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Old 10-30-2013, 06:56 AM   #1
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Practicality of using MH during the winter.

Hi all, was wondering about using our new to us 2000 Adventurer Model 32V on ski & snowmobile trips this winter. We live in Mass. & may make trips to Maine, NH & VT. Propane heater is working well now and would appreciate any tips from other owners of these units. Have seen the RV Geeks video tips about winter camping but don't anticipate hooking up to water & electric, just a few nights boondocking in a parking lot if possible. Can put a drop light in the wet bay to keep the valves & outlets from freezing. The brochure states the LP Furnace helps to keep the holding tanks from freezing and have seen suggestions in the LP Furnace thread about attaching an electric heating pad to the bottom of the tanks. Any other tips? Thanks - Jo e
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Old 10-30-2013, 07:23 AM   #2
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http://www.irv2.com/forums/f258/its-...tml#post988606

Copy and paste this link. I found this info useful.
I also want to use my RV in the winter. I live in Douglas MA.
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Old 10-30-2013, 08:41 AM   #3
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Thanks Attila, good info there.
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Old 10-30-2013, 09:06 AM   #4
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I see no problems with your plan, knowing what you already know. Running the furnace does blow some hot air into the basement keeping the tanks from freezing. The only problem I've ever had is running out of propane in 3-4 days. I put on an Extend-a-Stay, which allows me to carry and extra 20lb bottle or two. This also makes it easier to to fill those or trade them, rather than taking the MH some place to get the tank filled.
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Old 10-30-2013, 09:20 AM   #5
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i use my coach year round. ive been in larimie wy with minus 10 degree weather. you cant keep a coach very warm, but you can keep it from freezing. drop lights, or a ceramic heater set on its lowest letting in the basement areas where there are water connections are a must. just make sure you keep adequate clearances for overheating or fire hazards.
one last thing.it seems bedrooms are always the coldest part of the coach. an electric blanket is a life saver. (yours)your wife will want to cut your private parts off when its so cold your teeth chatter in bed. it will save you many days of grief. i bought mine in larimie the next morning after the 20 below episode.
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Old 10-30-2013, 02:00 PM   #6
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If you intend to put your jacks down make sure you take along something disposable to put under the jack pads.

I learned this lesson the hard way ... my jack pads froze to the ground ... I had to crawl under the coach and give them a good whack to free them ... if you have some wooden blocks then they might freeze but you can move the coach and knock them free ...

The pressure causes the snow/ice under the pads to melt a bit ... and then when it freezes again you are stuck.

Fill your fresh water tank and stow your hose ... dump the holding tanks and stow the hose.
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Old 10-30-2013, 05:18 PM   #7
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It's probably not uncommon to get a bit of fresh snow in the parking lots of ski areas. A quarter inch of snow could get a MH stuck, even on level ground. Most MH come with street rib radial tires--great for a dry highway, but terrible in snow, wet grass, sandy areas, etc. You may want to think about "traction tread" type tires. Not too expensive if you have 19.5 inch wheels, a lot more if they're 22.5.

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Old 10-30-2013, 05:55 PM   #8
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If you have heated bays (Furnace heats plumbing) then you should be good down to around 20 F, Adding lights (I have bot a 100 watt "Drop Light" and a string of C-9 (Outdoor type) Christmas Tree Lights, around 200 watts on that string) and that gives me an additional 10 degrees.

If I was taking it on a ski trip.. i would not put water in the rig, Leave it winterized.
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Old 10-31-2013, 03:31 AM   #9
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joemcgin,
i installed wired indoor-outdoor temperature gauges in my wet bays. i would recommend wireless remote gauges.
if you operate your water heater on electric or propane, the front compartments will not freeze. winnebago has a proprietary system to keep the water heater tank warm while you are driving it. (motoraid)
the comments on using your propane furnace are right on.
i bought tire chains for my rear outboard wheels from oreillys auto parts store and had to use them once. i used the rubber ring adjusters. imho cable chains would be a better choice if they are available.
it was easy to install the chains by lifting the rear of my moho on the leveling jacks. i chocked the front wheels securely.
i know that in wa, or, and ca you must carry chains to drive on certain roads in the winter whether you need to install them or not. the ticket is quite expensive if you get caught without chains.
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Old 10-31-2013, 04:04 AM   #10
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There is a simpler approach but not something that you might want to do.
Winterize your unit as you normally would. Use 1-gallon water jugs for the commode and keep a 5 gallon jug for fresh water for coffee etc. If you are only gone for 2-3 days at a time that's not to long to be without showers etc and now you don't have to worry about freezing pipes. The waste water in the black tank won't burst pipes because it didn't travel through pipes to get there.

My DW was born and raised in Maine in a small town 40 miles north of Bangor. I was stationed at a small radar sight 30 miles from Bangor and we met on one of my excursions to the nearest town. We married in 1969 and traveled to Maine every Summer. We almost always stayed at a camp on a small lake during our usual 2-week visit. The camp was built by my DW's Grand parents back in the 20's. We have pictures of their honeymoon on that lake in tents in 1916. The camp they built had a wood stove for heat and an outhouse (2-holer). We did have cold running water from the lake. All our drinking water was brought in 5-gallon jugs. If you wanted a bath you jumped in the lake, and Maine's lake waters almost never get warm. My DW always heated water on the wood stove and washed by hand daily. Mornings were almost always cold/cool enough to start a fire every day, even up into August.
Even as a kid back in the 50's I well remember washing by hand every night and taking my weekly bath on Saturday evening. We even had hot running water back then but still washed by hand except on Sat.

And they called them, "The good Old days."

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