woman_who_sees
Texas
New Member
Joined: 06/28/2002
View Profile
 Offline
|
DH and I are volunteering this winter at Hagerman NWR, in northern Texas near the Oklahoma border. It gets pretty cold and windy there in the winter. What can we do to keep our class A motorhome warm and toasty? Our storage areas are not heated. Should we insulate them? What should we do about the floors since they get quite cold in the winter?
Bill (DH), Jan (DW), Alex (DCat), and Sunshine(DBird)
2004 Winnebago Sightseer, 33' with one slide
|
comnthru
Helena, Mt
Senior Member
Joined: 08/05/2001
View Profile
Offline
|
To heat the inside, I would suggest a ceramic heater. They are small but quite efficient. If it is going to go below freezing, I would suggest some sort of heating arrangement, but have no solutions, sorry.
|
Admiral
Lodi, Ohio
Senior Member
Joined: 06/08/2003
View Profile
|
If I'm plugged in I'll put a 40w light bulb on an extension cord in the compartment that has my holding tanks in it. Just in case, don't let it touch anything. Mine is a clamp light with a cage around the bulb that I attach to a water pipe. I don't think it will get that cold in Tx. but I've been in 17 degree weather without any freezing problems.
For frugal insulation, you can put some newspaper layers down on the compartment floor. The homeless use them effectively as blankets.
2004 Damon Daybreak 2960F
05 Honda Element LX
In a democracy two wolves and a sheep can vote on what to have for dinner.
|
Polishnurse
Schodack, NY
Senior Member
Joined: 03/13/2007
View Profile
Offline
|
You will want to get some kind of skirt around the MH. By a skirt, it should block wind from blowing under the MH. You can look at a vinyle type or you can look at a more natural type. A natural type could as simple as bags of leaves or bails of hay. If you need to get access to dump valves and what have you then you would might want to look at puttng the blue foam boards in this are, making like a little dog house to keep it enclosed but still allow access to get valves. Good Luck and happy wintering. Bill
|
Jamesrpm
Oregon Coast
Senior Member
Joined: 08/30/2003
View Profile
Offline
|
Do you have insulated windows ? Are you going to use your furnace for heat? If so you'll need a large propane tank , most RV's are 3 season insulated at best.Keeping one warm will be a challenge , toasty warm will depend on the weather and your tolerance for heating bills..
___________________________________________
I plan on living forever , so far , so good
|
|
|
VernM
Marion County, AR
Senior Member
Joined: 06/21/2006
View Profile
Offline
|
A couple of things not yet mentioned.
1. I find one of the oil-filled radiator heaters is a more satisfactory way of warming things up. Same BTUs without the noise of a fan.
2. A place that needs some augmentation to keep it above freezing is where your fresh water pump is. For the Itasca Suncruiser I had, that was the basement cabinet next to the house door. And it was open clear through to the other side behind the water heater. I solved it with a piece of insulation bat stuffed in behind the door as I closed it (better would be to tack it on with Velcro) and a 40-watt bulb in there when cold to keep that pump from freezing up.
Down well into the low 20s and likely enough for your destination will be to keep cabinet doors under sink, pantry, and the bathroom plumbing, cracked open at night to allow air circuilation. With regular creature-comfort heat, you'll be all right. Problem is the humidity!
Then, too, you can "winterize" your house door with a couple of sheets of plastic and some mirror mount brackets. Screw it on the inside face of the screen door to allow some use of the door for light on dreary days -- sunny ones too.
VernM
GMC Conversion van/Wells Cargo MiniWagon trailer
Sent via HughesNet/SatMex5 Internet Portal
.jpg)
|
KLO
Southern OK
Senior Member
Joined: 09/17/2003
View Profile
Offline
|
women_who_sees, I live very near to the area you are going to! If I can help in any way just PM me.
|
jauguston
Bellingham, WA
Senior Member
Joined: 07/03/2005
View Profile
Offline
|
We use our MH year around sometimes in below freezing temps and always boondocking. I have plumbed a high pressure propane hose from the main tank to the front of the coach at the top of the entry steps and have a Big Buddy heater connected to it. It does a great job of heating and is quiet unlike our furnace. Also cuts way down on battery recharge time. A roof vent cracked open less than a inch satisfies the fresh air requirement for the heater.
