Winterize help

[cummins93]

Hello,
I have a 1989 alpenlite 5th wheel trailer, I bought it so I can move to follow my job, and winter is nearing and I have not spent a winter in it yet and knowing there's a number of things I need to do before snow comes, and I will be living in it through winter, so any advice or things I need to do to prevent anything from breaking I would really appreciate it! Thanks!

[Dave_H_M]

You are getting some good advice, but for me where in the hey is Kelseyville? :h

I would think it would help all the advisers to know what kind of temperatures you will be facing., and weather or not you will be sheltered from the wind.

I went through a bunch of propane and stood in some long lines during the cold snap and the "propane shortage" south of Myrtle Beach last winter.

[cummins93]

I am parked and not moving, that's. Good idea with the straw, and no I won't be in kelseyville, I'm pretty far north where the winters are pretty cold, freezing temps single digits at times along with snow, but that's great to know about water heater, thank you for the help!

[beemerphile1]

Gonna be parked and not moving? If so you can stack straw bales around the bottom to stop wind and cold. Wrap all pipes that extend under the RV with heat tape.

[Merrykalia]

cummins93 wrote:
The biggest thing I am worried about is my hot water heater, not sure what to do with that yet,

If the water is hot, it won't freeze. It might use a lot of propane to keep warm, but it definitely won't freeze. If you have an electric element, it will continue to heat it until you have no power.

That would be one of the least of my worries.

You have Kelseyville listed as your location. Is this where you are going to be for the winter? If so, I wouldn't be too concerned after I did the things I listed above. If the temps are not going to be below freezing for more than 24 hours at a time, it may be cool inside, but it won't be cold. Wear sweatshirts and pants along with some socks and you should be good.

I might also get some reflectix to go over my windows at night or when the temps were cold. The sun coming in during the day will warm the trailer, so I would remove them during the day.

[cummins93]

The biggest thing I am worried about is my hot water heater, not sure what to do with that yet,

[cummins93]

Thank you guys for the feedback! As far as batteries go since I'm hooked up to power will I have to worry about the batteries still? As well as converter ? Sorry dumb questions but still pretty new to this

[MEXICOWANDERER]

Lots and lots of propane storage. Ask the local LPG distributor if they can come and set a 250 gallon tank. This isn't cheap.

The batteries must not freeze. They must stay charged. In 1989 converters were pretty weak. For running lights, and other 12 volt accessories PLUS keeping the batteries up you may have to consider upgrading your converter.

You may need to do something in the basements and to the liquid tanks to insure they don't freeze.

[ed6713]

T

[Merrykalia]

He's going to be LIVING in it, so he will probably need to have water, not antifreeze.

It's according to where you are going to be living. If you are in the south where temps rarely get below 32 for more than a few hours, you should be fine, but will probably burn through lots of LP. If you are going to be where temps can be below freezing for days, you have lots to do.

1. Heat tape for incoming waterline.
2. Some type of windbreak for the underneath....some use the 1/2" styrofoam insulation.
3. Some type of heat source UNDER the trailer to keep things from freezing (100 watt light bulb)
4. Keeping the cabinets open to allow heat to get inside them.
5. Electric blanket for your bed.
6. Electric heaters to supplement the LP.

That's all I can think of right now, but I am sure others will chime in that have done it.

[Bobbo]

Remove all water from lines. There are 2 ways generally used, and folks here will argue forever about which is best.

1. open low point drain lines and drain all water you can. Close the drains and hook a low pressure, high volume air compressor to the shore water inlet and blow out the rest of the water. Be sure you get ALL faucets, showers, ice makers, toilets, etc.

I have a friend who bought a 5er and didn't ask me how to winterize. He just opened the low point drains and called it good. He was lucky. He only had to replace the plumbing in his shower compartment.

2. use your water pump to pump the pink antifreeze through all of the same lines. Usually takes about 2 gallons to do this.

ADDENDUM: with both methods, you need to drain the water heater and fresh water tank, and pour the pink antifreeze into the sink and shower traps, and into the toilet bowl.

[1492]

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