Cold weather in Texas this week

Trav59k · 12-18-2022, 04:01 PM

We live in Southeast Texas where next week for 36 hours the temperature is going to be between 15-22 degrees. We have not winterized our Travato 59k for storage as we planned on using it all year around.
I have are RV at our home an are open to any suggestions on how to protect my pipes and holding tanks during this timeframe.

Thanks, Mike

Eagle5 · 12-18-2022, 04:36 PM

Hi Mike,
That is cold! You could use the blow-out method, such as can be seen in this example:
Winterizing a 22M using the blow-out method
or you could pump-in the pink stuff. You can read about winterizing your unit starting on page 7-14 of your Owner's Manual:
2021 Travato
Welcome to the forum.
Eagle5

Thindirtline · 12-18-2022, 05:09 PM

If at home plug in your trailer, plug in a small electric heater, keep your water heater on, and consider a small drip of hot water from each spigot overnight. Keeping the trailer warm inside should prevent any water from freezing and causing damage. This has worked for our old travel trailer on winter ski trips to Utah with temps below 20 deg. We used a 1200w heater for a 22ft trailer.

Winterbagoal · 12-18-2022, 05:56 PM

To be completely safe, follow the winterization instrcutions in the owner/operator manual. Dump holding tanks, drain fresh water tank, then open all faucets and other water outlets, run your water pump until no water still runs out of anything. Leave all valves/faucets open during the freeze. Check/drain the water filter, if applicable.
Or, as a previous poster suggested, plug yourself into the home, and put one or two small heater/blowers inside and run them 7x24 until the freeze passes. I believe the Travato's tanks and waterlines are all inside the van body, so running a heater to keep the inside above freezing, should work. Open cupboard/storage doors to let the warmer air reach the lines/tanks.

be happy · 12-19-2022, 02:59 AM

All of the post before me gave excellent advice. That cold of temp. for that period of time can really do damage to the plumbing. I know its a pain to do the pink antifreeze (or blow out) but for the cost of 3 gal. +/- might save your system. If you have an outside shower that will be the first to go, and maybe the hardest to replace.

Good Luck to which ever way you go

**creativepart** · 12-19-2022, 06:36 AM

Here in the San Antonio area we’re expecting some really deep freezes overnight for 3-days. But each day is expected to see highs in the upper 30’s or lower 40’s. So, at this time I don’t plan to do much of anything about it.

I may bring the RV home so I can plug it in and run the heater. But that’s the limit of actions I plan to take.

And the forecast calls for 60’s a few days after Christmas.

Morich · 12-19-2022, 10:14 AM

Not knowing exactly WHICH Travato leaves several questions but looking at the drawings of where the lines and plumbing runs on many of them, it looks like there are several suspect points that would drive me to go with winterizing for best safety.
There are severla points where the lines go totally to the outside of the rV on those I did look at and if you have those points, that is quite likely to freeze.

For my personal choice and peace of mind, I would go with blowing out the lines then adding the pink.
Using the pink is not a great expense, even if you simply dump it each time.
But if you choose to do it, you can also simply catch the pink when blowing it out for using the Rv and then store it for next use!

Burning ten/twenty dollars of pink to avoid months and thousands of dollars to repair? Not even a question for me!~

dkoldman · 12-19-2022, 09:08 PM

In Dallas it was to get to 15 for and below freezing for about 36 hours so I planned to set my 1500 watt heater on 39 degrees and turn furnace on; set to 33 as a backup in the event of power outage. For good measures, I put a incandescent bulb in the wet bay.

But yesterday the forecast changed, it is to drop to 10 degrees and be below freezing Thursday to Saturday. So I fully winterized

I may still run the heater and incandescent bulb?

I blow out with compressed air and I am done. While I do have the pink stuff to pour in toilet and sinks, I have never understood the logic to put pink stuff in the fresh water supply lines. Maybe if I did not have compressed air available, or felt that I may not know how to properly drain my freshwater system?

My RV was in that that week long Texas hard freeze winterized the same way above with no pink stuff and no issues.

FWIW, as soon as front passes, I will add freshwater and keep on using RV fully year around.

Wayne M · 12-19-2022, 10:27 PM

FWIW, My previous MH had they typical water system and a propane/electric water heater. I emptied all the tanks then I would open 1 faucet and run 30psi of air through the system, then open another and so forth leaving the faucets open as a moved to the next faucet. I never added pink stuff and never had a problem.

Morich · 12-20-2022, 06:46 AM

My reason for doing both is lots of old habits that die slow! Since the weather in Texas never gets very cold, I most likely could do without the double duty but I have the time and have lived where the weather made you pay such a price for being wrong that I really just feel fine with doing ALL it takes to never have to replace something!

And we all know the person most likely to hurt themself is the one who feels he doesn't need to wear a helmet! So when dealing with folks who may not have ever done the job before, I see no reason to go any closer to the edge than they have to for a difference of a few dollars and a few minutes extra.
No right way and no wrong way to fit all situations and all users.

