# frozen up



## zeezee16 (Dec 20, 2009)

Just checked the water in the van today, its gon all hard.
As I need to use the van every day for work/daily transport, I cant plug it into the mains to use an electric heater. I took the top off the water tank, it had a very thin layer of ice on top of the water, but the pump wont run and the feed pipe to the tap is solid.
We are going to Carrog for xmas, any idea how I can thaw it out before we go on thursday morning.
I thought about pluging it into the mains on wednesday afternoon, and turn the blow heater on overnight with the cupboard doors open, but not sure if it would freeze again before we got to Wales?
Hopefully, it will be well above freezing on wed/thurs, but I wont hold my breath.
Cheers, Pete.


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## ajs (Dec 20, 2009)

.

 you numpty 
.. you will just have to have yer gas heater on low...and leave it on 

retards 
aj


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## zeezee16 (Dec 20, 2009)

ajs said:


> .
> 
> you numpty
> .. you will just have to have yer gas heater on low...and leave it on
> ...


I can put the night heater on when we get there, plus the fan heater, and maybe take a hairdrier to warm the pump up. I will also take a 25ltr container, just incase it doesnt work.
At least I cant water my whisky down.
ZZ


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## ajs (Dec 20, 2009)

zeezee16 said:


> I can *put the night heater on when we get there,* plus the fan heater, and maybe take a hairdrier to warm the pump up. I will also take a 25ltr container, just incase it doesnt work.
> At least I cant water my whisky down.
> ZZ




  no no... *now overnight.*.. thaw the system out ...
find out if any damage before you cum te carog .. 
leave the heater on *all night every night* 


 what a numpty 



 retards
aj

_ last yr i left taps closed and they all exploded... friggin washers everywhere 
this year they are open and heater on permanently if sub zero temps are forecast 
_


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## Deleted member 967 (Dec 20, 2009)

ajs said:


> no no... *now overnight.*.. thaw the system out ...
> find out if any damage before you cum te carog ..
> leave the heater on *all night every night*
> 
> ...



Damage to the pipework could already have happened.  As AJS says.  Thaw it out* NOW *and keep some heat going.  Otherwise drain what you can off.  Disconnect the pump and leave the taps open.  Same applies to hot water boiler and tank heat them or the area they are in or drain them.


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## zeezee16 (Dec 20, 2009)

I cant put the heating on, its parked outside the house on the pavement, If I put it down the drive, and it snows/freezes, I cant get it back up the drive.
If I plug it into the mains, the bas###ds round here will unplug it and use my electric.
I will have to leave it until wednesday afternoon.
ZZ


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## zeezee16 (Dec 20, 2009)

See reply to Aj,  I will have a go at it on tuesday afternoon, I'm delivering around south wales mon/tues.
Cheers. Pete


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## ajs (Dec 20, 2009)

.

  don't you have an *onboard* gas heater 


regards 
aj


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## Deleted member 967 (Dec 20, 2009)

zeezee16 said:


> See reply to Aj,  I will have a go at it on tuesday afternoon, I'm delivering around south wales mon/tues.
> Cheers. Pete



Try to do something now!

Drain any water off the tank and water-heater.  Leave the valves open.  disconnect the pump electrics and open all of your taps.

Water expands as it freezes so will cause damage that you will not find until it thaws out.  You could then have a lot of serious damage done. Wednesday could be too late.


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## biggirafe (Dec 20, 2009)

Once you have it defrosted and all the water out of it you need to keep it defrosted, I would recommend you buy a parafin greenhouse heater from Argos that will do the job of keeping it from freezing again. Sorry I got here late Argos is shut now 

http://www.argos.co.uk/webapp/wcs/s...:11527|cc:|prd:0424284|cat:Garden+Accessories


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## tony (Dec 20, 2009)

biggirafe said:


> Once you have it defrosted and all the water out of it you need to keep it defrosted, I would recommend you buy a parafin greenhouse heater from Argos that will do the job of keeping it from freezing again. Sorry I got here late Argos is shut now
> 
> Buy Greenhouse Paraffin Heater. at Argos.co.uk - Your Online Shop for .



would a paraffin heater cause condensation ?
tony


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## biggirafe (Dec 20, 2009)

tony said:


> would a paraffin heater cause condensation ?
> tony



If you can't get eleky to the vehicle what other choice do you have. 

