Winterizing a 2024 Tab 320

crobo

First year with my Tab. First off I drained my Tab in dry camp mode not powerfill. I did open some taps for awhile. To my surprise the Alde drained through the cw low point drain. I could tell because I still had warm water in the Alde. Drained for quite some time, unfortunately didn’t measure it. I got really nothing out of the yellow drain valve under the seat.

So I called NuCamp. Not really a problem with draining in dry camp mode especially if I’m blowing out the lines which I did later. And yes the Alde will drain though the cw low point valve.

I went back the next morning and redrained everything in powerfill mode with the taps all open. Didn’t get anymore water out of the Alde.

I then blew out the lines with the nautilus set at the 45 degree angles. And pumped in antifreeze in winterize mode. I turned the screen around in the inlet and raised the jug of antifreeze, anti freeze pumped right in no problems. Ran water though all faucets inside and out and the toilet. Antifreeze in shower drain.

Anyone see any problems. Especially with the Alde tank drain. Thanks.

crobo

Sorry should have said ran antifreeze through the faucets inside and out.

pthomas745

The way the Alde is "plumbed", cold water is delivered to the Alde tank, and the Famous Yellow Flapper Valve is on that line. So, opening the cold water low point drain will drain part of the Alde hot water tank. The Yellow Valve will also drain the Alde hot water tank. A lot depends on which order you perform this draining. If you look at that cold water line going into the Alde, the way the water would flow out would be toward that Yellow Valve or the Cold Water Low point drain. The Alde tank when completely full only holds about 2.5 gallons of water.

If you look closely at the Nautilus instructions, when you used the compressor with the Nautilus handles at the 45 degree position, what that did was blow out the Nautilus "harness" behind the Alde. It did not blow out the water lines to the trailer. When you used the antifreeze all the way to the faucets, that is where you "winterized" your plumbing lines.

In any case, it sounds like you did just fine with your process.

crobo

Ok thanks. I did get some water at the sink from the faucet before the anti freeze started flowing. So was some water still in the line. Is there a way to completely blow out the lines?

crobo

Will the Alde tank drain with the Nautilus in winterize mode? Read that some people leave the yellow flapper open all winter.

pthomas745

The Nautilus valves have nothing to do with the low point drains. The low point drains are gravity drains, and once you open them, water will just fall out. I usually have my trailer a bit "tongue up" when I open the drains, which helps a bit. Owners usually open the cold water faucet and a hot water faucet to prevent a vacuum from forming that can hold water in the pipes. Think about the "put your finger over a straw in a glass of water" trick where you can pull the straw out and have water being held inside the straw until you take your finger away.

If you are sure the Alde tank is drained, and the RV antifreeze has reached the faucets, the position of the Yellow Valve really does not matter. What it does signify to you is there is nothing in the Alde tank after winterizing. I understand that techs used to leave it open to prove to customers the tank is completely empty. Some owners keep all the low point drains open.

To "completely blow out to the faucets" you would use the compressor with the Nautilus handles at the "Winterize" position, and blow out to each faucet in turn. Many owners us the "blow out" method in that way, and only use a minimal amount of AF in the various traps or toilet valves, etc. (There are many many variations of trailers with different equipment).

It sounds like you did a decent job of winterizing. Remember that little trick about opening the faucets for a few moments to help water drain from the low point drains the next time you do this.

crobo

Ok so when I drained it the second time with the faucets open from the start is the proper way to go. That makes sense. So if I have the yellow flapper open after winterizing that proves there is no water in the Alde tank? Sorry being a bit anxious with this being my first time winterizing.

pthomas745

Please ask any question you need to! All these little processes are anxiety producing even for "experienced" owners. And, correct, the Yellow Valve open proves nothing is in the tank.

There are many threads about winterizing if you want to spend some time looking things over. Lots of experience in the group, and reading some of them over will show you how other owners worked through the process, and show you all the things you did correctly. The link below is a google search for "2024 320 winterizing" and there will be a lot of generic discussion about drains, etc.

Winterizing a 320 with Nautilus

crobo

Thanks!

mx4789

A bit after the fact, but here is the process I used. Although it is for a 2023 model it is the same as for my 2025 320 so it should also work for your 2024.

NuCamp 2023 Winterizing

crobo

Thanks. This is the exact video I used to do my winterizing. I had a brain fart and drained the camper on the dry camp setting instead of powerfill. And the Alde draining through the cw low point drain was a surprise. So just making sure I didn’t screw up. Also in the video he doesn’t open up the faucets when draining I thought of this on my own should have opened them and left them open. Also he doesn’t flush anti freeze through the toilet. I think it takes a community to help with things and come up with new ideas. Hopefully in a few years I’ll have it mostly figured out. It can be stressful put great to keep learning.

mx4789

True! I noticed little things like that too. I too am afraid I am going to break something or do something horribly wrong, lol.

Last winter (my first one with the Tab) is the first time I've ever used the blow out method. In my other camper I'd just dump the pink stuff in the tank and run it through the faucets and call it good. I guess the price of the Tabs makes making paying attention to details a little more critical.

It'll be at least another 2 months before I have to worry about winterizing though.