Extended Season Camping for T@bs with Indoor Freshwater Tanks?

jkjenn

When nuCamp moved the freshwater tanks outside, and consequently increated the size of the tanks, I bemoaned the fact that I had missed out on the larger tanks. But even after 3 months of boondocking, it has never really been an issue. When I will be boondocking for more than 4 or 5 days, I bring a 5 gallon freshwater tank and I refill. I have always tried to keep my freshwater mainly for showers and used other water containers for water to flush, cook, drink, and brush.

I have camped in weather that dipped into the upper 20's without winterizing, before and it has me wondering if the inside freshwater tank extends my season, a bit. 

I am planning a late Sept/early October trip to the Tetons, Glacier, Banff, and Jasper and think, unless they have quite unseasonable weather where daytime highs remain in the 20's, that I can probably safely camp without winterizing. I figure if I bring along a little pink stuff, I can dump it into the traps and waste tanks if it gets pretty cold. My only real concern is that it could be quite cold driving into and between the Canadian Parks.

I understand that all of those areas are a risk for early season cold and snow. That is part of the attraction for me.  😁 

Thoughts? 

pthomas745

Cold would be the price of pictures of snow capped peaks.

jkjenn

pthomas745 said:

Cold would be the price of pictures of snow capped peaks.

I think of the cold as an added benefit versus a price.

dragonsdofly

@jkjenn, after our stranding episode, I can say that the t@b withstood temps below freezing day and nighttime for more than a week. Using water in your gray and black tanks in that situation requires at least a 40/50% percent mix of the pink stuff to liquid in the tanks. On the nights where wind chill temps were -10F°, and we had a more skimpy mix, maybe 35% the tanks were very slushy when dumped. But immediately after dumping, we poured straight pink stuff into the tanks and operated the gate valves to get concentrated stuff in there, and at dump time, the valves opened easily. Nothing split or froze. But maintaining a good percentage of pink stuff in the tanks significantly reduces liquid waste volume that you can utilize. If you drain your external freshwater tank, and only use the indoor tank, it is doable. I might add that we had the ability to drain our tanks daily if necessary. But, if the weather is worth braving and the shot is worth capturing, the inconvenience is worth overcoming. -Denise

ChanW

Wow, sounds like a great trip, Jenn. 

As I've mentioned before, the Tab loses its heat pretty fast at highway speed, so you might want to at least leave your drains and taps open when on the road. We had a nice pink slushy icicle hanging from the kitchen spigot, after only about an hour on the road at 5°F.

Another idea: 
I used a small 12v computer fan one winter, to keep the warm air circulating under and around the shower base where the pipes run, up into the wall where the pump is, and into the kitchen-cupboard pipe area. I think it helped.

jkjenn

dragonsdofly said:

@jkjenn, after our stranding episode, I can say that the t@b withstood temps below freezing day and nighttime for more than a week. Using water in your gray and black tanks in that situation requires at least a 40/50% percent mix of the pink stuff to liquid in the tanks. On the nights where wind chill temps were -10F°, and we had a more skimpy mix, maybe 35% the tanks were very slushy when dumped. But immediately after dumping, we poured straight pink stuff into the tanks and operated the gate valves to get concentrated stuff in there, and at dump time, the valves opened easily. Nothing split or froze. But maintaining a good percentage of pink stuff in the tanks significantly reduces liquid waste volume that you can utilize. If you drain your external freshwater tank, and only use the indoor tank, it is doable. I might add that we had the ability to drain our tanks daily if necessary. But, if the weather is worth braving and the shot is worth capturing, the inconvenience is worth overcoming. -Denise

Thanks! I think if I remember correctly, wind chill does not impact freezing temperature, just our own comfort level. But, good to know.

ChanW said:

Wow, sounds like a great trip, Jenn. 

As I've mentioned before, the Tab loses its heat pretty fast at highway speed, so you might want to at least leave your drains and taps open when on the road. We had a nice pink slushy icicle hanging from the kitchen spigot, after only about an hour on the road at 5°F.

Another idea: 
I used a small 12v computer fan one winter, to keep the warm air circulating under and around the shower base where the pipes run, up into the wall where the pump is, and into the kitchen-cupboard pipe area. I think it helped.

Yes highway speeds are the big concern. I think I might even consider winterizing by blowing out the lines  and adding pink stuff for driving if it looks to be too cold.