# Winterizing My New Outback



## reeladdiction (Sep 10, 2006)

Ok im NEW to this never winterized before what do i need to do? i have a new 25rss have the camp kitchen shower and 2 sinks plus the water heater was told i need to by pass the heater??? how does one do this etc ?????? VERY CONFUSED


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## reeladdiction (Sep 10, 2006)

how many gallons of the pink anti frezze do i need to do the entire unit?????


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## H2oSprayer (Aug 5, 2006)

You will find may threads in this forum about this topic. You can also consult your owners manual. I use 3 - 4 gallons of the pink stuff.

Chris


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## huntr70 (Jul 8, 2005)

Find your water heater first .

You will see the 2 water lines....input and output. On the input line there is a valve. All you have to do is flip the valve and the water will bypass the heater.

Just make sure you remember to drain the water heater then.

Also remember to drain the system through the low point drains.

Install a winterizer kit onto the water pump to make life easier. You don't want to fill your fresh tank with anti-freeze.

Run your anti-freeze through all water lines......outside showers, camp kitchen hose, faucets, inside shower spigot and hose, toilet etc.

Dump a cup or 2 of it down each drain to take care of the traps.

As was said, do a search and you can find complete instructions.....

Steve


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## egregg57 (Feb 13, 2006)

Just like Huntr Said.

Specifically What I do is the following:

Prerequisites: Grey tank is empty, Black tank is empty. If not go to a dump station and drain your tanks. If you need to dump this is a good time to flush the black tank using a wand available at RV stores or use an installed system if you have it. RV Anti-freeze is non-toxic.

Winterizing:

1. At the back of your water heater find the bypass valve that will allow, once turned 90 degrees, water to flow by the water heater and not into it.
2. Using a socket remove the teflon plug from your hot water tank and allow the water to drain. You can help the water by lifting the relief valve toggle. The plug is behind the door on the outside of your TT. 
3. I remove the fresh water tank plug and drain any water out.
4. Then replace the plug. 
5. Open ALL faucets in and outside the TT and cycle the toilet lever. Find your Low Point Drains and screw off the caps. Allow all water to drain. Replace caps. Close all faucets inside and out. This does not rid you system of all water but it gets it pretty darn close. Don't forget the shower heads!
6. Add 2-3 gallons of RV anti-freeze to your fresh water tank. 
7. Turn your fresh water tank pump on. 
8. Open each faucet/shower/toilet one at a time till the water/fluid turns pink. 
9. If you wish you can pour a little anti-freeze down each drain to take care of the traps. But by flowing the anti-freeze through the faucets you will have proabably already put enough in the traps to displace any water or added enough anti-freeze to prevent it from ever freezing in the trap. 
10. you can add a bit of anti-freeze into your black tank as well if you wish.

Your done. Once you have done this once or twice you shouldn't expect this to take more than about 30 minutes. Its easy!

To de-winterize

Use empty or partially empty bottles of anti-freeze to catch any left over anti-freeze from your fresh water tank drain or run all of the anti-freeze out of your tank. Open the plug and drain any remaining anti-freeze.

1. I Fill the fresh tank with a few gallons (5-10) of water.
2. ensure the teflon plug for your hot water tank is securely in. I put it back in finger tight then put 1/4 of a turn on the plug with a socket.
3. flow water through all faucets till clear
4. Add Sparkle water system treatment or equivelent into your fresh water tank. Run each faucet/shower head for approximately a minute.
5. Open low point drains with water pump running and flush the lines. 
5. Run Toilet till clear. 
6. Drain your fresh water tank or use the water in it to continue flushing if you wish till exhausted. 
7. Go camping.....Darn! I know that part is tough.
8. Connect water. Open hot water tank winterizing valve. Fill hot water tank and bleed excess air using relief valve toggle. 
9. If you wish open the hot water faucets and allow water to run to cycle the water through your tank. 
10 Turn on the hot water heater.
11. URR Done!

Whew! Eric


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## Reggie44 (Aug 12, 2005)

Eric does a good job of explaining the steps. I would only add that you should seriously look at adding the winterizer kit. It makes the job fast and easy. Plus it takes forever dewinterizing in the spring when you have to flush your fresh water tank. The other added bonus is you use significantly less antifreeze. JR


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## NDJollyMon (Aug 22, 2003)

I would suggest to NEVER put anti freeze into the fresh water tank.

Draining it completely should be just fine.

You may have a really hard time flushing all the pink stuff out of the tank come Spring. The outlet on the water tank prevents complete evacuation of the anti freeze.

I've been doing this since 2002 on my OUTBACK, (in North Dakota) and never had a problem.

I guess it's your choice, however.


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## PDX_Doug (Nov 16, 2004)

reeladdiction,

Winterizing procedures depend a lot on where you live, and how cold it gets. Here in the Portland, Oregon area it is mild enough that I can winterize by blowing out all the lines with compressed air. The only anti-freeze needed is a little bit to pour down the drain traps. None in the fresh water system at all.

If you are in the colder climes, this method may not be your best bet though.

Happy Trails,
Doug


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## GlenninTexas (Aug 11, 2004)

egregg57 said:


> Just like Huntr Said.
> 
> Specifically What I do is the following:
> 
> ...


Good Grief! If I had to do all that I'd just burn the RV and buya new one in the spring. 
Have you ever thought of just moving south?

