Full-Time RV:
How to Prepare for Freezing Weather
By: Meredith Miller
Published October 28, 2019
How To Prepare for Freezing Weather in Your Home on Wheels
Despite the common misconception, not all full-time RVers are snowbirds. That is, we don’t all choose to go south for the winter. This blog is for all you brave souls who choose to tough out the cold months in your home on wheels – and for those going south to read and laugh at us.
Surviving the winter/freezing weather in your RV can be easy – if you properly prepare. I’m going to go through a few steps to help you get through the cold months! We’ve been full-time for a year, and spent the better part of January in South Dakota and Wyoming in our ’08 Tiffin Allegro Bus.
Here are some important things to do to keep your motorhome working – and more importantly, not breaking – during winter.
#1: Keeping Your Wet Bay Warm
Make sure your wet bay stays above freezing, especially at night. We use two 50 Watt hand-held trouble lights and keep them on while we are home. When you leave during the day, turn them off to minimize fire risk. We recommend the metal handheld trouble lights; the plastic ones are, well, plastic. Be sure to keep all items in the wet bay clear of the lights.
#2: Keep Your Water from Freezing
The water filter that you see in the picture below is known for exploding – when not properly prepared for cold weather. How exciting! To keep this from happening you can choose two things:
a) Keep one of your inside faucets on a low drip when the temperature gets below freezing, or
b) Disconnect your water hose before the temperature gets below freezing. ‘Before’ is the key word here, folks.
**Bonus Tip! Keep your electric water heater on all the time (while home) during freezing temps to prevent the water heater from freezing** It is recommended to turn off when leaving if you have animals in the RV.
#3: Use a heated hose (Optional)
This is an option for short-term usage; we’ve personally never used a heated hose. Originally designed for daily farm use, heated hoses are not a good long-term solution due to how they’re currently designed (which is not to constantly maintain below-freezing temperatures).
They’re good for short-term, in-a-pinch-save-my-water use, but not to be buried under snow the entire winter. We recommend the drip-method in #2 for long-term, or to use insulation wrap around your hose to keep the water inside the hose from freezing.
#4: Infrared Space Heaters
If you’re like us and don’t like to spend a lot of money paying for propane (and are hooked up at an RV site with endless electricity), infrared space heaters are a great option for keeping inside warm. They heat actual objects, not just the air surrounding them, and from a fire-hazard standpoint, they are the safest kind of space heater.
*Keep filters clean and heater clear from objects.*
#5: Blocking Vents/Preventing Drafts
Drafts are very common in RVs, especially through slides and rooftop vents. A great way to minimize drafts and keep cold air from seeping into the RV are blocking any small openings with a rag/towel/blanket, and covering vents with foil and vent insulators. You can find these on Amazon, at Camping World (or any other RV supply store), or your local hardware store. It is also recommended to cover rooftop air conditioners with a tarp to reduce drafts.
#6: Use Both Day & Night Shades at Night
This is kind of a rudimentary way of keeping more heat in/more cold out. If you have both day and night shades on your windows, put them both down at night. This will help keep some of the draft/cold out from the windows. I understand not all RVs have both kinds of shades; but even just closing whatever shades/blinds/curtains you do have will help at night.
#7: Be Aware of Snow on Your Roof
Snow can help insulate your roof and keep the inside warm. One thing to be weary of, however, is too much heavy snow. We had a rear jack collapse last winter due to the weight of the snow, and since have always shoveled it off when it gets to be deep.
Only do this if you are confident in being up on the roof, especially in icy/slippery conditions. If not, please just ask for help at the front office, a neighbor, or a local handy service.
#7: Open Cabinet Doors at Night Under Faucets
Opening cabinet doors at night under faucets that are on outside walls will help the heat from inside reach the pipes under the sinks, therefore preventing frozen pipes.
Consider yourself prepared!
At least, more prepared than you were at the beginning of this blog. Using the tips from this blog, you just might survive a winter in your RV! Of course, heading South is always an option…
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