My 2012 Key Largo fresh water freezes up well before dawn when temps get below 15*F over night. My basement is plenty warm, so the freeze is occurring in the holding tank area. I'm not concerned with the waste or black tanks, as a gallon or two of rv antifreeze keeps a tank less than half full from freezing. It looks like I need several heaters at $100+ each. I can do the work myself. Any recommendations are greatly appreciated.
Any recommendations for installing fresh tank heater(s) in LM?
- Thread starter marvmarcy
- Start date
danemayer
Well-known member
Hi marvmarcy,
I'm guessing you don't have tank heaters or heat tape on the water line from the fresh tank.
If you're running the furnace at 72 or thereabouts overnight, I'd think you might have enough heat in the underbelly. But there are several weak spots in the fresh water system.
The drain hose for the fresh tank has exposed water below the coroplast, above the drain valve. If not heated or tucked up above the coroplast, that water will freeze. The ice then wicks up into the tee, blocking the fresh water feed line. You can test this with a hairdryer. If 10-15 minutes with a hairdryer gets the water running, you'll know that's the weak spot in the system and can take corrective action.
Sometimes the fresh water feed line from tank to pump contacts frame members, creating another potential ice blockage. This is a Spring project, pulling down the coroplast to examine the pex run. While in there, you might add heat tape and insulation to the fresh water line.
In the meantime, Dave's suggestion of building a foam board enclosure is a quick and easy way to prevent freezing. It doesn't have to enclose the entire underbelly. You can focus on the off-door-side half of the underbelly, which is where you're probably having the problem. Put a heater in the enclosure, sitting on a piece of wood or other object to keep it off the ground and out of the path of any possible running water.
Also take a look at our Water Systems Winter Usage Guide for more tips.
I'm guessing you don't have tank heaters or heat tape on the water line from the fresh tank.
If you're running the furnace at 72 or thereabouts overnight, I'd think you might have enough heat in the underbelly. But there are several weak spots in the fresh water system.
The drain hose for the fresh tank has exposed water below the coroplast, above the drain valve. If not heated or tucked up above the coroplast, that water will freeze. The ice then wicks up into the tee, blocking the fresh water feed line. You can test this with a hairdryer. If 10-15 minutes with a hairdryer gets the water running, you'll know that's the weak spot in the system and can take corrective action.
Sometimes the fresh water feed line from tank to pump contacts frame members, creating another potential ice blockage. This is a Spring project, pulling down the coroplast to examine the pex run. While in there, you might add heat tape and insulation to the fresh water line.
In the meantime, Dave's suggestion of building a foam board enclosure is a quick and easy way to prevent freezing. It doesn't have to enclose the entire underbelly. You can focus on the off-door-side half of the underbelly, which is where you're probably having the problem. Put a heater in the enclosure, sitting on a piece of wood or other object to keep it off the ground and out of the path of any possible running water.
Also take a look at our Water Systems Winter Usage Guide for more tips.
Thanks Dave and Dan. We're not in Polson, MT, where it has been quite nice this winter, but we're in northeast NC. Today's high/low is 19/13, but tomorrow is 46/43, with similar wamer temp forecast from now on. We tried the hairdryer and got nothing, but are temporarily hooked to city water for showers and filling jugs for the toilet and sink tonight. This is the first time in 14 years of fulltiming that we've encountered any freezing problems. I added heat in the basement and insulated all the lines I could get to before it got cold - no problem there. We'll just wait the night out rather than try anything else now.
Any source and heater/heat tape recommendation for my added spring project?
Any source and heater/heat tape recommendation for my added spring project?
danemayer
Well-known member
Marv,
The hardest part of the project is the coroplast. After that is getting a power source. Actually installing heat tape and insulation isn't that hard.
I would get a spool of EasyHeat cable and a few controllers. Add a circuit breaker to the panel with a dedicated 20 amp duplex outlet in the area above the water pump. Plug the controllers into a power strip with GFCI plug. Use the other socket for a heat lamp above the pump, or an extension cord to run lamps in the plumbing area and UDC.
