Living in class A

[kkiger]

I've been living in my coach now for about 6 months. I'm in GA, so the weather isn't terrible, but it's about to start dipping below freezing on a regular basis. I don't think my coach was made for living in, but I'm fortunate to have something.

As winter approaches, please offer advice, tips, suggestions of things I'm probably not thinking about.

I have wrapped my water hose in the black foam stuff from tip to tip and plan on getting covers for the connections.

I have added a "T" to the propane inlet so I don't have to move the coach every time I need propane.

I need to replace the ceiling fan in the bathroom, any suggestions? Is it as easy as it looks? 4 screws on bottom, maybe a few up top(haven't looked) and then seal it?

[Bea_PA]

Even with dual pane windows, you can get condensation, just by breathing and cooking. As was suggested crack a vent, When we had our Adventurer which did not have dual windows, running a small fan helped by moving the air around.

[bob_b1]

J-Rooster wrote:
IMHO, I would invest in a dehumidifier! Keeps all the moisture out of the inside of your coach.

A dehumidifier:h

Usually the air is so very dry in winter that a hot shower won't begin to fog the mirrors. Another source of moisture would be from a vent-less propane heater, but I would rather run by furnace.

[J-Rooster]

IMHO, I would invest in a dehumidifier! Keeps all the moisture out of the inside of your coach.

[kkiger]

Thanks for all the replies, all very good suggestions. I'll check out the full-timer page as well.

[Clay_L]

Itaska/Winnebago vent some hot air from the furnace into the enclosed compartment that the three tanks are located in. They say you are good overnight down to 20 F with the furnace set at 70 F. I have verified that on numerous occasions.

[crasster]

Also remember black hoses attract more solar energy and can keep things liquid during the days. It won't be much help at night but if you had to setup to sleep or stop during the days, black hoses don't freeze as quickly in the sunlight.

[klm]

I am a fulltimer, currently parked in the very cold and snowy northeast!! I have heat tape running along the water hose, with the pipe insulation over that. works great. But, I do keep my fresh tank full, so on the outside chance I don't have city water, still ok. Is your basement heated with the furnace? I have a blower that sends heat to the wet bay, never had a problem - I supplement the furnace heat with a small electric heater. Like you I have a "t" on my propane - much easier to swap out aux tanks than move the rig. Try to keep your slide toppers free of snow or water - that stuff will melt then freeze and could cause problems if you need to bring them in. I bring the slides in for big snow storms, for rain - then night time freeze - I run the slide in to dump excess water on the topper. An electric mattress pad warmer or blanket is nice for sleeping. If you have condensation, you will have to crack a window.

[wa8yxm]

Where in GA are you? I'm in Seneca SC just now (Perhaps 20 miles from GA at the I-85 exit, closer if you take "Country roads")

I fill my onboard water tank and drain the hose if it's going to freeze.

I have enclosed tanks and with the furnace furnacing they are good to 20 degrees,,, I've yet to see teens in 5 years of parking in this area. (I take that back I see teens,, but I have to use a very powerful telescope)

[Robert78121]

A better place to ask this question is in the Full-Time RVing forum on this website. For a full-timer it's not very convenient to fill up your fresh water tank every few days to avoid freezing lines. I am in the Washington DC area which surely gets colder than your Georgia location and used heat tape along with foam insulation for my inlet with no problems. I also replaced the rubber hose with PVC and use PVC for my waste connection as well.

If you go to the Full-Time forum the first post you'll see in a sticky in regards to Winter RV Camping and is well worth your time to read.

[past-MIdirector]

We have been down to -3 so far this winter waiting for DW Chemo treatments (only one more) before we leave MI and head south. The 100W & 75W light bulbs are no longer available but I'm using 60W without a problem. As long as temperatures do not go below 25 for a long period your water hose should be fine. I've been doing the tank fill and only dump the sewer when needed.
I have a 30# and the grill 20# tanks and using the extended stay on the MH. The 30# will last about 5 to 7 days with night time temperature below freezing. It's good to have a electric ceramic heater on hand. We use vent pillows to block the vents when not using the fans and when showing open the vent and run the fan to cut down on condensation. This was the biggest thing we have had to overcome is keeping the moisture down. Another item the DW found that helps is she has the front curtains closed and a sheet hanging from the overhead console to the floor which blocks a lot of the cold air from the front windshield and floor area. I also block the lower vent on the outside cover to the fridge and have a 60W bulb in a drop light in there when it's below freezing since I have an ice maker and to protect the gas mixture from gelling also do a search on fridge operation in freezing weather or winter camping there are pages of good information!

[jhilley]

You should have no problems with your RV in that climate. Take the advice offered above and you should be in great shape for lower temperatures. The bathroom fan is easy to replace. There are better replacements from Fantastic Vent and Vortex

[carbour]

Make sure you leave cabinet doors open where there is plumbing inside, sink and lavatory cabinets where ever your pump is. depending on how cold it gets, you may have to get some heat tape for your hose.
We have camped in cold weather where it got to around 30 degrees with no problem.
As for the fan, not a big job at all. I just replaced a vent with a fantastic fan in about an hour. Fortunately they had run wiring to the vent just in case you wanted a fan.

[rgatijnet1]

When in freezing temps, I only hook up water and sewer to dump and fill my tanks. No hose to worry about freezing.
I keep my water tank topped off which means that it will take a long time for it to even possibly freeze. I put a 100 watt light bulb in the wet compartment to keep the water pump from freezing.
I also have one of those PORTABLE heat pump/AC units that works fine in cold weather. Puts out a lot of heat and I don't have to worry about it shutting off when the temps drop into the teens. The heat pump puts out twice the BTU's on the same amount of electric as a radiant electric heater.
Enjoy!