A caution about traveling in below freezing weather

[spock123]

I plan on going to Quartzite AR I January from North Carolina. I plan to drop South and pick up I-10. I should be okay. I’m in no hurry

[emoney]

I’ve found the solution to potential water line freezes....I moved to Florida about 20 years ago. There’s a trade off in the lack of campfires 10 months out of the year though

[Igave]

I’m chuckling. I’m thinking moving to Florida is a bit drastic for us-I guess we’ll just keep managing our below freezing travel (which do do plenty of it seems) and try to keep lines from freezing up.

[Reverse_snowbird]

Originally Posted by spock123

I plan on going to Quartzite AR I January from North Carolina. I plan to drop South and pick up I-10. I should be okay. I’m in no hurry

spock123,

Just a note of caution.

Make certain that you're watching the weather as you get to West Texas.... El Paso specifically. Normally there is no problem, but you're going to be climbing a small mountain range and it's been known to snow there.

For teetime,
Before you go.....make certain that you find the campgrounds that are open at that time of year.

As John said, leave your rig winterized and use bottled water. When we encountered freezing weather, it was in March near Dallas. You just never know when you're traveling.

[andy10]

It is 5:30 am and i am waiting for daylight to break camp+winterize our 251RKS for the first time. We are going to FL in mid November but history says Ohio will have some cold nights before then. If the promised rain holds off I can do the job here at the campground. More convenient than the storage lot. I am, I guess, a belt and suspenders guy. I blow the lines and then the pink. Regular routine? We have used the strategies mentioned here for traveling in questionable weather. Rule 1, avoid it. Rule 2, (you know). One thought I did not see here. Snowbirding in the SE you get a few days of freezing unless you can afford the parks south of Orlando. On a couple of nights when forecast is around 25 or so I just blow out the lines (and drain the connecting hose of course). It is a relatively quick process and gives a little more confidence. We have had a Viair portable compressor/pump since we started RVing and I cannot image not having it available.

[JohnD10]

Originally Posted by spock123

I plan on going to Quartzite AR I January from North Carolina. I plan to drop South and pick up I-10. I should be okay. I’m in no hurry

I'll be in Quartzsite in January sometime during the week of the 21st. for a camping club meet & greet.

Quartzite is about 90 miles from home so probably won't be camping.

[Teetime]

Originally Posted by Reverse_snowbird

spock123,



For teetime,
Before you go.....make certain that you find the campgrounds that are open at that time of year.

As John said, leave your rig winterized and use bottled water. When we encountered freezing weather, it was in March near Dallas. You just never know when you're traveling.

Good advice, we've been traveling this route for several years and have our camping stops, though not in late January...

One of our favorites is the Meteor Crater campground west of Winslow, but I'll need to check with them. Nice people, very nice showers/bath and good stop off point, get a pull thru, don't unhitch, and enjoy the rest.

We've done the route without camping sometimes and had to stay over in Winslow for an extra night because of I40 through Flagstaff was treacherous. I don't want to do that towing!

I've been a weather watcher all my life, working in telecommunications, so we will try to find the best time to roll.

[JohnD10]

I-40 in AZ...

[Cypressloser]

I've been following this thread for a couple of days, some good advice and some not so good. Driving in freezing weather is no different, maybe worse, than camping in freezing weather with 60 mph + wind. The only way to avoid disaster is to completely winterize, use jugs and bottled water on the road and use the facilities at campgrounds and truck stops. Depending on the situation de-winterize the system and then winterize again before hitting the road, it only takes 10 - 15 minutes and 1 1/2 jugs of antifreeze. I've done it countless times and for those not having a convenient setup invest in a spare rv water pump and a couple short hoses that stay flexible in colder weather.

[Silverbirch]

Originally Posted by andy10

We have had a Viair portable compressor/pump since we started RVing and I cannot image not having it available.

Andy10, what size compressor do you carry with you?

[andy10]

It is a Viair 88. Comes with attachments including a nozzle that mates with the common blow out plug (does not "attach" so it is a 2 person job). The gauge seems accurate and records up to 120# I think but is of course more comfortable in the lower ranges. I have had it for 6 years and has been reliable but do not trust the snap in holders for the attachments. I have found the extension hose to be a help, if not a necessity, on occasion.

[SCClockDr]

If traveling in sub-freezing temps I run the furnace set to 55°F. & open the tank & belly heat duct valve to route forced hot air to the tank area. For our outside shower I added shutoffs & drains. I force compressed air back from the shower to clear water from the plastic parts.
I keep the fresh as full as possible as flowing hydrants may become scarce.

