Quick Question On "Winterizing"....

Okay, maybe not so quick. More of a discussion than a question too. Maybe my topic is way off.

So here's the thing gang. I've got a 2008 4012. My understanding is that the plumbing is all contained inside the underbelly cavity, not "exposed" to the elements. We live in the PNW, where it's not crazy cold like the midwest. Our winters tend to be more "low to mid 40s and raining" with the occasional dip to freezing temps overnight. Do I need to winterize my unit anyways? Or is it fine to just leave it alone until that 1 week a year where we get a trace amount of snow?

I ask because I'm kind of stalling on winterizing it since we are planning on taking a little road trip at the end of this month into Oregon and then back up to Washington. I hate to go through the process of winterizing it if we are planning on using it in a couple weeks. But I'm getting a lot of flack from my wife and her father about winterizing it "or else". He had one of those "Fun Finder" tag trailers by Cruiser RVs and it froze on him and caused a bunch of damage, so now he rides me about winterizing mine all the time.

What do you guys do with your units? What would you do in this case? Is winterizing an absolute must?

If you are not running the furnace, the underbelly and all plumbing components will basically drop to the outside ambient temperature at some point overnight. If it's sunny during the day, the interior will warm up and radiate some heat into the underbelly to help for the first part of the night.

Your PEX plumbing will survive a "light freeze" where temps drop into the high 20s for a few hours. And the PEX itself will usually survive a "hard" freeze. But crimp rings may expand with the PEX and later develop leaks. Some fittings on the PEX are plastic and could crack.

The items that are likely to break would include the water feed line to the refrigerator. Most refrigerators are in slides and the water line is routed under the slide and is exposed to outside air. Even with the slide retracted, you might suffer damage. Another weak spot is the filter bowl on the suction side of the water pump. It's plastic and if the water in the bowl freezes, it will crack. The pump itself could also be damaged.

If there's a "hard freeze", the water in the upper part of the toilet, used to rinse the bowl, could freeze, causing a leak. P-traps that are holding water could crack.

There are probably other areas of concern.

You could winterize with compressed air, which is pretty quick, and be safe in mild temps.

Thanks Dane, appreciate the input.

TerribleTim68 said:

Okay, maybe not so quick. More of a discussion than a question too. Maybe my topic is way off.

So here's the thing gang. I've got a 2008 4012. My understanding is that the plumbing is all contained inside the underbelly cavity, not "exposed" to the elements. We live in the PNW, where it's not crazy cold like the midwest. Our winters tend to be more "low to mid 40s and raining" with the occasional dip to freezing temps overnight. Do I need to winterize my unit anyways? Or is it fine to just leave it alone until that 1 week a year where we get a trace amount of snow?

I ask because I'm kind of stalling on winterizing it since we are planning on taking a little road trip at the end of this month into Oregon and then back up to Washington. I hate to go through the process of winterizing it if we are planning on using it in a couple weeks. But I'm getting a lot of flack from my wife and her father about winterizing it "or else". He had one of those "Fun Finder" tag trailers by Cruiser RVs and it froze on him and caused a bunch of damage, so now he rides me about winterizing mine all the time.

What do you guys do with your units? What would you do in this case? Is winterizing an absolute must?

Click to expand...

It sounds like you have temps similar to what we have here in central Texas. We never totally winterize unless we see that the forecast is for terribly cold over a several day period of time. We don’t worry about temps that for one night will get in the 25 degree range. On those nights, we’ll clear out an area in the udc and put in a small ceramic heater to keep it toasty. You do need to do what’s suggested and drain your low water drains for temps in the 20’s.
The only exception is that if your unit is not where you can take care of things on a day to day basis. If that’s the case of it being in storage a good way from where you live, winterize and be safe.

Learn how to "Winterize" using an air compressor and not RV antifreeze. Takes me under 10 mins to complete the process.

If you have a washing machine, that needs antifreeze.

Our Winterization Guide covers use of compressed air.

Winterizing is not a big deal. If you use compressed air or antifreeze in either case it will not take you more that 10 or 15 minutes. Antifreeze at Walmart is around $3/gallon. I use the antifreeze method and not compressed air. So if you have to do it twice, it will not kill you. Your father-in-law should rag on you.

Appreciate all the input gang. So I guess I'm curious what people who either live full time in an RV or use them in the "off season" do then. I guess they must winterize them every evening after dinner, huh?