De-Winterize Redhawk

[Wstevenson94]

I have a 2019 Redhawk 22J. It was winterized by our local dealer. How simple is the de-winterize process? Thanks in advance for replies!

[mini4mw]

did they blow out the lines and leave them empty or did they leave the pink antifreeze in the lines?

either way, its not hard but it is time consuming. Usually a day just due to the amount of time it takes to fill/drain tanks and let the water/bleach mix sit to disinfect.

Fill up the tank, flush all the antifreeze, drain
Fill up the tank with water/bleach mix, run through lines, let it sit for hours
Fill up the tank and drain a few times to wash the bleach out well.

[drmike961]

Originally Posted by mini4mw

did they blow out the lines and leave them empty or did they leave the pink antifreeze in the lines?

either way, its not hard but it is time consuming. Usually a day just due to the amount of time it takes to fill/drain tanks and let the water/bleach mix sit to disinfect.

Fill up the tank, flush all the antifreeze, drain
Fill up the tank with water/bleach mix, run through lines, let it sit for hours
Fill up the tank and drain a few times to wash the bleach out well.

While this may be the correct method, if you don't drink water out of the lines (which in my opinion you shouldn't), just drain and flush everything real good and you are done. Takes maybe 30 minutes.

[Jagiven]

Its more putzy than work.

I start with hooking up the drinking safe water hose to the trailer from the hose. I give the lines all a good flush to remove any antifreeze. Paying close attention to the water heater. If the water heater was properly bypassed, no RV antifreeze should have gotten in to it. After an initial rinse, I open the bypass valves and water heater drain and give it a quick rinse (or two) to get out any residue that might have made its way into it.

This next part is what takes the time. I then sanitize the entire drinking water system. After letting the bleach solution sit at least 4 hours in the system. I let it sit over night. Then flush the system again with fresh water. The stronger the bleach solution, the longer it takes to flush the system to get the bleach taste out of the plastic pipes.

As for the sanitizing solution. 1/4 cup of plain bleach to every 15 gallons of water. Can increase that to 1/2 cup of bleach to decrease the time, or for bad situations.

Add the sanitizing solution to the FW tank and pump it through the pipes from there. I always top the FW tank off after I pump the pipes full. On your MH, you need to remove the small inlet water screen, flip it around to open/press on the check valve, this allows the pump to suck up the solution as if you were winterizing. Just make sure to have the valves set to fill the FW tank.

FYI, while flushing I just open my Grey water tank valve and let it dump into the grass.

I know a few people that reserve a full hook up site each spring at a CG that they know has good water, and just open faucets and let it flush right down the drain.

Good Luck.

[RetiredOne]

Originally Posted by drmike961

While this may be the correct method, if you don't drink water out of the lines (which in my opinion you shouldn't),

Why not? We do all the time, and I'm still here posting and haven't died from Montezuma's revenge yet!!

[drmike961]

Originally Posted by RetiredOne

Why not? We do all the time, and I'm still here posting and haven't died from Montezuma's revenge yet!!

Take it with a grain of salt but IMHO when water sits in lines in 95 degree weather for weeks between trips you may as well be drinking out of a petri dish that you gave a rinsing off. One summer our trailer sat for over a month between uses and the water stunk terribly from the hot water heater. It may have been purely a sulfur chemical reaction and the water still have been clean but it smelled like someone died in my trailer. From that day on bottled water has been the way to go for me since I don't full time. I would rather drink bottled water than go through the hassle of sanitizing which will only be temporary anyway. That's just me, I do not feel the need to convince anyone else though. To each their own.

[Lake Huron]

I first fill my fresh tank with my bleach to water mixture. Then start at the back faucet and work my way to the front doing both the cold and hot, also doing the hot water tank. When the pink juice quits flowing the the bleach water starts, that's close enough for me. I'll let the sit overnite or even for 24 hrs, depending if this working thing gets in the way of when I'm doing it. Then I'll drain the fresh tank out, drain the hot water heater, and fill the fresh tank. Once it's full I'll flush the lines again and call it good.
I drink the water from my tank and never had any issues. The first run after I flush all the lines, the water sometimes has just a very small hint of chlorine smell/taste to it, but after that it's fine.

[RetiredOne]

Originally Posted by drmike961

Take it with a grain of salt but IMHO when water sits in lines in 95 degree weather for weeks between trips you may as well be drinking out of a petri dish that you gave a rinsing off. One summer our trailer sat for over a month between uses and the water stunk terribly from the hot water heater. It may have been purely a sulfur chemical reaction and the water still have been clean but it smelled like someone died in my trailer.

Maybe I just like to live on the edge...

I get that, I drain down all my lines after each trip and drain down the water heater too. Then, before we go out on the next trip, I hook up the garden hose to city water, and give all lines a good flush, including faucets, showers, low point drains, water tank, water heater, etc.

I agree, just letting excess water sit in the lines for a month, fermenting, is dangerous.

[pward]

Originally Posted by RetiredOne

I drain down all my lines after each trip and drain down the water heater too.

I agree, just letting excess water sit in the lines for a month, fermenting, is dangerous.

Good policy I hadn't considered.

[Bullitt6283]

This Spring our first camping trip may start when the local temps are too low for me to de-winterize.

Before leaving, I plan to blow out the pink stuff with compressed air (like I blew out the water last Fall before I added the pink stuff).

Then when I get down south to a campground with hookups, I'll flush out the lines with their water.
.