I personally would not want to leave a gas fire running unattended overnight if you would how much would it cost to leave it on 24/7 even if it is low.

From another site, it might be true or not, 
" every gallon of paraffin burnt produces 10 pints of water"

but a greenhouse heater uses very little parafin, the one quoted needs refilling every 7 days only.


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## Apache Two (Dec 20, 2009)

If it cost £30 to heat it for a few days it is cheap then having to replace pump/plumbing and water heater. 
I would use gas heater on low.


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## biggirafe (Dec 20, 2009)

Apache Two said:


> If it cost £30 to heat it for a few days it is cheap then having to replace pump/plumbing and water heater.
> I would use gas heater on low.



Personally not sure why anyone needs to heat the MH when its not in use. All you need to do is empty the water out, take the stopper out of your heating and open the taps. I'm sure this has been mentioned a couple of times


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## Deleted member 967 (Dec 20, 2009)

biggirafe said:


> If you can't get eleky to the vehicle what other choice do you have.
> 
> I personally would not want to leave a gas fire running unattended overnight if you would how much would it cost to leave it on 24/7 even if it is low.
> 
> ...



I was living in a caravan with a Carver SB1800, Gas Water Heater, Fridge and Gas Lights in 1982. (1975 to 1986 in fact) I used one 47kg Propane bottle a month.  The system was fired up in September/October until April/May on a 24/7 basis.  They only went out when I needed to change a bottle.  You could tell how much gas was in the bottle by the frost line on it.

At times that winter the outside temp dropped to minus 20c

The gas fire like the Truma 3002 are room sealed.  They are designed for the purpose, so they can be safely left on overnight.  Radiant heater are not even safe when the van is occupied as they produce fumes all the time they are in use.

I wouldn't use a parafin heater for the smell alone never mind the water vapour output.

My van is experiencing problems with the regulator freezing but I am still using it all over the christmas period so the heating is on 24/7.  At home today but still heated as we have water onboard.


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## Apache Two (Dec 20, 2009)

This is to thaw it out then drain off all water leave taps open remove drain plug from water heater the run pump to make sure all water is drained. Not tell you how to suck eggs.


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## ajs (Dec 20, 2009)

goodgrief... peepee.

.. so far the same thing said 10 different ways...
conclusion the same.... _*yer a numpty  

*_ regards 
aj_*
*_


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## biggirafe (Dec 20, 2009)

John Thompson said:


> I wouldn't use a parafin heater for the smell alone never mind the water vapour output.



Yeah that would put me off 
I have a truma sealed unit, not sure I would want to leave it unattended, I'm ok with it on all night when I'm in the van but it has gone out in the past when on low and its windy, seems to blow through the bottom if the wind is in the wrong direction, which in theory is not a saftey problem but if it goes out then you will freeze up, Zeezee at least has a couple of choices 

I have heard of people putting fish tank heaters in the water tank when out in extreme locations.... Not sure I would go out if it was that bloody cold


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## guerdeval (Dec 20, 2009)

Check that the tops haven't already been pushed off your taps


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## NWPT (Dec 20, 2009)

guerdeval said:


> Check that the tops haven't already been pushed off your taps



Does that mean they are damaged if they have?


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## Pioneer (Dec 21, 2009)

biggirafe said:


> Personally not sure why anyone needs to heat the MH when its not in use. All you need to do is empty the water out, take the stopper out of your heating and open the taps. I'm sure this has been mentioned a couple of times



Hi biggirafe,
When you drain a system, in a lot of cases, some water is left in the pipe systems, (hot and cold) in some of the inaccessable places, ie, voids in bathrooms, behind cookers etc, so it pays to be extra carefull at this time of year.
For what it cost, in my experience it pays to keep a little heat on when frost due.
If I was Pete, in his situation, if he can't get any heat in the van, would wrap an old blanket? who as blankets these days? around the tanks, hot an cold, pump etc, give it a day or two, then check the system for damage.
Finaly, would buy a central heating header tank lagging jacket and wrap the tanks in it, assuming it's onboard.
Good luck Pete.

