time to change the air in your tires too.

Not exactly the same thing because RV antifreeze isn't stable. Did you miss the post that said RV antifreeze turns into a gel?

Slymer wrote:
I am not sure what the point of putting pink into a drained fresh tank would be, at any time let alone for a few years. In any case to winterize I blow out the lines, then flow the pink through, then blow out again. Makes is so much easier to get the pink taste/smell out of the lines in the spring because it hasn't been eating into the lines all winter.

I do mostly the same, I just drain the water, I don't blow it out. Then I run pink through it, then drain that and use the freshly drained stuff in the toilet and sink drains.

I would never put anything in the fresh tank, other than fresh water. Remember, ice cube trays don't break, and if your fresh tank is drained, what little is left won't matter.

jimh425 wrote:
I would change it just because it probably doesn’t even take a 1/2 gallon.

Good time to change the air in your tires too.

I am not sure what the point of putting pink into a drained fresh tank would be, at any time let alone for a few years. In any case to winterize I blow out the lines, then flow the pink through, then blow out again. Makes is so much easier to get the pink taste/smell out of the lines in the spring because it hasn't been eating into the lines all winter.

Geewizard wrote:
Thanks for all the input.

Now, I'm concerned about the fresh water tank growing mold. I think a half cup of bleach might be a good idea.

Thoughts on that?

If that’s the case, load the camper, 1/2 cup of bleach to 15 gallons of water, dewinterize with bleach water, take the camper for a ride around the block to coat the tank, let it sit for a couple of hours, drain and winterize with the pink stuff. Two gallons of pink only cost $6.00.

Guess whay i learned this year? The pink stuff turnes to jelly after a while. Yes it does. I had some in my fresh tank for a few years, and it gelled right up. I like to never got it washed out of the fresh tank.
I would suggest changing it no later than next year. If not this year. It's cheap.