While you have the coroplast down, also put heat tape on the kitchen water lines. After the fresh water line, as temps drop, the kitchen lines freeze next. 100' did my fresh line, the kitchen lines, the bathroom sink, and toilet, with some left over. My 6 controllers and power strip are mounted to a piece of plywood screwed into the ceiling above the water pump. The power strip is close enough to the cargo door that I can reach in to turn it on and off.
And as long as you've got the underbelly open, consider tank heaters. They're from Annod Industries. I think Heartland was using the TH825-60 110V AC pad when our unit was built. I'm not sure that's still available. The pads come in 12V DC and 110V AC models. Running power is the hard part. Installing the pad is trivial. If you choose 12V, you can use them during a power outage, but keep in mind that along with the furnace, you can run your battery down pretty quickly.
And while the belly is open, you might want to add some foam board insulation. Cut it to fit inside the frame. Insert against one side, flex the board to get it inside the other frame member. It'll stay in place. On the piece under our bedroom, I taped attic insulation to the top of the foam board before installing it.
Finally, one more thing: While the coroplast is down, locate the tank gate valves. You might consider putting on zippered Flex Mend Trap Flaps near the gate valves. If you ever freeze a gate valve, you can unzip the flap and use a hair dryer to thaw the valve. I have pieces of foam board and insulation above the trap flaps and remove them to get to the gate valves.
Depending on how much cold weather camping you do, and how cold it gets, you can do as much or as little as seems appropriate. We go into extreme cold down to -30 (F), so I've done it all and then some.
The hardest part of the project is the coroplast. After that is getting a power source. Actually installing heat tape and insulation isn't that hard.
I would get a spool of EasyHeat cable and a few controllers. Add a circuit breaker to the panel with a dedicated 20 amp duplex outlet in the area above the water pump. Plug the controllers into a power strip with GFCI plug. Use the other socket for a heat lamp above the pump, or an extension cord to run lamps in the plumbing area and UDC.
While you have the coroplast down, also put heat tape on the kitchen water lines. After the fresh water line, as temps drop, the kitchen lines freeze next. 100' did my fresh line, the kitchen lines, the bathroom sink, and toilet, with some left over. My 6 controllers and power strip are mounted to a piece of plywood screwed into the ceiling above the water pump. The power strip is close enough to the cargo door that I can reach in to turn it on and off.
And as long as you've got the underbelly open, consider tank heaters. They're from Annod Industries. I think Heartland was using the TH825-60 110V AC pad when our unit was built. I'm not sure that's still available. The pads come in 12V DC and 110V AC models. Running power is the hard part. Installing the pad is trivial. If you choose 12V, you can use them during a power outage, but keep in mind that along with the furnace, you can run your battery down pretty quickly.
And while the belly is open, you might want to add some foam board insulation. Cut it to fit inside the frame. Insert against one side, flex the board to get it inside the other frame member. It'll stay in place. On the piece under our bedroom, I taped attic insulation to the top of the foam board before installing it.
Finally, one more thing: While the coroplast is down, locate the tank gate valves. You might consider putting on zippered Flex Mend Trap Flaps near the gate valves. If you ever freeze a gate valve, you can unzip the flap and use a hair dryer to thaw the valve. I have pieces of foam board and insulation above the trap flaps and remove them to get to the gate valves.
Depending on how much cold weather camping you do, and how cold it gets, you can do as much or as little as seems appropriate. We go into extreme cold down to -30 (F), so I've done it all and then some.
TravelTiger
Founding Texas-West Chapter Leaders-Retired
Marv,
We used Ultraheat products. http://www.ultraheat.com
We went with DC products. We have the pipe heaters on the fresh water line between tank and pump, and on the lines to the kitchen. The fresh line on one fuse/switch, kitchen lines on one fuse/switch. Then we have a heat pad on the fresh tank on one fuse/switch. Ultraheat also sells a lighted switch panel, which we put in the cabinet with our other switches. I'll post pics when I get back on the computer.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Similar threads
