Winterizing

[HDRider]

This will be my first Oliver winter.  I want to use the camper through the winter to visit warmer climes.

 

Does an Oliver need to be winterized if it is plugged into shore power and the furnace is on?

[Dave and Kimberly]

   You didn't say how low of temps you were talking about or if you were going to be living in it or just storing it until you do "visit warmer climes"... but I'd say, with the furnace on and plugged into shore power you should be good down into the 20's.   The weak point would be the outside shower faucets, due to their exposed position and of course any water hose connected to the city inlet port.  

    There will be some that have experience at lower temps but I'd be concerned with that unless I was actually living in it at the time to be monitoring things.   For what I am guessing would be intermittent trips... and being stored at home with furnace running you should be good into the twenties.    More than that, I would just learn (if you haven't already) how to winterize it.   It's not a difficult process to winterize/de-winterize and then you would be protected without having to run furnace/aging the systems... while it's not being used.

[Mike and Carol]

It depends on how low your temperatures get and how long they stay there.  I’ve never winterized because we also camp year round.  It routinely gets into the 20s where we live (San Antonio area).  Keeping the heat on and opening the inner hull hatches keeps things from freezing.

We occasionally dip into the teens and even single digits and when that happens I open all the inner hull hatches, run the furnace, and have a couple of small electrical heaters - one in the basement area and one where the water pump and all those water lines are.  It’s usually only 2 or 3 days once a year.

Mike

 

[Wandering Sagebrush]

It’s a judgement call that depends on the depth and length of cold, and how risk tolerant you are.  As mentioned above, it’s not that difficult to winterize and de-winterize a camper or trailer.   Oliver with the boondocking connection at the rear makes it easier than most.  Don’t forget to get antifreeze in the drain traps.

[Rivernerd]

2 hours ago, HDRider said:

Does an Oliver need to be winterized if it is plugged into shore power and the furnace is on?

The answer to this question depends, to some extent, on how recently your hull was manufactured.  Our late 2022 Hull #1291 with the Truma Varioheat furnace can withstand colder outside ambient temps than earlier models because Truma required a redesign of the duct system that includes a return air vent between the bathroom and the under side of the front dinette seat.  See photo below:

This return air vent enables distribution of more  heat to the underbelly of the trailer, providing some additional thermal protection to the plumbing.  Your Hull No. 1423 probably does not have the Truma Varioheat, and, therefore, does not have the updated ducting.

The thread below contains lots of information about the performance of Olivers of various ages in cold temps:

There are adjustments and mods you can make to help the plumbing system better withstand cold temps.  The easy one is removing the outside faucet head and re-installing it on the inside of the hull (underneath the street side bed) when camping in cold temps.  I have added some additional return air vents to improve circulation of warm air through the otherwise isolated parts of the trailer.  See photos below:

The bottom line:  the plumbing will not freeze in any Oliver, with the furnace running, down to temps in the high 20's.  To be able to use the trailer without winterizing at temps below that level, take the steps detailed here, and in the thread embedded above.

Good luck!

[Wandering Sagebrush]

After a more thorough reading of the posts in this thread, I’m even more in the camp of winterizing, and keeping it winterized until traveling into consistently warmer temps.  The dead air spaces issue, definitely caught my attention.

I do have a question about the capped toilet water supply line (we have a composting toilet).  Does the line adequately drain when blowing out the system, or would it be best to uncap the line and let the forced air push residual water into a towel?  Inquiring minds need to know.😊

[ScubaRx]

1 hour ago, Wandering Sagebrush said:

After a more thorough reading of the posts in this thread, I’m even more in the camp of winterizing, and keeping it winterized until traveling into consistently warmer temps.  The dead air spaces issue, definitely caught my attention.

I do have a question about the capped toilet water supply line (we have a composting toilet).  Does the line adequately drain when blowing out the system, or would it be best to uncap the line and let the forced air push residual water into a towel?  Inquiring minds need to know.😊

I admit that I have no direct knowledge of how much that particular line would drain under the circumstances you describe. Compressed air will quickly displace water pushing it the line if the air has an escape route. I've found the best method of evacuating water for the plumbing is to use the on/off method. I usually use about 40 pounds of air pressure. Apply pressure to the lines with all taps open. At first, a good bit of water will flow out. When it has reduced itself to a sputtering gurgle, cut it off and wait a few minutes. This will allow the residual water to run to the low spots and pool. Turn the air back on, water will come out the second time but not nearly as much. Repeat this several times until you've gotten the bulk of the water out. I doubt you could ever get it all out but that's OK.

