Winter in a non-winterised motorhome

[KennyDuncan]

We've had our first motorhome for just over a year - Autotrail Impala 732. Got our layout about right I think, but possibly didn't consider enough the suitability of the van in the winter. We're keen to keep getting out and about over the winter. However, underslung fresh and waste water tanks without tank heaters aren't the best!

I know that, if conditions dictate, we can empty the fresh water tank and leave the waste water tap open into a bucket. We can use small water containers in the van for the essentials and do without a shower for a day or two :-0.

My question really is how cold the conditions have to be (and for how long) before we consider emptying the tanks. We're just back from a snowy trip to the Scottish Borders. Temperature down to -1 or -2 for a few hours overnight, and everything was fine, but don't want to take undue risks.

Anyone have any thoughts? Don't want to risk any pipe or tank damage!!

Any help gratefully received.

Kenny

 

[pappajohn]

Underslung and uninsulated tanks.... I would drain at 3° or 4° to be safe and if the heating isn't on for extended periods drain the boiler too.

 

[DaveandJen]

Clean and waste water tank wraps with low wattage heaters are available if you search the internet. We have tank heaters fitted as standard which are just a rod placed in the tanks that gives off a small amount of heat when the temperature gets low.

 

[KennyDuncan]

Thanks folks. Heating on pretty much all the time when we're away in these conditions and I drain down the boiler every time we return in the winter. Sounds like the insulation and tank heaters might be the way to go. Sounds like these are only practical on EHU given the power consumption but that probably works for us. I'm guessing thst the tanks have to be dropped to get this done - maybe a job for a professional!! ???

 

[Eddystone]

I think you have been doing everything sensibly so far.
We have done similar. It takes a good while for a large quantity of water in a tank to freeze. We have had more of a problem with the feed pipe from the tank to the pump freezing when travelling than when on a pitch. It isn't insulated and doesn't happen often but something to be aware of.
Have always kept the boiler on overnight even on gas if necessary.
Some years ago we were at an Easter meet without EHU and developed a fault with the Cascade boiler. It would issue a loud bang each time it fired up so I couldn't leave it on at night. I made sure the boiler got up to temperature and turned it off at bed time. It was still warm enough to not freeze in the morning.
Some of the other campers were in tents with a couple of inches of snow.

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[Boringfrog]

Underslung and uninsulated tanks.... I would drain at 3° or 4° to be safe and if the heating isn't on for extended periods drain the boiler too.

Sounds a bit pessimistic, I would say at least 5° cooler than you....

 

[Beltie]

I don't think the tanks need to be dropped to install heaters as they will go in the sides of the tanks towards the bottom. I think they were probably an option when your 'van was new. It should be a relatively straightforward job for a dealer to install. I don't know where your based, but it's probably something Dave Newell, (Telford) could do.

Having said all the above, I had Auto-Trails for years and I probably only used the heaters on a couple of occasions, although my tanks were insulated.

 

[RobWid]

Like you never thought about this when buying my (first) Motorhome and ended up with a split water heater as a result of not worrying. So take care.

 

[Jimbohorlicks]

Think you would need ehu if you were to use tank heaters. But if you were on ehu you could heat all the van upto prevent freeze ups. You won't get much heat out of a couple of batteries to prevent storage tanks freezing.

 

[TheBig1]

tank heaters glued to the sides of the fresh tank then lag it with celotex type board. Very easy to do without dropping the tank

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[DaveandJen]

Not a recommendation as there may be better tank heaters as a kit available but hopefully by visiting the link below it shows how easy to fit some tank heaters are. Agree with above comments that a mains power supply is probably required at some point during the day due to the drain on the batteries.

 

[rosalan]

A couple of years ago I toured France / Spain in the winter without insulation or a heater fitted to the waste tank but did keep the heating on whenever we stopped. Perhaps we were lucky, for every tap we found was frozen solid and the world had turned white. In Dax near the Pyrenees we saw several people struggling to empty their grey water by poking sticks into their tanks with only limited success.
It would seem that some vans are more prone than others to freezing tanks.

 

[TheBig1]

the higher the ground clearance, the more draught under the van and the quicker tanks seem to freeze. we have been away with snow nearly up to the skirts of the van and the underslung tank didn't freeze

 

[ElliesBoss]

Got no evidence to support this statement but in my experience when you get down to near zero if you are moving the water will possibly freeze as has happened to me (air flow etc). Parked up I've spent nights a few degrees below and not had problems. I guess if you can get 12v heaters for use when moving the batteries/charging system should cope.

 

[Otter Spotter]

Amazon sell heater pads with built in thermostats perfk 2PCS 9x5Inch 12V DC RV WATER HOLDING TANK AUTOMATIC HEATER PAD THERMA HEAT PAD Amazon product ASIN B07MJL7HFK
they stick straight on to bottom of tanks and I have insulated the tanks with foil backed foam sheet. Really works for me.

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[Pausim]

Winterised vans have the tank drain valves in the tank where they should not freeze but ones on the end of a dangly pipe are very vulnerable. When I had a van that was not winterised the tanks didn’t freeze but the drain off taps did which stopped me draining down.