Jim
Jim, Sharon and Buddy the Yorkie
1999 Gulfstream Sun Voyager 31' ISB Cummins 210 uprated to 275
Trippe-Lite 1800w inverter 4-6v GC batteries
3- Kyocera 130w solar panels
1987 Suzuki Samurai tintop Toad w/VW 1.6 turbo diesel power
|
Southwind85
Where I Park
Senior Member
Joined: 01/31/2007
View Profile
|
The Texhoma area isn't too bad in winter. Not overly pleasant but it's not seriously cold either.
For starters: Think in terms of heat getting out, not cold getting in.
Skirting of any kind. I put about $50, maybe $60, into generic walmart plastic tarps and screw in snaps. If you take your time, it can even look decent. That alone cut the propane useage by 40% right off along with keeping the floors and entire RV much much warmer. Skirting needs to go up to at least floor level and above the engine compartment front access doors to just below the front window. Weight the bottom down so it stays in contact with the ground when the wind blows. Heat loss through the floor and engine compartment area is excessive in the extreme.
Get pieces of carpet and put them down on all the floors. Minimize gaps between pieces.
The double sided silvered bubblewrap on the windows and driver door does wonders. I also put a piece across the entry door at night.
Generic 3mil plastic paint drop cloth and some box tape will double insulate windows.
One inch white insulation foam inside all the exernal compartment doors and especially for any that are above the floor level. I also added a piece across the door step hole each night. A piece in the ceiling vents will retain heat like you wouldn't believe.
Put up a 3ft high barrier across the front of the living area behind the front seats to control heat loss through the front area. Also parking nose to the south and opening the front curtains on sunny days = lots and lots of free heat.
Heat wire and pipe insulation keeps the shore water line from freezing. Just make sure the heat wire goes around the faucet head and the inlet connector. Those metal screw pieces get really cold really fast. You don't have to heat or insulate your dump hose. Just dump normally like you do when it's 3pm in mid August then empty any remaining water out of the hose after you close the valves.
Make sure your holding tanks and plumbing are actually heated in some way. Three seasons designs won't cut it when the temperatures remain below freezing for any length of time. Even if you have a 4 seasons RV, that doesn't mean it actually is in the real world. What that means is DO NOT FOREGET THE PLUMBING that everyone tends to NOT heat. It doesn't do much good at all to keep the tanks heated and have a valve and pipes freeze solid. (Two years ago I watched a snobbish owner of a 3/4 million plus $$ 4 seasons RV turn her plumbing into a block of ice that didn't unfreeze until spring) I had heated tanks but the plumbing was exposed to ambient temperatures. Do not leave your grey tank open in freezing temperatures or your stinky slinky will turn into a block of ice.
A 100lb propane tank with a stay-a-while connector is essential. Use that as primary propane. Use the onboard tank as reserves in case you run out when the next tank refill is 2 days away. Only use the onboard tank as reserve propane. A weighing scale or rocking the tank will tell you when the tank is running low.
Warm and toasty will eat you alive in propane. Cooler and comfortable is more sensible. Set the thermostat cooler than you think and you can still stay comfortable with decent clothes. Winter is a great time to wear your nice warms flannel shirts and thermals and toasty indoor footie shoes. A couple blankets with a wool top blanket to retain heat will keep you warm at night. I set my thermostat at 55-58 in the day and 45-50 at night and I'm rather comfortable all winter.
A supplementary space heater is on the essential items list.
That basic list plus a few other things is what I do to winterover in Colorado. I can easily handle at least 15 below zero indefinitely very comfortably and down to at least -25 without system problems.
The Good Life
|
wa8yxm
Wherever I happen to park
Senior Member
Joined: 07/04/2006
View Profile
Offline
|
Heck, here at home (Detroit) if it's spring/fall and there is a slight chance of freeze I put a string of C-9 lights in the fresh water compartment (under the tank) and 100 watt bulb in the black/gray compartments. They are on a 35degree tank heater switch This gets me about 10-12 degrees of safety
If it's deep freeze.. I winterize
Inside, if you got power use it.. Else your only other choice is get friendly with the local propane service. If you are going to be parked for a long time you install a Marshall Brass "Extend-a-stay" and get hundred pounder set down near your rig, or 200 or 300 pounder. You may need to buy extra hose
Nothin adds excitment like something that is none of your business
John is Near Kenwood TS-2000 housed in a 2005 Damon Intruder 377
|
|
|
