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Born2RV · 03-16-2017, 05:42 AM

We leave in a week for sunny Florida, but the temps are unusually cold here in Michigan for late March. Usually we wait until the day before we leave to dewinterize, then run the furnace in the motorhome overnight. However, it fogs up the windows so bad that we have a hard time clearing them up when we leave at 4:00 a.m. or 5:00 a.m. in the morning! So much condensation!! And I'm afraid that if we just run the little ceramic heater inside the coach overnight, that there's a risk the pipes could freeze with overnight temps of 21 degrees. We've talked about waiting to dewinterize until our first stop, which will be after 12 hours of driving, but it looks as if it could be raining down in TN/GA, and we both will be very tired. What are your experiences???

okcnewbie · 03-16-2017, 05:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Born2RV

....However, it fogs up the windows so bad that we have a hard time clearing them up when we leave at 4:00 a.m. or 5:00 a.m. in the morning! So much condensation!! And I'm afraid that if we just run the little ceramic heater inside the coach overnight, that there's a risk the pipes could freeze with overnight temps of 21 degrees...

Have you tried leaving a window or roof vents open? Maybe you can't keep the condensation down when it's that cold but I would try more ventilation.

I found a link that may or may not help;
9 Tips for Reducing Condensation in Your RV

WDW · 03-16-2017, 06:26 AM

The nine tips are great, but I would add run a fan. One of those small turbofans running to help circulate air certainly is something that we find useful.

jayrodoh · 03-16-2017, 06:50 AM

I'm in the same boat. We leave next Friday for Virginia and it's been too cold to dewinterize and test out the plumbing. It's a brand new TT so I'd really like to test the pump, lines, and HW heater myself prior to being 500 miles away and using for the first time. In hind sight I probably should've made the dealer show me it was working and then winterize again during my orientation. Newbie mistake.

Good luck to you on your weather changing! I wonder if you could run a dehumidifier inside in addition to the heater? I wouldn't buy one just for one use but if you already had one might be worth a shot.

Sandy Swede · 03-16-2017, 08:19 AM

Personally, I wouldn't de-winterize until I had driven far enough south to where overnight temps are forecast to be in the 30's for the next several days. We left DE during a late spring cold snap and found ourselves in a snowstorm 50 miles from home. Stayed in a nice warm hotel that night and were glad we hadn't de-winterized. By the second night, we were in South Carolina.

Frozen pipes would get spendy. Throw a few jugs of water in the beast and head out. I would be more concerned about road conditions.