White Hawk 31DSLB Cold Weather use

[quincy1]

We were looking at the White Hawk 31DSLB and I was wondering about cold weather use. We currently have a Lance truck camper that is getting to crowded for my family and are looking at getting a travel trailer. My wife really likes the White Hawk 31DSLB I just want to make sure we won't have to many problems with it freezing up as we camp most weekends at our local ski area and have never had a problem with pipes freezing in our camper but, have noticed some people with lesser quality travel trailers and Class C's have problems with frozen pipes. Does anyone here have any experience using this model in temperatures below freezing? Thanks for any help.

[glcamp]

I have a White Hawk 30DSRE and have been full timing it right now until we move. Did not have an issue with cold weather, was down in the 20's in the evening and 30's during the day, cannot speak on colder weather then that. The cover underbelly is heated and I also have the glacier package. FYI it have been in the High eighties, low Nineties and the AC about freezes me out. It has not been running all the time, I think the 15K BTU AC with the glacier package really helps.

Thanks
Gary

[Nighthawk 96]

2x on the 15k BTU air and glacier package

[Murphie]

I have a 30 ft. Jay feather which they don't make any more but the trailer your looking at would have similar insulation values. If winter camping is important know that Jayco's Whathawk is no Lance cold weather trailer. The walls are rated at
R 7 and the floor is R 9. I think the glacier package adds Reflectix but have you noticed that they don't advertise their R values? I just added three inches of solid foam insulation under our trailer. It has made a huge difference. Jayco makes a great trailer but the lightweight ones don't have a lot of insulation.

[canuckowner]

Originally Posted by Murphie

I just added three inches of solid foam insulation under our trailer. It has made a huge difference. Jayco makes a great trailer but the lightweight ones don't have a lot of insulation.

I'd be interested to know or see how you added that extra insulation... any chance you will post pics? (or is that mod already posted on here somewhere?)

Thanks!

[Bassdogs]

Think it is important to note that an ultalite or most RV's for that matter are not designed nor are they intended for extreme weather use without taking individual measure yourself. For use at a ski area with temps below 00 I typically go ahead and winterize the plumbing. You can still use to toilet [keep a couple gallon jugs of water handy for the flush. My experience is that heating is typically not a problem if you take reasonable precautions. Close the blinds. I know it sounds crazy, but keep the door closed. Don't stand with the door wide open talking to the kids as they head off to the lift. You can probably get by with using the plumbing with the glacier package, but keep in mind that the heated underbelly requires use of the onboard furnace. We typically use electric space heaters if connected to shorepower. Why use your gas when their electricity is already paid for. If temps below 20 are expected for more than 24 hours, I generally winterize since it is easy and with practice only takes about 10 minutes. At least bypass and drain the water heater.

[mrp116]

R values for the White Hawk with the glacier package are R22 for the floor and R26 for the roof. Info. found here:

Post #29

Also here post #4

[Murphie]

Canuckowner, sorry I didn't take any pictures but I wish I would have. I was quite proud of the way it looked. A local used material seller had several hundred sheets taken from a building that was taken down. The sheets were made by Dow and were 2 feet by 4 feet. I bought 20 of them for 7 bucks a pop. Same material that's sandwiched between the luan already in the trailer. It took me the better part of a week. Lots of work. The underside is divided by C channel about 30 inches apart.
In some cases more , some less. One section was over 48 inches which I installed another frame member because I was afraid of a sag down the road. I installed the foam in two foot sections. The sides were all t and g so they locked together.
I used a normal hand saw to cut the material. Very little give in the material so I would cut just on the far side of the line I drew. The ends were trimmed to fit the C channel and installed first. Then wedged into the opposing side. A very wide chissel helped. I used Gorilla tape to cover the seams. In some cases it took several tries to get the right size. It goes faster as you get more used to it. There was 5 and a half inches between the bottom of the floor and where the bottom attaches. The foam was 3 inches thick and added R 15. I covered the bottom of the tanks with Reflectix as there was no room for foam. I also ran all the extra electrical lines that I wanted during this and installed a tank rinser on both tanks and wrapped all water lines with insulation. The tank rinsers were attached using washing machine aluminum braided hoses. I pulled all the heating vent hoses out and slid a 3 inch expandable aluminum vent hose down the inside and clamped it close to the furnace. What a difference this has made btw. The time and effort were well worth it. The floor is much stiffer. The frame rails were 68 inches apart. I still need to do the 14 inches on the outside of the frame rails on each side. That will go quick and I may have enough material but not sure. Hope this helps.