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Old 01-11-2005, 09:00 AM   #41
Boxer44
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My wife and I are spending the winter in central Minnesota (call us nuts!). We have a 2955 with Artic package and it has been a challenge to keep the water flowing. I've gotten a lot of good ideas from others here and have some additional information to add. I'm staying at Grand Casino RV park in Hinckley MN. The electricity is included with the spot so I've taken advantage of that to add a lot of electric heat to the trailer. I have (3) 700 watt space heaters inside the trailer and placed (2) 700 watt space heaters inside the belly of the trailer along with (2) 300 watt (60 ft) roof deicing cables. I pushed the deicing cables through small openings under the holding tanks. I still had freeze up problems until I wrapped insulation around the three drain hoses sticking out the bottom of the trailer. I run on the internal fresh water tank and so far this arrangement has kept water flowing down to -5 degrees. The coldest we've seen so far this winter is -21 degrees and the inside of the trailer was comfortable and the furnace was only running about 50% of the time. With all the auxillary electric heat the furnace usually doesn't run at all until the temp drops below 20 degrees. I get about 3 days on a 30 pound tank of propane with the temp around zero. I get 6-7 days if the temp stays above 15 degrees. I hope this information is of use to you.
 
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Old 01-11-2005, 10:21 AM   #42
rames14
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Boxer44 -

You should get an award for getting that performance out of your unit. That's some cold temperatures. I know I visited Roseau, Minnesota one year and all of the parking meters had electrical outlets to plug your car into for the heater. I bet the RV park will reevaluate their fees after they get the bill for your electric. Good luck. We're supposed to get to minus 7 Friday. You'll probably be much colder.
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Old 01-19-2005, 07:23 AM   #43
Boxer44
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rames14

We lost the battle to keep our water lines open when the temp hit -28. When that happens, I put a 5 gal bucket under the sink and run the winterizing hose from the water pump into the bucket to provide a limited amount of water for the trailer. I think the freezing problem is associated with the hot and cold drain lines that extend out the bottom of the trailer. I have these insulated but I don't think I have enough for really cold temps. I'm going to try and add more insulation but hope we've seen the last of the really cold temps.

Another problem we have when the temp drops below -20 is that the propane doesn't vaporize well enough to run the furnace efficiently. I solved that problem by putting 2 100 watt light bulbs inside the propane storage compartment. They keep the tank at about +20 even with -20 outside.

One last problem we've encountered is that our diesel doesn't want to start when it gets down around -20 so I have to start it about every 4 hours since we don't have a heater on the engine.

In general, I have been impressed at how well the trailer handles the really cold temps. You get some really severe temp gradients around the trailer with it being around 68 in the center of the trailer to around freezing on the outside walls.
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Old 01-19-2005, 12:14 PM   #44
sreigle
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Really good information, Boxer44. Thanks. We put heat tape on those low point drains then insulation over that. That stopped those from freezing although we **only** got down to minus 5 F.

