Need Help Cold Weather RV Trip

[Willythew]

Hi All,
My wife & I are traveling from SLC, UT to Parris Island, SC Saturday for our daughter's graduation. We are new RV'rs with a 2013 25' Winnebago Access. My concern is we would like to travel with fresh water in the fresh water tank and I anticipate overnight temps. to be around 15-20 degrees. Any helpful advice would be appreciated so that we don't damage our new RV. The RV is currently Winterized. Should I keep it winterized - I'd rather not. I'd rather use the sink & toilet as we're traveling. We're going to be boon docking on the way there. Thank you all so much.

[Bobbo]

Those trips are the best for camping stories in future years. Think of all the people you will entertain with this story at campgrounds.

[Willythew]

I'm not sure I'm doing this correctly. My intent is for everyone on my Buddy List to get this. I just wanted everyone to know that we're back from our trip to South Carolina and Oh Boy I could write a book. We checked everything out before leaving, but unfortunately our first night we woke up in Sydney, NE to 19 degrees and discovered the heater stopped working. It's a brand new 2013 RV for Pete's sake. As we continued to travel, it just got worse. The weather was a nightmare and it took us 5 days to get there. The wind was AWFUL the entire trip there and back. Because we experienced not so good weather out there traveling through MO and down into Atlanta, we decided to take another route home and stay on the coast. Well that didn't work out so well either. They closed down I10 headed west so we literally we're stuck in the RV for 2 days until they opened the highway up again. Our daughter decided she wanted to go back with us in the RV so again we were on a time schedule to get her back to SLC because her flight leaves tonight @ midnight. I'm really only skimming the surface, but suffice it to say that it was a trip that we will NEVER forget. Oh by the way - Graduation was wonderful. She's an awesome individual and we're so proud. Oh and I must not forget our dog "Bella". She was wonderful throughout it all.

[Bobbo]

Another thought, my Winnebago has a switch in the dash with a HI/OFF/LOW setting that controls a fan blowing heat directly into the house from the radiator. It is the off the same radiator line that takes antifreeze to the water heater to keep the water in there warm.

[pianotuna]

Hi,

I find driving with the heater set to defrost in my class C helps to keep the "house" warmer.

JaxDad wrote:
Willy, another cold weather tip is to open your rearmost roof vent, the amount of opening depends on your taste, when you're driving.

Some folks will scoff at this idea, but my own (far from scientific) experiments have shown I can keep us more comfy in the front seats, and the back area at least 10 degrees warmer.

[Willythew]

Y'all are a wealth of information and my husband and me appreciate you taking the time to post helpful information. I'll have to send another post when we get back home letting everyone know how it went.

[Bobbo]

My Winnebago has the fresh water tank inside the house, so as long as the house is warm, the fresh water tank is fine.

Keep the water heater on, except when driving. I bet your RV has a water heater with a heat exchanger that routes the engine antifreeze through the heater to preheat the water, that will do fine while driving.

I have the optional waste tank heaters to keep the waste tanks from freezing. Be sure there is at least 2 gallons of water in both tanks before using the tank heaters. Don't use the tank heaters unless either driving or plugged into shore power. They will drain the batteries quick.

In other words, keep the MH comfortable for living, and you won't have to worry. Fill up the tank and use the water system.

[JaxDad]

Willy, another cold weather tip is to open your rearmost roof vent, the amount of opening depends on your taste, when you're driving.

Doing so will create a vacuum at the back and pull the warm air from the vehicle's heating system back towards the vent. This does two things. First, it keeps you from getting too warm and turning down the heat, you have a lot of space to heat, you want to keep the heat pumping. Secondly though, it keeps the back of the motorhome warm, that means when you stop for the night you need to run the furnace a lot less, saving both propane and battery power.

Some folks will scoff at this idea, but my own (far from scientific) experiments have shown I can keep us more comfy in the front seats, and the back area at least 10 degrees warmer.

[koda55]

Do you have heated bays for your fresh water, gray tank and black tank. Our bays are heated when we run our furnace. We camped two weeks in Pa in December and used our furnace and our tank bays were warm. We had full fresh water in our tank and used the fresh water to flush our toilet. If your bay is not heated I would do as others have suggested.

[sdianel_-acct_c]

Many fans of winter sports, such as skiing or ice fishing, assume that they can’t take an RV out to resorts for these activities. The Winnebago Access has support systems that allow it to be used during cold weather. The (optional?) heated drainage system won’t allow your pipes to freeze or crack during storage, but they also keep the water flowing during a December camping trip as well. All of the exterior mirrors also feature defrosting. (this from rving with pleasure land.com)

[sdianel_-acct_c]

Congrats on your daughter's graduation. Tell her Semper Fi from an old jarhead. Are you staying at the campground on base?

[pianotuna]

Hi,

There is a great thread on winter camping under the full time forum. Read it and enjoy.

[JaxDad]

Jack_Diane_Freedom wrote:
Leave it winterized and take bottled water for your needs. Flush with pink antifreeze.

As Jack said, except, flush with windshield washer antifreeze, it's cheaper, and smells better.

[tandkj]

Head south and travel the warm areas. Keep the pink in and dump the tanks later. Again, carry bottle water. I'm in Charleston and the lows are still in the high 30's. PI is south of us a little way and the nights should be OK. The lows are 39-40.
Congrats on another MARINE.

[Jack_Diane_Free]

Leave it winterized and take bottled water for your needs. Flush with pink antifreeze.