2004 Adventurer basement heat question.

[Forkyfork]

I have a 2004 Adventurer 38R. No manuals, Ive been gathering things off Winnebagos site and other places.

In the sales brochure it mentions basement or tank heat. I found an electronic copy of the owners manual and didn't come across anything about this feature or what type of heat it is.

I understand there are tank heaters and some basements are heated only by running the heat system. Im trying to determine if we are in-between trips and its 32* do we have to run the gas heat or drain the water lines and put in antifreeze. How can we keep it protected in the 4 days we have to work before we can take off again. We could run a space heater but how would we keep the below floor plumbing from freezing.

I was also told when I had my '77 class c that I didn't need to worry about freeze damage until 20*. Worked for me then but the system was simpler.

Ive also noticed there are a few places we can see daylight like under the bathroom sink. Still trying to wrap my head around how that would be kept from freezing.

[rk911]

the winnebago tech support phone line is an excellent resource. call, give them the last 8 of the VIN and they can answer all your questions.

[Forkyfork]

Originally Posted by rk911

the winnebago tech support phone line is an excellent resource. call, give them the last 8 of the VIN and they can answer all your questions.

Cool, good to know. I guess I figured they were like all other manufactures, once something gets to a certain age they don't want to support it. Hmmm, better get my list out. I have another mystery or two I haven't been able to figure out. haha

When I was looking at a coachman of the same year and could find nothing on their website. I was impressed that winnebago had all the support info on theirs. I have used a lot of paper printing out diagrams.

[FIRE UP]

Forkyfork,
Your basement heat, is also basement A/C. It's basically a residential air conditioner. The ducting for it, is ran up inside the back cap, split at a wye about 3/4 the way up and, then is ran in two runs along the ceiling, one on each side. When using the basement heat or, the basement A/C, all your air, heated or cooled, will come from the ceiling. That residential type basement A/C - heat, is 120VAC controlled and powered.

You also have a floor furnace. It is 12VDC powered and, it is its job to handle heating your basement compartments and, tank heaters. If Bill, aka "Duner" sees this thread, I'm sure he will chime in 'cause he's got an Adventurer and knows all the details of how those systems work. He's done some pretty extensive work on his so, he's the top dog for info. Anyway, hope this info helps some. Good luck.
Scott

[70ChevelleSS]

Our 2003 Adventurer does not have any type of tank heaters. Only heat from the propane furnace or when driving from the motoraid heat.

[Forkyfork]

Originally Posted by FIRE UP

Forkyfork,
Your basement heat, is also basement A/C. It's basically a residential air conditioner. The ducting for it, is ran up inside the back cap, split at a wye about 3/4 the way up and, then is ran in two runs along the ceiling, one on each side. When using the basement heat or, the basement A/C, all your air, heated or cooled, will come from the ceiling. That residential type basement A/C - heat, is 120VAC controlled and powered.

You also have a floor furnace. It is 12VDC powered and, it is its job to handle heating your basement compartments and, tank heaters. If Bill, aka "Duner" sees this thread, I'm sure he will chime in 'cause he's got an Adventurer and knows all the details of how those systems work. He's done some pretty extensive work on his so, he's the top dog for info. Anyway, hope this info helps some. Good luck.
Scott

Your right its probably the way the furnace is ducted that heats it. I forgot that the basement heat pump doesn't run when its cold enough to freeze outside.

So now I just need to figure out how to keep everything from freezing without having to run the propane heater during the 4 days between camping.

[FIRE UP]

Originally Posted by Forkyfork

Your right its probably the way the furnace is ducted that heats it. I forgot that the basement heat pump doesn't run when its cold enough to freeze outside.

So now I just need to figure out how to keep everything from freezing without having to run the propane heater during the 4 days between camping.

In that kind of situation, depending on your outlook and what's important to you, some folks have used a 100 watt or so light bulb (maybe even higher than that) constantly on in various areas to keep things just warm enough to prevent freezing. Never done it so, can't really verify this.
Scott

[DAN L]

Originally Posted by Forkyfork

I have a 2004 Adventurer 38R. No manuals, Ive been gathering things off Winnebagos site and other places.

In the sales brochure it mentions basement or tank heat. I found an electronic copy of the owners manual and didn't come across anything about this feature or what type of heat it is.

I understand there are tank heaters and some basements are heated only by running the heat system. Im trying to determine if we are in-between trips and its 32* do we have to run the gas heat or drain the water lines and put in antifreeze. How can we keep it protected in the 4 days we have to work before we can take off again. We could run a space heater but how would we keep the below floor plumbing from freezing.

I was also told when I had my '77 class c that I didn't need to worry about freeze damage until 20*. Worked for me then but the system was simpler.

Ive also noticed there are a few places we can see daylight like under the bathroom sink. Still trying to wrap my head around how that would be kept from freezing.

I use remote temp sensors and trouble lights in my wet and tank compartments.

[NeilV]

That's sad that the previous owner didn't leave the black bag with all the manuals, build sheets, warranty cards, etc that came with the coach in it. Its a file folder bag with compartments for each type of paperwork covering everything installed by the factory inside the coach.

I have traveled all over New England with my 2001 in late fall and never had a problem with freezing as long as the tanks were not completely empty. Some find when storing the coach that leaving an incandescent lamp running in the sewer bin is sufficient to keep things from freezing when it drops below 32 degrees at night and the heat is not running.

[tmw188]

It probably has one run going into the basement tank area via the LP furnace only. Depending how cold and for how long I would be comfortable just running the LP furnace set as low as you can, they heat up fast and don't run long.

[NeilV]

You should only see daylight under the sink when the Sewer Bay door is opened since that is where some of the heat coming through the floor vent in the bathroom flows through to the sewer bay to keep it from freezing.

[Forkyfork]

Originally Posted by NeilV

You should only see daylight under the sink when the Sewer Bay door is opened since that is where some of the heat coming through the floor vent in the bathroom flows through to the sewer bay to keep it from freezing.

Wow that explains the faint light and why it looked like the back of the sewer compartment although the compartment was closed. I’ll have to have a closer look.

[Winemaker2]

Had a 2003 Adventurer 31Y
For short durations...days... in cold Wx I blew out the lines w compressed air.
About a 10-15 min job.
To be safe I drained WH and FW tank if expected much below 32.

[NeilV]

Originally Posted by Forkyfork

Wow that explains the faint light and why it looked like the back of the sewer compartment although the compartment was closed. I’ll have to have a closer look.

The bottom of the compartment is somewhat translucent on the newer ones however double check that the light has not been left on inside the compartment. If you forget to close the hose shutter that would let extra light into the compartment too.