How To Winterize Your Vehicle

Fresh and Grey Water Tanks

1. Empty the fresh water tank.

2. Turn on the water pump and open all the faucets. Run the pump until all the faucets run dry.

3. Turn off the water pump but leave your faucets in the open position.

4. If applicable, remove the water filter and turn it upside down to empty as much water as possible. We suggest taking the water filter inside to a temperature controlled area for the winter or leaving it in the van's sink upside down. The water filter is the most common thing to crack from being frozen.

5. Grey water containers will also need to be emptied, but a little bit of water sitting in the bottom is okay.

Water Heater

1. Flip the water heater breaker to the off position. This should remain off until the van is dewinterized and the water heater is hooked back up to the system.

2. Disconnect the plumbing line from the top of the heater.

3. Use a jumper to connect the blue inlet line to the red output line.

4. Using a shop-vacuum, cover the fill connection on the water heater tank with your hand and put the vacuum hose over the outlet inside. Use your hand around the vacuum hose to create a seal so that it sucks the water out of the tank. Do this until the tank is empty.

If there is no access to the water heater tank, you can run RV antifreeze through the van (you will need a lot of it)! Run antifreeze through the system until all the faucets are running with pink liquid in both hot and cold positions. When you dewinterize the van, you will need to run clean water through the system with the faucets on the hot setting and ensure all antifreeze is out before turning the water heater breaker back on.