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Old 10-31-2022, 06:04 AM   #1
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Smile Do I put Antifreeze in my Fresh Water Tank?

I just winterized my 2022 30' RBClassic by following the directions in the Owners Manual. I blew out all my lines, drained my tanks, opened the low point drains, and added antiFreeze to all the sink and shower drains. But NOWHERE in the manual did it mention whether or not to add antifreeze to my freshwater tank. Now what? Do I add it? Or is it unnecessary?
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Old 10-31-2022, 06:23 AM   #2
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No.

If you add antifreeze to your freshwater tank it will be very difficult to remove completely and you'll be tasting it for quite some time. Freshwater tanks are not set up for easy flushing.

It doesn't appear to mention it in your manual, but the earlier manuals stated that the small amount of residual water remaining in the freshwater tank would not create a problem.

The instructions in your manual call for tilting the trailer front-to-back to get as much water as possible removed from the tank. I do that and also leave the drain valve on the freshwater tank open for the last ride home of the season, hoping that the movement of the trailer as we travel gets the final drops out of the tank.
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Old 10-31-2022, 06:58 AM   #3
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Hi

Typically there is a drain valve on the fresh water tank. Some folks open it at the end of the season and drive home with it open. By the time they get home, the tank is very empty. No need to put any anti-freeze in it. Others open it and just do a drive around the block.

There is a debate about leaving it open all winter. Bugs might crawl up in there. We leave ours open.

As noted above, anit-freeze is yucky stuff and hard to get out once it goes in. Some folks notice it way more than others. If you ( or others in your party ) turn out to be sensitive to it, you very much do not want it in the fresh water tank. We blow it out of the lines on our trailer after putting it in .....

Bob
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Old 10-31-2022, 07:00 AM   #4
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Originally Posted by uncle_bob View Post
Hi

Typically there is a drain valve on the fresh water tank. Some folks open it at the end of the season and drive home with it open. By the time they get home, the tank is very empty. No need to put any anti-freeze in it. Others open it and just do a drive around the block.

There is a debate about leaving it open all winter. Bugs might crawl up in there. We leave ours open.

As noted above, anit-freeze is yucky stuff and hard to get out once it goes in. Some folks notice it way more than others. If you ( or others in your party ) turn out to be sensitive to it, you very much do not want it in the fresh water tank. We blow it out of the lines on our trailer after putting it in .....

Bob
This is precisely what I do. And have for many years.
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Old 10-31-2022, 07:41 AM   #5
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What I do is after the tank is drained, I open the blow off valve, and then use a shop vac with no filter and suck out any remaining water. The key here is not let the system be put under any vacuum strain, hence the blow off valve being opened.

Then, you can get some Tygon clear tubing (3/8") and insert that in the drain hole, then put the vacuum over the other end of hose, close your hand around the shop vac/Tygon connection...and you'll be able to see the water being drawn out....

Won't get it all...but will get almost all of it.
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Old 10-31-2022, 08:31 AM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RonWhitmont View Post
I just winterized my 2022 30' RBClassic by following the directions in the Owners Manual. I blew out all my lines, drained my tanks, opened the low point drains, and added antiFreeze to all the sink and shower drains. But NOWHERE in the manual did it mention whether or not to add antifreeze to my freshwater tank. Now what? Do I add it? Or is it unnecessary?
I don't...just drain & blow the lines.
A few gallons freezing hasn't hurt our tank, plenty of room for expansion.
It's the lines that HAVE to be empty.

Bob
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Old 10-31-2022, 10:55 AM   #7
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Anti freeze is poison. Pets die from licking puddles under vehicles. Do NOT put it in your fresh water tank or hoses.

If you put it into grey or black water drains, make sure you let it out where it can't get into wastewater or ground locations.
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Old 10-31-2022, 11:10 AM   #8
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Anti freeze is poison. Pets die from licking puddles under vehicles. Do NOT put it in your fresh water tank or hoses.

If you put it into grey or black water drains, make sure you let it out where it can't get into wastewater or ground locations.
You're correct, but only for engine cooling system antifreeze.
RV antifreeze is a different product and not poisonous.
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Old 10-31-2022, 11:14 AM   #9
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Originally Posted by Trowbridge View Post
Anti freeze is poison. Pets die from licking puddles under vehicles. Do NOT put it in your fresh water tank or hoses.

If you put it into grey or black water drains, make sure you let it out where it can't get into wastewater or ground locations.
The pink antifreeze we are talking about here is not the same as the antifreeze which is put into engines. Unlike automotive antifreeze, RV pink antifreeze is specifically designed to be used in potable water systems, and when used according to the instructions is safe to use.

Here's a handy Q&A about it: https://www.etrailer.com/faq-facts-a...ntifreeze.aspx
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Old 10-31-2022, 11:17 AM   #10
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Ok, ignore the Californian who has obviously never winterized his rig…. ����
I put RV antifreeze in my freshwater tank the first year I owned it, and never again! It literally took several flushings and 2 years to get rid of the taste!
Now I just hook up the water pump to the jug and pump the lines full, drains etc, and leave some in the toilet and holding tanks to keep the seals moist. (1976 vintage rig)
We live in Alberta, Canada with minus 22 F and up to minus 76 F wind chills, and have never had a freezing issue in my Airstream, almost 20 years later now.
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Old 10-31-2022, 11:21 AM   #11
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FW pump

Dont forget to get water out of the pump cartridge itself, blow our vacuum.
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Old 10-31-2022, 11:46 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Trowbridge View Post
Anti freeze is poison. Pets die from licking puddles under vehicles. Do NOT put it in your fresh water tank or hoses.

