Space Heater for Winterization

[jjagnew]

Hi gang:

I have a 22' 1967 Safari that I have decided to park behind my cottage up at Big Bear Lake. I had a 30 amp power supply installed so the AC can be used in the summer. Now that winter is approaching (quicker at 6.500'), I am starting to consider the best way to keep the trailer safe when not in use. Obviously I understand the concerns regards water freezing, but what I'm tentatively planning to do is put in a portable, electric, SAFE space heater (which will be kept at the lowest setting), along with some receptacles of water inside. It gets incredibly dry up there and the wood is original and I want to keep it from over drying.

I've done some research, including looking at marine heaters for engine compartments (pricey), and I'm leaning toward a radiator style heater with non-digital controls. Occasionally the power will be interrupted up there from storms and I don't want to risk the heater losing its settings because it's digital.

On Amazon I found the DeLonghi MG7307CM. Are any of you familiar with this model? I'm obviously looking for the safest, most energy efficient solution as this will be plugged in and in the on position 24/7; including when I'm not up at the cottage.

I believe it's safe to keep trailers up at this high elevation during the winter because I've noticed many RVs, including some Airstreams, that are parked outside and I'm guessing they are kept there year round when in storage. The thought of pulling the trailer back down the mountain and putting it into storage is not terribly appealing, but considering the time and money I've put into it over the years, I'm still considering this option too.

I'm hoping some of you "Pro-Airstreamers" from the cooler climates can weigh in on this. BTW, it does snow up there too.

Thanks for taking the time to read this rambling email and any insight you could provide me would be most appreciated!

John
San Diego, California

[RangerJay]

Why would you not want to do a typical winterization? - i.e. blow-out the lines and/or put in RV anti-freeze?

A radiator type heater will not circulate air to the units plumbing - and really shouldn't be relied upon to deal with any seriously cold weather - particularly if power outages are not unusual.


Jay

[HowieE]

This is not a good idea. Yes you may be able to keep the inside of the trailer above freezing at a fairly high cost, but the closed sections, cabinets and underbelly will not be above freezing.

Now for the bad news. If your trailer is maintained at say 40 degrees and you loose power while the outside temperature is say 20 or lower the trailer will freeze solid in a few hours.

Not worth the risk.

Winterize it for the cost of a gallon of antifreeze, $5.00

[Chuck]

kind of a waste of electricity...it'll take a LOT just to keep it above freezing...and it still won't protect your pipes or tanks, so you have to do a conventional winterizing, anyway.
I'm no expert on the wood issue, but I would think that dry is good. I don't recall ever seeing anyone post here over the years that their woodwork was damaged from over-drying. What I do see is people placing a high value on old trailer/restoration candidates that have come from "dry" climates...less/no rot.

[DKB_SATX]

I'd say with a radiator you would definitely want to drain/winterize all the water systems as much as possible, because you'd be almost solely dependent on convection for heating most of the space. The radiator, especially on low, isn't going to help the pipes too much.

I've used a similar oil-filled electric radiator to heat the bathroom in my house in the winter for many years, and it's proven safe and reliable and silent, and you wouldn't have to worry about a fan motor seizing while the heater was unattended.

[Ag&Au]

Originally Posted by jjagnew

Hi gang:

I have a 22' 1967 Safari that I have decided to park behind my cottage up at Big Bear Lake. I had a 30 amp power supply installed so the AC can be used in the summer. Now that winter is approaching (quicker at 6.500'), I am starting to consider the best way to keep the trailer safe when not in use. Obviously I understand the concerns regards water freezing, but what I'm tentatively planning to do is put in a portable, electric, SAFE space heater (which will be kept at the lowest setting), along with some receptacles of water inside. It gets incredibly dry up there and the wood is original and I want to keep it from over drying.

I've done some research, including looking at marine heaters for engine compartments (pricey), and I'm leaning toward a radiator style heater with non-digital controls. Occasionally the power will be interrupted up there from storms and I don't want to risk the heater losing its settings because it's digital.

On Amazon I found the DeLonghi MG7307CM. Are any of you familiar with this model? I'm obviously looking for the safest, most energy efficient solution as this will be plugged in and in the on position 24/7; including when I'm not up at the cottage.

I believe it's safe to keep trailers up at this high elevation during the winter because I've noticed many RVs, including some Airstreams, that are parked outside and I'm guessing they are kept there year round when in storage. The thought of pulling the trailer back down the mountain and putting it into storage is not terribly appealing, but considering the time and money I've put into it over the years, I'm still considering this option too.

I'm hoping some of you "Pro-Airstreamers" from the cooler climates can weigh in on this. BTW, it does snow up there too.

Thanks for taking the time to read this rambling email and any insight you could provide me would be most appreciated!

John
San Diego, California

I'm not going to say that is a good or bad idea, but I did it for 9 years with a 21 foot Bigfoot TT.

I made sure the holding tanks and water tank were empty.

I ran the water out of the plumbing as best I could with the water pump.

I made sure at least one door was open in each cabinet and storage compartment.

I bought an 115v in line thermostat at a farm supply store, and a small electric heater with a fan on it.

I placed the placed the heater so it would blow from the front end of the trailer toward the back and placed the thermostat as far away from it as I could and made sure the heater was not blowing on it. I set the thermostat to 40F.

The only problem I ever had was once when I plugged the heater and thermostat into a GFI receptacle. Something annoyed the GFI and it shut everything down. The only damage was a fitting on the back of the toilet.

However, keep in mind that the Bigfoot was considerably better insulated that an Airstream.

Regards,

Ken

[Phoenix]

Not sure why you would want to leave your Airstream in the snow when you could avoid freezing by keeping it in San Diego. Also, you might get more winter-time use if it was readily available at or near your home.

In any case, you might want to check out Delonghi on the Internet. There were a couple models that had problems with fires in past years. I think you might want to look at heaters specifically designed for storage use, which might be safer and/or more reliable to leave unattended. I suspect that there are models designed for marine applications that might work in your Airstream.