gasgas Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 I've asked at lots of engineering and motor trade places but haven't found an antifreeze to put in the water system for the winter. I have also searched this forum to no avail. Quick, before it gets down to -15 again. What do we do to stop expensive bits from bursting when it freezes? Obviously we drain everything, but I would like to chuck a few litres of antifreeze in the tank and pump it through to stop the little bits from freezing. I wondered about salt, but I dont know if there are metal bits of pumps or other things that would corrode. I wondered about car antifreeze, after all they use it in wine, don't they? But my car antifreeze has a skull and crossbones on it which makes me wonder. I dont drink main water tank water so if no one knows of anything I'll use antifreeze, or screen wash, and just flush it through when its spring again and I sing again and bring you tulips from Amsterdam. There must be a low freezing point chemical that is harmless, or at least only kills rats in labs. Any chemists out there? What's the market - would Dragons be interested? Probably not enough demand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 Antifreeze for potable water systems exists and is popular for RVs and boats. See: http://www.laleisure.co.uk/camco-winterban-antifreeze-100-1827-p.asp You'd use it exactly as you've described, draining it out of the system before refilling in the Spring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gasgas Posted November 28, 2011 Author Share Posted November 28, 2011 Ah Derek, thank you so much. All I need is Polly Properlean. And she's so cheap - er well what I mean is that its a lot better to pay £25 for the antifreeze than whateveritis for a new water heater. Seems that quantity would last about 5 doses. Thanks, I'll get it. End of thread, I guess. Brilliant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robinhood Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 ......and if you can wait a short while for delivery, you may be able to save some money. ;-) http://www.mobilervmaintenance.co.uk/fresh-water-products/antifreeze-for-motorhomes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hallii Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 Vodka works well, add enough to make it about 1:1 and then add a bottle of Coke. Stops freezing and keeps you warm :-D H Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted November 29, 2011 Share Posted November 29, 2011 Robinhood - 2011-11-28 6:59 PM ......and if you can wait a short while for delivery, you may be able to save some money. ;-) http://www.mobilervmaintenance.co.uk/fresh-water-products/antifreeze-for-motorhomes Could be, but it would be necessary to consider the cost of the -50 product and the -100 one when dilution has been factored in. See the relevant section in: http://www.motorcaravanning.co.uk/shopuk/water_products.htm The snag with using antifreeze to protect the water systems of 'European' motorhomes is that it's only a small percentage of the system that genuinely needs protection. - the "little bits" to which gasgas refers. If the water system is drained down conventionally, there will be sections of water hose, connectors, etc. in which water will remain, and it's only those areas that really require antifreeze in them instead of straight water. However, a European motorhome's design pretty much forces you to completely fill the system with an antifreeze mixture to reach the vulnerable areas, which, in turn, means you need to use a large volume of anti-freeze to protect a small volume of pipework. The methodology in the USA seems to be to pump the antifreeze (which is very cheap to purchase in the States) from the taps backwards, but it's hard to see how one might do this with a European motorhome. To introduce the minimum amount of antifreeze into a European motorhome's water system and still provide effective protection, it would be better to begin by isolating the (drained down) water boiler, as that's where the vast majority of the water system's volume lies. If you could isolate the boiler by connecting its cold-water feed to its hot-water outlet, you'd probably need no more than a litre of antifreeze to completely fill the system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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