Which model and year, particularly year, is your Montana? Our 2003 could never handle that many heaters going at the same time. We'd be popping breakers all the time. I think the newer ones have a better electrical setup.
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Old 01-24-2005, 08:51 AM   #45
Montana_676
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steve&vicki, yes u were about 10 miles from my home from I-40.If I'd have known you were coming thru,I'd have brought u a fresh jug of coffee for the road.Glad to here your in warmer weather,maybe I'll catch u next time.As for Boxer44 he did indeed pull off a miracle,I have the same rig and did apply the use of heaters.But mine kept tripping breakers,So once again a job well done B44!!Until the next time,Take care & Stay safe,rick.
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Old 01-24-2005, 09:29 AM   #46
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steve&vicki,had the time to review your postcards.Quite beautiful!Thanks for sharing.I hope my wife and I will be able to load up and hit the road too one of these days.as for now,work prevails. take care,rick.
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Old 01-25-2005, 05:43 AM   #47
Boxer44
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This is to answer those questions about our electrical supply. We have 3 15 amp circuits available inside the trailer, a 2005 model 2955. We have a 750 watt space heater on each of those circuits plus on the bedroom circuit, I put (4) 100 watt light bulbs down in the pass-through storage compartment which is not normally heated but has all the bathroom plumbing running through it. I also have a 300 watt length of roof deicing cable pushed up through a small hole in the bottom under the black and grey water tanks. I plugged a 1000 watt space heater down in the belly into the 20 amp outlet on the power panel outside. I plugged another 700 watt heater into the 20 amp outlet on the power panel for the RV space next to mine since no one is there. This park has about 300 spaces and is full every summer weekend but now there are only 6 of us spending the winter here. Two or three RV's show up each weekend around here, but most of them are Canadian snowbirds stopping over on their way south.
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Old 01-25-2005, 10:02 AM   #48
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I'd like to see that meter. I bet that round disc is about to fly out of there. Your probably right about the cost.
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Old 01-25-2005, 03:31 PM   #49
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Boxer44, how did you handle it last week when it got soooo cold. I could hardly stand being out in my car let alone the RV. We're thinking about coming up to Hinkley this weekend.
What site are you in? I assume you are right by the bath house as that's the only area that they leave the water on during this time of the year. We like staying there and meeting our kids or friends from Duluth. It's about half way for each of us.
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Old 01-26-2005, 03:55 AM   #50
sreigle
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In talking with the factory I found out our 2003 model has just 6 circuits to service the coach, despite having 50-amp service. The newer (not sure when this started) have 12 circuits. So that explains a lot.
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Old 01-28-2005, 04:55 AM   #51
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boxer44,I have the same rig 03 year.Is yours a 50 amp or is it a 30 like mine? And yes I think your nuts to be in Minnesota right now unless your in the building trades like I am (Ironworker) and your having to chase the work like I had to two winters ago.Des moines,Iowa,the WHOLE winter.Had all I wanted.My buddy was in Mason city,He left in Dec.Take care & stay safe,Rick
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Old 03-01-2005, 09:13 PM   #52
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I realize this is an old post, but maybe I can help someone too. We like to go north in the fall. The colors in northern Michigan are fantastic and we frequently go around lake Michigan so I can work a couple of days at Illinois Railway Museum. We do this in September and October. Temp's in the low twenties are not uncommon at night in the U.P. Have so far been lucky with Montana (1999 3255rl) and I do mean lucky! While updating it found just enough insulation in the rear(between inner wall and the rear end cap) plus what was in the belly to fill a small pail!! Granted the "Arctic Insulation" package wasn't offered in 1999 but the literature claimed R9 insulation. Apparently they still employ the same joker to write their ad' copy today. I wonder if they have heard of truth in advertising?? Anyway, last summer I installed a black tank flush kit and while I was under there also installed fiberglass batt insulation. Menards sells these batts in bundles they are 8' long and 24" wide, and wrapped with plastic so easier to work with, the 8' length worked very well between the frame rails, with enough to wrap around the tanks and the pipes and go up to the floor. Took two bundles to do our coach. The bedroom floor is open to front compartment, which is open to outside to vent battery fumes and is also open to the hitch box (look up into hitch box from the back and you are looking at the br'floor)! The coach seemed to be easier to heat after installation even though I didnt get bedroom floor finished before vacation. by the way if you see a duct going from below the floor up to the top of the front compartment, wrap it with insulation also. That is if you want heat in the bedroom. I also found a gap between the front wall and the front edge of the closet floor big enough to slide my hand in up to the palm so if you find the same gap in your coach, plugging it up will help cut down onthe waterfall effect on the bedroom floor and the steps. Hope this helps someone. Terry
If anyone wants more info' on this contact me.
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Old 03-05-2005, 08:26 PM   #53
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We are going to be buying a used 2955, we think, some time in the next few months. We hope to full time by fall and will probably follow the generally temperate temps most of the time. Still we will no doubt find ourselves in below freezing conditions now and again. Just wondered if y'all in the know would recommend the artic package as a definite requirement in our rig or since I plan to upgrade some anyhow, as indicated in this forum, maybe it wouldn't be such a big deal should we find the right unit without the package? Thanks in advance! Dave
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Old 03-06-2005, 02:07 AM   #54
CountryGuy
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DD Travelers,

Welcome to the forum, congrats on your future plans to full time!

