Greetings from Minnesota, USA

[Cynschmidt]

Hello all...my hubby and I are recent used Minnie Winnie purchasers, after having three Airstream travel trailers. We wanted to see if we like motor homing, and we do. My hubby has been trying to winterize of Minnie Winnie, 2004, 24 footer. He is having a nervous breakdown, and it has been three days of reading all the manuals, calling Winnebago, and now he is in the driveway with one of our friends who thinks he might know how to accomplish this. Any ideas?

[TJFogelberg]

I use the antifreeze method. Determine if your unit has an intake tube for use in injecting the antifreeze into the system. If it does not, you can get a hand pump at Brambillas or Camping World and use it to pump via the city water connection on the outside of your RV. If you won't use the unit late Oct-late Mar, check with MN state fairgrounds to see if you can store it (inexpensive) inside. A lot easier on your unit than outside storage. Google winterizing rv for some you tubes with detailed instructions. Once you learn how to do it, becomes routine each year.

[Eagle5]

These Training Videos by Lichtsinn are pretty good:
https://www.lichtsinn.com/about-us/v...to-vid-library

[be happy]

It sounds like he is making more than need be, it can however become stressful. For me the hardest was draining the water heater and the by pass valves. I also over buy the gal. of rv anti freeze, most used is two but I will buy 3 or 4 just because.

If still having questions take to rv dealer for winterizing, stay with unit (if possible) and watch them take notes. That way you will be ready for next year and able to do reverse in spring.

[Cooperhawk]

Originally Posted by Cynschmidt

He is having a nervous breakdown, and it has been three days of reading all the manuals, calling Winnebago, and now he is in the driveway with one of our friends who thinks he might know how to accomplish this. Any ideas?

Welcome, we also were Airstreamers until we sold our 345 and purchased a Winnebago Journey. Perhaps we've met at a rally.


Anyway, we have had ours for several years now and Winterizing is quite simple for us, we just did it this last week.


I park it in the yard and level it up.



Open all the faucets and then find the winterizing switches. Ours are located in the bathroom cabinet. One lets you bypass the water heater. In our wet bay are two on off valves that vent under the unit. Open them both and let gravity do its work.


Open up the water heater bay. Open the vent valve at the top of the water heater plate. Remove the plug in the bottom of the plate. Let it drain.


I have an attachment that screws into the connection where the fresh water hose attaches and lets me blow air into the system. Don't blow a lot of pressure at once. Just little burps so you don't rupture a line. You can hear it.



Now the DW goes inside and as water blows out of each faucet and air replaces, it, she closed them one at a time. Don't forget to do both hot and cold water and also disconnect the ice maker water supply and let it blow out as well. Hold the toilet valve down until you hear air.


Next we pour the pink stuff down the drains, close up the water heater, reconnect the ice maker, and we're done.


Usually takes us about half an hour.



We've done it this way for years with no problems.


An alternative is to pump the lines full of an anti freeze. I absolutely hate the taste the pink stuff leaves so with our Airstream we always pumped the lines full of the cheapest Vodka we could get. Doesn't take much as you're only filling the lines. The Vodka sanitizes,won't freeze, leaves no taste, and if you please you can have a party in the Spring with Vodka coming out of the faucets. We did that for almost twenty years with no problems at all.

[Cooperhawk]

I guess I should also say that I had previously emptied the black and gray tanks along with the freshwater tank.