[Dkdickerson]

Originally Posted by dcheatwood

I've run a few times in Wyoming in September/October with the furnace set on 60° for that very reason. Keeps underbelly above freezing.

I've been wondering if it was safe to pull my TT with the heater on.

[fairpilot]

Just curious, how do you blow out water lines. We are in central fl, but we do get some nights in 20's

Originally Posted by andy10

It is 5:30 am and i am
waiting for daylight to break camp+winterize our 251RKS for the first time. We are going to FL in mid November but history says Ohio will have some cold nights before then. If the promised rain holds off I can do the job here at the campground. More convenient than the storage lot. I am, I guess, a belt and suspenders guy. I blow the lines and then the pink. Regular routine? We have used the strategies mentioned here for traveling in questionable weather. Rule 1, avoid it. Rule 2, (you know). One thought I did not see here. Snowbirding in the SE you get a few days of freezing unless you can afford the parks south of Orlando. On a couple of nights when forecast is around 25 or so I just blow out the lines (and drain the connecting hose of course). It is a relatively quick process and gives a little more confidence. We have had a Viair portable compressor/pump since we started RVing and I cannot image not having it available.

[andy10]

Originally Posted by fairpilot

Just curious, how do you blow out water lines. We are in central fl, but we do get some nights in 20's

Camco, I believe, and probably others makes a blow-out plug. Walmart might have it but if not any sizable rv dealer or amazon order. It screws into your city water fitting like a hose. My Viair 88 compressor (runs off 12 volt battery, trailer of truck or. . . ) comes with a reduction nozzle that fits into the the blowout plug. It has to be held as it is working. A second person goes through the trailer and opens each valve until water ceases to flow. That includes toilet, shower (indoor and outdoor), sinks and any other faucet you might have. Oh yeah, engage the water tank bypass before you begin. We just did this for the first time on our new 251RKs. When I opened the low point drain there was only about two tablespoons of water in each.

[Joe_GA]

Originally Posted by Dkdickerson

I've been wondering if it was safe to pull my TT with the heater on.

I wondered when someone would ask about this. I've done it before. No problem. I'm sure I'll get blasted by the naysayers.

[Chief Lou]

We live in the mountains of NJ (yeah we got ‘em!) and winterize when the weather calls for it. We always take a trip south in mid-February and dry camp on the way until temps are safe to dewinterize. We reverse it on the way home. Earlier this year we left NOLA a day early so we could get home before the first nor’easter that buried us. We arrived home, unhooked, plugged in and the first flake fell!
Total time to winterize, dewinterize and winterize again maybe 30 minutes!

I only ever worry about towing in snow.

[Pigeon Lake]

We full time RV and we stay south of Edmonton, Alberta in the summer. Heading south on Thursday to Cali. We have had record cold weather here for the last 4 weeks. Right now the high is around -3 C ( 26F ) and -6 C ( 20F ) at night. We have just kept the water going at a trickle all the time and so far no frozen pipes. Picture with beer was Sept.23rd the other today.

[Anders]

Originally Posted by bill32

While you are parked for the night, with your forced air heater running, most trailers now days have a somewhat sealed underbelly and your water lines are in up inside in the heated areas under the floor. Once you start off for the day on the road, that area under the floor is no longer heated and with 60 + MPH freezing winds passing under the rig, that area will eventually degrade to the outside temperature, along with the water lines therein. I have had this experience, even though my trailer has the arctic package, and when I stopped for the day I found that some places in those lines were frozen. Luckily nothing burst, but I didn't have any water until the next morning after running the heater all night. Now then I travel in such very cold weather I stop for the day after 4 or 5 hours on the road.

It can be an issue when driving in cold weather for sure. We have a solar system on our trailer and we run a very small (tiny) electric heater in the underbelly (Have to look up the wattage) and if it is sunny, the solar feed enough power and if it is overcast, our truck has two 220 amp alternators that keep the batteries topped up.

[nojustice1]

Originally Posted by bill32

The water tanks contain 50 to 100 gallons so they won't freeze unless left unheated for several days. Its the water lines that are the concern.

I have a 35ft toy hauler with a 100 gal fresh water tank. When I went from Vegas to Kansas in Feb. I ran into a freezing temps in Denver. I only drove in daylight and heated the TT at night. By the time I got to Salina KS it had gotten to 17 degrees. My lines all froze and also the 100 gal of fresh water froze solid. It didn't thaw out enough to use for 2 weeks of 35 -40 degree and I got back (the southern route) into AZ.