20's night time, 60's day time, what to do?

[LandKKnight]

I know I read about this on the forum but can't find the thread. We are going to Mammoth Lakes this coming weekend. Weather app says it will be 25 degrees at night, 60's in the day. Anything special we need to do to prevent anything bad happening to the pipes/plumbing at night? Is overnight cold long enough to worry about it? Should we simply fill the tank and not hook up to the water at the campsite? Any suggestions welcome!
(I5 30 FW 2018)

[cboss]

At 25 at night I would not leave the hose hooked up. It would be best to put some water in the tank, disconnect the hose, both ends, and stow it. The campground may shut down the water or at least let it drip.
I don't think you have to worry about the camper plumbing unless you are going to have some strong winds during the night.

[Happyatrest]

We just came back from Tuolumne Meadows (elev. 8800') which is about an hour north of Mammoth. Tuolumne is dry camping and despite the elevation difference has very similar temperature ranges as Mammoth. You can see the RAWS data here- TUOLUMNE MEADOWS (TUM)

We had absolutely no problems with our plumbing. The temps in the early morning dropped into the 20's - 30's range they but don't stay down there. As soon as the sun comes up, so do the temps. Its the Sierras... "freeze or fry"! Never even used the tank heaters on the black/gray tanks. We started with a full tank of water and came home with a half tank and experienced no problem with that tank either.

Enjoy your time at Mammoth!

[rskeans]

Originally Posted by Happyatrest

Never even used the tank heaters on the black/gray tanks.

I didn't think we had operational tank heaters. Can somebody verify that?

[Happyatrest]

Originally Posted by rskeans

I didn't think we had operational tank heaters. Can somebody verify that?

Well, I have an operational tank heater switch. Does that count?

[RV Randy]

If I remember, probably why Rskeans asked the question, Bclemens said we have tank heater switches installed. They light up because they have power but there are no actual tank heaters installed.

[Kimber45]

Forget the hose. Run a space heater in the basement and in the camper if not paying for electirc

[mookieblaylock]

“20's night time, 60's day time, what to do?”

What to do???? Enjoy it!!!!!!
It’s still a thousand degrees with 100% humidity down here.

[Springerdad]

Originally Posted by mookieblaylock

“20's night time, 60's day time, what to do?”

What to do???? Enjoy it!!!!!!
It’s still a thousand degrees with 100% humidity down here.

'Down here' must be Southwest Florida where we are. Heat indexes around 105 today.

[Reverse_snowbird]

Originally Posted by Springerdad

'Down here' must be Southwest Florida where we are. Heat indexes around 105 today.

Hot as blazes here in Texas.

When we camp with temps below freezing, we disconnect from the campsite water hose, turn off the water pump at night, open the cabinet doors near the pipes to warm the space and open the water faucets. Probably overkill, but opening the water faucets allows the water to expand and not burst a plastic pipe.

Wish we were reverse snowbirding and joining you to enjoy the cooler weather.

[JWood422]

Originally Posted by Reverse_snowbird

Hot as blazes here in Texas.

When we camp with temps below freezing, we disconnect from the campsite water hose, turn off the water pump at night, open the cabinet doors near the pipes to warm the space and open the water faucets. Probably overkill, but opening the water faucets allows the water to expand and not burst a plastic pipe.

Wish we were reverse snowbirding and joining you to enjoy the cooler weather.

I’m surprised to hear that opening faucets helps much if any. I had an exterior trap with no pressure burst. That water had lots of room to expand. It chose to expand toward the pipe walls.

[Grapehound]

[I know I read about this on the forum but can't find the thread. We are going to Mammoth Lakes this coming weekend. Weather app says it will be 25 degrees at night, 60's in the day. Anything special we need to do to prevent anything bad happening to the pipes/plumbing at night? Is overnight cold long enough to worry about it? Should we simply fill the tank and not hook up to the water at the campsite? Any suggestions welcome!]
(I5 30 FW 2018)

It's very likely you don't have to do much of anything at those modest temps.

I'd probably ditch the hose and fill your water tank, or at least disconnect and drain the hose at night. If you have tank heaters and wish to be cautious, turn them on overnight. If you have a basement, then a little heater in there on "low" overnight is an extra precaution, though likely not necessary at all. (Only if campground is supplying electric.) Just make sure it is positioned away from anything flammable.

If you keep your interior 60 or better at night you likely don't have to worry much about internal plumbing either. Open cabinet doors as others have said if you let the inside get cold overnight.

As most have said, you're probably in good shape if you do nothing. However it's always good to know what you would do if really cold temps persisted overnight.