Happy winter Camping


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## ajs (Dec 21, 2009)

NWPT said:


> Does that mean they are damaged if they have?



 from bitter experience the ans is... probably 

 regards 
aj


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## tresrikay (Dec 21, 2009)

Last year, even after daraining down the tanks and systems and leaving all taps open. When the thaw came I had asplit in the body of the kitchen tap.......£57 to replace, so even after draining there is water left to cause damage. This year I darained down a week before this lot and had the heating running every day. So hopefully the system would be dry before this freeze............ wont know till it thaws..... for certain


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## runnach (Dec 21, 2009)

I have drained my system even though i am living in the van fulltime.

Nothing to say, that although the interior is plus zero, the extremeties arent suffering.

I can't explain why but i have a funny feeling this cold snap is going to cost me a few quid, re residual water damage....eg bathroom tap completely frozen.

All I need but hey ho 

Channa


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## Jacques le foot (Dec 21, 2009)

If it's of any use to you guys,..I worked out the cost of running my 700w oil filled radiator..on our Kw/hr rate with Scottish power to cost 6.3pence per hour, which equals under £1.52p per 24 hours. .Cheap for peace of mind I think.

Jackie


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## biggirafe (Dec 21, 2009)

Pioneer said:


> Hi biggirafe,
> When you drain a system, in a lot of cases, some water is left in the pipe systems, (hot and cold) in some of the inaccessable places, ie, voids in bathrooms, behind cookers etc, so it pays to be extra carefull at this time of year.
> For what it cost, in my experience it pays to keep a little heat on when frost due.
> If I was Pete, in his situation, if he can't get any heat in the van, would wrap an old blanket? who as blankets these days? around the tanks, hot an cold, pump etc, give it a day or two, then check the system for damage.
> ...



There are plenty of caravans and MH's in storage that get no frost damage. If the taps are open and the pump is dry any expansion when trapped water freezes should only be along the pipes.

But I agree if you are able to keep the van warm then its got to be better and cheaper to be safe than sorry. Although in weather like this I'm not sure how useful a heater will be for pipes that are running outside of the van. I think this is where those German A class vans with double skin floors come up trumps.

Its an interesting topic this as all our vans seem to differ and have there own problems


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## flashingblade (Dec 21, 2009)

*keep it simple*

might be worth trying the little sachets of chemicals used as hand warmers, bought from millets or soccer sports for 99p. last 8 hours and might just keep a small area warm for little cost. have a few but never used them so if u try them, let us know how you get on !!!


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## Pioneer (Dec 21, 2009)

you don't need those hand warmers now, you have an hot water bottle!

Cheers,
Bill


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## gaynorjane (Dec 22, 2009)

*My snuggly van...how girlie ??*

I have a frost free tube sitting in my van , but this year its not got the power bless it  Just off to B&Q for an oil filled radiator, £19.98  3 setting, 300W etc and thermostatically controled will cost pence to run but should not only keep things moving but keep the damp from cushions etc.

Gaynor


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## guerdeval (Dec 22, 2009)

TAPS!!    a few years back mine were pushed off the base by a 4" icicle but when  they thawed I just pushed it back on the bottom bit and it was fine


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## zeezee16 (Dec 23, 2009)

***** said:


> Well Zeezee, how did you get on, is it all sorted?


Think I might get a couple of lottery tickets. I got 2 tyres fitted on the van this morning, then reversed the van down the drive and plugged into the mains. We have a fan heater for when we are on a hookup, so I cleared everything from around the water tank & pump, then left the heater blowing towards the pump and pipework (only got cold water in ours, no water heater).
2 hourh later, switch the tap on, nothing...splutter splutter, kinell, I got water coming from my tap.
Ive left the heater on low tonight, it should be ok, its still 2.1 degrees at the moment.
Damn, does that mean I will have to get washed next week.
Cheers, Pete


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## biggirafe (Dec 23, 2009)

good news indeed Pete, no damage then?


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## zeezee16 (Dec 23, 2009)

biggirafe said:


> good news indeed Pete, no damage then?


Doesnt look like it, but, itsgetting colder and a light snow shower a bit ago.
Trying to find out what the M62/M6/M56 are like. Could do with setting off fairly early to beat the traffic around Manchester.
ZZ


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## Deleted member 4053 (Dec 24, 2009)

*frozen*

Zeezee

Who is a lucky boy then.

enjoy the trip.

weez
Tony


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