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4 Responses to “I am living fulltime in an RV what do I have to do to winterize so water won’t freeze from the hookups?”
The inside piping should be ok as long as you are running the heat. You may want to wrap the freshwater supply hose outside. Even then you might let the water drip during the coldest times if you are hooked directly to a sewerage drain. If you are using you holding tank and not hooked to a outside drain don’t do this for long or your tank will fill up.
If, you living in it and it heated you may be OK. Just Wrap the Hose to Trailer with those foam things for pipes, look like Water Noodles for swimming. Usually I cover what lay on the ground with some leaves also. There many ways though. (1) Drain the holding tank, there knobs on the back side from the doors on front side, maybe 2-3. Inside around the Water Heater or under the Fridge, I not sure of your layout. There other knobs. You have to figure them out. One will turn off the Holding tank and then switch off the Pump under bathroom sink or where ever. This way you connect to an outside Faucet for water, it not flow into the holding tank and the pump not try to run dry. (2) If, your hot water tank on it be OK, but, if you not use it, then it needs Drained, plug on bottom outside door. Also, again there the knobs inside to shut it off from the rest of the trailer. (3) If, you not using the Trailer, Open all the outside drains and remove plug from Hot Water heater, SHUT off the VALVES inside to Hot water tank! Inside what I do, I have a small hose to put on my water pump intake, and put this in a Gallon of the Pink Antifreeze Bottle, it suck it right out. Start at the close water faucet turn on COLD valve until pink run out, then do hot, this why you bypass the Tank, or you be trying to fill it up with Antifreeze. Work around the trailer opening water valves inside until pink run out.
I may sound confusing, if, there a specific thing you want to do, email me and I try to explain better.
You need to fully insulate the lines from the outside taps. Using a heater cable supplied for roof tops, (there are also water line heating cables in most plumbing stores),inside the insulation is the best way to stop the lines from freezing
Do you “live in a van down by the river”, Mr. Foley?
The inside piping should be ok as long as you are running the heat. You may want to wrap the freshwater supply hose outside. Even then you might let the water drip during the coldest times if you are hooked directly to a sewerage drain. If you are using you holding tank and not hooked to a outside drain don’t do this for long or your tank will fill up.
If, you living in it and it heated you may be OK. Just Wrap the Hose to Trailer with those foam things for pipes, look like Water Noodles for swimming. Usually I cover what lay on the ground with some leaves also. There many ways though. (1) Drain the holding tank, there knobs on the back side from the doors on front side, maybe 2-3. Inside around the Water Heater or under the Fridge, I not sure of your layout. There other knobs. You have to figure them out. One will turn off the Holding tank and then switch off the Pump under bathroom sink or where ever. This way you connect to an outside Faucet for water, it not flow into the holding tank and the pump not try to run dry. (2) If, your hot water tank on it be OK, but, if you not use it, then it needs Drained, plug on bottom outside door. Also, again there the knobs inside to shut it off from the rest of the trailer. (3) If, you not using the Trailer, Open all the outside drains and remove plug from Hot Water heater, SHUT off the VALVES inside to Hot water tank! Inside what I do, I have a small hose to put on my water pump intake, and put this in a Gallon of the Pink Antifreeze Bottle, it suck it right out. Start at the close water faucet turn on COLD valve until pink run out, then do hot, this why you bypass the Tank, or you be trying to fill it up with Antifreeze. Work around the trailer opening water valves inside until pink run out.
I may sound confusing, if, there a specific thing you want to do, email me and I try to explain better.
You need to fully insulate the lines from the outside taps. Using a heater cable supplied for roof tops, (there are also water line heating cables in most plumbing stores),inside the insulation is the best way to stop the lines from freezing