De winterizing water lines

[Teamgreger]

Can anyone help me? I flushed my water lines of rv antifreeze before our first trip a few weeks ago. We are now day three of our second trip and I still have a faint taste and scent of antifreeze in the water. What do you use to eliminate this? Thanks for the help
James

[BRONCO2009]

The generally accepted method of sanitizing your RV's fresh water system as outlined below involves filling the fresh water tank with a solution of household bleach and running the solution through each faucet. Then letting it stand for at least three hours. Finally, flush the system once or twice to remove the taste and smell. I will have to see if I have it written somewhere what part bleach to water.

[BRONCO2009]

This procedure is one you'll find in most any book about RVing it tried and true but be sure to read on to find out what I do.
Start with a nearly full fresh water tank.
Turn the water heater off and let the water cool.
Dilute 1/4 cup of household bleach for each 15 gallons of tank capacity in to a gallon of water.
Add the chlorine/water solution to the water tank. (Never pour straight bleach into the RV fresh water tank. )
One faucet at a time, let the chlorinated water run through them for one or two minutes. You should be able to smell the chlorine. (Make sure you are using the water pump and not an external water supply.)
Top off the RV fresh water tank and let stand for at least three hours over night is better.
Completely drain the system by flushing the faucets for several minutes each. Open the fresh water tank drain valve to speed up emptying the tank.and Open the hot water tank drain plug and drain until it is empty.
Close all valves and faucets and drain plugs.
Fill water tank with fresh water.
Flush each faucet for several minutes each repeating until the tank is again empty. (Make sure you are using the water pump and not an external water supply.)
Fill the tank again. The water should now be safe to drink but if the chlorine odor is too strong you can repeat the fresh water flush.
Your RV fresh water system should now be safe for use.

[distaff]

Regarding the taste of antifreeze in your system - you need to look for things that allow the water to mix with the antifreeze instead of pushing it out. The hot water tank is one, drain it for starters although you are probably getting the taste from the cold system.

If you put any antifreeze in your fresh tank, it will take a really long time, but you didn't suggest doing that. If you did you have to dump the tank, rinse it, and then refill.

I found that my biggest problem was the filter units that came with the coach. Mine were two fairly large plastic cylindrical canisters that each held a filter. I would take the filters out to winterize but had to put the canisters back to pressurize the system.Blowing the lines clear doesn't empty them because the inlet and outlet are both at the top of the canister. When you fill the system with antifreeze they become mixing stations. If you have them, after you flush some water to clear out the front end of the system, you have to drop them rinse them out and fill them with water and put them back. I have now removed the filters permanently and use them outside the coach (I filter the water going into the tank or into the city connection).

If you don't have built in filters, you need to run a lot of water. BTW, I usually do this while on city water and run the taps into a big bucket to avoid filling my black and grey tanks.

[Gormleys]

Another method is to suck in vinegar through the same connection you used to load in the antifreeze. Supposedly it both sanitizes and counter acts the antifreeze. But lots of water flushing is still the best.

[Debarde]

Originally Posted by BRONCO2009

This procedure is one you'll find in most any book about RVing it tried and true but be sure to read on to find out what I do.
Start with a nearly full fresh water tank.
Turn the water heater off and let the water cool.
Dilute 1/4 cup of household bleach for each 15 gallons of tank capacity in to a gallon of water.
Add the chlorine/water solution to the water tank. (Never pour straight bleach into the RV fresh water tank. )
One faucet at a time, let the chlorinated water run through them for one or two minutes. You should be able to smell the chlorine. (Make sure you are using the water pump and not an external water supply.)
Top off the RV fresh water tank and let stand for at least three hours over night is better.
Completely drain the system by flushing the faucets for several minutes each. Open the fresh water tank drain valve to speed up emptying the tank.and Open the hot water tank drain plug and drain until it is empty.
Close all valves and faucets and drain plugs.
Fill water tank with fresh water.
Flush each faucet for several minutes each repeating until the tank is again empty. (Make sure you are using the water pump and not an external water supply.)
Fill the tank again. The water should now be safe to drink but if the chlorine odor is too strong you can repeat the fresh water flush.
Your RV fresh water system should now be safe for use.

