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Old 07-22-2018, 07:17 PM   #1
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Winterizing the refrigerator ice maker

Hi guys, I've been watching a lot of YouTube videos on how to winterize my coach and my question refers to the ice maker. I've turn the knob to turn the water off towards the ice maker I can disconnect the line going to the filter and drain that but how do I make sure there's no water in the line that is before the turn off knob? I've read that I can just gravity drain it or pressurize it. But I have no way to pressurize my system. All I have is a battery jump starter with a air pump on it that does not have a tank.

Any help is appreciated and let me know if I'm overthinking the process. What I plan on doing is using my on board water pump to run antifreeze through the system then letting some antifreeze spill out of the bottom of the filter line before the filter. So no antifreeze goes into the ice maker itself.

The refrigerator is it Dometic RM 3862, 2007. Mounted in a 2007 Dynamax isata on a e-450 chassis.

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Old 07-22-2018, 07:41 PM   #2
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Interesting Question. If you get the pink stuff to the ice maker and it never freeze's how do you get rid of it?
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Old 07-22-2018, 07:43 PM   #3
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Interesting Question. If you get the pink stuff to the ice maker and it never freeze's how do you get rid of it?
The plan is to disconnect it it before the filter so no pink stuff ever goes beyond the filter. As seen in the last picture. What I'm trying to figure out is how to get all the water out between the filter in the ice maker itself perhaps just mouth blowing into the line? I have a distant relative I can ask to do it. LOL
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Old 07-22-2018, 07:51 PM   #4
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I would buy a can or two of compressed air and use it to blow out the lines. A rag can seal the small hose into the water line enough to blow water out. The solenoid valve must be disconnected because it will trap water in the line beyond it. Gravity can drain a lot of water out, the compressed air will blow enough water out to prevent it from freezing.

If RV antifreeze was pushed into the icemaker, paper towels could be used to blot up the antifreeze, the tray filled with fresh water, blotted, until all the pink is gone. I know its O.K. for humans, but I just rather wouldn't want to. Then you can turn on the refrigerator to cool down.
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Old 07-22-2018, 08:01 PM   #5
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I would buy a can or two of compressed air and use it to blow out the lines. A rag can seal the small hose into the water line enough to blow water out. The solenoid valve must be disconnected because it will trap water in the line beyond it. Gravity can drain a lot of water out, the compressed air will blow enough water out to prevent it from freezing.

If RV antifreeze was pushed into the icemaker, paper towels could be used to blot up the antifreeze, the tray filled with fresh water, blotted, until all the pink is gone. I know its O.K. for humans, but I just rather wouldn't want to. Then you can turn on the refrigerator to cool down.
So I should be able to put the can of compressed air just against the line going into the solenoid. And not going through the whole system. That should push water out into the ice cube trays. That should work. Thank you much. Maybe I can even find an adapter from my compressor on my jump box that can do the same thing.
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Old 07-22-2018, 08:17 PM   #6
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So I should be able to put the can of compressed air just against the line going into the solenoid. And not going through the whole system. That should push water out into the ice cube trays. That should work. Thank you much. Maybe I can even find an adapter from my compressor on my jump box that can do the same thing.
This just occurred to me what I have to cycle the ice maker itself to blow the water out or will it just flow out because the pressure?
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Old 07-22-2018, 08:18 PM   #7
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So I should be able to put the can of compressed air just against the line going into the solenoid. And not going through the whole system. That should push water out into the ice cube trays. That should work. Thank you much. Maybe I can even find an adapter from my compressor on my jump box that can do the same thing.
The solenoid valve only opens when electricity is applied. You'd have to disconnect the line at the solenoid and blow out the line beyond the solenoid.
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Old 07-22-2018, 08:25 PM   #8
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I have winterized my residential reefer with water and icemaker using the following procedure.