If you put it into grey or black water drains, make sure you let it out where it can't get into wastewater or ground locations.
As others are pointing out, the pink RV anti-freeze is not poisonous but even so, not something you want to consume. Made from polyethylene glycol, is also used as a 5 alarm laxative for colonoscopy prep. It will also clean out your dog pretty good too, but won't otherwise harm..
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Old 10-31-2022, 12:38 PM   #13
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Winterizing the water system is to remove as much water as you can from pipes and fixtures so it doesn't freeze, expand and cause damage. Traps (sinks, shower) require a small amount of RV (non-toxic) antifreeze because there is no easy way to assure you've gotten all the water out. Fresh water, gray water and black water tanks can be emptied. The small amount of remaining water may freeze and expand, but it has plenty of room to do so without damaging anything. Faucets can be left open as well so that any water left it them has some place to expand if it freezes (but if you've blown out the system, even that isn't a concern).

We turn off the water, drain the system (water heater tank), open the faucets and put about 1/2 cup of RV antifreeze down the sinks and in the toilet tank (flushed first so it has less water than normal) and that's all. Never had a problem at all!
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Old 10-31-2022, 01:15 PM   #14
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Winterizing the water system is to remove as much water as you can from pipes and fixtures so it doesn't freeze, expand and cause damage. Traps (sinks, shower) require a small amount of RV (non-toxic) antifreeze because there is no easy way to assure you've gotten all the water out. Fresh water, gray water and black water tanks can be emptied. The small amount of remaining water may freeze and expand, but it has plenty of room to do so without damaging anything. Faucets can be left open as well so that any water left it them has some place to expand if it freezes (but if you've blown out the system, even that isn't a concern).

We turn off the water, drain the system (water heater tank), open the faucets and put about 1/2 cup of RV antifreeze down the sinks and in the toilet tank (flushed first so it has less water than normal) and that's all. Never had a problem at all!
Not sure where you're located and doing the winterizing, but if it's in Napa CA like your screen info suggests then it's entirely different than winterizing in a place like were we live in Wisconsin.

Opening the faucets will do nothing to prevent the water trapped further back in the faucet and/or plumbing from freezing and bursting things wide open.

Blowing out the lines works, but in my view it is riskier than using antifreeze in the lines. It only takes a small amount of water trapped in a low spot or a fixture to cause damage. Some of the lines and fixtures we're dealing with have very small inside diameters as well as lots of small openings and orifices which can have trapped water in them.
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Old 10-31-2022, 01:45 PM   #15
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I don't...just drain & blow the lines.
A few gallons freezing hasn't hurt our tank, plenty of room for expansion.
It's the lines that HAVE to be empty.

Bob
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The hot water setup looks useful - would it be possible to provide more detail?
Thank you!
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Old 10-31-2022, 03:09 PM   #16
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The hot water setup looks useful - would it be possible to provide more detail?
Thank you!
Well for starters I added a brass valve to permanently ease draining.

Then MacGyver'd a pressure regulator from an old auto air conditioning charge manifold.
I open the pressure relief valve, attach the manifold, set to 40psi and proceed to blow.
POI...this works well if you have a compressor that will maintain the set pressure.

Bob
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Old 10-31-2022, 03:26 PM   #17
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I don't put antifreeze in the fresh water tank. I just make sure I drain the tank. However blowing the lines out mean different things to different people. In many cases blowing out the lines can leave droplets of water in the system that could accumulate and freeze. After blowing out the lines I disconnect the input side of the water pump. To that inlet I connect a long plastic tube that fits into the RV antifreeze bottle. I turn on the water pump and open each valve. You would be surprised that initially you will see water come out of the outlet and quickly turn pink. That's the residual water left in the system that blowing out the lines doesn't completely clear.

Typically it takes about a gallon to clear the piping and things like the toilet sprayer, the sink rinse sprayer, and the low water hot and cold drain valves. Also what's left provides ample anti freeze into the traps. This also removes any fresh water still residing in the water pump assembly.

Essentially during the dewinterizing process I'll sanitize the fresh water system. I first flush out the antifreeze water system with a city water connection. Then fill the fresh water tank and add the proper amount of bleach. After filling the fresh water tank, I turn on the pump to force that bleach/water into the piping.

Don't forget when making the city water connection to flush out the antifreeze, I first flush with the hot water bypass open. Then close the bypass and allow the hot water heater tank to fill and run water through the hot water side. Do this for all valves, sprayers, outside outlets, toilet, and low cold and hot water valves. This removes all the antifreeze from the system so when you pump the bleach/water mixture, that solution will get everywhere. This will pretty well sanitize your system and remove any antifreeze taste. I've never had problems with antifreeze taste.

I also use the premium brands of antifreeze. The cheap stuff may leave tastes or can even cause damage. I once had a cheap bottle RV antifreeze melt the diaphragm in the toilet flush valve. The stuff I recommend is Splash or Prestone brand.

Jack
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Old 11-01-2022, 04:55 AM   #18
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Thanks!

Thanks Everyone! Great advice! I very much appreciate it!
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Old 11-01-2022, 05:28 AM   #19
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If you are using compressed air and have a conventional hot water tank be sure to use the hot water bypass. Compressed air will will force any debris or mineral build ups into the mixer valve and cause hot water issues in the spring. Depending on how easy your access is to the tank is this could be a big deal.
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Old 11-06-2022, 10:10 AM   #20
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I just winterized my 2022 30' RBClassic by following the directions in the Owners Manual. I blew out all my lines, drained my tanks, opened the low point drains, and added antiFreeze to all the sink and shower drains. But NOWHERE in the manual did it mention whether or not to add antifreeze to my freshwater tank. Now what? Do I add it? Or is it unnecessary?
Why would you want to do that if the tank is empty and drains are open? Did you drain the hot water heater? Silver Oaks Airstream Park in Aransas Pass, TX
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