Camping Around 32F?

phyter2008

Hello,

New to the community. Question for everyone, has anyone had experience camping around the freezing point? Do I need to winterize before going out if I'm warming the camper up to sleep in / cooking in etc.?

From my experience with other house / equipment freezing; usually using things will keep freezing from happening around that special 32F.

Right now I'm planning to err on the side of caution and blow the lines out before leaving, but want some feedback from others that have done this more.

2021 XL Boondock - won't have power while camping, but will have generator as needed.

ontheroad

When we were travelling from Ontario Canada to Texas this past January we were already in "winter mode"...we never dewinterized and just carried bottled water...just don't leave the water out to hold down your mats/ rugs...we learned the hard way...luckily we had a couple of jugs in the car..coffee was able to be made! Replacing the pump was not on our agenda...

WilliamA

I often (sigh...) do most of my big adventures in the winter. It's not uncommon for me to go from -20 (Wisconsin) to 60 degrees (Oklahoma) in a single day of travel. When I'm traveling long distances, whatever the weather, I generally run with an empty water tank. I'll carry 4 gallons of water in my tow vehicle behind the front seat for coffee and cooking. If I am going somewhere that the temp won't get above freezing I just use the portable water can and set it in the trailer once I've got my camp set up and the furnace running. If I'm in balmy Ca or Az, I'll fill the water tank once I get there. I don't "winterize" my water system. When going from warm to cold, I'll pump the tank dry with the faucet, take both pump lines off and then run the pump for a few seconds until it sputters dry. That's the bulk of my "winterizing". Takes about 2 minutes to empty the tank and another 30 seconds to clear water from the pump.

Don't make it harder than it is....

WilliamA

phyter2008

@WilliamA said:
I often (sigh...) do most of my big adventures in the winter. It's not uncommon for me to go from -20 (Wisconsin) to 60 degrees (Oklahoma) in a single day of travel. When I'm traveling long distances, whatever the weather, I generally run with an empty water tank. I'll carry 4 gallons of water in my tow vehicle behind the front seat for coffee and cooking. If I am going somewhere that the temp won't get above freezing I just use the portable water can and set it in the trailer once I've got my camp set up and the furnace running. If I'm in balmy Ca or Az, I'll fill the water tank once I get there. I don't "winterize" my water system. When going from warm to cold, I'll pump the tank dry with the faucet, take both pump lines off and then run the pump for a few seconds until it sputters dry. That's the bulk of my "winterizing". Takes about 2 minutes to empty the tank and another 30 seconds to clear water from the pump.
Don't make it harder than it is....
WilliamA

I did see one online where this lady was using vodka to winterize lol.

Thanks for the note, definitely will keep it as simple as possible!

LuckyJ

What WilliamA is doing for winterizing as been great for me as well. There is like 2 feet of line and a pump to empty in a T@G, so easy does it. Just the bottom of the tank is not enough water to crak it and as long as all the plumbing fittings ans valve are empty/open as well as tge pump you are good to go.

And I would never take the chance to leave water in scince no heat is reaching the water equipement of a T@G.

And like he said, winterizing can be done in just a few minutes w/o tools, even at camping site.

😊

@WilliamA said:
I often (sigh...) do most of my big adventures in the winter. It's not uncommon for me to go from -20 (Wisconsin) to 60 degrees (Oklahoma) in a single day of travel. When I'm traveling long distances, whatever the weather, I generally run with an empty water tank. I'll carry 4 gallons of water in my tow vehicle behind the front seat for coffee and cooking. If I am going somewhere that the temp won't get above freezing I just use the portable water can and set it in the trailer once I've got my camp set up and the furnace running. If I'm in balmy Ca or Az, I'll fill the water tank once I get there. I don't "winterize" my water system. When going from warm to cold, I'll pump the tank dry with the faucet, take both pump lines off and then run the pump for a few seconds until it sputters dry. That's the bulk of my "winterizing". Takes about 2 minutes to empty the tank and another 30 seconds to clear water from the pump.
Don't make it harder than it is....
WilliamA

beaky

no onboard water, we sleep comfortably with a couple of blankets down to 23 degrees, the cabin is pretty warm with 2 people in it