Are problems caused by below zero temps common?

[tbred]

Hello folks,
So,some friends just went to check on their fw in storage. Found the shower surround walls all cracked in addition to antifreeze that had run down the shower wall from where the showerhead mounts. Thinking something must have burst behind shower wall.

Having read multiple threads regarding cold weather damage, cracked flooring ect... is this common?

Supposed to be -20 here again tonight, maybe a oil filled elec. heater overnight would be a good idea for our new tt?

[Fizz]

I is quite possible the shower walls cracked from the cold caused by severe contraction/shrinkage.
Last winter the linoleum split across the hallway in our TT. We regularly get -30s here

[JEBar]

tbred wrote:
Found the shower surround walls all cracked in addition to antifreeze that had run down the shower wall from where the showerhead mounts.

Supposed to be -20 here again tonight, maybe a oil filled elec. heater overnight would be a good idea for our new tt?

with antifreeze being present, a broken pipe shouldn't be the problem .... shouldn't doesn't equate to didn't .... is the shower one piece .... it will be interesting to see what the dealer determines .... with antifreeze there I suspect having them find they did something wrong will be a tough sell

Jim

[tbred]

Apparently the shower walls cracked in multiple locations where the plastic screw hole covers are on the surround, this seems like it may be a manuf. warranty item (fw less than a year old) In addition to the cracked surround it appears there is probably a burst/leaky water line behind the surround which would probably be due to the dealer improperly winterizing.Very well may be one issue caused the other. I'm just hoping our friends get some assistance with these issues.

Glad to hear you've had no issues edsland, I can only hope ours will be as trouble free!!

John&Joey,after experiencing the temps we are this winter I completely agree with you.You can never take too many precautions.

[NHIrish]

CavemanCharlie wrote:
All of the shower walls cracked?? I'm wondering if water got behind them from somewhere else like a leak in the roof. Or maybe the shower walls themselves were not sealed up properly so that when using the shower water was getting behind them.

That was my guess too....not just a winterization issue here.

[Homer1]

I think you can be pretty sure the walls did not crack from the cold. Water from some source got behind them. Water expands as it freezes and consequsently those paper thin fiberglass wall, disintegrated with the pressure of the ice. Going to be tough to stick the dealer with this.

[skipnchar]

Kind of like asking "do houses have problems in cold weather". Yes some do and many others do not. It depends a LOT on how they are cared for (winterized in this case) and the materials from which they are constructed (the component that may have a problem). Pretty difficult to generalize that all RVs do or do not have cold weather problems.

[John_Joey]

Northern MN gets -20f all the time. MN stored RV's do not have problems unless they were not winterize correctly. When I would help others on the forum with recommending to blow out the lines, fill with pink, and then blow that out I got many comments on how that was overkill. When I looked at their locations they were all from much warmer states.

You would be very surprised at the clear water that would come out first (prior to the pink stuff coming out.) I'm sure some rigs don't have this issue, but my MH sure did. That rig of yours may be one of them, and the extreme cold took care of that little bit of water that was in a bad location.

[CavemanCharlie]

All of the shower walls cracked?? I'm wondering if water got behind them from somewhere else like a leak in the roof. Or maybe the shower walls themselves were not sealed up properly so that when using the shower water was getting behind them.

[tbred]

ReadyToGo wrote:
Re: the leaking shower head.
First question: Did they blow out the lines before putting in antifreeze?
Second: If they didn't, did they make sure the pink was solid pink and not just pink mixed with water?
Third: If they did blow out, did they do the shower head? (Easy to miss).

Cracked wall would not be a normal problem with cold weather. ie Every RV sales place would be in big trouble it if were.

My guess for what it is worth, is that there was a leak behind the wall, either by a prior water problem or poor winterizing.

They had fw winterized by the dealer they purchased it from. we'll see if they step up and take care of it or just blame it on the weather.

[ReadyToGo]

Re: the leaking shower head.
First question: Did they blow out the lines before putting in antifreeze?
Second: If they didn't, did they make sure the pink was solid pink and not just pink mixed with water?
Third: If they did blow out, did they do the shower head? (Easy to miss).

Cracked wall would not be a normal problem with cold weather. ie Every RV sales place would be in big trouble it if were.

My guess for what it is worth, is that there was a leak behind the wall, either by a prior water problem or poor winterizing.

[beemerphile1]

Not common, but things do happen occasionally.

[edsland]

I live in the same area as you do, so I feel your pain about the cold. I have a 2009 tt that is going through its 5th winter and I've never had a problem , knock on wood. I'm sure a lot has to do with properly winterizing the plumbing. As for cracked floors it's like anything else, some things break the first years while someone's identical item last for ever.