Community Forums

keypontrikin · 09-18-2013, 05:38 PM

Howdy, I've got an idea to blow the water system out in my truck camper that I think should work.
It involves the male end of a garden hose, cut off a few feet long, a tire valve inserted and somehow sealed in the end, silicon, hose clamp, whatever, and a 12 volt air compressor. Thread the hose into the city water hookup on camper, open all or individual taps and turn on compressor. I don't think you could do any harm and if you left the hose long enough you could even build up some pressure.

Any opinions out there? I'm sure I'm not the first to think of this

Bob

dieselclacker · 09-18-2013, 06:11 PM

Bob,

You can buy a fitting as you described, but without the hose. Walmart, some locations, stock them in the camper supplies section, Home Depot, and Camping World. Cost less than 5 bucks. I would hold the air pressure to around 45 psi so as not to damage any connections. I do this to my motorhome every fall. Don't forget to winterize the traps in the various drain lines by filling them with pink stuff anti-freeze.

Skip426 · 09-18-2013, 06:12 PM

Only does a portion of the system, putting air in the city water connection. The city water " T's" into the water supply in the camper and the 12v pump is not purged of water by the compressed air.
You still have to run RV anti freeze, into the pump to protect it. Or remove it and put it inside, for the winter.
Main reason for blowing the lines , is so the RV A/F , is not diluted by water in the lines, and by blowing the lines ( max air pressure should be 30 psi. ) you get max A/F protection.
There are plastic fittings available , city water to air chuck.

I see Dieselclacker , types faster than I do.

n3or · 09-18-2013, 06:16 PM

Check out Camping World. Called blowout plug. On sale for $1.54

Triker56 · 09-18-2013, 06:17 PM

Blow out plug $1.59 no need to cut a good hose up.

ShapeShifter · 09-18-2013, 06:28 PM

Blowout plugs are cheap and widely available, but they typically share the same problem - they're made with a tire valve stem. This limits the amount of air that can go through them, and you have to hold a tire chuck on them the whole time.

I made my own with an air hose coupler stud and a few plumbing fittings from the home center:

A male hose fitting, a reducer bushing, and the air fitting stud. Simple is good.

It works well: screw the fitting into the city water connection, then snap the air hose onto the fitting and off you go.

Of course, while that gets most of the water, there are still some other details to handle, as mentioned by others.

TeJay · 09-18-2013, 06:40 PM

I have used the standard method once and could never get the awful taste of the RV antifreeze out of the water lines. You are on the right track using a compressor. That's how I've winterized my 3 TT's and three MH's with no ill effects. There are some precautions that you should take. I cut about a foot off a 5/8" hose and connect it to the city water connection. Now connect a small air regulator with a gauge. I've got several that I use for paint guns. You can get them at HF for a few bucks. Now screw in another fitting so you can quick disconnect your air compressor line to the regulator. Once I make this up I just leave it and use the set up any time I winterize.

When you are going to flush first open all faucets in the coach. Turn the regulator to off and connect your air source. The worst thing you can do is set it for 40 lbs of air pressure and connect it to your water lines. All that pressure trying to move that water may break a line or fitting. Now open the regulator to slowly build the air pressure. The water in the lines will begin to blow into the drains. When some air starts coming out increase the air pressure to about 40 lbs. Then I go around and close some of the faucets so I can build up a little pressure in the bath then the shower then the kitchen. Flush the toilet and open the shower faucets in and out. Bypass the hot water tank, and take off and drain any filters. Drain all low point drains, add antifreeze to the traps, run your pump a few times to make sure there is not water in it and you're done.

That's how I've always done it and I've never had any problems. Actually our 2014 WBGO Vista lists two ways of winterizing in the coach in the owners manual. They explain the standard way with anti-freeze and also how to use an air compressor to blow the water out.

Shapeshifter's idea above is very good but I'd add a regulator to the setup as well. I won't do it unless I have control of the air. I want to be able to regulate the volume and pressure of the air that I allow into the water system.

TeJay

burfurd · 09-18-2013, 06:52 PM

I have also used the air compressor to blow out the water lines to winterize.

Now, I just drive south to FL for the winter, no more winterizing!

burfurd

clyon51 · 09-18-2013, 06:53 PM

I agree with Skip, blowing air into City Water is not enough. If you insist on using air, you would want to drain the fresh tank and make sure the pump has no water in it as well as the lines to the check valve, which separates the city water from the fresh tank. I've done air before and it is more time consuming and less convienient for me than RV A/F. Generally speaking though, your plan is fine as many RVers use air rather than A/F. As already said, there are air chuck adapters for water hose connections.

mel s · 09-18-2013, 07:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by clyon51

I agree with Skip, blowing air into City Water is not enough. If you insist on using air, you would want to drain the fresh tank and make sure the pump has no water in it as well as the lines to the check valve, which separates the city water from the fresh tank. I've done air before and it is more time consuming and less convienient for me than RV A/F. Generally speaking though, your plan is fine as many RVers use air rather than A/F. As already said, there are air chuck adapters for water hose connections.

I've simply, (and ONLY), gravity drained my hot and cold fresh water system for 12 years...... (NO air, NO RV antifreeze).
Mel
'96 Safari, (in Wisconsin)

keypontrikin · 09-18-2013, 07:22 PM

I am going south for the winter, those birds aren't only ones to figure it out

However we don't get home from our South Pacific cruise till mid-November and it can dip below freezing up here at that time of year.

I won't put that awful tasting anti-freeze in my water system again so the air flush seems like the best bet.

Once again thank for the good information. I'll put it to good use.

Bob

clyon51 · 09-18-2013, 07:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mel stuplich

I've simply, (and ONLY), gravity drained my hot and cold fresh water system for 12 years...... (NO air, NO RV antifreeze).
Mel
'96 Safari, (in Wisconsin)

That's great Mel, is that your recommendation for all new RVers regardless of their rig?

mel s · 09-18-2013, 08:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by clyon51

That's great Mel, is that your recommendation for all new RVers regardless of their rig?

"Gravity draining" is not my recommendation, (or suggestion).
It just is what I do, (and have done for 12 years), before storing my coach in WI winter temperatures with no freeze problems.
Mel
'96 Safari

ShapeShifter · 09-18-2013, 08:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TeJay

Shapeshifter's idea above is very good but I'd add a regulator to the setup as well.

I have a small regulator/gauge, to which I've added a male coupler stud to the input, and a female coupling to the output. It's very handy to add to the end of a line when I want local control of the pressure. It would work well in this case.

My first step is to open the low point drains and open all faucets, and I let a lot of water drain while the compressor is charging up. Then, with everything still open, I connect the air. With most of the water out, I don't get any big slugs of water hammering their way through the system. I then start closing valves starting near the city water and working to the end of the line. Mostly I just get mist out of the various faucets and spigots.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TeJay

I have used the standard method once and could never get the awful taste of the RV antifreeze out of the water lines.

We get some pretty harsh winters around here, so I do both: blow out the water, then pump antifreeze through. (Blowing out first minimizes the dilution of the antifreeze, so it takes less.) Then I blow out the antifreeze, which minimizes how much stays in the lines. In the spring I sanitize the water system with a bleach solution. By the time I've flushed the bleach out of the lines, the antifreeze smell/taste is gone. When I didn't blow out the antifreeze, it took much more flushing to get all the antifreeze out.