DeWinterize

[Pastorjaye]

Hello ,

Travel Trailer newbie here. Sorry for the flood of silly questions.

1. When I dewinterie using city water, do I still need to fill and flush the fresh water tanK?

2. If I only plan to use city water and not Boonedock do I still need to fill and flush the white water tank?

3. Will it harm the camper to leave the antifreeze in the black and grey tanks until they are 3/4 full and ready to be emptied?

4. If I mess up and don't flush the antifreeze enough is the water still safe to use?

Thanks!
Jaye

[5picker]

Originally Posted by Pastorjaye

Hello ,

Travel Trailer newbie here. Sorry for the flood of silly questions.

1. When I dewinterie using city water, do I still need to fill and flush the fresh water tanK?

2. If I only plan to use city water and not Boonedock do I still need to fill and flush the white water tank?

3. Will it harm the camper to leave the antifreeze in the black and grey tanks until they are 3/4 full and ready to be emptied?

4. If I mess up and don't flush the antifreeze enough is the water still safe to use?

Thanks!
Jaye

Questions 1 & 2...
Yes you should even if you 'plan' to never use it.
It's always a good idea to carry at least a few gallons of water in the fresh tank for those unexpected potty breaks or washing of hands after a flat tire or Heaven forbid you break down and have to stay somewhere other than you 'thought' you were going to be that had hook-ups.

Also there's been times when in a full hook up campground that the power went out and they couldn't provide water. Having some water in the tank has saved us.
We also stayed at one park where they came around and said they were going to work on the water lines. We added water to our tank before they shut off the water and used our on-board pump. It didn't ruin the camping trip that way.
If you don't prepare in advance, you'll miss out on the opportunity to use it.

#3...
Nope... won't hurt a thing

#4... RV antifreeze is non-toxic. It won't poison you but it might taste funny or leave an oily type residue on your skin. It doesn't take much flushing to rid the system of the antifreeze and then you should sanitize your entire plumbing system anyway.

[youroo]

I don't know of any Bars that Offer a "Rum & Anti-Freeze" Drink! Also takes a LONG time to make "Ice Cubes" with A/F! Youroo!!

[Flybob]

As mentioned, I would sanitize the FW tank. It only takes a few minutes more and you always have it for back up. Also it is much harder to do a good job sanitizing the FW tank if it has sat for several years. Keep in mind that no matter how hard you try, you can usually never get all the water out so it stays moist and dark in there.

When I dewinterize, I always capture most of the antifreeze and take it to the local recycle facility. Even though it is non-toxic, it plays havoc on the septic systems that most campgrounds have. Remember the cost to maintain the campground septic system ends getting added to the cost of a site.

[timfromma]

All the antifreeze and sanitizer that I flushed through my plumbing system last week is still sitting in the waste tanks and it will stay there until my first dump of the season which will be in Orlando probably sometime on the 15th.

[Scrapper]

The first 2 have been answered already better than I can.

3 - No, it will not hurt for the antifreeze to stay in the black or grey tanks at all.
Don't worry about RV antifreeze in the septic systems at the campgrounds. It will not hurt anything. The campgrounds that have their own systems put an aerobic bacteria supplement to their systems. The solids stay in the digestant chamber and the liquids filter out into the drain fields. Campgrounds that are on a municipal treatment system don't have any concerns.
This is the reason why the disposable wipes are safe to put in the municipal sewers but not in home septic systems. They do not break down in a home system.

4 - I would say no it is not safe to use. For one thing the antifreeze will leave a sticky residue on everything, even your skin. Besides I don't think it would taste very good. Most people drink bottled water and leave the plumbed water for washing dishes, washing hands and showers.
If your TT has a water filter be sure to remove the canister and empty the antifreeze out of it. If you just flush the lines the bottom 1/2 to 2/3 of the canister will still have antifreeze in it.

Do not put antifreeze in your water heater and don't fill it until you get all of the antifreeze out of the system.

[Iwritecode]

I got hit with some backsplash last fall while winterizing. Trust me, not only does RV antifreeze taste bad, it leaves a horrible lingering aftertaste in your mouth for a few hours as well.