Forum Discussion

tomman58's avatar
tomman58
Explorer
Apr 02, 2023

summerizing TT

WE seem to do a lot of things before we leave Florida for the north. Leaving our TT here requires several steps does everyone do the same things as us? We put moth balls under tt in a container with holes in the lid, we use 3 buckets of stay dry inside and charcoal,kitty liter and ant traps. Final step is to set off bug bomb. We run water thru the hot water tank for a few minutes. disconnect battery. plus a bunch of other stuff like covering toilet with a plastic bag, turn off propane. Seems like a lot but wondering if everybody plays this game.
  • One point I see missed in long term storage is the gray water drains. I keep mine full with some RV antifreeze in the winter. I assume the same would be a good idea in the heat. Nobody likes sewer gas smell all through the trailer.
  • tomman58 wrote:
    WE seem to do a lot of things before we leave Florida for the north. Leaving our TT here requires several steps does everyone do the same things as us? We put moth balls under tt in a container with holes in the lid, we use 3 buckets of stay dry inside and charcoal,kitty liter and ant traps. Final step is to set off bug bomb. We run water thru the hot water tank for a few minutes. disconnect battery. plus a bunch of other stuff like covering toilet with a plastic bag, turn off propane. Seems like a lot but wondering if everybody plays this game.


    Sounds like your concern is 99% rodents, insects and humidity and 1% for the camper.
    But if it works for you, I’m sure it’s fine…
  • tomman58 wrote:
    JBarca wrote:
    HI,

    Are you towing the camper back home or leaving it in FL, and if so, how many months will it be stored in FL unused? I assume you are leaving the camper there, but you did not say how many months it would be unused.


    Around 6 months normally. We have the TT tied down with 6- 1/2" cables


    Hi, if you are storing the camper for 6 months in the high heat of FL during the summer, I suggest this on the freshwater system.

    1. Completely drain the freshwater system—especially the water heater. After doing a gravity drain of the freshwater system through the low point drains and the water heater drain, close the low point drains, and you can leave the faucets wide open. Ideally, if you have access to an air compressor, even a small one after the gravity drain, regulate the compressor hose pressure down to 50 psi, close the faucets and burp each one and the low points drains, and blow out the lines to remove leftover water in the low piping spots. A gravity drain does not remove all the water the way most campers are made; there are still dips in the piping that collect water. I would leave the low point drains closed but the faucets open to let left-over moisture evaporate.

    2. Assuming you were on full hookup at your site, check and drain the fresh tank to ensure no water is left in it. Even on full hookup, sometimes water leaks past the water pump check valve and will add water to the fresh tank. I have had to deal with the mess inside the fresh water tank when restoring older campers due to the owners leaving 2" of water in the fresh tank for months: the green and black crud is bad and a bugger to get out. They just forgot about the water in the fresh tank or never knew to look.

    I fully agree; shut the LP gas off.

    You did not mention if you unplug shore power; if you do great, if not, consider unhooking the shoreline cord. Things can go wrong, ranging from; power surges from a bad storm to your power converter going bad and on high voltage.

    I have never heard of covering the toilet with a bag; I am unsure of this purpose.
    Maybe this is a FL or AZ thing storing campers under high heat conditions. While the bowl will dry out without replenishing bowl water from using the toilet, the black tank should also dry out through the roof vent if it is empty and flushed before storage. Maybe someone can explain the bag need.

    Ideally, consider taking the camper battery home and putting it on a battery maintainer for good battery maintenance in a cool shaded place, like a house, garage, or basement. Storing a battery in high heat for six months is not the greatest if you have a choice not to do it. If you leave it at the camper, ensure the battery disconnect is off, or the negative cable is unhooked. If not, the LP detector will drain the battery dead in 1 to 2 weeks, and storing a battery in a highly discharged state is not great for it either.

    Hope this helps

    John
  • JBarca wrote:
    HI,

    Are you towing the camper back home or leaving it in FL, and if so, how many months will it be stored in FL unused? I assume you are leaving the camper there, but you did not say how many months it would be unused.


    Around 6 months normally. We have the TT tied down with 6- 1/2" cables
  • We use "Nos guard" in the trailer.
    Shut off the electrical breaker at the main pedestal and stow the cord
    Shut of the propane gas at the tanks.
    Close the black and gray valves (we are hard plumbed to the sewer pipe)
    - I don't even bother draining the low point drains any more or the water
    heater. I just flush the system when we return and turn every thing back on.
    - Located in he Florida Keys

    Guy
  • Do you drain the water heater too? You didn't mention if you do that or not.
  • HI,

    Are you towing the camper back home or leaving it in FL, and if so, how many months will it be stored in FL unused? I assume you are leaving the camper there, but you did not say how many months it would be unused.