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Old 11-06-2018, 05:34 AM   #1
Fulltime5
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Insulating and heat taping a Passport 2650BH

Hi yall,

We leave for Arizona from Maryland in 5 days with hopes to make it to my hometown in Pine AZ by Thanksgiving.

We just bought a Keystone Passport 2650BH with the stock underbelly covered with that corrogated plastic. My question is what MODS can I do to increase our chances that we wont have any freeze damage to the rig on our trip and stay. We intend to keep a southerly to mid route that SHOULD keep us from experiencing any freezing temps but as a precaution I'd like to go a little above and beyond in case there's any freakishly cold weather along the way.

Will I find any plumbing that is not inside the coach? Should I wrap all my internal plumbing with foam tubing?

Any heat pad/tape kits you all could recommend? Where do I put them, etc.

If I can avoid crawling under my coach and dropping the corrugated plastic to install anything would be great but I will if you all think I need to.

Thank you in advance!
J
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Old 11-06-2018, 05:50 AM   #2
JRTJH
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The two most vulnerable spots for freeze damage are the city water inlet/hose and the terminal sewer connection. If you protect the city water connection and hose with a heat tape, or on nights when the forecast calls for freezing, simply disconnect the hose, drain it and use the fresh water supply in the trailer, you can prevent most "frozen clean water problems"... As for the sewer connection, if it's freezing, then the "slow trickle" of waste water is a "sure way to freeze and block the sewer hose. The easiest way to prevent problems is to close the dump valves (yes, all of them) and only empty the tanks when they are full. That way, the sewer hose stays empty and although it will be "cold, rigid and hard to coil" it will be "dry inside and not plugged with ice (frozen black or gray tank effluent)...

Although most of us don't travel with the furnace turned on, remember that there is no heat "below the floor/above the Coroplast" unless you run the furnace. The heat ducts run through that space and they do make a significant difference in keeping things "under the floor" from freezing. Using an electric heater in the cabin does nothing for things that are under the floor, so on "especially cold nights" be sure to run the furnace, even though the fan kicking on every few minutes does keep you awake, at least until you get used to it..... YMMV.
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Old 11-06-2018, 06:04 AM   #3
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Starting Thursday it will be really cold in the Illinois Missouri Kansas corridor . We are expecting freezing temperatures and possibly a little snow on Thursday here. So if you're traveling this way be prepared.
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Old 11-06-2018, 06:06 AM   #4
Fulltime5
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Gotcha, thank you. So on nights that are predicted to be 32 or below, run the furnace, and electric space heaters every other night. (I have two small propane tanks and will always default to electric when I can).

I own and will be bringing a heated external fresh water hose so that's not an issue.
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Old 11-06-2018, 06:09 AM   #5
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Wow. Ok, thank you. Should I run out and get snow tire chains then? One Other idea I had is just travel in a dry/winterized state along the way - which will be a major pain but less pain than frozen, busted lines and tanks - or is that overkill. I am bringing a 12v air compressor to blow out my lines as needed for this purpose. I suppose I could travel wet then blow out as needed if we come up on some weather.
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Old 11-06-2018, 06:22 AM   #6
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Depending on your route from Maryland to Arizona, you probably won't have any problems this time of the year. Just plan to head toward Atlanta then west and as long as you stay on I-20 or further south, you'll be OK traveling with a "wet trailer" as long as you run the furnace at night. If you're planning a route further north, then you may run into icy roads, problems with towing and even might find that you get "stuck in one spot" to wait out a winter storm. It's better to "hole up and wait" than to risk towing on ice and snow covered roads when you can.... Snow chains for trailer use is only a "mountain pass situation" for emergency towing. For most of us, if the weather gets that bad, we wait it out for a clear day..... Even if it means winterizing the trailer and spending a couple days in the local Motel 6, that's better than spinning out of control on an icy road......
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Old 11-06-2018, 01:28 PM   #7
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Just found out that a member of another forum I am on just lost their fifth wheel trailer and 3500 diesel truck by just getting on an oiled road in Texas while it was drizzling and did a couple of 360's before going into a field and rolling over. Obviously, both truck and trailer were totaled, but both they and their cat walked away uninjured. This was not in icy conditions, but this is what can happen in icy or snowy conditions, and they were already slowed down due to the conditions they found their selves in. So, like was said, unless there is some kind of emergency that absolutely requires travel in bad conditions, it is much better to sit it out than risk everything.
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Old 11-06-2018, 05:45 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Fulltime5 View Post
Gotcha, thank you. So on nights that are predicted to be 32 or below, run the furnace, and electric space heaters every other night. (I have two small propane tanks and will always default to electric when I can).

I own and will be bringing a heated external fresh water hose so that's not an issue.
I don't worry about literal 32 degree weather generally because things won't just freeze rock solid. Traveling at speed might exacerbate that a bit but not much in my experience. Take as southerly a route as you can that still makes sense. Mid November should not be an issue the further S and W you get. There is always the occasional cold storm but usually you can dodge them. Pull the weather predictions for the various areas you will be traveling through and plan accordingly. They always vary from day to day but it usually will give you the general idea of strong storms that will happen.

DON'T tow on snow and/or ice covered roads IMO. I used to because work required it - it's not fun and it's dangerous. I was 35 years younger then and wasn't as phobic about "bad stuff" happening.

If you have small propane tanks that is a potential problem to me. You can use the small electric heaters, but, if you have a heated underbelly you need to run the furnace. Plus, if you do stay somewhere that has questionable power during winter you could lose AC power for a few days. I'm not familiar with Pine but I've been in Payson and Pinetop and I would worry about utilities if you are going to spend the winter.
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