Thanks again to all who came to the rescue of this damsel in distress (well, I did crawl under the rig myself to open the FW tank and wielded a wicked ratchet). I had to drive 50min each way to get antifreeze for $6/gal (welcome to NJ price gouging) and just now finished getting pink stuff out of each and every water-producing thing. I also bought a thingamajig with a hose attachment to use directly on the water pump next time as so many have recommended. Who knows, maybe now we can take off in the winter and head south for a while. Happy trails!
Barbara, Florence, Banshee (good chihuahua) and Rascal (bad chihuahua)
2007 Pleasure-Way Ford Excel TD: Miss Daisy
Glad everything came out OK (the pink stuff). I consider myself fortunate to own an air compressor for other reasons because the process sounds so much easier using compressed air. After reading this thread, I might have gone out and bought one even if I didn't have one. How do those that use this method get the pink stuff out of the water lines (and fresh water tank) sufficiently in the spring?
AsheGuy wrote: I consider myself fortunate to own an air compressor for other reasons because the process sounds so much easier using compressed air.
I've been debating whether to just use compressed air as well, but many say there's still significant risk. Supposedly, blowing out removes 90% of the water, but the remaining 10% will eventually settle in a low spot and freeze. If that low spot happens to be at a hard plastic joint, rather than the flexible tubing, then you are out of luck.
Putting 3 gallons of antifreeze into the fresh water tank and running through the lines works just fine for me, and that's how I'll continue to do it. After 6 years, I've finally got it down to about 1/2 hour and $12 worth of anti-freeze...hardly a killer.
Don't fix what isn't broken...I ain't gonna go messin' with no water pump or air compressor, thank you. Y'all do it whichever way makes you feel most manly...and I can do it the sissy way.
In the spring, I just open the drain valve at the bottom of the fresh water tank to get rid of whatever antifreeze remains, close the drain, put in some "fresh" water and run the water through all locations until it turns clear(ish). I don't use the on board water for drinking or cooking...it's sole purpose is for toilet flushing and dish washing.
Glad it worked out, Barbara...we got down to 33 degrees last night, so you probably got into freezing temperatures up there.
reppans wrote: Supposedly, blowing out removes 90% of the water, but the remaining 10% will eventually settle in a low spot and freeze. If that low spot happens to be at a hard plastic joint, rather than the flexible tubing, then you are out of luck.
I would venture it's significantly less than 1% of water left, but use whatever method you prefer. I was just trying to show how lazy, er manly I am.
Quote: Putting 3 gallons of antifreeze into the fresh water tank and running through the lines works just fine for me, and that's how I'll continue to do it. After 6 years, I've finally got it down to about 1/2 hour and $12 worth of anti-freeze...hardly a killer.
Don't fix what isn't broken...I ain't gonna go messin' with no water pump or air compressor, thank you. Y'all do it whichever way makes you feel most manly...and I can do it the sissy way.
In the spring, I just open the drain valve at the bottom of the fresh water tank to get rid of whatever antifreeze remains, close the drain, put in some "fresh" water and run the water through all locations until it turns clear(ish). I don't use the on board water for drinking or cooking...it's sole purpose is for toilet flushing and dish washing.
Exactly what Lynne said, except for a thing or two. If I level my RT, I can get antifreeze pickup from the freshwater tank with just two gallons of antifreeze. I prefer two and one-half, but this year I only had two gallons, and it was sufficient, though I needed to be careful not to run too much through the various faucets.
Plus, I cannot easily figure out how to remove that $&^@# pex piping to install a winterizing valve. Antifreeze in the freshwater tank may not be the "best" or "easiest" method, but it is relatively straightforward and works well.
I remember doing all that for years in Colorado. I even used heat tape around the valves so we could still dump bw and gw in the winter. I have never met anyone who had their tanks freeze. We had the lines freeze once running down a slushy, snowy highway near Albuquerque. We thawed them out with a hair dryer.
Now I am glad I don't have to winterize much at all. Just some pink stuff in the bw tank and gw tank.
Regards,
Keith
The excellent adventures of Keith and Debbie. Observations about life, at home and on the road in our 2008 Sportsmobile Sprinter. (Warning: Occasional sharp turns to the right.)
old guy wrote: I'm with skip, get a winterizing valve and you can do the whole thing with one gallon of pink. easy to install and use. saves you money in the long run.
old guy wrote: I'm with skip, get a winterizing valve and you can do the whole thing with one gallon of pink. easy to install and use. saves you money in the long run.
What's a winterizing valve?
The reference is to a winterizing kit which usually consists of a 3 way valve, an adapter, a short piece of hose, and a cap. It is installed between the fresh water tank and the inlet port of the water pump. Here is an example at Camping World. With kit installed, merely connect the hose to the three way valve, place open end of hose into RV antifreeze jug, flip valve to take fluid from jug versus from the fresh tank. Life is good.
I am no expert, but you can try parking the vehicle on a decline or incline so that your water tank pump is lower than the water when attempting to pump. Just a thought.
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