Born Free Leap'n Lions RV Club Info & Discussion Forum

We are in Sweden on our way back to Lillehammer, Norway where we will leave Rover for the long dark winter. We have stopped at several large RV and marine places here and no one carries the pink stuff we so easily find in the US. They apparently blow out the plumbing lines with compressed air and while we have an air compressor we carry with us, we do not have the necessary attachments or really know how to do it without damaging anything. And doesn't that still leave the drains to contend with? Anyone know if Vodka works? We have two weeks to figure this out.

David and Susan Bratt wrote: And doesn't that still leave the drains to contend with? Anyone know if Vodka works?

Yes, vodka works, at least around Annapolis to a normal winter low of -15 F. A friend winterized the fresh water system of his boat with cheap vodka every year for decades. When your water pump pushes some vodka through the faucet, the spillage will take care of winterizing the drain. Because of the lack of color difference, you may need to rely on taste to be sure it is completely through the system. Don't forget the toilet, outside shower, and the hot water heater. Myself, I prefer the visual confirmation of the $5 a gallon pink stuff.

A little red wine takes care of the clear color problem. We have used that for several years with the clear stuff we bought in Luxembourg.

You might try windshield washing fluid. I am sure they would have some that does not freeze.

At the suggestion of a former BF owner of Scandinavian descent, we found a plumber who supplied us with something he said would work and was not toxic. We are not even sure exactly what it is, but we used it and Rover was delivered to her covered storage this morning. Within a week or so we will post a final blog entry about the costs of this 3 month trip in Norway, Sweden and Finland.

bechlumber wrote:You might try windshield washing fluid. I am sure they would have some that does not freeze.

Just for the record, Do not use windsheild washing fluid in your plumbing system! It is not intended for human ingestion. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency ... 002803.htm According to this NIH website:

"Methanol, the main ingredient in windshield washing fluid, is extremely poisonous. As little as 2 tablespoons can be deadly to a child. About 2 to 8 ounces can be deadly for an adult. Blindness is common and often permanent despite medical care.

The ultimate outcome depends on how much poison was swallowed and how soon treatment was received.

Although many windshield washer fluids are a watered-down form of methanol, they can still be dangerous if swallowed."

Not so many years ago the RV antifreeze (the pink stuff) tasted awful. And when you rinsed it our in the spring you could run 20 to 35 gallons of clean water through the lines before the taste would be tolerable - a lot of rinsing!. To me that is a very good indicator of how long a toxic substance could persist in your water lines.

Mike

Just to be on the safe side, I'd buy an over-abundant supply of Vodka, winterize the fresh water system, drink the excess Vodka, and then PEE in the PEE-TRAPS..............