Faulty Faucet in Freezing Temp

[jlghamel@gmail.com]

i have hot water in the bathroom faucets but, no hot water in the galley. could this mean a frozen line, or a faulty faucet ?

[Cate&Rob]

i have hot water in the bathroom faucets but, no hot water in the galley. could this mean a frozen line, or a faulty faucet ?

I see that this is your first post . . . welcome to our forum!
If you provide more specifics of which RV model you have (or fill out your signature with this info) this will help us help you.

If you are in sub-freezing temps, the most likely cause is your first guess . . . a frozen hot water line to the galley. This is not an uncommon problem. These are usually the longest runs from the central water system and are often lying directly on the coroplast, so not much insulation from the cold. The propane furnace has ductwork to this space, but this can be overpowered by the outside cold. If you have exposed low point drains, these can be the source of an "ice plug" that extends up into the lines above the coroplast. Some have put insulation over these exposed drains to help prevent this.

Rob

[Cate&Rob]

jlghamel@gmail.com
I have moved this discussion to the "Technical Forum" Plumbing section . . . where it will likely find more input/ideas.

Rob

[Second Chance]

I concur with (the other) Rob. We had this very problem early on before I redirected the heat duct under the kitchen island, put foam pipe insulation around the lines to the kitchen faucet, and added insulation on top of the Coroplast under the kitchen island. You also have to be sure to run your main propane furnace - it's the only thing that heats the basement (the fireplace and portable heaters won't).

(Another) Rob

[jlghamel@gmail.com]

Thank you for your responses. I have a Reflection, 303 RLS. It is bitterly cold up here in Canada right now. I have skirting around my fifth wheel. I've been underneath to inspect and notice, the Coroplast is about 30 feet in length. Does it ALL have to come off to warm the area enough? Can it break apart if not removed in it's entirety? Is there anything that may fall down or become difficult to handle should I remove the Coroplast? Thanks again for the suggestions.

[ncitro]

I know in the extreme cold I have heard of people putting a space heater (I would get the kind that shuts off when it tips over) in their basement for extra freeze prevention. If your skirting is insulated enough, you could even try one on the ground under the trailer as well.

As far as pulling the coroplast I have never dropped it all, but you can drop one end or the other easy enough. It is just thin plastic and folds back out of the way. The harder part is getting it back up and attached. Best done with a second set of hands if available.

[Second Chance]

Thank you for your responses. I have a Reflection, 303 RLS. It is bitterly cold up here in Canada right now. I have skirting around my fifth wheel. I've been underneath to inspect and notice, the Coroplast is about 30 feet in length. Does it ALL have to come off to warm the area enough? Can it break apart if not removed in it's entirety? Is there anything that may fall down or become difficult to handle should I remove the Coroplast? Thanks again for the suggestions.

You DON'T want to remove the Coroplast - it helps keep the heat in below the flooring. We merely reference the Coroplast because you would have to cut an access window in it to inspect the heat duct and add insulation to the water lines and on top of the Corplast. The best location do this is from directly under the kitchen faucet forward a few feet. RV/mobile home underbelly repair tape is a good way to tape the three sides of the flap you cut in the Coroplast when you're done.

Rob

[Second Chance]

I know in the extreme cold I have heard of people putting a space heater (I would get the kind that shuts off when it tips over) in their basement for extra freeze prevention...

This will help in the main basement area - but not with the kitchen island water lines. Those lines exit the main storage and utility area to run back to the kitchen island.

Rob

[jlghamel@gmail.com]

Thank you all so much for the help. I have cut an access and am now heating the (what I believe) affected area. Here's hoping for success and milder temperatures. I am truly thankful for joining this group.

Lou

[Second Chance]

Let us know how things work out.

Rob

[Cate&Rob]

Thank you all so much for the help. I have cut an access and am now heating the (what I believe) affected area. Here's hoping for success and milder temperatures. I am truly thankful for joining this group.

Lou

Hi Lou,

On the Reflection 303, the water lines to the galley follow the water line to/from the water tank just inside the left frame rail. The low point drains sticking through the coroplast underbelly connect to these lines. See attached picture.

A while back, I rebuilt my plumbing system and installed underbelly access doors. A longer story for another time, but in this rebuild/renovation, I included a 120V Car heater (from Canadian Tire). I had to install a remote thermostat to control the underbelly to 10C (50F) but this has worked well.

(another Canadian) Rob

[boyscout]

A while back, I rebuilt my plumbing system and installed underbelly access doors. A longer story for another time, but in this rebuild/renovation, I included a 120V Car heater (from Canadian Tire). I had to install a remote thermostat to control the underbelly to 10C (50F) but this has worked well.

Rob, would you sell your trailer? $500K?! I'd *SO* like to have already-done all of the things you have done to forestall trouble with our trailer.

[Cate&Rob]

Rob, would you sell your trailer? $500K?! I'd *SO* like to have already-done all of the things you have done to forestall trouble with our trailer.

Hi Mark,

Well . . . for 20% of that number . . . it would be gone in a flash . Well . . . maybe 40% . . . the next one is gonna need a bigger truck . . . LOL.

I will write up the details of the electric underbelly heat. I mentioned it in the plumbing rebuild writeup, but it went through a couple of "refinements" after that. Originally I followed the "car installation" instructions and fastened it to the underside of the floor and was counting on its internal thermostat . . . that didn't work. The surface above got way too hot and the internal thermostat is set for something like 50C. So . . . I made an aluminum heat shield with a 1" air gap to the surface above and added a remote thermostat that I could set to 10C. I put this thermostat in front of the propane furnace duct outlet so that if the furnace is on, this will shut off the electric heater. I have a wireless temperature sensor in a far corner (near the low point drains) by which I can monitor the whole works. At -14C (7F) outside temp (coldest we have experienced) it was maintaining 10C +/-3C (50F) in the underbelly. Probably less aft near the galley . . . but, we never experienced the freeze-up described by Lou in his original post.

The other thing that I did was to put a sheet of 1/2" rigid foam against the underbelly coroplast for most of its length. This is far better insulation than the foil supplied as OE. The newer rigs have this foil bonded to the coroplast, so this might be better than the loose layer in my vintage 303.

Rob

[Maurizio]

We just got a 2670mk and we are in Canada. Last night temperature went down to minus 5 Celsius and our warm water pipe is froze. Left the tap open and unfrozen in abaut 2 minutes. Has anyone experienced this and found a solution

[howson]

We just got a 2670mk and we are in Canada. Last night temperature went down to minus 5 Celsius and our warm water pipe is froze. Left the tap open and unfrozen in abaut 2 minutes. Has anyone experienced this and found a solution

Good morning, Maurizio, and welcome to the forum. I haven't finished my first cup of coffee yet so the first answer to your question that came to my mind was, "Yes. The solution most Canadians implement is wintering in Florida."

Cate&Rob (a Canadian wintering in Florida!) addressed your exact question in post #2 of this thread.

In addition, some folks have rigged faucet covers over their exterior drains.