RV Antifreeze: How Much Should You Use?
Winterizing your RV is an important part of RV ownership. That said, there are a lot of things to learn about the process. One of the most common questions we hear is, “How much RV antifreeze do I need?”
If this is something you’ve been wondering too, you’re in luck. Today’s article addresses this question, as well as a number of other questions about antifreeze and winterizing an RV, so you can go into the RV winterization with the appropriate amount of antifreeze and a good amount of confidence to go along with it.
Let’s get started.
What is RV antifreeze?
First, let’s talk a little about what exactly RV antifreeze is. If you’ve never winterized a trailer or motorhome before, you’ve probably never worked with RV antifreeze. This could leave you wondering what it is, where to get it, and if you really need to buy the stuff.
RV antifreeze is a non-toxic formula that is usually pink or red in color and can be put into your RV plumbing system to keep it from freezing when cold weather strikes. Because other types of antifreeze cannot be ingested by humans, it is very important that you stick to the non-toxic, RV-specific antifreeze when putting it into your water system. Fortunately, RV antifreeze will always be labeled as such, making it easy to distinguish from other types of antifreeze.
Generally speaking, antifreeze can be purchased anywhere RV parts can be found. This includes Amazon, Walmart, and stores like Camping World.
How do I use RV antifreeze?
Now that you know what antifreeze is and where to buy it, you’re probably wondering what to do with the stuff. We already mentioned that it is put into the RV plumbing system to prevent freezing, but what steps do you need to take to get it into the system, and how do you know you’ve covered all of your bases?
The video below does an excellent job of explaining how to winterize an RV using RV antifreeze. Be sure to follow the steps carefully and you will end up with a well winterized trailer or motorhome that will make it through the off-season.
How much RV antifreeze do I need?
Now for the question that likely brought you here: “How much RV antifreeze do I need?”
It varies based on the size of your RV and your winterization methods.
If you don’t bypass your water heater when winterizing, you will need a whole lot more antifreeze than those who completely drain the water heater tank and employ a water heater bypass system. Meanwhile, those with tiny pod trailers will need less antifreeze than those with large fifth wheel trailers. Another factor to consider is how much antifreeze you will pour into the wastewater holding tanks.
All that said, if you follow the steps linked above (which do have you bypassing the water heater), you should not need more than 2–4 gallons of antifreeze. This includes a couple of quarts of antifreeze for each wastewater tank, which should be poured down the sink drains in order to replace water in the P-traps with antifreeze and thus avoid frozen pipes beneath the sinks.
Can RV antifreeze be stored?
Let’s say you purchase three gallons of antifreeze but only end up needing two. Can the extra antifreeze be stored?
Yes, it can. Not only can antifreeze be stored, but we actually recommend keeping a jug of RV antifreeze on hand at all times. This can come in handy if you run into freezing temperatures while out on the road and you don’t have heated tanks or an enclosed underbelly. In this case, you can dump some antifreeze down your wastewater tanks to keep them from freezing.
When storing antifreeze, you will want to ensure the lid is tightly sealed to avoid spills and keep contaminants out of the bottle. Although the stuff is safe to ingest, pets and kids shouldn’t drink large amounts of it. Of course, we also recommend storing it out of reach of children.
As long as your antifreeze is stored in a tightly sealed bottle, you can expect it to last 1–4 years. You can confirm the life of your antifreeze by finding the expiration date on the bottle. While most antifreeze will remain effective after the printed expiration date, it’s best not to risk it. After all, antifreeze is pretty inexpensive and tends to be easy to find.
Can I winterize my RV without antifreeze?
What if you find yourself in a place where antifreeze can’t be found? What if you just don’t want to use antifreeze in your system? Is it possible to winterize your RV without any antifreeze? This is a very common question, and the answer is yes, it is possible.
Winterizing an RV without antifreeze involves using compressed air to blow all of the water out of the lines. When done correctly, this method works just as well as using antifreeze. However, it does require some special equipment that you may or may not have on hand.
If you wish to winterize your RV without antifreeze, you should carefully follow the instructions in this article.
Hopefully, this article helped you determine how you will winterize your RV and how much antifreeze you need. Be sure to grab your supplies and keep extras on hand so you can keep your RV winterized through any surprise freezes. This will help ensure you spend less time fixing the RV and more time camping once spring rolls around.
Make sure you keep track of all your RV maintenance and repairs with an online tool such as RV LIFE Maintenance. Not only can you keep all of your documents in one place, but you’ll also receive timely reminders when maintenance is due to help you avoid costly repairs and potentially serious accidents.
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Paul says
I use about 1/2 gallon of antifreeze.
After blowing the H20 system with air (all faucets open) at a regulated 30psi I pour two cups of antifreeze in each p-trap done deal.
