SunTen
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Re: Winter RV camping
Most RV parks will have heat tape on the water hookups. For your water from the hookup to the RV I would suggest buying a heated water hose. I purchased one a couple of years ago when we started camping in cold temperatures and it was great. So many of the units around us had heat tape and insulation wrapped around a regular hose. Some had other bulky ways of keeping the lines from freezing but the heated hose is easier to use. Just plug it in and you are set to go.477Views0likes0CommentsRe: Winter RV camping
If you have a 5th wheel you have a skirt made to go all the way around it. Purchase a heated water hose for your water hookup. In the up front storage I purchased at Amazon.com a programable outlet which I programed for 65 degrees. Plugged a heater into it so it would turn it on and off as needed. Put a wireless temperature monitor in the storage unit as well to monitor the temperature. Also put a wireless temperature monitor by the water hookup. Did not leave dump hose on all the time. Put it on once a week to dump then stored it. I also had a 100lb propane tank sitting on the outside so I did not have to move unit to replace propane. We had 18 degree below tempuratures and had no problems freezing up. Everything stayed nice and toasty. With the skirt all the way around it also gave me a covered stoage area for the snow shovel, gas fire pit etc. You just have to monitor things and you can RV all winter long. We had a friend who camped with us in is motor coach. The only thing different was he did not need a skirt. It is important to block the wind from moving a lot under the unit. This year we are going to put some simple insulation sheets in the back of the cupboards because we seemed to get some cold from there. It is fun RVing year round.388Views0likes0CommentsRe: Winter RV camping
Myself along with some friends of ours survived our first winter camping. We dealt with a lot of snow and 15 below weather. We have a fifth wheel and he has a motor coach. We purchased a heated water hose to hook up to the facilites water which they had wrapped in heat wires. The heated water hose had a sensor to turn itself on and off to keep the water line from freezing. In my storage compartment I purchased a plug in adapter with a temperature gauage. I plugged a heater in this and set the temperature at 65 degrees. I also placed a wireless temperature gauge in there to monitor the temperature inside the unit. I placed another wireless temperature gauge in the water hookup area to montitor as well. We had a skirt made to attach to the fith wheel which reduced cold air blowing under the unit. Being on cement we used water filled tubes to hold it in place. Next year I will be using sand bags. They will handle the harsh winds better. Heavier to deal with but worth the trouble. The holding tanks were dumped once a week. We did not leave the dumping hose hooked up. I would also recommend the shortest hose to dump because it will be easier to deal with in the cold. Just one less place for freezing problems. We also did not use our on board washer and dryer. More opportunity for potential freezing. We borrowed a 100lb propane tanke to hook up outside. It was easy to monitor the level of fuel and get it filled. If we ran out for any reason we always had our onboard tanks for backup. Next year we will add some insulation in the cabinets on the outside walls. You could feel cold air when you got into the cabinets. They talk about the great insulation but it just did not seem enough in the cabinets. Our friends with the motor coach did pretty much the same thing except for a skirt around the coach. With a little research and attention to detail winter RV'ing is great.530Views0likes0CommentsRe: Winter RV camping
We are wintering for the first time and have really found this forum helpful. My RV dealer had some great suggestions for us. We put a little heater in the storage unit of our fifth wheel plugged into to a thermostate controlled plug in. This has helped with keeping the pipes warm. We then purchased a hose that is heated. This way we did not have to run any heat tape or wrap it. It was actually designed for farm use but if you buy a couple of couplers to reverse the ends and it works great for the fifth wheel. It did not work the first week because I had not reversed the ends so the sensor was up in the fifth wheel and it was staying warm. Once I reversed it we have not had any problems. This week will be our biggest test because we are supposed to be 8 degrees below tonight with 30 mph winds and 6 to 8 inches of snow. If we make it this week and know that we will winter camp again next year. Thanks for all the advice.530Views0likes0CommentsRe: Winter RV camping
