# Cold Weather Test



## JimBo99 (Apr 25, 2006)

Here in Southern Illinois our winter weather really varies. It can be cold one week and warm the next. I wanted to try to get by without winterizing this year, because I'm heading to TX and FL in latter part of Jan. And I wanted to see if the underbelly heating worked ok.

Well it was below freezing for several days and down in the teens for four nights. One night it got colder than expected, down to 9 degrees. I put away the city water but did nothing else except set my furnace on 65. The morning it was 9 degrees the water would not flow at any faucet. But when it warmed up all was ok. I think the plumbing is safe to 20 or so, but after this I'll winterize below that.

It was warm and very comfortable inside the tt. I think I'll take a short trip out before heading south.


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## PDX_Doug (Nov 16, 2004)

Jim,

I think you have been very lucky! It's good to know you have not suffered any damage from those sustained very cold temperatures. If it were me, I would winterize - upcoming trip or not - and then de-winterize as necessary during the winter. At least drain the system and blow the lines out with compressed air. It only takes a few minutes, and is cheap protection.

Happy Trails,
Doug


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## mswalt (Sep 14, 2004)

> because I'm heading to TX and FL in latter part of Jan


Jimbo,

If you come anywhere near Abilene, give us a holler!

Mark


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## JimBo99 (Apr 25, 2006)

mswalt said:


> > because I'm heading to TX and FL in latter part of Jan
> 
> 
> Jimbo,
> ...


Thanks Mark! We are headed to Baytown near Houston for a conference. I"ll check the map. I know from experience that TX is huge!
Jim


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## Thor (Apr 7, 2004)

Have a blast and enjoy some of that southern sun









Thor


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## GlenninTexas (Aug 11, 2004)

JimBo99 said:


> Thanks Mark! We are headed to Baytown near Houston for a conference. I"ll check the map. I know from experience that TX is huge!
> Jim


Abilene is just down the road from Houston. With the Outback in tow probably only about 7-8 hour drive.









Regards, Glenn


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## BoaterDan (Jul 1, 2005)

We had several nights in the 20's before I got to winterize. There doesn't appear to be any problems with the water lines, but the ice that formed in the kitchen faucet forced the spout part to "pop" off, breaking the little plastic nut that held it on. It looks I'd be all good if I replaced the o-rings on the spout and could find a replacement for the nut.

I wouldn't press my luck if I were you. You could probably put a little electric heater in there to at least keep things above freezing. I can't imagine how a little freezing down in the tanks would hurt much... the hot water heater manufacturer even says explicitly it won't hurt the hot water tank.


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## JimBo99 (Apr 25, 2006)

BoaterDan said:


> We had several nights in the 20's before I got to winterize. There doesn't appear to be any problems with the water lines, but the ice that formed in the kitchen faucet forced the spout part to "pop" off, breaking the little plastic nut that held it on. It looks I'd be all good if I replaced the o-rings on the spout and could find a replacement for the nut.
> 
> I wouldn't press my luck if I were you. You could probably put a little electric heater in there to at least keep things above freezing. I can't imagine how a little freezing down in the tanks would hurt much... the hot water heater manufacturer even says explicitly it won't hurt the hot water tank.


I kept the furnace on to keep the underbelly warm. When it was in the 20s I set it on 50 and when it got lower I put it on 65. I hooked the city water back up yesterday and all is fine. The camper was very comfortable and used one tank of propane and maybe a little more ($18 worth or so).

There was an earlier thread about the towel warmers. I bought one of these a few months ago, and when it was cold I plugged it in in the bathroom. Works great! Thanks to you all for so many good ideas and helpful comments!


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