Geoffrey Mayer says
Very informative information, Thank You…
William R Johnson says
It is important to know that if you rig has an AquaHot hydronic heating system, using compressed air to blow out the lines is not sufficient. It will not remove all water from the fresh water coil, resulting in thousands of dollars damage. You must pump RV antifreeze through it to ensure all water is removed.
Dave Mohler says
I have read a number of articles likes yours and all seem to not address being sure that the onboard water pump is either flushed with RV Antifreeze or air is circulated through it. So what is your suggestion to ensure that this little piece of pricy hardware is flushed.
Thanks
Dave
Mary Ellwood says
We use RV antifreeze in 7 pint ball washers on a golf course. How much antifreeze should we use?
SlimShady says
I would think around 7 pints?
Samantha Nichols says
I winterize my RV every year. I’ve been using this antifreeze for several years with no problems. Great price and 4 gallons give me at least 2 years of winter storage. This was great for winterizing a home’s plumbing before temperatures hit 12 degrees.
Samantha Nichols says
Every RV needs to winterize their vehicle ahead of the winter months. This is how you prevent damage to your motorhome and save time and money.
Jay says
We have our MH in a garage and plugged in, but before we were able to do that, I winterized with RV antifreeze. The main areas are your water pump, the water heater and any water-using appliances, like a washing machine or dishwasher. First, remove any water filters you don’t want to discard. If you have any stored water in containers, transfer them to your house. This includes your water softener tank, if you have one – you must remove it from your RV! Next, expect to use a few gallons of the RV antifreeze. Your fresh water tank and holding tanks should be empty. Blowing out the water with a compressor can be done if that pressure is kept down to about 50 PSI. Higher pressure can damage water lines. But you won’t be able to remove all of the water with it. If you have a standard, LP heated water tank, you can save on antifreeze if you can drain it. The drain valve is usually white polyethylene and can break off, which is very bad. Make sure you have a replacement drain plug before you even attempt to remove it. If the drain plug will not back out while using moderate force, don’t remove it! The cost of the extra antifreeze required to winterize the hot water tank will be small in comparison to removing and replacing a broken off drain plug! After you’ve done that, you should have a water intake valve to rotate. It will be near a short length of clear plastic hose that you place it inside the gallon container of antifreeze. It should NOT be sending water into your fresh water tank. If you were able to drain your hot water tank, there’s a valve to divert water from re-entering that tank. When the pump is turned on, you should turn each cold water faucet on and when the water turns pink, turn that faucet off. If you have a faucet in your holding tank area, don’t forget to do that one too. If you have a hand sprayer there, unscrew it. Any water left inside the sprayer can crack it. Flush the toilet until you see pink. Next, do the same with your hot water faucets. Lastly, start the washing machine or dishwasher and watch for pink. When you see it, stop their cycles and let it rinse out. Turn off the pump and pour a cup of antifreeze down each sink drain. If you have any antifreeze left, pour some more down a sink drain and down the toilet. You now have antifreeze in each line and holding tank except for the fresh water tank. I generally don’t put antifreeze in the fresh water tank because it’s difficult to rinse out and I’ve never had a problem if the tank is empty. Turn the valves back to their normal operating positions so that when you un-winterize, water will be ready to enter the fresh water and how water tanks and so forth. The RV antifreeze is non-toxic but it is sticky as well as a known skin irritant and you will want to run water through all of the lines until there’s no more pink when you un-winterize. If you left in any water filters, they need to be replaced after flushing out any residual antifreeze. Before turning on the heat to your hot water tank, make sure cold water is flowing out of the hot water faucets.
One last thing: Look at the MH in the picture covered in snow and ice. I don’t know if this RV is in a campground or stored in someone’s back yard. If it’s in a campground, you can’t open your slide-outs or you will get snow and ice on and around them. Any topper awnings will get iced and they won’t retract with the slide-outs. You will have to get up on the roof and chop up the ice and remove the snow on everything. That will damage your toppers and could damage the roof, plus the roof will be very slippery. How well can you use your coach if you can’t use your side-outs? I’ll let you answer that. Driving with ice and snow left on the roof can damage your AC shrouds as it bounces around like billiard balls and it could fall onto other vehicles. Having a luxury RV with a Hydrohot/Aquahot furnace and 2 heat pumps, we were nice and toasty inside. Watching the snow fall in the mountains of Ruidosa, NM was gorgeous during the Thanksgiving weekend. Then, everything outside became really bad when we tried leaving for home on Sunday AM. Don’t fool yourself: RVs are not properly designed for winter weather living and travel (cars aren’t much better), but if you’re real lucky, you might not have problems.
Jared says
I recently bought an IBEX 24′ mds20 with Beast Mode and 4 season package. I plan to use it during the winter in Tahoe to ski so obviously the goal is not to winterize it. If I keep it plugged in with heater going and tank heaters on will I be good or is it still at risk of feezing and bursting water lines and fixtures?