How to Winterize an RV

From LoveToKnow Camping

Each year, as the fall gradually transforms into winter, most camping enthusiasts who bought a camper that year start to wonder how to winterize an RV. Winterizing an RV is a critical part of RV maintenance, and if you don't do it properly in the fall, you may face repair costs in the spring.

Winter RV Camping Advice

Learning How to Winterize an RV

You don't need to be a professional mechanic to prepare your RV for storage through the winter, but you do need a few basic tools and a complete guide that includes every step of the process.

Required Tools

The first step in preparing to store your RV through the winter is to put together all of the supplies that you'll need for the job.

Purchase a few bags of cubed ice to help clean out the holding tanks
Water pump converter kit, which includes a "blow plug" (to connect tubing to the inlet of the RV water pump)
Necessary hand tools for drain plugs (check the plugs or your RV manual)
Non-toxic antifreeze (check your RV manual for the volume of your water system)
An air compressor (capable of 50 to 60 psi)
Water heater bypass kit

The required kits that you'll need can be obtained from your local RV retailer. Once you buy the right kits, you'll have it every year for your annual RV winterizing.

How to Winterize an RV in Three Easy Steps

The following process is a simplified guide that will walk you through the process of how to winterize an RV. Each step details a task that may involve significant time, so set aside a Saturday afternoon to work on this job so that you can finish it before the cold weather sets in.

Step One: Drain The Water System

The first thing that you'll need to do is to completely empty your RV of all water. Any remaining water in the system will freeze once the temperatures drop during the winter, so the entire goal of winterizing is to completely remove this risk.

Drive your RV to your local RV sanitary dumping station and empty all of your holding tanks.
Once you get back home, place a bucket under the water heater drain (see your manual for the location) and open the valve. Once all of the water has drained from the water heater tank, close the drain valve.
Attach the blow plug to your RV water inlet and attach your air compressor to the blow plug. Turn on the air compressor so that it maintains a pressure of about 30 to 40 psi in your RV's water system.
Walk around your RV and turn on each water valve one at a time. Don't leave them open; once the water is emptied from that line, close the valve. Remember to open every single water valve individually, including the toilet and the shower if your RV has them.
Once you're done blowing the water out of each line, leave one water faucet open and then turn off your air compressor and remove the blow plug from your water inlet.

Step Two: Clean out the Holding Tanks

One area that RV owners all too often forget is the gray and black water holding tanks. By the end of a camping season, these tanks are filled with a great deal of bacteria and fecal matter that can freeze and remain all the way until the spring, and could foster bacterial growth and a terrible smelling holding tank.

You can keep all of your tanks fresh from year to year by pouring laundry detergent (about a cup or two) into those water tanks, and then following the detergent with a bag of ice. As you drive to the sanitary dumping station, take the long route that includes winding roads so that the detergent and ice get sloshed around. As you drive, the detergent and ice mixture will scrub all leftover matter off of the walls. Once you drain your black and gray water tanks, they should be very clean.

Step Three: Fill the Water System with Antifreeze

The final step of taking care of your water system for the winter includes filling it with antifreeze, just like you would do when you winterize a house that doesn't have any heating system. Filling the lines with antifreeze insures that even if there are trace amounts of water left in your freshwater system, it will not freeze and your plumbing will be safe and free of damage in the spring.

Using your water pump kit, attach the pump inlet piping to your RV antifreeze bottle. The correct valve for this should be included in the kit that you purchased. If it isn't, remove the inlet hose from the pump and attach a piece of spare hose from the inlet valve and into the antifreeze bottle.
Install the water heater bypass kit so that you don't waste antifreeze by filling the water heater tank with antifreeze.
Turn on your water pump so that it starts pumping antifreeze out of your antifreeze bottle.
Turn on each water valve in your RV until antifreeze flows, then close the valve.
Keep checking the antifreeze bottle and replace it quickly before it runs dry - you don't want an air pocket in the system.
Keep turning on all valves, including the toilet and shower, until antifreeze flows out, and close them.
When you're done, turn off the RV water pump and plug the inlet valve.

Final Words

By removing all of the water from your RV, including freshwater and all holding tanks, you can insure that your camper will remain free of any damage in the spring, and be ready to enjoy again once camping season begins.

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