6 tips on how to de-winterize a camper
As the snow clears and spring starts to show up, you may be tempted to head out in your RV. Before you take off, though, you need to be sure that it’s ready for the season. To make sure your camper is safe and comfortable, there are a few steps you should follow as part of dewinterizing it.
Remove the covers on your tires and wipe off the trailer.
The first step to dewinterizing a camper is removing the covers from your tires and wiping off the trailer. Make sure all of your tires are in good condition and that they have enough air pressure, as well. For example, if you’re checking tire pressure once a week or so (which is highly recommended), it’s important to use a tire pressure gauge along with a water-soaked rag to find out whether there are any leaks in any of them.
Disconnect your camper battery and charger if it wasn't connected during the winter.
There are a few things you should do with your battery and charger to make sure they're in good shape for next year.
Disconnect the battery and charger if it wasn't connected during the winter.
Remove the battery and charger from the camper, or at least store them separately from each other—batteries can freeze, which can cause damage or death to your motor home's electrical system.
Store both items in dry places where they won't be exposed to moisture or extreme temperatures (freezing cold and hot) as much as possible; remember that batteries are not only sensitive to temperature changes but also humidity levels! If you have any concerns about storing these items outside when temperatures dip below freezing outside, bring them inside! Better safe than sorry!
Drain the holding tanks
If you have a black or gray holding tank, drain them both. If you have only one, then just the one.
If you don’t know how often to empty your tanks, ask someone at the RV dealership where you bought your RV (if it was recently). If not, check with the manufacturer of your camper and see what they recommend.
How much should I drain my tanks? That depends on how full they are when I start draining them. But if I was going on a trip for two weeks and didn't want any surprises when I got home, then I'd drain my tanks enough so that there wasn't any water left over after emptying them each time I emptied them during that two-week period (which means more frequent emptying than usual).
Where do I put all this gross stuff? In an RV dump station! It's easy because most campgrounds have them right outside their gates so all we have to do is drive up next door with our sewage hose attached to our back door while they take care of everything else inside our trailer (no mess!). And if there isn't one nearby then look around until we find one nearby; usually there will be some kind of sign telling us where one lives within walking distance from where we parked ourselves overnight at Walmart."
Turn on your propane tank
Turn on the propane tank
It's important to make sure that your water pump is turned off before you do this, because it could cause a lot of damage if you don't. You also want to make sure that your propane tank is turned on, and check the level in case there needs to be more added during the winter season. This will help avoid any leaks in the winter months when there may be problems with freezing temperatures caused by low pressure from inside tanks and lines due to larger amounts of cold air surrounding them every day should something go wrong with a system using propane for heating purposes (like refrigerators).
Check for leaks throughout entire system
If everything checks out okay so far, then it's time to move onto checking each part individually before connecting anything together again: one at a time until all four items have been checked thoroughly enough not just once but twice over so nothing happens later down road where someone might have overlooked something important like having forgotten about making sure everything is connected properly while checking only three different things instead of four (because they knew beforehand which ones were supposed to be connected together). Then after double checking everything again after making sure none had been missed previously
Check for leaks in your plumbing, water heater or propane lines.
Now it's time to check for leaks. If you've had your camper winterized properly, it shouldn't have any. But sometimes even the best service can fail, so it's important to scope out all of your plumbing, water heater, and propane lines before heading out into the great outdoors (or at least until you get back home).
To do this, start by checking all of your plumbing with a leak detection solution—a mixture of food coloring or dye diluted with water to give off a bright color when mixed with either water or gasoline. This helps identify sources of leaks easily that otherwise might not be apparent because they're hidden behind walls or under furniture.
Next up: check every inch of your camper's roof for leaks by running an imaginary line across it from side-to-side until reaching each corner; then repeat on other sides if necessary. You should also check under each wheel well for drips as well as around any screws holding down parts like ramps or platforms near exterior walls (these can often become loose over time).
Finally: Go over all areas where pipes enter through walls using the same method described above—if there aren't any visible signs yet but something looks suspiciously damp on either side of where they come through then start looking hard! You'll want try this method twice more: once while standing inside and once while standing outside looking inward towards
Cleaning out your RV from top to bottom
As you clean the interior, be sure to remove everything from the camper so that you can properly clean it. The following is a list of things to ensure are removed:
Cabinets and drawers
Blinds and curtains
Walls, floors, and windows
Start up your RV and make sure all of your appliances work properly.
To make sure all of your appliances work properly, start up the RV and go through the motions of operating each one. Check that the water and sewer connections are tight. Make sure you can turn on the water heater and get hot water in the shower. If you have a propane-powered refrigerator, make sure that it works properly before turning it off for winterization.
Check several things with your furnace: that it runs when you turn on the heat, that there's hot air coming out of vents when "heat" is selected as a setting on your thermostat control panel (you may need to cycle through some locations), and that airflow from a vent feels warm or cool depending on whether it's set low or high. You should also make sure all air conditioner connections are tight; if not tightened correctly, they can leak refrigerant gas into an enclosed space which could be dangerous if undetected over time!
After checking all electrical connections in an RV (generally speaking, they're pretty straightforward), turn off propane tanks at their valves outside where they were filled after emptying them inside; alternatively, use one-way valves explicitly installed for this purpose instead! Finally, don't forget about microwaves: most modern models will shut themselves off automatically once finished cooking food; otherwise, check each button carefully because almost everything else does too...
De-winterizing a camper takes a lot of steps, but it's easy when you're prepared.
The New Year is approaching, and it's time to think about how you want to start the year. For many people, it's an opportunity to get organized and make a fresh start in their lives. For others, it's an opportunity to take care of all those little tasks piling up over the holidays.
One task on many homeowners' lists is de-winterizing their campers. If you're one of those people who haven't gotten around to de-winterizing yet, don't worry! We've got the lowdown on what this process entails and some tips for getting started.
Conclusion
It’s essential to do your research before buying a camper to know if it needs to be winterized and what that entails. If yours does need it, follow these steps and then do some more research on how to ensure it stays in tip-top shape during off-season use! Ensure all of your units are turned off when not used, check for leaks often (especially around windows), or keep them closed until spring when things thaw out. Then finally: Get out there!
