Freezing Temps coming to TX

[TX First Timer]

So curious what will be the better route for this very brief but cold spell coming to central TX. Still fairly new at this and my TT is not winterized. It is in storage. I work from home so thinking about getting a slip at a full hookup park very near the house just so we can come and go, keep heater on, water running etc? If I go this route what, if anything should I do differently than any other full hookup sites I've been to in normal weather?

2nd option, go to storage and ? Winterize it? Which touted would be best for the rig?

Thanks in advance. Been out 5 or so times but never in Freezing Temps. Any advice is appreciated.

[Kimber45]

cant see spending the money on a site just so you dont have to winterize. If you want to camp go for it. For the $5 in antifreeze and 10 minutes to winterize its not a big deal. Depending on the lowes you may be safe either way but i wouldnt risk it.

[TeachTexas]

Depends on what near term plans are. If you are done camping for a few weeks (say until mid March). I would just on ahead and winterize. With our weather in Texas, especially North and Central, this won't be the last freeze. Of course being this part of Texas it may get to 80 in the next few weeks.

[Sandhill Jeeper]

We are in central Kansas, but have a permanent site with power, etc. It's not worth the risk to not winterize...we have the ability to use the trailer on nice weekends through the winter (propane heat works! turn on the lights and fridge), but using water is the "how much trouble is that worth" question. We have water and sanitary facilities available on site apart from our trailer, so it's not a big deal to have a "winter"camp without compromising the systems in the trailer.

If this is just a "storage" question..YES winterize your trailer for storage! You will sleep better at night!

[Reverse_snowbird]

Your second option is the best course of action. A hard freeze is predicted for as far south as Houston.
So, drain those pipes and winterize with RV antifreeze in storage. It's not hard to 'dewinterize'.
If you absolutely need to take it to an rv park, winterize it and use bottled water instead of hooking up to the park water. Buy a rug runner to keep your feet from freezing and perhaps an electric space heater which you can turn on when you're in the rig.
If you're thinking of using the tt as a 'home' when and if the electricity goes off for days, stock up on propane. Using the propane heater uses tons of propane. Also, if the electricity goes off in the rv park, you'll need a generator to keep the furnace fans running. Batteries that power the fans usually don't last longer than one night (if that).
One last thing.... there are pipes in the walls of that trailer that you can't reach by heating the trailer. That's why everyone is recommending putting in rv antifreeze.

[rwhit]

Cleared it with our HOA and are bringing ours to the house and plugging in. Prepared generator and blew out water lines with air compressor. Hoping not to have to hook up water but we have a heated water hose just in case. Our generator is propane so filled all 7 of our 20 lb cans just in case. Last year we were without power for 4 days so just being prepared. If you have it stored you should get the pink anti freeze or at a minimum blow out the water lines with air.

[fishinfellow]

Blowing out lines is way ti go, Don't forget to put anti freeze in traps

[JP Camper]

Originally Posted by fishinfellow

Blowing out lines is way ti go, Don't forget to put anti freeze in traps

And remember to by pass the water heater, you never want to add antifreeze to the WH or the FW tank. Just make sure they are drained.

[aceinspp]

As said just blow out the lines and drain low water points turn valves to by pass HW tank and add antifreeze to traps and bath stool and shower drain plus sink. Later RJD

[kabotcrew]

What about those of us in living in our RVs and already in Texas? We have a small class A and no tow car so no option of leaving. Our plan is to unhook the water, start with a full propane tank and leave base cabinet doors open at night. Any other suggestions?

[Tundra 2014]

Just winterize. If not ,you still risk freezing and breaking lower drain pipes if they have water in them. Dallas/ Fort Worth area predicting weather in the teens next several days.

[elchilero53]

We wintered in a Rockwood Ultralite 3-season TT several years in West Texas and Golden CO. In Texas, no big deal. "Blue Northern" were fairly short-lived but nothing ever froze. In Colorado we heat-taped EVERYTHING, and never froze.

If you are in Central Texas, drain everything out and blow out the lines. This will be gone in a few days. If you are in North Texas, add antifreeze. I just drain everything by opening the low-point drains with all spigots open and step on the valve peddle on the toilet to make sure the valves and lines are clear of water and blow out the lines. That works for us, even last year during "The Big Freeze", but may not work for you. Use your own judgment.

[Tundra 2014]

I do the same as elchilero53. Then dump anti-freeze in toilet and all drains-1 gallon does it. Also remember to blow out outside shower or faucet if you have them.

[Thomas ho]

its 17 degrees this morn. wed. thurs.high 12 degrees. lows in the single digits. ITS COLD.

[4ester]

Originally Posted by TX First Timer

So curious what will be the better route for this very brief but cold spell coming to central TX. Still fairly new at this and my TT is not winterized. It is in storage. I work from home so thinking about getting a slip at a full hookup park very near the house just so we can come and go, keep heater on, water running etc? If I go this route what, if anything should I do differently than any other full hookup sites I've been to in normal weather?

2nd option, go to storage and ? Winterize it? Which touted would be best for the rig?

Thanks in advance. Been out 5 or so times but never in Freezing Temps. Any advice is appreciated.

I lived in College Station between 1986 and 2008 and never winterized. Our camping season was from mid-October until mid-April. HOA rules required that we store elsewhere. When the forecast called for "especially" cold weather, I fired up my four-gallon pancake compressor, drove to the trailer, and blew out the lines as my wife went from faucet to faucet ensuring no water in lines. We never used antifreeze or opened low-point drains. Doing just that never led to problems. Granted, we never had the temps Texas had last February, but we would get into the low 20's from time to time, but duration was short. Compressed air was enough.

[Reverse_snowbird]

Originally Posted by kabotcrew

What about those of us in living in our RVs and already in Texas? We have a small class A and no tow car so no option of leaving. Our plan is to unhook the water, start with a full propane tank and leave base cabinet doors open at night. Any other suggestions?

What part of Texas? It really depends on how low the temps are going to get and for how long. The longer and lower the temps go, the more likely those lines will freeze.
I'd suggest opening the faucets and leaving them open so that the warm air will get in there and the water will have room to expand if it starts to freeze.
Remember, if the electricity goes off in the park, those furnace fans will run on battery for a limited period of time and you might not notice it in the middle of the night.
If you can borrow an air compressor and blow out those lines, that's the method that will cause the least inconvenience. Many people have tire inflators that will do the job.
We have camped with the water hooked up, but one of us got up every couple of hours to make sure the water was running to all outlets. You could almost feel the ice crystals in the water. However, the temp only got down to just below freezing at night and it warmed up during the day.

[kabotcrew]

We didn't want to winterize so we canceled our reservation south of Dallas and headed to Louisiana. Here it will be cold and rainy but no winter storm watch. Problem solved! Thanks for all of your replies!

[TX First Timer]

Follow up question- do black and grey tanks have to be completely empty to add rv antifreeze or is it ok if there's a little water in each? Used to drain completely and still do but then read that flushing toilet and running just a little water would be ok, and actually good for storage. Same as sink. Just curious if any difference.
Thanks again for all the knowledge and insight.

[Reverse_snowbird]

Originally Posted by TX First Timer

Follow up question- do black and grey tanks have to be completely empty to add rv antifreeze or is it ok if there's a little water in each?

No difference. You're just trying to keep the liquid in the tank from freezing. Add a bit more if you think it necessary.

[mixerman]

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