We find the the Artic Package does help, and in our experience, seems to help more in the warmer weather, than the real cold stuff.

If you are in a situation where it dips below 32 for a few hours, that is one thing. If you are in a situation where it gets real cold for a long time, you might want to consider some of the fine suggestions for tweaking (adding insulation, heat tapes, etc.) that have been posted here in the past. (please visit the search button here at the top of the page, what a great resource that is!)

Anyone know what year the Montanas started with the Artic Package??

Good luck with your plans and happy travels!

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Old 03-06-2005, 04:21 AM   #55
sreigle
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Welcome aboard, DD Travelers! I think Carol said it very well. We found that without modification we were ok down to about 17 degrees. At that point we had water lines freeze up inside the belly. The furnace ran a lot and we used a lot of propane. We've made some modifications to ours and this past winter had a night down to five below. We froze again at that temperature despite the improvements. We spend Nov/Dec in the Kansas City area, near our kids and grandkids so we have to endure that weather until after Christmas. We use two electric heaters to cut down on propane use when we are not paying for electricity. But if there is a danger of freezing you need to make sure the furnace runs enough to pump heat into the belly.

If the temperature will at or below about 28F for more than an hour or so, then either disconnect the outside water hose and use the internal water tank or heat tape your water hose and the park's supply spigot. There are a number of threads with lots of great ideas on this subject. Let us know if you need help finding them.

It sounds like your below freezing times will be minimal so you mostly just need to make sure the furnace runs enough to pump heat into the belly on sub-freezing nights. Also, if you won't be way below freezing for days, then if hooked up to sewer you might let a faucet trickle to keep the water moving. Don't do this if very cold, say teens and below, for many hours or days or you'll just fill the sewer hose with ice.
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Old 08-30-2020, 05:51 PM   #56
Travelin’ Gran
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Montana_657 View Post
Sounds like it would work, but the cost would probably keep most of us from trying it.

The of course the space required. There is lots of room in the belly, but it would have to be serviced from underneath. I guess a corner of the basement would work, but then you lose storage space.

A larger duct from the existing furnace with a thermostaticly controlled damper might be feaseble... lots of bang for the buck and light weight. When the belly warms the extra air flow could be redirected into the coach.
Would this work? (Late to this thread! Checking about furnaces) https://www.hoyme.com/index.php?opti...106&Itemid=122
Also, I have a friend with a mobile home that leaves an old fashioned trouble light with a regular light bulb plugged in under the mobile to help keep the pipes area “warm”- could something like that work for the basement /connections area?
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Old 08-31-2020, 06:09 AM   #57
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It might work, but I would be concerned about safety and reliability.
Honestly, I camp every year for 2-3 weeks in sub-zero temperatures during November, hunting season. I get everything warm with the furnace, then set the furnace to 60 degrees, the lowest setting possible. I run the heat pump, fireplace and a small ceramic heater with a fan in the kitchen area and point it up the stairs to the bedroom.
The furnace hardly ever kicks on. I used 20% of one 30 lb propane cylinder during the 3 weeks we were there last November, and that included cooking a few times.
I also ran the tank heaters the whole time, which are basically heating pads attached to the tank. I bought a wireless thermostat with 3 remote sensors and put one in the basement pass through, one in the garage and one outside with the base in the kitchen. Coldest it got in the camper was the basement pass through and it stayed will into the upper 50's and above the whole trip. The only freeze I had was I forgot about the water hose for about 2 hours after filling the fresh tank and it froze up. I was able to flex it a few times and run water through it to thaw it with no problems.
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