Heated tanks and bay?

[Wannabe]

I understand that we have a 12V DC heater in the water bay, but are some or all of the bays heated when the furnace is on? I live in a fairly warm winter climate and with past RVs just stayed plugged in with the propane furnace on low heat (about 40) and the tanks were heated. If Monaco's do have heated bays then why the 12V heater? Still trying to learn about my unit for my first winter. Thanks for any replies!

[Our Time]

The bays are not heated. Having said that, with the furnace on some heat leaks to the bays but I wouldn't plan on it to keep it from freezing in very cold weather.

[Wannabe]

If the bays are not heated, then does the 12V heater protect the water tank, both holding tanks, and the exposed water lines some of which are on the other side from the heater? Will the mode 2 furnace (which I assume to be the smaller) be enough to protect the coach or do you need to run both furnaces?

[Tha_Rooster]

I would say a lot depends on how cold it gets and how long it stays. In L.A. (lower Alabama ) should not be a problem.

[wa8yxm]

12 and 120 volt tank heaters were offered as both an option and after market item by many manufacturers and dealers.. The 120 volt heat system I have (Christmas tree lights, type C-9 plus a 100 watt light bulb) add about 10 degrees.. A thermostat turns them on at 35 degrees. when I'm no shore power.

To see if your furnace heats a compartment pick a cool day. Fire up the furnace and give it the face test.... Open the compartment and feel for the warmth of the furnace. The nose, cheeks, eye lids etc will know if it's heated by the furnace or not.

Why have both?

Well... When you are driving you have lots of 12vdc.. however many people tell us to turn the propane off when driving for safety reasons. (I often give my opinion of this advice in detail but won't repeat it here.. Suffice to say I dissagree with it)

When you are parked you turn the propane, and thus the furnace, back on but you no longer have abundent 12vdc unless you have shore power or run the genny. You only have what is in the batteries.

[digNbubbs]

I have been stuck in the cold the last month or so, and still have no idea what is best. It does not appear that my system heat is working, and I will be looking at that once I am in a place where I can tear that all out. I am not running the propane furnace, but rather using a propane catalytic heater to warm the coach instead. I also use a small electric heater in the bedroom at night. I am not running the furnaces because I don't want to break camp and go refill propane constantly.

The basement and water bay have not gotten terribly cold. I have remote temperature sensors that I watch. I have a 100W light bulb that I put in the wet bay on the coldest nights (20-25 degrees).

So far, nothing has frozen. I fill the tank to about half full each day to make sure I have some water until the hydrant and hose defrost in the morning.

Incidentally, I did run the furnace a bit to see what the temperature change might be, and I didn't notice any change. I only ran the furnace for a few hours, but noticed no noticeable change. I was running the rear furnace, which is not in a slide and is closest to the tank storage area.

Ultimate solution - I am going to get the hell out of Colorado. Enough of this cold stuff.


--kev

[nodine]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wannabe I understand that we have a 12V DC heater in the water bay, but are some or all of the bays heated when the furnace is on? I live in a fairly warm winter climate and with past RVs just stayed plugged in with the propane furnace on low heat (about 40) and the tanks were heated. If Monaco's do have heated bays then why the 12V heater? Still trying to learn about my unit for my first winter. Thanks for any replies!

The 12 volt bay heaters are very unreliable and prone to failure. I would suggest that you install a remote temp monitor so you can monitor the water bay temp from inside the coach or your stick house. If you store the coach away from your house and do not have a shore power connection then it would be best to winterize. The 12 volt heater will run down the house batteries very quickly. I personally have installed a 110VAC heater in addition to the 12 volt heater. While parked at home I always have shore power and leave the 110 volt heater on. I also have remote temp monitoring and AGC for the generator in case the shore power fails.

I was disappointed to find that the water bay on our coach was not heated by the furnace.

Bob

[JimM68]

From the owners manual for my Knight:

Cold Weather Conditions
Extended use in below freezing (32° F/0° C)
weather will require operation of the furnace
to protect interior water lines, fixtures, water
storage tanks and pumps. Exposed drains
may freeze quickly. If in doubt about what
temperature the motorhome will tolerate,
winterize with potable antifreeze. Cold
temperature can adversely affect water systems
below the floor level because the furnace does
not provide heat to these components. A 12 Volt
bay heater and thermal snap disc are located in
the water service bay. The System Heat switch
on the monitor panel operates the bay heater and
should be turned on when ambient temperatures
approach 44º F (+/-6º F) and freezing

temperatures occur.

Seems kinda ambiguous. "Turn on the furnace to protect the ... storage tanks", then later "below the floor level the furnace doesn't provide heat"

[Rex]

You and I live in the same area - LA - lower Alabama. I am in Foley.

On my coach there is a vent on the front of the shower. Removing that and looking inside one can see about a 12" square hole into the service bay where air can flow from the living area into that part of the basement. Problem with that is that critters can also come up through there.

My coach has a winter package with tank heaters and the small electric heater in the service bay. If you keep water in the tanks and lines, even in LA, and no heat of any type you will have some freezing problems. I drain everything and blow the lines out to winterize and that has worked fine in this area.

I plan to close the big hole under the shower. A good alternative to the bay heater is a 60 - 100 watt bulb in an automotive type drop light.