Found limit on thermal package

[Forsyth1933]

After being good all week into teens it got down to single digits with a good steady breeze and we woke up to mo water. The camco heated supply hose did its job the frozen line was inside somewhere. I proceeded to fill fresh tank hoping it was just inside the city connection. With the pump running it primed within seconds and cold water worked however no hot. After getting home today same thing still frozen hot....kept opening hot faucets eventually heard pump priming hot line bit by bit. No leaks detected yet but will watch closely when warms up later this week and reconnect city water. Seems weird hot froze first and worst. 2018 32bhds with elite and thermal package. We camped 20 miles north of Chattanooga thru new year.

[bluie5]

Hot always freezes first. There is a reason but I can’t remember why.

[Midnightmoon]

Originally Posted by bluie5

Hot always freezes first. There is a reason but I can’t remember why.

https://www.sciencealert.com/does-ho...han-cold-water

[poohbear]

What rv type ? TT or 5er ? We have camped before a few years back for 3 days of 17 to 28 & never a problem with our 5er , just kept furnace on 70 & basement was warm.

[Sundancer330]

Hot water freezes much faster than cold. The other morning it was -12, we boiled a few cups of water, and had two cups of cold water. Tossed both in the air and the hot looked like a frozen dust cloud, the cold did nothing but fall to the ground.

[Tom51]

What was the temperature?

[Screwby]

Strange, we are currently camping in -7 degree weather and the windchill earlier this week was -22 and our 5r was fine. Maybe the furnace didn’t run enough to heat belly? We also have a skirt around the camper as well, huge difference keeping that wind from sucking the heat right out of the belly!

[shrpshtr]

I noticed a similar problem the other day when winterizing my TT. I could get AF to come out of the faucets from the cold side but none of the hot. After thinking about it a few minutes, (and a quick review of the plumbing diagram) I realized that whether you use the water pump, or city hookup, all of the plumbing works in somewhat of a loop. If that loop is interrupted (valve shut or pipe frozen) the current can't continue. Given that, I quickly found that my hot water heater is right next to the outdoor shower in the rear of the TT. The outdoor shower is probably the least insulated place in the outer wall of the TT. Sure enough, freezing had already begun enough in the pipes that basically 1' or so of the pipe was frozen from where the outside shower lines come into the main loop for water flow thus creating a shutoff valve before the water could get to the hot water heater bypass valves. So, a space heater aimed at that section of pipe and 1 hour later and all of the lines were flowing again. I turned the water pump on and it sucked AF through the entire system and out each hot water side at the faucets. Take away is that entire section of pipe will be insulated just to add that little extra protection. Not sure of the plumbing layout in our RV so this may not pertain. Hope this helps...


shrp

[Rock]

Well not that cold here lows in low 20s. I set heat at 60 at night and turn it way down during day or off. I am wondering how low u can set the heat and still keep pipes from freezing in the belly. Only power I have besides gen is a 110 cord from the house. Fireplace pulls 12-13 amps but only can heat inside to mid to high 50s.
Cannot run propane and fireplace at same time since charger will kick on and amp draw with propane heat will be over 20.
House still not done but we stay in it during day. My contractor will regret he was ever born as soon as I get my occupancy certificate.

[Tom51]

Originally Posted by Tom51

What was the temperature?

Originally Posted by Forsyth1933

After being good all week into teens it got down to single digits with a good steady breeze

Never mind the question, I missed it right up front!

[Forsyth1933]

Everything seems to have survived. Great tip on the outdoor shower. My layout seems similar so i will pay attention to that area. We hope to keep using year round and it is rarely that cold in GA. I am still interested in finding ways to further heat and insulate the plumbing.

[wabirch]

Watching this one as well, not sure what insulation ideas there are for lines.

[vcbice]

Originally Posted by Sundancer330

Hot water freezes much faster than cold. The other morning it was -12, we boiled a few cups of water, and had two cups of cold water. Tossed both in the air and the hot looked like a frozen dust cloud, the cold did nothing but fall to the ground.

That effect is due to the hot water evaporating faster so freezes because the water 'droplets' are smaller. Much different than hot water in a glass vs cold water in a glass.

As an engineer I ran into this one time so did a controlled experiment. In a freezer cold water froze first. But, real life conditions are not the same. Hot water sometimes does freeze first due to a number of factors. The mineral content of your water has the biggest effect.

[vcbice]

Depending on your rig, your best bet is to use your furnace and NO supplemental heating. Make sure the ducting to the basement area is not pllugged. In very cold you may need to open some cabinets where the water lines run to make sure interior air can get to them.

Any lines close to the outside, like an outside kitchen or shower, may need special attention. On a previous RV I removed the outside shower lines cause it would freeze easily.