I appreciate the information. How do you use heaters and keep heat going under the 5th wheel to keep things from freezing? My dealer said I should always have the furnace working because it puts heat through the floor area of the 5th wheel where the furnace vents are. pianotuna wrote: Hi SunTen, It would be better to not let the grey water drain continuously. Over time it may build up a layer of ice inside the hose--eventually it may block it totally. I strongly advise against a digital thermostat. If the power even flickers it may default to an "off" setting. Use a mechanical thermostat instead. I suggest a cover that is velcroed in place for the shower sky light. What you need to be concerned about is dew point and condensation. Adding a humidifier may intensify the problem. It is not necessary or desirable to leave a window open when running an RV furnace. I would add some radiant electric heaters to the inside of the RV. This may dramatically cut down on propane usage. I'm outside a local Church in Lancer Saskatchewan running about 4700 watts of heaters (including my electric anti freeze pump heater). It is -6F and I've not burned any propane yet tonight. SunTen wrote: We are going to keep the dumping hose out so there will be no water in our grey tanks and will dump the black tank as needed. I am going to place a ceramic heater in the large storage area with the inside slide door open going to the pumps and the majority of piping. It will be plugged into a digital plug in thermostat. My RV dealer suggested that on the very cold days I have it go to 55 degrees. Otherwise it will see that the heater comes on to heat to 45 degrees. I will also have an outdoor temp sensor in there so I can monitor the temperature from inside the unit. This sensor is connected to the clock I have inside to also monitor the temp on the inside. I was not planning on sealing up the skylight over the shower. I do wonder if I should have a humidifier because of the furnace running so much. I am use to having one on my furnace at home. I was thinking about purchasing a small portable one to sit on the counter. I have heard we should be concerned with moisture but I am not sure where they are referring to. Also should there be at least a one window with a little crack in it so that everything is not closed up to tight with the furnace running706Views0likes0CommentsRe: Winter RV camping
My husband and I are going to stay in our 5th wheel for a winter in Kansas. I have a 2007 Holiday Rambler Presidential 5th Wheel 35ft. It has three slide outs. I have purchased the new heated water hose. We turned the female end into a male end and the male end into a female end. We will then connect the heating element to the inside of our water connections. We are going to keep the dumping hose out so there will be no water in our grey tanks and will dump the black tank as needed. I am having a heavy vinyl skirt made to snap onto the 5th wheel all the way around it. I will hold it in place with water tubes made to hold down pool covers. They are made to be out in the winter and will take up less space to store than sand bags. I am going to place a ceramic heater in the large storage area with the inside slide door open going to the pumps and the majority of piping. It will be plugged into a digital plug in thermostat. My RV dealer suggested that on the very cold days I have it go to 55 degrees. Otherwise it will see that the heater comes on to heat to 45 degrees. I will also have an outdoor temp sensor in there so I can monitor the temperature from inside the unit. This sensor is connected to the clock I have inside to also monitor the temp on the inside. I have the pads to close off the ceiling air vents. I was not planning on sealing up the skylight over the shower. The RV park is loaning us a 100lb propane tank which they will keep filled for each of us. We have had the hose made so that it goes back to our on board tanks when they disconnect to refill. I do wonder if I should have a humidifier because of the furnace running so much. I am use to having one on my furnace at home. I was thinking about purchasing a small portable one to sit on the counter. I have heard we should be concerned with moisture but I am not sure where they are referring to. Also should there be at least a one window with a little crack in it so that everything is not closed up to tight with the furnace running. I would appreciate some answers to my question from those of you that have done this and also any things you think I should change on the way I am going to set the unit up. We will be parked from about the middle of Dec. to the end of May. We are looking forward to using it and I want to make sure that we are doing things right. There does not seem to be anyone place that can really tell you all the ins and outs of your particular unit. this includes the dealer. I have picked up bits and pieces by visiting with some folks that have thought about it but have not done it and I spoke with the service tech at my dealership. They had the heated hose which I think will be very helpful. I am looking forward to your ideas and suggestions.706Views0likes0Comments
