winterizing - i'm late !

[OBX-GL]

Hey all, looking for thoughts.
Trailer has been in storage without winterization. I'm fairly certain i drained low point and water heater with taps open when i parked it. Temps have been at freezing for a few days now. Last night -7C/19F, theres no sign of above freezing temps for 5 or so days. Should i go over today and run pump and try to get things done or wait till i get a day or two of warmer weather ?

I'm frustrated/angry with myself. I know better. Been to busy working.

[OBX-GL]

So heres my little update.
All appears to be good. Running the furnace for 24 hours in insanely cold temps thawed things out surprisingly quickly. Ran the pump and everything pressurized and ran pink. I have monitored things for a few days and see no leaking. Underbelly of course is an unknown but pushing the outside city water valve reveals lots of pressure is maintained as it continues to squirt strong with the pump off for days.

A side note. I have never experienced winter camping in an RV, so am so surprised how well the furnace kept things warm. On the 1F night it maintained 80F inside with the furnace cycling, even the floors were warm.

Thanks all for your thoughts. Still can't believe i found myself in this predicament as winterizing takes only a few minutes. And i sooo new better.

[Timtation]

If you drained the tank the pump should have no water in its supply line. The pump is in the trailer heated space so what is the worry about starting it? Even if it were frozen you would tell that it was not making that pump sound and would shut off the switch, right? My guess is that if the traps did not split your only real worry might be an outside shower. When I went to pink up the camper I found there was no water in the system except for the outside shower hose after I had opened the low point drains. Perhaps if I had opened that shower all would have been dry, leaving only the traps to pink.

[OBX-GL]

Ok, furnas has been running for over 24 hours now. Temp in the trailer has maintained around 80F and all the lines that i can see (not underneath) are thawed and full of water again. In fact on my way to work this morning i gave the outside city water a press and water squirted out indicating the lines are maintaing pressure. Good sign i think ?

So. Looking for thoughts again. Do i assume the underbelly is thawed too ? Should i fear starting up the pump at this point and filling things up with antifreeze, or should i run heat for another day ? Is there anything i should be cautious about or looking for ?

Ha,ha this is November right ? More snow tonight. low of -10C/14F and windchill of -18C/-1F
Guess winter is here.

[OBX-GL]

My intention is not to let it freeze but not put things at more risk. There is 6cm of snow on the ground and its still coming down. The drive entrance to the storage yard is under construction as the main road is being widened with only a narrow un-level path across a wide culvert that i have feared sliding sideways on. This is ultimately the reason for my winterization procrastination as the town was to be finished this part two weeks ago.

Trailer is home in my drive now, furnas is starting to warm things up tonight. Pex style pipes are rigid with ice, so It will be interesting to see how quickly things thaw and if i have much damage.
Fingers crossed.

[OBX-GL]

Hey all. Heres my little update.
I stopped by the trailer today armed with all the usual tools to get things done if i was to find things still liquid. Unfortunately not that lucky though. Quick inspection of the kitchen p trap revealed solid ice. So…i stopped there. Didn't even look at the pump. Unless you all advise me otherwise i'm waiting till next week when there are some above freezing days in the forecast. I figure then i will drag the trailer home run the heat for a few days and hope for the best. Does anyone figure getting at this tomorrow vs a warmer day will make a difference ?

I drained all the tanks, pulled the Hot water tank plug, and opened all taps when i parked it back when. When winterizing I don't normally use my compressor to blow things out. Normally i use the pump to fill all the lines till everything runs red, then leave taps open. I pour whats left into the traps and grey/black tanks. Checking the outside shower and city water lines are running red as well.

Ha,ha ! I'm really kicking myself. i SO knew better than to get myself in this predicament.

[jerem0621]

OP, I really recommend purchasing a portable air compressor and keep it in the TT.. Just a small pancake style would be more than enough. Blowing out the lines with compressed air is simple and just takes a few minutes.

As far as the current issue... I hope that nothing is too far gone.. but I am afraid that you will have some line repairs... heat it up as much as you can and try to get the lines cleared of water.

make sure you have a lot of towels when it does start thawing though.

Thanks!

Jeremiah

[Beverley_Ken]

If you have done it yet, get it winterized on Sunday. Check the clear plastic water strainer on the input side of the pump, its quite vulnerable.
I know -7C is not cold for some people in Ontario, saw 3 people in shorts and sweat shirts at Costco (Barrie), including one in shorts and shirt pumping gas, standing in 6" of snow.
Water does freeze at 0C and with the forecast its not likely to melt for a while, only get worse. You may have to figure a way to get heat to the pump etc, to get the job done, or expect big repairs next spring.

Ken

[colliehauler]

I would turn the heater on and try to winterize after it thawed out. Did you pull the plug on the water heater and drain?

A neighbor down the street put off winterizing a motorhome, destroyed the water lines, water heater, toilet, faucets, outside shower, p-traps and the drain valves on the gray and black tank.

[magnusfide]

Road Phantom wrote:
If that was a hard freeze (below freezing both day and night) for more than a day, I'd be worried too.
If it were I, I would put the heater on. Then, run antifreeze through the lines and check for leaks.

My thoughts exactly. We use an electric space heater during winter to keep the rig above freezing.

[OBX-GL]

Basically i'm worried about running the pump. Likely i'll wait till a warmer weather spell develops as i'm pretty sure i drained things well. Ha, unless not knowing gets the better of me.

I'll update when i have a conclusion. Thanks All.

[handye9]

Until you are sure it is thawed, running the pump would not be a good idea. Removing a "P" trap (kitchen or bath sink), will tell you right away, if you have frozen pipes. If you have ice in the traps, you have it everywhere.

If your lines are frozen, running the furnace, with cabinet doors open, could take a couple days to thaw. Shore power and electric heaters, blowing into areas with plumbing lines, along with furnace heat, will speed that up. No shore power, maybe, you could bring a generator.

Other items that may help (depending on access to shore power):

Hair dryers
Disposable hand warmers (wrappped around the pump or "P" traps / outside shower)
Electric heat pads

Fastest thaw would be in a heated building.

[downtheroad]

19F for a few days...ouch, hard extended freeze.
Hope for the best, but not good.
Get over there and get it done...and again, hope for the best.

[Rescue16]

I would open the low point drain on the Fresh water tank and hope for the best with your water lines since I expect all liquid inside the lines have frozen up with hopefully no damage. The next warm day you have I would take a day off and blow out all the lines and get RV-antifreeze onboard. Hope your water lines were nice to you!!

[Road_Phantom]

If that was a hard freeze (below freezing both day and night) for more than a day, I'd be worried too.
If it were I, I would put the heater on. Then, run antifreeze through the lines and check for leaks.