1) attach compressed air fitting to city water connection and pressurize to 25 pounds.
2) run water at all faucets until air is expelled.
3) remove reefer water filter and cap if necessary.
4) run water from door cold water dispenser until air is expelled.
5) leave compressor attached overnight with the refrigerator powered. this will allow the ice maker to run through a number of cycles and expel all water trapped in the ice maker solenoid and water lines to the ice maker.
6) close water line pop-up valve to reefer and run RV antifreeze through the rest of the system using the water pump winterization connection.

This has worked flawlessly for me for years with no issues and no antifreeze contamination of the reefer ice maker or cold water lines. This process avoids needing to access the back of the unit or disconnecting any water lines to the reefer.
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Old 07-22-2018, 08:26 PM   #9
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The solenoid valve only opens when electricity is applied. You'd have to disconnect the line at the solenoid and blow out the line beyond the solenoid.
Got it I'll take it apart in the morning
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Old 07-22-2018, 08:28 PM   #10
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I have winterized my residential reefer with water and icemaker using the following procedure.

1) attach compressed air fitting to city water connection and pressurize to 25 pounds.
2) run water at all faucets until air is expelled.
3) remove reefer water filter and cap if necessary.
4) run water from door cold water dispenser until air is expelled.
5) leave compressor attached overnight with the refrigerator powered. this will allow the ice maker to run through a number of cycles and expel all water trapped in the ice maker solenoid and water lines to the ice maker.
6) close water line pop-up valve to reefer and run RV antifreeze through the rest of the system using the water pump winterization connection.

This has worked flawlessly for me for years with no issues and no antifreeze contamination of the reefer ice maker or cold water lines. This process avoids needing to access the back of the unit or disconnecting any water lines to the reefer.
That's that is what I think is the problem I don't have a compressor, I'm at a campground in Salt Lake City and all I have is a jump start box with a small compressor built in
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Old 07-22-2018, 08:54 PM   #11
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That's that is what I think is the problem I don't have a compressor, I'm at a campground in Salt Lake City and all I have is a jump start box with a small compressor built in
What's nice about Sbrownstein's method is he didn't have to take any of the fittings apart. Compression fittings tend to leak after taking them apart a few times, most of the time they suggest new compression rings when reassembling the joint. If you don't want to spend the money on an air compressor, they can be rented at any tool rental, including Home Depot. The cost of repairing a freeze damaged plumbing system should be worth a compressor purchase or rental.
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Old 07-23-2018, 05:49 AM   #12
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That's that is what I think is the problem I don't have a compressor, I'm at a campground in Salt Lake City and all I have is a jump start box with a small compressor built in
Even if you only have a small compressor you should be able to push remaining water out of the lines as far as the reefer connection. Then leave pressure in the line and only purge the reefer water and ice-maker. Doesn't take a lot of air volume to do that.

However, you still need to make sure that you have a popup valve so that you can turn the reefer feed off when you winterize the rest of the system with antifreeze.
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Old 07-23-2018, 01:51 PM   #13
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Even if you only have a small compressor you should be able to push remaining water out of the lines as far as the reefer connection. Then leave pressure in the line and only purge the reefer water and ice-maker. Doesn't take a lot of air volume to do that.

However, you still need to make sure that you have a popup valve so that you can turn the reefer feed off when you winterize the rest of the system with antifreeze.
I am not sure what a pop off valve is, I do have a valve that turns off the water after the filter and before it goes to the solenoid is that what you were referring to?
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Old 07-23-2018, 01:57 PM   #14
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What's nice about Sbrownstein's method is he didn't have to take any of the fittings apart. Compression fittings tend to leak after taking them apart a few times, most of the time they suggest new compression rings when reassembling the joint. If you don't want to spend the money on an air compressor, they can be rented at any tool rental, including Home Depot. The cost of repairing a freeze damaged plumbing system should be worth a compressor purchase or rental.
That's part of the hard part about living in Hawaii. I don't have a toad and my coach is my only Transportation. So I can't purchase something and store it. It's only 24 ft. And finally finding somebody to help me do it is an issue. Everyone around me in this Campground is 20 or 30 years older than I am and I don't think physically capable of helping. I am going to see if I can find a can of compressed air to blow out the solenoid directly from the line after shut off switch
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