tips to help prepare for winter weather while camping?

[Travelingfamilyof3]

Hi All! Camping and a cold front is moving through with expected 1-2 inches of snowfall. We are wondering if you have any quick tips to avoid pipe freezing or any other cold-weather damages? We own a 16 foot hybrid Jayco Jayfeather 7 trailer. We will be toasty, cozy, and just fine inside, but want to be sure that all of our pipes are taken care of. Any quick tips to prepare for the below freezing tips in the next 2 days? Would something as simple as letting the water slow drip help? We will be in the below freezing temps for two days then back to more moderate temps. Or is that a bad idea? Any other recommendations? Thanks!

[Isaacs]

I can only assume you don't have full hookups at any campground in freezing weather; the fresh water hose would freeze up.

Boondocking? I would be concerned about the fresh water tank if it gets too cold. Grey water too. Black will probably be ok unless it gets really cold. You're going to need electricity from the campground or a generator to keep the inside warm or your plumbing will freeze. The furnace will deplete your battery if you run it too much. And you should run it to keep plumbing spaces warm. You could flush your toilet with pink antifreeze and be sure to introduce some into the grey tank as well.

Having said all that, I wouldn't worry too much if it goes down just slightly below freezing only at night. Good luck!

[Ed Brodt]

Got caught like that a couple of years ago. We filled a couple of 5 gallon jugs with water that we kept inside with us. Then did a quick winterize of the camper with RV anti-freeze until the cold front passed.

[Kim Gass]

We camped like that for two nights on our recent trip. Winterize.
Do not use plumbing. Your campground will ask you not to connect and will also turn off the water. Electric will be fine.

Go back to tent style camping. Keep some water in a jug inside for drinking. Use camp bathrooms or outhouses.


Our furnace runs on propane. No problem there at 20 degrees.

Its a pain to winterize for two days..but bubble wrapping your unit isnt practical. WInterizing took us 20 minutes.

[Isaacs]

Electric mattress pads are a great way to keep warm in a hybrid. The cold from underneath tends to penetrate the mattress when you lie on it.

[Jagiven]

Not many posts here, I was gone camping with scouts all weekend, just got home.

For the future, it really depends in how cold you are talking. We have been out with the lows in the 20's with daytime highs around 40, in our 23B, with no issues.

I fill the exposed fw tank full, and use the fw tank. Cabinets that have plumbing that runs through them I keep the doors partially open to allow the heat better access to those areas. That's about all we do.

Water has a lot of thermal mass and it freezes from the top down. The tanks are very large and flat so any ice that might form, will not hurt the tank. If we go to the bathroom, we make sure to run a little water, just to clear the pickup tube. Again, we have never had any issurs.

We do use aftermarket mattress pad heaters, as the out side person, aka me, gets a little cool at night.

[SteveMM]

I may actually find myself in a very similar situation this coming weekend, so I'm reading all of these tips with great interest. My current plan is to bring some antifreeze with me, just in case. If the forecast has it getting below 30 overnight, I will likely unhook the water, run the water our of the pipes, drain the water heater, and put some antifreeze in the grey and black tanks. For nighttime bathroom breaks, I'll keep a gallon jug of water in the bathroom to wash anything away. I'm assuming with those precautions, we'll avoid any damage.