By Nanci Dixon
Yikes! It is cold in our neck of the woods, and there is a freeze warning. It’s time to put the heated water hose on, the water filter heater blanket on, check the furnaces, and pull out the portable heaters. We have only camped in temps down to 15 degrees for short periods of time so these tips may need to be expanded on for lower temperatures or longer times.
Heated hose
A heated hose plugs into a 120v outlet and keeps the water in the hose fluid. It won’t keep a water filter defrosted unless the water is flowing or the water filter(s) are protected.
While we were staying near Bryce Canyon in Utah, the RV park told us, with certainty, that it would freeze that night. We confidently put on our heated hose. But the next morning… no water. We learned that we needed to connect the heated hose directly to the campground water faucet. We had put our blue water filter at the campground faucet and then connected the heated hose to the blue water filter. The water filter froze solid so no water even got to the heated hose!
Use a thermal blanket during a freeze warning
We have a two-stage exterior water filter unit and need to protect it from freezing, too. Our current unit is big, housing two, ten-inch filters in a sturdy case. We found an electric thermal barrel heater that is usually used to wrap barrels to keep liquids fluid. Because this particular barrel heater does not have a thermostat to raise or lower the heater temperature, I loosely wrap our water filter unit so it doesn’t get too hot and potentially melt the water filter containers.
The barrel heater keeps the filters warm and water flowing. I cover the entire unit with a tarp to keep the faucet ends from freezing when night temps are projected to drop significantly. There may be many other options available but this one seems to work for us. Note: Not only are we seeking a cozy warm spot, but the furry and not-so-furry small outside critters are too. I have found a bird and a mouse or two trying to snuggle up to the heated blanket.
Water bay
The water bay with all the water connections is also at risk. Ours is heated but ONLY when the rear gas furnace is run. We will run the furnace in the evening and first thing in the morning if it is not below 25 degrees. If it’s projected to be lower than that, we will set the furnace to come on at night. We are also able to fit our water softener in the bay to protect it. Another way to keep the water bay above freezing is to add an old-fashioned incandescent light bulb to the bay to keep the area warm. If choosing that method, make sure the bulb does not directly touch anything that could burn or melt.
Holding tanks
Our tanks are insulated and sandwiched between the motorhome interior and exterior floor, so we don’t need to worry about keeping them warm. We’re lucky, though, as some people with exposed tanks will need to make this effort. Some put a floodlight with an incandescent bulb under their RV to keep their tanks warm. I have also read that electric blankets will do the trick, too.
During freeze warnings, keep the gray and black water tanks closed
I have heard horror stories of people that have left the gray water tank valve open in a hard freeze and the whole sewer hose froze and needed to be heated up with a hairdryer.
Open the interior cabinets
As an extra precaution, we open the inside cabinet doors where the plumbing pipes are. That helps keep warm air circulating. I also open the dishwasher and washing machine door to add warmth to potential freeze points.
Disconnect the water
In some instances, the best thing to do is just disconnect the water at night. This year a campground in Texas got really serious. They said as we were checking in: “Disconnect your water or pay $250 when (not if) the water faucet freezes.”
Moral of the story when there’s a freeze warning? Fill your water tanks, open the cabinet doors and stay warm!
RELATED
- The 3 best heated RV hoses for cold weather RVers
- Commercial heated RV hose vs. DIY heated hose for winter camping
- How to have a successful winter camping trip, even in negative temps
- Two fast and easy winter RV mods to help you stay warmer
- Some basic tips for winter RVing
More articles you might really like
• RVers, if you see purple paint on trees, stay away
• Full-time RV health insurance options
• BLM closes popular boondocking area in Arizona
• RV tanks dumping tips and helpful accessories
• Ex-RV salesman offers shopping tips for new rig
• Tips for downsizing your possessions for full-time RVing
##RVDT2572
By intent and design, space heaters help heat the RV which in turn reduces the frequency of furnace operation. Reduced furnace frequency means reduced length and number of times it blows warm air into the basement.
To address this, we use chicken coop heaters to keep the wet bays warm. I have them plugged in to a wifi thermostat to keep the bays a toasty 38 degrees. No fears of bulb scorch like what drop lights are known to do because the coop heaters produce a more radiant heat than concentrated.
Spigot > regulator > 90 adapter & filter > 180 adapter & heated hose. I put a single loop of the heated hose up the vertical filter and over the spigot/regulator joint then down to the ground. For a light freeze I put a grocery store ‘freezer bag’ over the works.The bag might need a slit to fit. For a heavier freeze I add a ‘space blanket’ and secure it all with a plastic trash can. Remember that the heated hose thermostat has to be exposed to the outside air! I’ve seen frozen lines because the owner put the thermostat into a heated area and the heating circuit never turned on.
If we anticipate a freeze, we just unhook the water line and use the fresh tank.
The entire process described, heated hose, heated blanket for filters etc. etc. is solved by the most practical suggestion in the last sentence of the story. Just use your on board fresh water.
Thank you for the reminders, Nanci! We just add water to the fresh water tank during the warmest part of the day, disconnect and stow the hose and filter, and run off the pump. Similarly, we only dump the gray and black tanks during the warmest part of the day and put away the hose upon completion. Have a great day and safe travels! 🙂