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Cold Weather RV'ing Questions


breister

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We are heading west for a couple week RV trip and will be spending time in mountains of Yellowstone and also near Jackson WY. If the temps get down below 32' at night, what do you suggest we do with water lines? The basement of MH is heated but obviously the outside hose isn't. Keep a faucet open a little so the water keeps moving? Disconnect at night and store hose inside? Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks

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If it just dips into the 20's at night and you have your gray tanks open you can leave a faucet trickling.

 

Better bet is to fill your fresh tank and disconnect to protect the park's standpipe. If they are in use they have some method of protecting them, most commonly the water drains back below ground level when disconnected, if you stay connected you run the risk of damaging the standpipe.

Dennis & Nancy
Tucson, AZ in winter, on the road in summer.

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and '11 smart that gave it's life to save me!)
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Each RV is different and the critical freeze points will vary from one to another. Its the small lines that freeze first, the outside hose, the ice maker tubing, the small lines in the outside water bay, etc If you're living in the rig and the temps are only dropping to 28 or so for a few hours overnight, you have little to worry about, especially this time of year when its still warming up to the 60's during daytime. It takes many hours of consistently well below freezing temps to freeze anything solid enough to cause damage.

Where I spend the winters in the high desert, we regularly drop into the 20's and occasionally into the teens, and I never winterize. With the heat inside set at 55, I also put a small space heater set to 40 in the outside water bay, and of course disconnect the outside water hose, and drain my ice maker lines.

Jim

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In freezing temps we always filled the fresh water tank and used it. We didn't leave a water hose outside and we didn't leave the sewer hose outside. We took them out when needed. This is especially true if it's cold at night and you plan to leave the next morning. It's a good way to crack your sewer hose and it's difficult to coil the water hose when frozen.

Full-timed for 16 Years
Traveled 8 yr in a 2004 Newmar Dutch Star 40' Motorhome
and 8 yr in a 33' Travel Supreme 5th Wheel

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Have boondocked when the temperatures got into teens. We have sufficient battery power to leave the halogen lights (30 W) on during the night which keeps pipes from freezing but can only do this for limited time before we worry about the holding tanks freezing. Have friends that waited a week to long in MN before they headed to SW US for winter (boondocking on BLM land) and took 3 or 4 days before the holding tanks unfroze.

Reed and Elaine

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Dropping below freezing, fill your fresh water tank. Shut off the water at the faucet and remove the water regulator and drain the hose. Close the gray water tank and drain the hose.

 

The next morning, you can reattach the water lines and stinky slinky if you desire, but we will generally just operate on the internal tanks for a few days and drain and refill as needed. No sense in taking a chance on freezing hoses and regulators.

 

Ken

Amateur radio operator, 2023 Cougar 22MLS, 2022 F150 Lariat 4x4 Off Road, Sport trim <br />Travel with 1 miniature schnauzer, 1 standard schnauzer and one African Gray parrot

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