Winter can be rough on RVs—especially if you don’t know what
you’re doing. But there’s good news: the more you know about how your RV
functions, the better it will be able to come out of the cold season come
spring. One of your first priorities should be keeping your RV holding tanks from freezing. Here’s how to keep RV holding tanks from
freezing.
Understanding Your Holding
Tank
In newer RVs, you can typically expect that your holding
tank has some insulation and protection from the outside world. But while
insulation is great, that doesn’t mean it’s going to solve every problem for
you. In fact, you should be wary of it having the opposite effect where you no longer think about it and therefore
leave it to freeze.
Have a look at the positioning of your holding tank. This
can have a dramatic impact on how much of the interior heat it takes on during
the winter. If your tank is underneath
much of the heated area, however, keep in mind that heat rises—which means you
won’t get as much heat to the tank.
Winterizing Your Holding
Tank
Let’s say you want to store your RV during winter. If you
want your tank to perform at its best come spring, you’re going to have to
winterize it. There are a few steps you can take here, including:
- Make sure
that the entire water system is empty. Leaving water in the system will
make it more prone to damage from freezing. Instead, you’re going to want to
store a clean, dry, and empty RV water system—and that includes your RV holding
tank. Don’t wait until too late in the year for this! You want to do it while
it’s still warm. - Clean out
the tank before finishing your winterizing. Why is it so important to keep
the tank clean? Because if it does get cold, anything that’s still in it can be
susceptible to freezing, which is not good for the tank. Think about what you
want to have happen in spring when you come to get your RV again and you’ll
have a much better chance at enjoying a healthy RV.
Keeping your RV in the best shape possible means that you
have to prepare for the cold months just like you would prepare for any other
challenge. Fortunately, if you follow the steps above, you can keep your RV holding tanks from freezing have plenty of
confidence that your RV will be in top condition when it’s time to use it again.
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