Today we’ll cover some questions we’ve received from our viewers about RV Winterization. These questions came from our RV Winterization for Beginners video. Unfortunately camping season is winding down, and it’s time to think about winterizing the RV. These questions should help shed some light on issues that may come up.
Loren asks,
Quick question, could I in all reality drain the freshwater tank then add say 10 gallons of antifreeze to it and then run everything like normal until antifreeze came out and be done with it?
Here’s my response…
Loren, some people do this but with a caveat: You will still want to bypass the hot water tank and will want to do a thorough sanitization before you use the trailer again because the freshwater tank would have RV antifreeze residue. The reason for the hot water tank bypass and draining is that you don’t fill up the 6-gallon tank with RV antifreeze. If you did, I don’t see a huge issue other than a lot more cost. The hot water tank already has 6 gallons of regular water in there, so mixing it with the RV antifreeze would require a lot of antifreeze to eventually come out as only antifreeze through the plumbing lines. Also, all the water and early antifreeze/water mix will go into your grey holding tank, let’s say 10 gallons worth minimum. Now you will need to re-dump that grey tank after this workout. These are some of the downstream effects I see from this method. Would it winterize the trailer? Yep. Would it cost a bunch more and mean you would need to re-dump your grey tank? Yep. I think it is easier to bypass the hot water tank and empty it, so you only need to use 1.5 or so gallons of RV antifreeze to do the job. The small amount of fresh water that does get to the grey tank in this regard is greatly diluted by the pure antifreeze that is put in the drain traps and by the overall process. Thanks for the great question!
For further commentary, I think it is better to pull in RV antifreeze via the water pump as shown in the Winterization video vs putting gallons of RV antifreeze into the freshwater tank. Generally, only water should go in the freshwater tank, although either way, you should sanitize the tank and lines in the spring with bleach solution. If you do put RV antifreeze into the freshwater tank, you will still want to bypass the hot water tank, unless you want to add a bunch of cost and RV antifreeze as mentioned in my reply to Loren. Places like Walmart and Menards have -50-degree RV antifreeze on sale at the $2.50-$3.00 per gallon range usually. This compares to greater than $10 per gallon online. So be careful where you buy. I usually can winterize for $5-7. If I added 10 gallons as mentioned, minimally my cost would go to $25. If purchasing RV antifreeze online, costs could exceed $100 by using this approach.
Tracey asks,
Great and informative video, I have a 2021 Gulf Stream 197BH Conquest. Do I run anti-freeze through the hot water system until it comes out the hot water valve?
So here’s my response…
You will want to bypass the hot water heater, or you will fill it with RV antifreeze which could be up to 6 gallons. Once bypassed, run the RV antifreeze through both hot and cold plumbing lines.
To further this, it is possible Tracey was asking if you need to run antifreeze through the hot water lines until it comes out of the low-point drain, however, this was unclear from the question. The answer would be yes, as you do need to push RV antifreeze through the system, including to the low-point drains.
Chyna320 asks,
What I don’t understand is if all the water was drained, why is there a need for the antifreeze?
And here’s my response…
If you leave just a little water in the plumbing lines by accident, it can do damage to your lines if it freezes and expands. This is especially problematic at the water pump. There is an ongoing debate between those who only use forced air to blow out lines and those who use RV antifreeze. I use RV antifreeze mainly because I am more risk averse.
To go further, I advise people to use RV antifreeze unless you really understand how to use the forced-air method. To the question about even needing to do anything more since the water is drained, you simply shouldn’t expect all water to come out of the lines by opening the low point drains. You really need ensure no water is in the lines by either forcing it out or seeing that it is out.
As a reminder, we have free step-by-step printable process documents for RV winterization on johnmarucci.com in the Resources area, these tie to two of our winterization videos. If you are new to winterizing your RV or just need a refresher, we have a step-by-step RV Winterization process video to help. We also have an excellent R-Pod-specific winterization video if you own an R-Pod travel trailer. Just see the links in the video description.
Neil asks,
I don’t have access to an air compressor–can I skip this step?
Here’s my response…
If you have used the city water connection when camping, likely there is water still in that line that needs to be blown out with compressed air. If you have not used the city water inlet, then it is your call on doing this step. I tend to err on the side of safety and blow this line out so no water can freeze in the line and potentially damage or break the line(s).
Basically, the forced air being used in the RV antifreeze method is to blow out any water from the city water lines and not through the entire RV. This is a line that will not fill with RV antifreeze when adding it from the water pump, so it needs to be free from water.
Kim asks,
I have a very important question…antifreeze is very toxic to dogs…this is pouring out onto the concrete…is there an antifreeze that is not poisonous to animals?
And here’s my response…
RV antifreeze is non-toxic and is NOT automotive antifreeze. This pink-colored RV antifreeze can be purchased at a local Walmart or Home Improvement store in the RV section or from a local RV dealer. Just make sure you are only using pink RV antifreeze.
Kim is right, never put car antifreeze where animals can access it, as it is toxic. Pink RV antifreeze is different in that it is non-toxic. Some people may still have issues letting a small amount out on the driveway in this process but diluting it with hose water from the house will work. You can also let small amount drip into a bucket from the low-point drains, but you will still need to dump the bucket somewhere.
Henry asks on a related plumbing issue,
I am working on my first trailer and prepping it for my first winter. I wanted to winterize myself, but I have had a hot-water issue since getting my trailer. I can get my hot-water pilot to start but I never get any hot water to come out. I’ll get a weak stream of water to come out of faucets but never hot nor good pressure. It is not easy for me to go back to the dealer (I live in Alaska, 6 hr. away from my dealer) or I would have taken it in already. After watching this I feel that that the hot water bypass might be an issue, any other ideas you have to check?
Here’s my response …
Henry, it sounds like the water heater may be bypassed. If you have water in your freshwater tank, turn on your water pump and it should fill the hot water tank. You can check if it has water by trying the pressure release valve on the water heater. I have a short video on the hot water heater on my YouTube Channel. As far as weak pressure, is the weak pressure at all plumbing outlets or just one? If pressure is weak at all outlets, it may be a debris issue in the water pump. I had this problem and have a video on this on my YouTube channel. If water pressure is weak at just one outlet, likely the aerator is blocked at the faucet. Most faucets have screens that can be removed and cleaned.
It is common to have plumbing issues where there isn’t enough water pressure, or the RV isn’t getting hot water. If you have fresh water in the tank, it is easy to diagnose the issue with the steps given above. One thing to be aware of is to never turn on your hot water heater’s electric heating element unless you are certain there is water in the hot water heater. Otherwise, you will risk burning out the electric heating element.
Hopefully these questions and answers have been helpful as you look at winterizing your RV this season.
Ok, that’ll do it for now…
All the best in your camping endeavors!
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