CT to Florida in February - Protecting from Freeze?

[DoctorT68]

Hi All!

I'm winterizing now and will be taking a trip to Disney in February. I'm worried about Freeze ups on the trip. I will dewinnterize the morning we leave and can rewinterize as soon as we get back. But I'm worried about freezing pipes andvtankscwhile I'm on the road. Any advice would be very much appreciated.

Thanks,

Bill

[Hoglou]

Even with an artic pack I use a remote weather temp sensor I stole off the porch with the readout in the dining room. The one I have is an old Bass Pro La Crosse clock and temp gizmo. It reads from about 100 ft with three walls and a bay door between the two. I am currently shopping for a twin remote unit so each wet bay has sensor, then the readout can either sit in the house or coach as needed. I pulled 120v power to all the bays so I can use a chick hatching lamp as needed..... I only use the 12v artic pack when rolling....

[DoctorT68]

Ok. But I don't have the Arctic pack unfortunately.

[DoctorT68]

Btw 2016 Sunseeker 3060sf

[Hoglou]

Sorry, I did not read your post correctly. Depending what year coach you have your furnace will heat the water bays. Worst case I would fire up the hot water heater and run both the hot and cold while you travel. I would be sure that the outside shower is air locked on both hot and cold as that seems to be the biggest threat. Still think the temp sensors are the key....

[Hoglou]

With a 2016 if the bays are ok so are the pipes....(less the outside shower)

[DoctorT68]

Hmmm. Ok. How do I airlock the showed? Not sure what you mean here.

[Hoglou]

While it is winterized do not let raw water move up the outside shower lines (aka do not open the shower valves). This will keep pink anti freeze there and raw water away from the shower head. I use air to winterize so I keep an air bubble next to the shower head all winter by not purging the line when I pump water, yea the air compresses a little as water pressure charges but the pump is rather little and low pressure....

[A32Deuce]

I have a SunSeeker. You know how cold this past Feb. was. I DE winterized mine, filled with water and left for FLA. Ran the house heater when we stopped in Maryland over night. Snowed, no problem. Didn't get warm till we hit Southern Georgia. Did stay at South Of The Border, nice.

[DoctorT68]

Originally Posted by A32Deuce

I have a SunSeeker. You know how cold this past Feb. was. I DE winterized mine, filled with water and left for FLA. Ran the house heater when we stopped in Maryland over night. Snowed, no problem. Didn't get warm till we hit Southern Georgia. Did stay at South Of The Border, nice.

Thanks A32. That's reassuring. Any other advice you can offer for the trip?

[A32Deuce]

Yes. Keep away from Balt./Wash, and Northern Virginia. I go south via NJ turnpike to 896 in Del. which turns into 301. Take 301 to 50 west then back to 301 south. In Maryland on 301 @ RT 4 there is an open camp ground east of 301 by a couple miles or just before crossing the Potomac Rv. there is a small CG before Tollbooth on right. Then take 301 to 299 out to 95 south. Depending on time of day, stay on 95 south or 295 S around Richmond. After that clean sailing. I have ben going this way for about 25 years.

[Hoglou]

Check those air bags and tires!

Enjoy the trip...

[17Racer]

Take the outside shower head off and store inside. Leave outside valves closed. That should leave a small amount of air before those valves. They were opened and drained when you winterized right.

I have already done a test with wireless sensors, bought a Taylor at the hardware store. Can use up to 3 remotes and it stores low and high readings. And they can be bought $15-$25 with extra remotes. I used them just to give me an idea of what was going on.

The Sunseekers have enclosed and heated area (as long as you run lp heat) for tanks and drains. And it works really well. I still recommend the temperature sensor just for you own knowledge. Matter of fact I will be doing the same thing and I now feel comfortable in knowing that it can be done safely.

[DoctorT68]

I like the idea of temp sensors but don't have a clue how to use them. Where would I place the sensors?

[jjlavin]

X2 on avoiding Wash/Balt. The stupid tunnel doesn't allow hazmats, and our propane tanks are considered that...so...it's just a plain pain. When ive done it in the past, i take the francis scott key bridge around baltimore. Plus the traffic is tight, aggressive, and hard to maneuver thru without "white knuckling" it.

Since I'm in PA, I take route 78 west to route 81 south all the way down to VA/NC then try to cut back over to 95. It only adds 25 minutes to my trip and is way worth it.

As for dewinterize, I wait until I get to warmer temps to do it, since it only takes a few minutes (turn on water and run it for a bit). Usually it's warm enough in NC or SC.

[17Racer]

I use 1 in a water proof container attached to the hitch for outside air temp. 1 in the water filter area found in the storage compartment and 1 in the waste drain compartment. Probably a little overkill but wanted to know the facts.

[RamblerGuy]

Hoglou,

I just bought a wireless display that receives up to 8 remote sensors. I got their kit with 3 sensors. One outdoor, one in the refrigerator, one in the water pump/filter compartment.

http://www.ambientweather.com/amws14c.html

[jmencel]

X2 on dewinterizing on the way south or your destination. Open your low point drains and taps and you can get rid of much of the pink stuff in the lines before you head out. Then just flush the lines once you are hooked up.If you have an on board water filter, dump the pink stuff out of that as well. You might wish to take some pink stuff with for winterizing again on the trip home if you are returning in freezing weather. RV antifreeze is difficult to find in Florida. I just came back north from Florida and couldn't find any until I reached northern Georgia.

[pcurtiss]

We are going to Florida at the end February, but we are coming from northern Minnesota. We decided not to de-winterize until after we get to milder temperatures. That means we will be drinking bottled water and using a very simple porta-potty for the first half or more of the trip.
We'll have to winterize and then "rough it" again when we head back north.
It's just peace of mind for us because our Wolf Pup isn't made for winter--at least we don't think so. It's super easy to winterize it with a hand pump.

[DickiedooFlagman]

Whatever you are driving or towing, if you expose the vehicle to harsh road chemicals, I recommend going through a car wash or making sure you hose off the chassis when reaching warmer weather. Those chemicals are taking a toll on rust belt vehicles: brake lines and brake hardware in particular.