Heading North for Summer

[Letch]

Airstream is in Florida, north for summer when I empty tanks should I close valve and put a few gallons in Black tank?

[Tyler2you]

Yes, close and add 5 gallons.

[Wazbro]

Just to clarify, are you leaving the trailer in storage in Florida or taking it with you?

[Boxite]

AND….put a few ounces of Thetford toilet valve lubricant in the toilet bowl for storage.
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=thetford+..._ts-doa-p_1_16

[uncle_bob]

Hi

It matters a lot if the trailer is in storage over the summer or with you. If it's in storage out in the hot Florida sun until late next fall, whatever you put in the tank is pretty sure to evaporate. What will be left are the "solids" from your hard water. That's not going to help things much ....

Bob

[Letch]

Should of been more clear.the trailer is staying in florida.

[Letch]

Yes.trailer is staying in florida

[pmclemore]

Never leave it dry.

Pat

[Wazbro]

Originally Posted by pmclemore

Never leave it dry.

Pat

I always leave mine dry for storage(just a small amount of antifreeze), of course this is for the winter in NJ so liquids will freeze.

[uncle_bob]

Hi

All our tanks go into winter storage dry. Never any antifreeze in the fresh water tank or hot water tank. Maybe some small amount in the black or gray tank.

Bob

[Justinfinity]

The OP is not clear to me. Are you trying to winterize the trailer or treat the waste system? And if the latter, for storage or for travel? You stated "close valve and put a few gallons in waste tank". Gallons of what?

For winterization, I do what uncle_bob does. I never run anti-freeze through the fresh water system; instead, I blow it out with air. I store the trailer in NY state and I have spent a few very cold months in Canada (wont be doing that again, but everything was fine plumbing-wise).

Please clarify your OP.

[Wazbro]

Originally Posted by Justinfinity

The OP is not clear to me. Are you trying to winterize the trailer or treat the waste system? And if the latter, for storage or for travel? You stated "close valve and put a few gallons in waste tank". Gallons of what?

For winterization, I do what uncle_bob does. I never run anti-freeze through the fresh water system; instead, I blow it out with air. I store the trailer in NY state and I have spent a few very cold months in Canada (wont be doing that again, but everything was fine plumbing-wise).

Please clarify your OP.

Originally Posted by Letch

Should of been more clear.the trailer is staying in florida.

He did clarify.
He is trying to "SUMMARIZE" the trailer for storage. This is a process needed for snow birds that leave a trailer stored in places like Florida when they go back north for the summer, similar to winterizing without worry about freezing.

[Justinfinity]

This is getting bonkers. "Summarize" means to "give a brief statement". I suppose if we are going to invent another unnecessary word to further obfuscate a topic, it might be "summerize" which now seems to have taken on the double contradictory meaning of "de-winterize for use" or "prepare for storage in hot weather").

But, really, you want to protect against a freeze in Florida, the 2nd hottest and 49th coldest state in the USA? If anyone is THAT concerned, then go ahead and winterize your trailer, but the chance that you are going to get an extended cold snap below 32F IN THE SUMMER is negligible.

If what you are trying to do is prevent a solid poop mountain in your black tank, that's a different issue, but surely you would visit a dump station and then add some black tank treatment, right? So, again, it's not clear whether this is about managing for temperature or waste.

[Letch]

The trailer is remaining in Fl.Should I empty the tanks,and then put 5 gallons of water in black tank?

[Wazbro]

Originally Posted by Wazbro

He did clarify.
He is trying to "SUMMERIZE" the trailer for storage. This is a process needed for snow birds that leave a trailer stored in places like Florida when they go back north for the summer, similar to winterizing without worry about freezing.

Originally Posted by Justinfinity

This is getting bonkers. "Summarize" means to "give a brief statement". I suppose if we are going to invent another unnecessary word to further obfuscate a topic, it might be "summerize" which now seems to have taken on the double contradictory meaning of "de-winterize for use" or "prepare for storage in hot weather").

But, really, you want to protect against a freeze in Florida, the 2nd hottest and 49th coldest state in the USA? If anyone is THAT concerned, then go ahead and winterize your trailer, but the chance that you are going to get an extended cold snap below 32F IN THE SUMMER is negligible.

If what you are trying to do is prevent a solid poop mountain in your black tank, that's a different issue, but surely you would visit a dump station and then add some black tank treatment, right? So, again, it's not clear whether this is about managing for temperature or waste.

Sorry, you're right on the spelling, autocorrect can do that. Don't know why you went on about freezing though.

Still the point is getting the trailer ready for warm weather storage, without worrying about freezing.

I don't think there is any reason to add water for 6 months of storage since most would evaporate. If leaving trailer in campground they may have advice on how to prep for storage.