After two hours of supreme frustration: no joy. Unsuccessful. I managed to disconnect my water hose from the RV’s fresh water inlet after about an hour (no kidding) of painstaking, bone-chilling work. And speaking of “lost things,” I could NOT find my channel-lok pliers, which complicated the fresh water hose removal. But…I persevered and got the frozen hose off. The next trick was to get water running from the faucet and that proved to be my undoing. The faucet refused to run, even after about a half-hour of careful heating with my new handy-handy propane torch. So…I gave up. Tomorrow’s high will only be 32 degrees, so I’m in for another 48 hours or so of inconvenience.
My timing for this little debacle couldn’t have been worse. Today is the fourth day in a row where the mercury hasn’t risen above freezing. I swear I do NOT remember another period of time where we’ve gone more than three days, at the very most, with sub-freezing temps.
I suppose I’ve done more stupid things in the past, but I’m damned if I can remember when.
Buck; Consider a "heat tape". Available at any hardware or home center. It wraps around the line and you plug it into a 110 source. Also you might add some insulation under the coach, or you could come to Florida and while you warm up, I'll fix the water and the gen set for you.
ReplyDeleteWhat a rotten day you've had, Buck. But you have a great friend in dan, I can tell.
ReplyDeleteSo. Are you goin' to Florida?
I may have made an incorrect assumption that as a full-timer in your RV you know all the tricks (hey, nobody does). But some of your predicaments lately worry me a little.
ReplyDeleteDo you have fresh water in your tank? If so, have you fired up your on-board 12V/propane furnace (powered by the coach battery or 110 to 12V converter)? Mine directs a small portion of the heated air to the external water tanks and plumbing areas, including where the 12V pump is located. If you're using shore powered electric heating (like a little ceramic heater) only, you're more likely to freeze up the plumbing in these extreme conditions.
Even if power goes out, you can run your engine to power the propane furnace (plus chassis heat is available).
From a picture recently, I gathered you have a fairly new class C. So I'd guess that if you cranked that propane furnace up to eleven, that in an hour you'd have running water.
And here's who's giving free (worth it) advice: This morning in Escobosa (Escabosa?) it was 14 below. Yes, the water was temporarily ice-plugged (I know the problem spot which I promptly irradiated with a Mister Heater).
Right now, it's minus eight with eight hours till sunrise. Gonna leave a little drip going.
Stay safe and comfy, there, sir.
Dan said: Consider a "heat tape". ... or you could come to Florida and while you warm up, I'll fix the water and the gen set for you.
ReplyDeleteI'd thought about the heat tape a few years ago, Dan, after my first freeze-up. Issue: no 110 vac outlets in any of my basement storage areas. I don't want to run an extension cord out the window... The water will fix itself when it warms up; the gen set is quite another story. :-)
Reese said: (a lot)
The fresh water tank has been drained (save for a small amount of water/bleach solution) since I made the decision to remain in P-town "for the duration."
The propane furnace is my main heat source. I also have a ceramic heater under my table which I use to warm my tootsies, but it's "augmentation" heat, not primary. Given all that, the coach's plumbing has never frozen up...it's always my (white) water hose that runs from the park's fresh water tap to the RV's water inlet. And now the park's tap itself is frozen. I bought a new water hose today and the purpose of the exercise was to disconnect the frozen hose, replace it with the new one, and defrost the park's water tap. All went well until Step Number Three.
I appreciate the tips, though!! Thanks. And you stay warm, too, Reese! You guys are a lot colder than we are!
Bec: Thanks for the sympathy. And I'm not going to Florida, LOL! I miss Dan, and he IS a great friend, that's true. But I like NM...in spite of all the bitching and complaining of late.
While living in McAllen, TX, I learned much about the life of "snow birds". They start showing up around Thanksgiving and stay until around Easter. Eating at McDonalds becomes impossible during the winter months. Thank God I did not play golf because the courses were packed. But, the birds always seemed to be having a great time. Those that did not go home in the spring, went to NM and CO. I just can't see you following the crowd, Buck.
ReplyDeleteLou said: I just can't see you following the crowd, Buck.
ReplyDeleteI dived into that snowbird culture when I first went on the road back in '99, and spent a couple of months in a snowbird RV park in Brownsville in early 2000. The one thing that stands out in my memory from that time was a large sign in the communal men's bathroom in my "home park" in Livingston, TX:
PLEASE do not flush Depends down the toilet. Put them in the trash cans!!
It was about that time that I figured I wasn't quite ready to become a "snowbird." :-)
That said, I did meet some pretty cool people in the snowbird community. But they were few and far between.
Har. That sign quote is a real eye-opener. There for the grace....
ReplyDeleteSounds like a good plan, water wise. Good luck and keep the tootsies warm.
Har. That sign quote is a real eye-opener. There for the grace....
ReplyDeleteSounds like a good plan, water wise. Good luck and keep the tootsies warm.