Sport 22FB Winterizing Questions

[SilverHouseDreams]

Why not leverage the volume of your water heater as well? Pressurizing it provides as much air as volume or more than most portable tanks.

[pcskier]

Originally Posted by SilverHouseDreams

Why not leverage the volume of your water heater as well? Pressurizing it provides as much air as volume or more than most portable tanks.

Good point if using a tankless compressor especially in a pinch. The difference is that once you pressurize the whole system to, say 45 psi; then when opening a fixture, the pressure will start at 45 psi and rapidly drop from there, down to zero, in a matter of 10 or 20 seconds. Whereas the tank in a 6 gallon compressor will pressurize to around 120 psi; then the output valve is set at 45 psi. So when a fixture is opened, the pressure at the fixture will be a continuous 45 psi for 10 or 20 seconds, pushing out water and misty air continously; then once the main compressor tank is below 45 psi, the compressor will kick on and start to build compressor tank pressure again. (This is when I close the fixture to allow the compressor tank to get back up to 120 psi, giving me another 20 or 30 second cycle at a full 45 psi.)
A tankless compressor can work, but just takes much, much longer. Also many of the small compressors have a very short duty cycle (meaning they need to sit and cool off after 10 minutes or so of use.)

[twbucksr]

Tankless AC’s are always on sale at the big box hardware stores during the Christmas buying season. Got mine for $99

[waninae39]

this photo show the summer position of the three hw heater valves under the bed

reverse all three for winter

be sure to open the HW tank white plastic drain screw. Beware it may be under pressure

[waninae39]

just reread the 2017 and 2018 sport owners manual.

it says to tip the front end down as low as it can go and then raise is as high as it can go.
this is the remove all the excess water

does anyone do that.

hard for me as my as is on a sloppy driverway

they also say to disconnect the pipes on the water pump
anyone do that?

[ROBERT CROSS]

Originally Posted by waninae39

just reread the 2017 and 2018 sport owners manual.

it says to tip the front end down as low as it can go and then raise is as high as it can go.
this is the remove all the excess water

does anyone do that.

hard for me as my as is on a sloppy driverway

they also say to disconnect the pipes on the water pump
anyone do that?

Yep.... Level, high, low, then jack the street side...it drained for another 10min or so.👍
No on the WP.

Bob
🇺🇸

[almcate]

Dropping the front to its lowest point while air is applied to clear the low point drains seems to be a worthwhile addition to my "blow out routine" ...but am wondering about the logic of raising the nose as well as how high is high enough? Jacking from the street side sounds like it's more about getting the maximum drainage that gravity provides rather than an assist for a blow out, or am I missing something?

[CruizinDux]

IMO, the reason for the nose up is to gravity assist the air flow when the rear lp's are open and the nose down for when the fwd lp's are open.
B

[PatSoozy]

Originally Posted by waninae39

this photo show the summer position of the three hw heater valves under the bed

reverse all three for winter

be sure to open the HW tank white plastic drain screw. Beware it may be under pressure

In your posted photo, number 6 appears to be closed. That's the cold water input. When ours (2017) is open, the nubby end is in line with the pipe.
I can't see number 12 at the top, but for summer, that should also be in line for the hot supply to be open. Number 9 is correctly shown as "crossed" and closed for summer (bypass valve). Of course you know your trailer best and if that crossed position is open for you, then the factory was VERY inconsistent in assembly! Here is our summer configuration with the low point drains (not in picture) "crossed" and closed.

[PatSoozy]

Originally Posted by waninae39

just reread the 2017 and 2018 sport owners manual.

it says to tip the front end down as low as it can go and then raise is as high as it can go.
this is the remove all the excess water

does anyone do that.

hard for me as my as is on a sloppy driverway

they also say to disconnect the pipes on the water pump
anyone do that?

We did (well, DH did while I played with my grand kids in sometimes sunny San Antonio) but he couldn't reach the output on the pump. He said it dumped water from the low point drains under the water heater and the closet.

He did manage to disconnect the input to use the pump to introduce the antifreeze, so he did NOT have to put antifreeze in the fresh water tank. He also followed the instructions to run the pump dry prior to introducing the anti freeze. I'll post again in spring if it turns out that disconnecting the output was a critical step - yikes! BTW, there IS a washer in that connection - ours looks a bit crushed on one side, so we will probably try to find a new one this winter.

[waninae39]

more long posts here in this thread

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f458...rize-7222.html

[waninae39]

be sure to open the cabinet and raise the bottom false floor

you will see the water inlet, ext shower and water pump

between the right side of the ext shower and the water pump are two shut off valves, they lead to the outside under the as 22Fb trailer.

be sure to open these for winter storage as they are the H and C low water points

[Cherokee88]

I have done the winterizing checklist Emptied all tanks, fresh water, black and grey.Am now opening exterior Water Heater valve, manuals talk about valves in closet and foot of bed????Have put RV antifreeze in sink, shower and commode..I cannot identify the referenced valves in the closet or at foot of bed..neither the dealer or Airstream H Q have returned my calls..we are in for 26degrees tomorrow night..the unidentidide valves are a concern..and do I need to turn on the water pump to circulate the anti freeze? Sure appreciate any response

[Kanusport]

Originally Posted by Cherokee88

I have done the winterizing checklist Emptied all tanks, fresh water, black and grey.Am now opening exterior Water Heater valve, manuals talk about valves in closet and foot of bed????Have put RV antifreeze in sink, shower and commode..I cannot identify the referenced valves in the closet or at foot of bed..neither the dealer or Airstream H Q have returned my calls..we are in for 26degrees tomorrow night..the unidentidide valves are a concern..and do I need to turn on the water pump to circulate the anti freeze? Sure appreciate any response

Those valves are there look harder they are to the right of the water heater and also under the access panel in closet between black tank and water pump. If you look under the trailer you will see red and white tubing coming out, these are them.

[Meli H]

I have a Sport 22 that I am living in. The weather is getting cold. We moved back on grid yesterday. Today we wrapped the base of the trailer in a reflective foam insulation. We put two halogen lamps under the trailer. The lightbulbs are not LED and they kick out some heat. I plan to keep a small heater on inside the trailer. Does anyone think we can avoid frozen pipes with this strategy? Any idea how low we might go before needing to drain the pipes?

[Silvr_Bullet]

Originally Posted by SilverHouseDreams

Why not leverage the volume of your water heater as well? Pressurizing it provides as much air as volume or more than most portable tanks.

This may be a problem for some depending on the Hot Water Hester, in my case after I think all water is removed from the reservoir approximately 2-3 quarts of water remain,and pressurizing the tank with would likely send some of that water into the system. On another thread some were critical that I used a small plastic flexible tube to remove the water that remained in the Heater, BTW the manufacturer of mine says it wouldn’t damage the unit by leaving it in, I remove it without issues for the past several years.

[Silvr_Bullet]

Originally Posted by Meli H

I have a Sport 22 that I am living in. The weather is getting cold. We moved back on grid yesterday. Today we wrapped the base of the trailer in a reflective foam insulation. We put two halogen lamps under the trailer. The lightbulbs are not LED and they kick out some heat. I plan to keep a small heater on inside the trailer. Does anyone think we can avoid frozen pipes with this strategy? Any idea how low we might go before needing to drain the pipes?

Meli is it really worth chancing frozen cracked pipes, it will certainly be more expensive and disruptive to not winterize. A competent plumber can do this for you, my first season I did exactly that, it’s also helpful if that person owns a trailer make a few calls and read winterizing section in your Airstream manual.