Rob

[mano]

Originally Posted by BRONCO2009

This procedure is one you'll find in most any book about RVing it tried and true but be sure to read on to find out what I do.
Start with a nearly full fresh water tank.
Turn the water heater off and let the water cool.
Dilute 1/4 cup of household bleach for each 15 gallons of tank capacity in to a gallon of water.
Add the chlorine/water solution to the water tank. (Never pour straight bleach into the RV fresh water tank. )
One faucet at a time, let the chlorinated water run through them for one or two minutes. You should be able to smell the chlorine. (Make sure you are using the water pump and not an external water supply.)
Top off the RV fresh water tank and let stand for at least three hours over night is better.
Completely drain the system by flushing the faucets for several minutes each. Open the fresh water tank drain valve to speed up emptying the tank.and Open the hot water tank drain plug and drain until it is empty.
Close all valves and faucets and drain plugs.
Fill water tank with fresh water.
Flush each faucet for several minutes each repeating until the tank is again empty. (Make sure you are using the water pump and not an external water supply.)
Fill the tank again. The water should now be safe to drink but if the chlorine odor is too strong you can repeat the fresh water flush.
Your RV fresh water system should now be safe for use.

Can you leave your hot water tank on bypass, or run it thru hw tank?

[Sky_Boss]

Originally Posted by mano

Can you leave your hot water tank on bypass, or run it thru hw tank?

It is my understanding that when winterizing with antifreeze that one would drain the HWH and then bypass it before using antifreeze so none should be in the HWH. Sound correct?

Now, I bought this MH in January with it already winterized. I'm thinking that I would:

1. First flush the antifreeze out with the HWH still in bypass.
2. Go ahead and remove the HWH drain plug to both inspect the tank as best I could then flush it to remove debris and gunk.
3. Then fill my tanks with the bleach solution including filling the HWH with the same solution. Followed that by running water through all faucets until I smell chlorine.
4. Let sit over night. (I will be doing this at home so I will drive it back to storage to get things mixed up nicely.)
5. Next day I will drive it back home, drain fresh water tank then refill with fresh water, run fresh water through all faucets with special attention to hot water taps. (Might even remove HWH drain plug and flush it again to limit amount of water going into grey tank since I don't have quick access to a dumping station.)
6. Drain fresh water tanks one more time and refill. Don't forget to refill HWH if needed before turning it on.

Seem like a plan?

[Nuts]

We just purchased a 2007 Allegro 28 DA and I would really like to sanitize the fresh water tank, because we have not found anything in the RV that has ever been cleaned. The problem is no one can tell me where the drain is for this coach ??? I have contacted Tiffin and the drain is not located where they think it should be ???? There is no indication that anything was changed from the factory, so where did it go...

Anyone out there have an Allegro 28 that can help ?

Thanks

[Teamgreger]

Thanks everyone, I did bypass the water heater and only filled the line through the suction line. I am going to get some vinegar and pull it through the lines. Once again thanks for the response.
Spring break camping on the Oregon coast

["007"]

When you sanitize the water system you do the whole system even the water heater.
Two stickies above in this forum have the info.

[DeWat]

Originally Posted by Sky_Boss

It is my understanding that when winterizing with antifreeze that one would drain the HWH and then bypass it before using antifreeze so none should be in the HWH. Sound correct?
...

Correct. That's 6 or 10 gallons of antifreeze not needed and saved. When dewinterizing and first flushing the antifreeze out of the system, it is good to leave the water heater bypassed for the first few gallons while flushing. This ensures that the antifreeze is flushed out of the bypass lines since that's where it went during winterization. If you don't do this, you may have residual unflushed antifreeze in the bypass lines that can mix with the fresh water. Not a lot, but could be enough to detect in taste and smell.

["007"]

You sanitize the HWH to eliminate the possibility of the rotten egg smell during summer months.
Yes you do use the by-pass valves when you winterize to stop flow of anti into the HWH.

[JLFarley]

I am so thankful to this forum, My wife and I just purchased our first RV a Tiffen Allegro 28 gas , it is winterized already and yesterday I just had a thought of how do I undo this ! now thanks to you all I now know .
Thank you all again !