Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
 

Go Back   Thor Forums > Thor Motorcoach & Motorhome > Class A Motor Coach
Click Here to Login
Register FAQ Community Calendar Today's Posts Search Log in
Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
 
Old 11-17-2014, 10:37 PM   #1
Member
 
Brand: Thor Motor Coach
Model: Citation Sprinter 24SR
State: Oregon
Posts: 56
THOR #972
How I Winterized 2015 Thor Citation Sprinter 24 SR

Water lines in my CS 24R are blue for cold fresh and red for hot. Once I figured everything out with support from this great forum, I used 2.5 gallons of antifreeze including the amount I poured into each drain trap (sink in kitchen and bathroom, the inside shower and a little in the toilet to show that it had been winterized).

In my initial trial and error effort I did get antifreeze in to the hot water heater but I figure I can flush it next year. No antifreeze entered the fresh water tank.

OUTSIDE:

I drained the black and grey water tank, rinsed the black water tank and drained it again.

I drained fresh water tank. There's a capped, short blue hose to the left (when facing the water/sewer compartment) of the fresh water fill/local water connection and beneath the remote water pump switch. I purchased an adapter at Ace Hardware that allows attaching a standard garden hose to it, removed the cap, attached a garden hose and turned on the water pump to drain. You can drain without the garden hose but the water stream strikes the inside edge of the compartment.



I drained the hot water tank by opening the pressure relief valve and removing the white plug at the bottom of the tank.

I removed the panel in the exterior storage compartment at the rear of the coach to access the rear of the hot water heater.

Sorry, picture isn't so clear. There are three valves in the lines here and one is behind a hot air duct near the top right of the rear of the heater.



I positioned the valves at the hot water heater for Winterized Position as in this diagram from a posting by from FW28z.



INSIDE

I extended the rear slide out and removed a single screw from the hinged compartment under the mattress marked "Not a Storage Area" and opened the compartment.

I had purchased a "T" valve that's intended to go in the line between the fresh water tank and the pump and allow one to draw antifreeze into the system through the pump. I think a piece of garden hose and same adapter I used to drain fresh water would work just as well.

There's not sufficient room between the pump and tank to install the valve as it was intended to be, however. Instead I removed the poly cap from a hose that routes to the water pump from the top of the hose, installed the T valve there and closed the valve in the line from the fresh water tank to the pump.








After firmly securing the cap on the T valve and leaving it in the open position I attached the included clear hose to the valve and placed the open end in a jug of antifreeze.

Starting with the galley sink I opened one faucet (one hot, one cold at a time) and turned on the water pump until I had antifreeze coming from the related fixture. I did learn that one must first have antifreeze flowing from the the bathroom sink faucet in order to lift the small collar and divert flow to the shower.

Don't forget the external "shower" if installed! In my case before I completed this process the outside temperature had gone from 64F to 15F in 24 hours and the hose froze solid. I had to put a propane heater on it to finish the job.

Lastly I'll be removing and storing the engine and coach batteries rather than leaving them on a trickle charger in the rig.

Hope this helps anyone with a similar system. Again, thanks for everyone that replied to my "urgent" thread and especially to for the detailed description and diagram from FW28z included in this post.

Ed

PS This is my first effort at a post with pictures. I'll try to make smaller next time.

__________________
oreddie is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-24-2014, 07:37 PM   #2
Junior Member
 
Brand: Thor Motor Coach
State: Oklahoma
Posts: 23
THOR #1092
Great Post...The manufacturer should take some lessons on how to show the process from you. They don't seem to have anything nearly as detailed.
__________________
ksrow is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-24-2014, 08:48 PM   #3
Moderator Emeritus
 
FW28z's Avatar
 
Brand: Thor Motor Coach
Model: 2011 Four Winds 28Z
State: Michigan
Posts: 1,273
THOR #531
One thing I thought of doing after the winterization discussion on the forum was to put a valve in the antifreeze port, as Thor is cheaping out by simply using a 1/2" NPT plug in the end of the antifreeze port to maintain air-tight integrity.

However, this means you really need to use plumber's tape and tools to tighten the plug, or you might get air in the system.

For that reason, I have been considering putting in a valve in the antifreeze port's line.

However, it never dawned on me to put a valve on the end of the antifreeze port like you did, which will alleviate needing to cut the line.

So you gave me an idea (the reason I contribute in these discussions is it gives me ideas too).

Great job on your winterization.
__________________
The only thing that works on a RV is the owner...
FW28z is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-24-2014, 08:55 PM   #4
Moderator Emeritus
 
FW28z's Avatar
 
Brand: Thor Motor Coach
Model: 2011 Four Winds 28Z
State: Michigan
Posts: 1,273
THOR #531
As a side note, does anyone know if the water lines used in these RVs are Pex tubing?

They do look like Pex to me, but since my RV is in storage it is not easy for me to look at the tubing and confirm it.
__________________
The only thing that works on a RV is the owner...
FW28z is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-12-2015, 06:33 PM   #5
Member
 
Brand: Thor Motor Coach
Model: Citation Sprinter 24SR
State: Oregon
Posts: 56
THOR #972
Just saw your year old post as I went to review how I did this last year. I'm fairly certain this rig has Pex throughout.
__________________
oreddie is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply


Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by Thor Industries or any of its affiliates. This is an independent, unofficial site.


Thor Motor Coach Forum - Crossroads RV Forum - Redwood RV Forum - Dutchmen Forum - Heartland RV Forum - Keystone RV Forum - Airstream Trailer Forum


All times are GMT. The time now is 08:02 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Content Relevant URLs by vBSEO 3.6.0 PL2