# Winterizing Question For A Newbie



## revcorey (Aug 30, 2005)

Ok, I admit I am a newbie and have not winterized myself before. I will be attempting it this weekend and it seems pretty self-explanator but have a couple of quick questions:

First, and pardon my absolute ignorance, but I am not clear on what is meant by the "low point drains." Where are they on my 28 FRLS Sydney? And is there a valve to open them?

Second, if I have never used the outdoor showe or been hooked up to City Water, do I have to do anything with them during winterizing or will they be ok?

Any help will be appreciated. Thanks!

Corey


----------



## dougdogs (Jul 31, 2004)

On your rig, they should be about half way inbetween the landing gear in front, and the first wheel on the side of your coach that has the door to get in your rig. If you know where your water pump is (open your "basement" storage door on the same side of the rig, and remove the two screws that hold on a small wood sheet towards the rear of the rig) these low point hoses go from this area to the outside through the bottom floor.

You might already have been in this pump area, cuase if your rig was built as good as mine, you have had to tighten loose water hose fittings down there!!

I haven't figured how to open these low valves, and these two lines have always been filled with anti freeze in my rig.


----------



## mjs518 (Oct 24, 2004)

The caps on mine were screwed on so tight it took two wrenches and a whole lot of effort to get'em opened.







 I was like you doug, I had the pink stuff in those low point tubes all summer till I did my first winterize. The dealer wants too much cash for such an easy job


----------



## hatcityhosehauler (Feb 13, 2004)

To answer your other question, I would run the out side shower to get antifreeze throughout it also. Why take the chance.

Just make sure you don' t drip any on the grass, it will kill it.

Tim


----------



## HootBob (Apr 26, 2004)

I wouuld not take a chance like tim said play it safe.

Don


----------



## Martybeech (Mar 13, 2004)

Two wrenches were needed to open a couple of the drain valves the first season. From that point on just tightening by hand should enable you to reopen without tools. Be careful if the tube itself (versus the cap) starts turning as one of mine did.

The outside shower should be winterized along with all taps and you should see the plumbers antifreeze come out of both hot and cold.


----------



## Thor (Apr 7, 2004)

hatcityhosehauler said:


> To answer your other question, I would run the out side shower to get antifreeze throughout it also. Why take the chance.
> 
> Just make sure you don' t drip any on the grass, it will kill it.
> 
> ...


Play it safe. Run the pink antifreeze thru everything...hot, cold and the john. Also make sure you put some in the drains as well. P-traps can crack if frozen.

Thor


----------



## ron4jon (Sep 26, 2005)

In addition to what DOUGDOGS replied about removing the panel in front of the water pump on the passengerâ€™s side in the basement, you will have to remove the panel in front of the hot water heater also (on the driverâ€™s side) and turn the winterization by-pass valve on the hoses to/from the water heater (also drain the water heater).

I just completed the winterization of my 28FRLS for the first time. I had trouble finding the right combination of pipefittings and matching hose to go into the jug of antifreeze, plus getting to the pump inlet fitting in the first place. So, I thought that while I was at this task I might as well make it a lot easier and faster the next time. I bought two valves, one â€œTâ€, four threaded couplings, and several hose clamps, plus a 10 foot length of Â½ inch ID reinforced hose that matched the existing water hoses. All fittings except the valves were for Â½ inch ID hose. The valves are white PVC with a red handle that only rotates 90 degrees.

Installation:
Step 1: After disconnecting the city water hose from the pump inlet, connect valve #1 to the end of this hose.
Step 2: Next, connect a two inch long hose between valve #1 and the â€œTâ€.
Step 3: Connect a new length of hose about one foot long between the other side of the â€œTâ€ and the pump inlet connection. 
Step 4: Next, connect a two inch long hose between the middle junction of the â€œTâ€ and valve #2. 
Step 5: Finally, connect an approximately 6 foot long hose to the other end of valve #2 and then insert the other end of this end this hose into the jug of antifreeze. The hose length is actually determined by the distance from valve #2 to the ground. This is because you will probably want the jug of antifreeze to be on the ground instead of inside your RV somewhere where a spill could occur.

Operating instructions: 
Step 1: The water Pump must be OFF (initially) and the source of city water, of course, must NOT be connected to the RV. Also, the hot water heater must be drained and by-passed.
Step 2: Close Valve #1 and Open valve #2. 
Step 3: With the hose from valve #2 inserted into the jug of antifreeze, turn pump ON.
Step 4: One at a time, turn every water outlet ON until antifreeze flows out with no air bubbles. I had to start a second gallon of antifreeze about 2/3rd of the way through all water outlet purges with antifreeze. Your RVâ€™s hose length and number of outlets will determine how much you will need. Donâ€™t forget to purge outside shower heads!
Step 5: You must also purge the RVâ€™s water inlet hose and replace with antifreeze using a somewhat different method. Follow the instructions for this procedure found on other Web sites such as http://rvtravel.com/publish/rvwinterizing.shtml (7th paragraph from top). Basically, you remove the screen in the outside city water inlet coupling, and depress the center of the reverse-flow valve just inside until antifreeze appears with no air bubbles. Then, replace the screen and protective cap. 
Step 6: Donâ€™t forget to add some antifreeze to each P trap and holding tanks.
Step 7:When winterization is complete; return valve #1 ON and valve #2 OFF. Drain antifreeze inlet hose and store while still connected to valve #2.

Even with this Winterization modification, I believe it will still take me approximately 30 minutes to an hour to fully complete the procedure. I used to have a large Class C motorhome and a Coleman popup. I used the air purge method on the MH and antifreeze on the popup because I lost a water valve once due to freeze up and it burst! Repair was approximately $50 just for the replacement and I installed it myself. My RV dealership will not use any other method other than antifreeze. Just like my dealership, I am convinced that dealing with Antifreeze winterization and then flush-out is a â€œgivenâ€ with RV ownership.


----------



## 2500Ram (Oct 30, 2005)

I'm just going to assume "most" water pumps are the same between models. If that is correct the fitting/hose I used was a normal plastic flex line for a kitchen faucet. $5.00 and change for a 3' hose with metal ends.

Bill.


----------



## vdub (Jun 19, 2004)

Sorry guys, I have been super remiss at even looking at the forum let alone answering any questions. Exchange server totally crashed with several hardware failures, so been a tad busy.

Anyway, revcorey, low points are for draining the water system on your 28FLRS (just like mine) the drains are located here.

As for the process to winterize, it is very simple directions are here.

Sorry for the late response.


----------

