*As originally seen in Trailer Life Magazine*
As the colder weather approaches, many of us are faced with the task of preparing our RV for cold weather storage, which primarily involves protecting the water system from freezing.
The procedure for this involves draining down the entire system, including water heater and tanks, blowing out the plumbing with low pressure compressed air, and then using RV antifreeze to further protect the fresh water system and the P-traps in the waste system. This process, while not overly burdensome, requires some resources and equipment, and many people shy away from doing it themselves for fear of doing it wrong and causing untoward damage to their expensive RV.
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Enter the Floe 636 automatic 12-volt RV winterizing system, distributed in the USA by Lippert Components. The Floe, by Northern Ireland’s APT Innovations, Ltd., has been in use in Europe to winterize caravans and motorhomes. At the end of the day, the Floe is a permanently installed 12-volt compressor system that makes blowing out and protecting the water system on the go, as simple as flipping a switch and a valve, and going through the water system as you would while winterizing.
Unlike a standard compressor, the Floe unit runs off 12-volts DC and is designed to provide the optimal air pressure to blow out the system without risking damage. It also eliminates having to carry yet another bunch of tools and equipment. It turns winterizing into a simple affair without having to run cords, attach an air chock to the fresh water inlet, stretch out the air hose, and so on.
The real beauty in this system is, for those of us who travel in winter, to not only have the convenience of being able to winterize at a stopover on the way back north from a southern vacation, but if we’re out in below-freezing conditions and the heat goes out, being able to protect the system from freeze damage.
We, of course, were curious about what this system could do, and if the claims of needing absolutely no mechanical knowledge to install, it was true. We received the unit and did the install during an RV testing trip to Florida, which ended in an abrupt departure back north at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. As it turned out, that was an excellent opportunity to test the system.
Opening the box, the Floe 636 includes all the pieces you need to install it, and there are detailed videos online to detail the process. The tubing and fittings, including those that attach to the PEX plumbing, are all push-to-connect style fittings. You will need a pipe cutter for the PEX and a screwdriver or drill motor to install the unit, and if you plan on using a 12-volt DC receptacle for power, then there’s nothing else you need. If like us, you want a more permanent, finished installation, then you’ll need to wire it into an appropriately fused circuit in the RV. There’s a power switch on the top of the unit, but a snap-on remote switch is included for the power cord, or a permanent switch can be purchased and installed as needed. A marker, tape measure, and a selection of hand tools will be helpful.
The installation will vary by RV, so we won’t go into the details here, but you will need access to the back of the city water inlet and a spot to mount the Floe unit. In our case, we installed the unit in a fifth-wheel, so we removed the front compartment wall panel by the water utility where we could reach everything easily, and installed the Floe unit on the wall where it and the shut-off valve were accessible.
While the plumbing cut-in should be very easy on most RVs, some, like ours, have short pipe connections behind the utility panel, which required removing the city water line altogether and cutting it precisely to fit back in. Just an extra step, quite straightforward.
Operation
The concept is pretty simple. The Floe takes the place of an external air source, hose, and fitting screwed into the city water inlet. This is an easy process; drain and bypass the water heater, turn on the Floe unit and let it build pressure, then go through and open one outlet at a time, both hot and cold. Let the Floe unit build pressure between releases. Once every outlet is done, the water is removed.
A few critical points to keep in mind. First, remember that every pipe and fitting that has water in it will need to have the water removed! Icemaker lines, black tank flushers, fresh water fill lines (valve activated, not gravity), washers, dishwashers…you get the point. Every RV will have low point drains that go through the floor. Those also must be blown out. Make sure that water appliances like those mentioned above have been properly winterized. In many cases, that may require the use of antifreeze to completely protect all the interior components like valves and pumps.
Those with tankless water heaters may not be able to winterize with the Floe or any compressed air system to prevent damage to the water flow sensor, so in that case, RV antifreeze should be used.
The Floe system worked as promised, and we were able to winterize at a Flying J in Virginia, dumping tanks and blowing everything out, before our last leg to New England. Having done plenty of cold weather RVing, I’ve had to panic winterize once, and it would’ve been much easier had I had something like this. Even now, to be able to take the truck camper out for a weekend during the winter and easily winterize at the end of the weekend, what a convenience!
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