Cold Weather RVing

WW_Axis

New Member
Joined
Jul 27, 2024
Messages
2
Location
Plainfield
First I want to say that I am new to not just this forum but posting in forums.
Second I am relatively new to RVing but have been on a number of trips that my wife and I enjoyed and have purchased a 2024 Axis 24.1 that we enjoy and used for our yearly trip to East Coast Canada from Chicago area in the summer and it was great.

Last week we needed to travel to MO to pick up a new pup and it was about a 13 hour return trip so we decided we would take the RV and it was not so great.

When the Motorhome (MH) as parked at a standstill the heating worked like a champ both in the cabin? (back of the MH) and the cockpit ? (Front of MH driver and passenger). Now when we were moving the cockpit area was freezing to the point we needed to put on our winter coats and it was still cold. The heater appeared to be working, if you touch the vent you could feel warm / hot air coming out but the heat dissipated immediately and hit us with cold air. The Cabin appeared to although you would need to consistently adjust the temp as it would get cold or hot etc. but could be addressed.

I requested information from my service manager and am waiting to hear but thought I would make my first post and see if anyone has any guidance, similar issues or can help give me ideas on what to look for.

Thanks
 
First, make sure all windows and overhead vents are shut - they will act as a vacuum when traveling and suck air out of the RV - which has to be replaced with outside cold air up front.

Make sure your dash HVAC system is in recirculate mode so the outside cold air is not coming in through that system.

Now it gets harder. It sounds like you have air leaks/gaps in the cab area that allows the 60 to 70 mph wind up front to enter the RV. This will require a search. Check the doghouse seal. On a dark night light up the front of the RV with spotlights from the inside, especially under the dash; and look from the outside, under the hood, from underneath the RV for light coming out of the inside to find possible leaks.
 
Thanks 16ACE27
We finally got a reasonable day to go and look into leaks and man for what they charge for these things you would assume they took care of some of the gaps. Found a number of gps in the cockpit flooring that I need to fill, passenger side still investigating although know there is some there as well although hard to get access but will continue to dig away. Thanks for your help!
 
If it is just the 2 of you riding in the motor home, try hanging a curtain between the cab and the rear of the coach(behind the driver and passenger seat) to trap the air in the cab area. You can isolate the heat(or cold during the summer) to the cab area for comfort. That also works when you are stopped and only need to either heat or cool the rear of the coach for comfort while camping.

Paul
 
Just to be clear, while driving are you just using dash heat or are you using the propane furnace heat or both?

FWIW my 2021 Axis 24.1 (same engine and design as yours) works fine on dash heat only at 45 F OAT. Never tried it lower. No noticeable air leaks either.

David
 
Welcome

Welcome to the forum, glad you're with us. I found it very helpful through the years. As some general feedback, you're already good at this. You gave specific information about your issue that allows the other form users to be helpful for you. I agree with the other posts, this sounds like an air leak. Spray foam works to plug these leaks would be careful, it just takes a little bit as it expands mightily.
 
If it is just the 2 of you riding in the motor home, try hanging a curtain between the cab and the rear of the coach(behind the driver and passenger seat) to trap the air in the cab area. You can isolate the heat(or cold during the summer) to the cab area for comfort. That also works when you are stopped and only need to either heat or cool the rear of the coach for comfort while camping.

Paul

When we left for the winter last year, it was negative 5 and snowing, so we used this solution in our Magnitude (4x4 chassis), we just put up the curtain and turned the cab heater to recirculate. The only issue was that it gets really cold in the coach which can cause our water lines to get a little slushy, so we also turn on the RV heater to 50 degrees.
 
When I first picked up my resonate with a F 53 chassis, I noticed major road noise and air coming into the cockpit. When I investigate it, it turns out there were 2–3inch holes in the firewall to allow the wiring harnesses to get in. Also multiple cracks and gaps . A can of spray spray foam took care of these. I also opened up passenger side dashboard to fill a lot of small holes and added insulation where I could. PS I like the idea of a curtain.
 
Ret. Crpntr what type of spray foam did you use i assume it can withstand the engine heat. I was thinking about using it under the kitchen cabinets to insulate the water pipes
 
I never took that into consideration. Large gap spray foam from lowe’s or home depot seems to work just fine. I used it anywhere on the motorhome that i thought air could infiltrate.
 

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