First time to de-winterize

[JMaire]

Alrighty, so one more concern before our maiden voyage ... the dealer told us that the MoHo had been winterized (good). My hubby seems to think that once we get to our destination, the full-hookup park, 50 miles from home, that we can just run fresh water through the sinks and shower until ... he says, “awhile.” I’m wondering how long should this be? How will I know “awhile” has been long enough? Does this just all dump out into the gray water tank? Should the gray water tank be open as we’re running the water through?

I feel for the fellow RV’ers that find themselves parked next to us over the next few months of our learning all this.

[keymastr]

If the hot water tank was by-passed as it should have been then after running water through all the lines until it runs clear then you need to open the by-pass valves so you can fill the water heater. Wait until all the lines run clear or you will flush some pink stuff into the heater.

Then you should fill and flush the fresh tank. and then sanitize the whole system by adding 1/4 cup of bleach to the fresh tank for every 15 gallons that it holds, fill the tank with water and run that through every faucet, both hot and cold until you smell bleach at each location. Allow that bleach solution to sit for several hours if possible to fully sanitize the tank and systems, drain and fill one more time, (or two), and it is ready to use.

If they used good antifreeze as opposed to the cheap stuff that contains methanol, or if they used compressed air and did not use antifreeze at all then you can skip the sanitizing if you want but it really takes very little effort. I do mine a couple times a year.

Yes, you should keep the gray tank open while flushing or at a minimum be very vigilant about watching the levels on the tank monitor. If it starts to back up in the shower drain the tank is full.

Good luck and happy camping!

[ike66]

Rv anti freeze is usually pink in color and non toxic so will not harm you if swallowed. If your at a place with water simply hook water up to city water connection and run each faucet and toilet until you no longer see pink fluid coming out.
Make sure the drain plug is in the water heater, find the bypass valve and turn to fill water heater up.
No need to worry about anti freeze in grey water tank just empty when full or you leave the site.
Good luck!!

[Ray,IN]

Addition: if you discover an aftertaste after the RV anti-freeze has been flushed out of the plumbing, mix 1/2 cup of baking soda to 1G of water and add to your fresh water tank when at 1/4 then fill tank. Pump this solution through all your plumbing system, allow to sit for an hour minimum. Of course it will not cause you any harm to drink(no taste) the baking soda solution, especially if you have a tummy ache, otherwise flush with clean water.

[JMaire]

Thanks y’all and for the details too. We did not know about the hot water tank by-pass valve when flushing, nor the the possible need to sanitize. I’ll call the dealer and find out what they use. Lol, my grandmother used to drink water with baking soda for her tummy ... works in a pinch!

[NCC-1701A]

Keymastr has it right. Sanitizing doesn't necessarily have anything to do with the non-toxic antifreeze. It ensures that your fresh water system is indeed ready to drink from by killing things in there that might make one sick. Since you have no idea what kind of hose has been hooked up to your system or what might have been in it or what the end may have touched, the sanitizing is a safety step. I liken it to rinsing your fresh fruit and vegetables before eating them. You might not get sick by eating them right from the store shelf....or you might. Why risk it? Every owners manual I've ever had mentions the sanitation process they recommend. You might want to check that as well.