**creativepart** · 12-20-2022, 07:31 AM

I’ve decided to bring the RV back to the house from storage so I can plug it in and run the propane heater during the three days with lows in the 20’s. The daily highs are above freezing each day with one day in the high 30’s and two days in the 40’s.

I’ve also purchased a small 110v ceramic heater to put in my basement battery compartment. My Lithium batteries have cold temp cutoff protection but I figure a little extra protection would be good with lows on Thursday below 15 degrees.

dkoldman · 12-20-2022, 08:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Morich

My reason for doing both is lots of old habits that die slow! Since the weather in Texas never gets very cold, I most likely could do without the double duty but I have the time and have lived where the weather made you pay such a price for being wrong that I really just feel fine with doing ALL it takes to never have to replace something!

And we all know the person most likely to hurt themself is the one who feels he doesn't need to wear a helmet! So when dealing with folks who may not have ever done the job before, I see no reason to go any closer to the edge than they have to for a difference of a few dollars and a few minutes extra.
No right way and no wrong way to fit all situations and all users.

Could it be more like the person adding a padded helmet on top of the helmet person they already wearing

The deciding factor for me was my WBGO Owners manual. It described in detail how to winterize using the blow out method. Then it says "optionally" you may use instructions to fill supply line with pink antifreeze.

I have heard of more stories where a user or dealer improperly used the pink stuff and had freeze damage; than those that simply drained and did the blow out method. Any damage from blow out method if any; may be related to too much air pressure and that may spring a air leak (easy fix over freeze damage). I set my regulator at 40 psi so this is not possible as less pressure than the water from pump.

But it is a comfort level; so each person must do what makes then feel worry free when it is hard freeze outside.

wyocamper · 12-20-2022, 08:16 PM

Our high tomorrow is forecast to be 36º at about noon, and then we drop to -20ºF by 6 am Thursday, with windchill Thursday afternoon down to -65ºF. I only use the pink AF in the sink traps and holding tanks, the lines I just blow out. Never have had an issue.

dkoldman · 12-21-2022, 03:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wyocamper

Our high tomorrow is forecast to be 36º at about noon, and then we drop to -20ºF by 6 am Thursday, with windchill Thursday afternoon down to -65ºF. I only use the pink AF in the sink traps and holding tanks, the lines I just blow out. Never have had an issue.

So where do you keep your Penguins when you travel

Those are some dangerous temperatures, one could freeze to death within an hour if not properly protected. I once picked up a Rent a Car in Minneapolis / St Paul and was horrified with the instructions I received should I get stranded off the road. I can honestly say I drove with both hands on the wheel and observed every traffic sign as I was not taking any chances

Morich · 12-21-2022, 04:16 PM

Almost all we do requires some care to adapt to the conditions.
One of the old ones is the Air Force 30-30-30 rule!

I cut and copied this:
The U.S. Air Force has a 30-30-30 rule for cold weather: In minus-30 degrees F and a wind of 30 mph (actually knots), exposed human flesh freezes in 30 seconds.Jan 30, 2009

wyocamper · 12-21-2022, 04:27 PM

4:20 pm and we're down to -13 with 25mph wind and full-on blizzard conditions. Wind chill is -40. Very glad neither of us has to go anywhere, and I can work from home tomorrow. I left work early because of the expected downturn and when I got home my weather station said 42º, I literally watched it drop minute by minute down 50º over the last 4 hours.

**creativepart** · 12-21-2022, 05:07 PM

We lived in Jackson, WY from 2000 to 2005. So, we saw our fair share of very cold and of course lots of snow. This time of year it was dark from 4pm in the evening.

But the snow shoeing, X-Country Skiing and legendary downhill Skiing made the winter LOTS of fun.

wyocamper · 12-21-2022, 06:26 PM

I doubt that there is anything in the world that compares to the feeling of standing at the top of Rendezvous Bowl with a foot or more of fresh powder and 4000' of vertical in front of your ski tips.

Edit: Also the shear heart stopping terror of dropping into Laramie Bowl for the first time.

**creativepart** · 12-21-2022, 07:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wyocamper

I doubt that there is anything in the world that compares to the feeling of standing at the top of Rendezvous Bowl with a foot or more of fresh powder and 4000' of vertical in front of your ski tips.

Edit: Also the shear heart stopping terror of dropping into Laramie Bowl for the first time.

On a sunny day, it was grand. But on those foggy, cloudy, icy days? Not so much. I wasn't much of a tram guy. The rest of the mountain was enough for me.

My daughter worked for the ski hill all through high school including one whole season at the hot chocolate/coffee shack at the top of the tram.

I was a Weekend Warrior and only on fair weather days at that.

Trav59k · 12-21-2022, 07:21 PM

Thanks to everyone for the great advice. I decided to go full winterization. Today I completed the blowout method as per the Travato manual. This afternoon after blowing, draining the lines and fresh water tank I tried to add the “pink stuff.” Unfortunately after completing the above I could not get my water pump to shyphon the antifreeze.
So still working on this issue.