help


littleitaly

New Member
Need advice please, moving to maggie valley permanently in damon 5th wheel challenger, will be dewinterized by saltys rv supply feb 9th but after that i have no idea how to live in it for the winter, will my pipes freeze, whats the cheapest way to get through the winter, i will have to work and i dont want to wake up with frozen holding tank or pipes, any info is appreciated, best regards Loretta
 

littleitaly

New Member
Re: help

Thanks but no thanks, I cant wait to get out of Florida, been here 35 years, love Maggie Valley, want to live and work there or asheville
 

rvgypsyab

New Member
RE: help

Morning Loretta. Read your forum ??? and couldn't resist giving you a few pointers. We know pretty much everything there is to know about winter living in an RV as we have been doing it for 4 years as fulltimers and live in Northern Alberta Canada. Much much colder than in the States for sure. First of all, use a water restrictor year round on you water line and put it on at the ground connection. You don't want to blow a hose or your fixtures inside your unit. Anyhow to be prepared for below 0 temperatures you need to: Heat tape and insulate your water line - then wrap in 3/4" foam insulation tubes. Heat tape and insulate your sewer hose - and use PVC pipe for the sewer as the collapsible hoses crack and leak in cold temps. Don't dump your sewer until it is full but you can leave your greys open. We use a 1/2 gallon of bleach once a month in our Black Tank and let it sit for a couple of days, this keeps your tank clean and keeps your gauges working. We still use the RV Toilet stuff but only for the smell, it will never clean your tanks. Never ever pour grease down your sinks. A skirt is good too as it blocks the wind and cold from coming in under your unit and if you don't have heated and insulated tanks I would recommend a small electric heater for underneath set on low. This will not only keep your tanks from freezing up but will keep your floors a lot warmer. We also use window film and have found that if you put it on the outside of your windows and go past the edge of the window about 3-4 inches it really keeps the cold out. A major amount of heat is lost around your window frames. You need exterior window film for this. Cover your Air Conditioner unless you have a heat strip on the roof. Make sure you leave a vent or window slightly open at all times so moisture can escape and always use your stove fan when cooking. If the humidity is high where you're going, I would run a dehumidifier. To offset your propane bill, you might consider a couple of small electric heaters for the inside, this really helps. If the outside temp falls to 20 below I would recommend a light in the back of your fridge on the outside of the unit as the fridge can freeze off and stop working. Our friends all laugh at us and so do a lot of people in the towns we travel to but we're toasty warm and have never had a problem doing it our way. Your first year out will be the most expensive because of heat tapes, insulation etc but believe me it will be well worth it. Hope I helped. Good Luck and Happy Rving!!
 

onthecoach

Senior Member
Re: help

HI Little Italy,

Welcome to Winter!! We wintered in our Bounder 40' motorhome in Madison, WI and now in Golden, CO (currently about 24 degrees and snowing like CRAZY today!).

Most important thing we have learned - assuming you have wrapped hoses -- keep your water dripping all the time (24/7) when the temps drop below 30 degrees. Make sure you have WARM water trickling from your kitchen sink (so your water heater doesn't freeze!). As long as we keep the water trickling, we have been FINE!! No Problems at all!!!

Good Luck!! Welcome to the Forum!!!
 
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