In the case of a closed end line (as with the composting toilet) I believe it would drain out just fine, but if I were worried about it, I would replace the cap with a valve that I could open during the blowing out process and then close again. If you wait until the last stages of the above process, you'll only have a small amount of water from the valve that you have to deal with.

[HDRider]

5 hours ago, Dave and Kimberly said:

outside shower faucets

Where do I turn off the water going to the outside shower?  

 

It seems like I should be OK (someone correct me if I am wrong) if I turn off the water to it and drain the water out.  I assume I can drain it by simply turning off the outside shower water source and open the shower spigot until no water comes out.  Is that right?

[HDRider]

5 hours ago, Mike and Carol said:

It depends on how low your temperatures get and how long they stay there.  I’ve never winterized because we also camp year round.  It routinely gets into the 20s where we live (San Antonio area).  Keeping the heat on and opening the inner hull hatches keeps things from freezing.

We occasionally dip into the teens and even single digits and when that happens I open all the inner hull hatches, run the furnace, and have a couple of small electrical heaters - one in the basement area and one where the water pump and all those water lines are.  It’s usually only 2 or 3 days once a year.

Mike

 

I assumed running the furnace would heat below deck.

 

I am trying to go from assuming to knowing. 🙂

[HDRider]

3 hours ago, Rivernerd said:

Hull No. 1423 probably does not have the Truma Varioheat

The manual of standard equipment says I have the Truma Varioheat

[ScubaRx]

31 minutes ago, HDRider said:

I assumed running the furnace would heat below deck.

 

I am trying to go from assuming to knowing. 🙂

The furnace will heat below deck. You can enhance that by opening some forward hatches to get warm are from the coach into areas that are further from the furnace.

[rich.dev]

5 hours ago, Rivernerd said:

Hull No. 1423 probably does not have the Truma Varioheat

If your hull # 1291 has the Truma Varioheat then @HDRider newer hull #1423 should have it if they opted for it.

***Edit: and scrolling down the posts I see they do have the Truma Varioheat

Edited September 14, 2023 by rich.dev

[topgun2]

2 hours ago, HDRider said:

Where do I turn off the water going to the outside shower?  

As far as I know - 

No Oliver is equipped with a valve that can stop water from getting to the outside shower unless the owner has made a modification to the original plumbing.

You can always add extra insulation to that area from the inside and/or the outside which will add extra protection.

Bill 

[Mike and Carol]

3 hours ago, HDRider said:

I assumed running the furnace would heat below deck.

 

I am trying to go from assuming to knowing. 🙂

We’ve had single digit weather twice since 2016.  When it gets below 10 for a few days I supplement the furnace with small cube electric heaters to help with the lines that run from the water fill/outside shower area around the back to the hot water tank and pump area.  The furnace doesn’t have any ducting there.  I do have my basement door insulated so that helps.  Mike

[Rivernerd]

2 hours ago, HDRider said:

The manual of standard equipment says I have the Truma Varioheat

My oversight.  Glad you've got the Varioheat, which means you should have the return air vent from the bath to the underside of the front dinette seat.

Our tests last November suggest that, with the Varioheat running to maintain cabin temp at about 70 F, and with the external faucet removed from the hose and re-installed to the hose through the access under the street side bed, the -plumbing in your Elite II should be protected from freezing with outside temps down to about 15 F.

As noted above by Mike and Carol, a small electric space heater placed under the rear dinette seat blowing aft can make a big difference keeping the "bilge" areas where the plumbing is located warm.  As we like to leave the bed made up in our standard bed Elite II, we prefer the space heater method to leaving the hatches open to allow warm furnace air to circulate.

[ScubaRx]

7 hours ago, topgun2 said:

As far as I know - 

No Oliver is equipped with a valve that can stop water from getting to the outside shower unless the owner has made a modification to the original plumbing.

You can always add extra insulation to that area from the inside and/or the outside which will add extra protection.

Bill 

I added two motorized valves to the water lines going to the outside shower. I also added an air line to each water line with check valves (to prevent water from back-flowing into the air lines) to facilitate blowing the lines clear for winterization. The air line runs to the front of the trailer to a quick connect. I can use either the compressor system in the Silverado or a compressor at home.

 

I also re-built the outside shower and dump valve box.

 

Here is one of the motorized valves with the air connection prior to installation.

 

Here's a look at the control station mounted in the basement.