May be a dumb question, but I'd sure appreciate hearing from anyone from southern California regarding winterizing. My TT is parked in Corona, where freezing temps are rare, and when temp drops blow freezing it is only for a brief time (maybe a few hours). Also, we will be using the Bambi throughout the winter for beach and desert trips, probably twice per month. So, my question is, here in southern California, do I need to winterize?
I live in Thousand Oaks, CA where we get sub-freezing temperatures a couple of times a year. I have never 'winterized' my trailer but I do drain the fresh water tank and run the pump until air comes out the faucets. I have not had any problems to date.
__________________
Jerry Sullivan
'01 Limited
'01 Safari
On The Road, USA
So we have another "frost warning" tonight. Just to be safe, I thought I'd drain the plumbing. I opened all the valves per instructions in the owner's manual, jacked the trailer up, then down. When I went to check the hot water tank, nothing came out. I'm assuming that it just emptied through the supply lines, when I opened the drain valves. just want to make sure. Other question: is it ok to leave these valves open, or should they be closed...or should they only stay closed if the pipes are filled w/ anti-freeze? I'm planning on picking up a fitting so I can attach my compressor and thoroughly blow out the lines, probably next weekend.
also, it took forever to get all the water out of the fresh-water tank. I didn't think there was much in there....we used it when we were "sans-hookups" for a few days in August, but not long before we left, the level indicators told me that it was nearly empty. So I just left it, figuring there wasn't much in there. Well, it took nearly an hour for it to drain. (?). I'm wondering how the level indicator works...I suppose its not a float like a car gas tank. I thought I saw a diagram on some website that illustrated 4 "conductors" at different levels in the tank that correspond to the "0/0, 1/4 1/2, 4/4" readings on the panel. I'm thinking that if a couple of them were not working, it would show "0/0". It did show "full" when I filled it during that dry-camping adventure.
you'll be ok unless it gets around 20 deg. out. i don't winterize mine until november. still might get one more nice weekend up north yet. (deer hunting)
My unit is less than a year old, and I have aready given up on my level indicators for reliable information. No offense to older-era Airstreamers, but how accurate can you expect them to be? I just about consider checking the readings to be the punchline of a joke after I empty (or fill) my tanks.
no you're no the only one! my gauges are not even close sometimes, other times after the unit has been moved (liquid in the tanks sloshed around) they seem o.k.
i have seen tank sensor cleaning solutions for sale at camper places, i have never tried them. don't know if it would make any differance.
I'd have run the pump if I knew there was that much in there. I just figured every time I checked it that "it must be just about empty now"....
Is it ok to use that cleaning stuff in the fresh-water tank?
The indicators on my black-water tank seem to work just fine. go figure.... that's why I just sort of assumed that since the indicators for the fresh water on the panel lit up, they were working properly, too. no big deal...just a little tough to get a feel for how full it is, unless I was collecting the gray water in an external tank. (which I wasn't on this particular trip). At least with the black-water, you can just look down the toilet and see.
Did you ever figure out what the two switches control just forward of your door? I know there is a light above the door and a light forward of the door but with another switch next to the door, where does the third circuit go to?
Yes, Larry. One of the switches next to the door is for the ouside light that is right on top of the door; the other powers the fixture over the sink. it isn't quite a "3-way" switch, though. If the switch by the door is in the "on" position, you can then turn the light over the sink on and off with its switch. If the door-switch is in the "off" position, the sink light will stay off no matter which way you position its switch.
I just keep mine set to turn on and off by the door switch; that way, I can reach in and flip the light on without having to feel around in the dark for one of the overhead lights.
Chuck and Stougard,
I have the same switches in my '77 Excella 500 and I operate the sink light just as Chuck does, by the door upon entry.
Chuck, I think I remember reading on the bottle of one of the tank probe cleaners that they were not for use in fresh water tanks. Also, my owners manual says: "The needle position of the gauges may be slightly off due to varying voltage in the Univolt system. With a partially discharged trailer battery, the needle would be to the left of the dot. A higher voltage would move the needle to the right of the dot. Under these conditions the correct tank level is indicated by the closest dot." With fully charged batteries, I filled my tanks to the max and aligned the needles of each gauge to the last dot by F with a small blade screwdriver inserted in the hole provided under each gauge. Everything seems to work fine.
__________________ Craig
AIR #0078
'01 2500hd ext. cab, 8.1 litre gas, 5 sp. Allison auto
3.73 rear end
Mag-Hytec rear diff cover
Amsoil Dual by-pass oil filtration system
Amsoil synthetics all around
265 watt AM Solar, Inc. system
Chuck,
I forgot to mention that I can see where the probes screw into the tank by opening the rear access door to my trailer. A wire attaches to each probe and the 4 probes are located at different heights in the tank. Probes can be removed in my year trailer, scraped clean and sealant placed on threads when replacing them to prevent leaks.
__________________ Craig
AIR #0078
'01 2500hd ext. cab, 8.1 litre gas, 5 sp. Allison auto
3.73 rear end
Mag-Hytec rear diff cover
Amsoil Dual by-pass oil filtration system
Amsoil synthetics all around
265 watt AM Solar, Inc. system
Craig,
your system is a bit different than mine. I don't really have "gauges" on my control panel; they're more like "idiot lights" that are stacked one on top of the next. I think there are 4 for the fresh tank. they are marked "0/0", "2/4", "3/4", and "4/4", or something like that. The lights illuminate progressively, so if the tank is 3/4 full, the bottom 3 lights come on...(but only when the rocker-switch is depressed and held down). You can even see the top most light glow dim to bright if there's any movement in the trailer, as the water sloshes around in the tank. The black tank only has 3 lights; I think its "0", "1/2", and "4/4".
There are no access panels anywhere on my trailer, so getting at either tank would be a *itch.
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that's why I just sort of assumed that since the indicators for the fresh water on the panel lit up, they were working properly, too. no big deal...just a little tough to get a feel for how full it is, unless I was collecting the gray water in an external tank. (which I wasn't on this particular trip). At least with the black-water, you can just look down the toilet and see.
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