Regards, Glenn 
From the No-Winterizing State


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## 2500Ram (Oct 30, 2005)

Reggie44 said:


> Eric does a good job of explaining the steps. I would only add that you should seriously look at adding the winterizer kit. It makes the job fast and easy. Plus it takes forever dewinterizing in the spring when you have to flush your fresh water tank. The other added bonus is you use significantly less antifreeze. JR


I just bought a 24" flex hose for a standard kitchen faucet and it screws directly on the water pump, total cost under $5.

Bill.


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## egregg57 (Feb 13, 2006)

GlenninTexas said:


> Just like Huntr Said.
> 
> Specifically What I do is the following:
> 
> ...


Good Grief! If I had to do all that I'd just burn the RV and buya new one in the spring. 
Have you ever thought of just moving south?

Regards, Glenn 
From the No-Winterizing State
[/quote]

I tried that but once. I approached the Mason Dixon line and I broke out into hives and had a terrible reaction....







Just kidding. It takes me about 30 minutes to do the winterizing and dewinterizing, no big deal really. Nope, my feet are firmly planted in NH. I have been pretty much all over the World and lived in New York, Florida, Virginia, Massachusetts and there is no place that I enjoy more than New Hampshire, its 4 seasons and the people especially away from the busy places and towns.

Ayuh!


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## egregg57 (Feb 13, 2006)

NDJollyMon said:


> I would suggest to NEVER put anti freeze into the fresh water tank.
> 
> Draining it completely should be just fine.
> 
> ...


 I put Anti-freeze in to the fresh water tank to ensure that the pump and lines that come from it are protected I do not have a compressor, this was the way I was shown to do it and it has worked fine for me for 3 TT's and 5 years. We have suffered -10 to -20 degree conditions and then a wind chill on top of that and I like knowing I am all set. The system is 100% protected.

Rinsing the fresh water tank is not an issue at all. There is very little or no residue left after adding water and cleaning the lines of the anti-freeze. What ever is left is cleaned away when using the right amount of Sparkle and fresh water as the Sparkle takes care of the water lines and any build up of "stuff" in them. This is something I like to do prior to the season any way because I am over sensitive to having the slightest thing wrong when it comes to water.

Someone crossed a valve on an Aircraft Carrier I was stationed on and we drew water from the Scukyll (spelling) river in PA. It was the only time I have seen a ship Black Flagged. The entire crew (3,500+ sailors)were violently ill. including yours truly. Did I say violently?

Of course there is several ways of wintering. This just happens to be the way I prefer to do it on my maintenance schedule.

my .02.

Eric


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## W4DRR (May 17, 2005)

egregg57 said:


> Someone crossed a valve on an Aircraft Carrier I was stationed on and we drew water from the Scukyll (spelling) river in PA. It was the only time I have seen a ship Black Flagged. The entire crew (3,500+ sailors)were violently ill. including yours truly. Did I say violently?


Darn those Snipes!


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## egregg57 (Feb 13, 2006)

W4DRR said:


> Someone crossed a valve on an Aircraft Carrier I was stationed on and we drew water from the Scukyll (spelling) river in PA. It was the only time I have seen a ship Black Flagged. The entire crew (3,500+ sailors)were violently ill. including yours truly. Did I say violently?


Darn those Snipes!








[/quote]

They did take the Hull Tech Fireman Apprentice (HTFA) off the ship for his own safety.........good thing.


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## willie226 (Apr 4, 2006)

The thought of winterizing















I wish I did'nt have to

willie


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## egregg57 (Feb 13, 2006)

willie226 said:


> The thought of winterizing
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 I agree. It means the end of the season. With all the bad rain we got in the spring we lost a lot of time. Didn't go nearly as much as we normally do. Next year we'll make up for it with a couple of rallies and hopefully back on a normal routine, which is about every weekend.









But winterizing and the preventative maintenance is so important. It ensures a good next season!

See ya out there!


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## mv945 (Jul 18, 2006)

My parents just sold their SOB 5th wheel and are done camping, so we got a lot of hand-me-downs from them. One of these was a compressed air adapter to winterize with. I think I am just going to use this method for my first winterization. I believe it just connects to the city water connection and has a Schraeder valve. Any tips to know about before doing this?


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## PDX_Doug (Nov 16, 2004)

egregg57 said:


> Someone crossed a valve on an Aircraft Carrier I was stationed on and we drew water from the Scukyll (spelling) river in PA. It was the only time I have seen a ship Black Flagged. The entire crew (3,500+ sailors)were violently ill. including yours truly. Did I say violently?


Did they use RV toilet paper on that thing? I bet the old Scukyll was even dirtier after you guys were done with it!









Happy Trails,
Doug


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## Lmbevard (Mar 18, 2006)

mv945 said:


> My parents just sold their SOB 5th wheel and are done camping, so we got a lot of hand-me-downs from them. One of these was a compressed air adapter to winterize with. I think I am just going to use this method for my first winterization. I believe it just connects to the city water connection and has a Schraeder valve. Any tips to know about before doing this?


This hooks up to the city water inlet. You need to use an air compressor that you can set the pressure on as you don't want to use more than 40 psi, you'll risk blowing the lines apart. By-pass the hot water heater and drain it as usual. Apply pressure and open the furthest faucets. close when the water is all out and repeat for all other faucets and the toilet. Remove adapter, open all faucets and remove the low point and water tank plugs. Mine was left off when I bought the camper, so I assume it's best to keep them off, might be wrong there. If you are in a colder area, still use the pink stuff, but this removes most of the water. Might be ok in more temperate areas of the country. Still need to put some pink stuff in the traps though.


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