Eurovan winter camping issues

[krowe4]

Hello,

I'm the new owner of a 2000 Eurovan Camper. The last two weekends I've taken it to ski resorts in WA to get a couple days of skiing in without paying for lodging (one of the primary reasons we bought the van!) and have had a few issues that I'm curious if the Samba community can help me out with. For what it's worth, the temps have been around 15-25 at night, and getting close to 32 F during the day; and the parking lot is at about 4200 ft. Here's the issues that have come up, I'm interested in any solutions/ideas/preventative measures you all have for them:

1. Both weekends the water pump has frozen
2. Both weekends the drain in the sink has frozen
3. Just this weekend the sliding door froze
4. Both weekends the furnace wouldn't blow hot air, despite it working before and after when in warmer temps

Thanks in advance for the advice!!

Best,
Kyle

[Scottn59c]

You might try Lockthaw on the sliding door. Here's a link to a forum discussing it:

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?2967817
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Farfignewton!

[sdunn35]

The furnace problem also manifested in my 2000 EVC the one time I overnighted in sub-freezing weather. It *may* be lack of vapor pressure in the line when the tank gets really cold, or something similar, but have never had an opportunity to troubleshoot.

IMHO the EVC as-built is a 3-season camper. I think some mods are indicated if you will regularly camp in truly cold weather
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99 EVC
ex-03 Weekender

[DenverB]

see below
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'77 Transporter/camper (Bussy - Reef Blue/Pastel White)
'67 bug (Santos - VW Blue)
'84 Vanagon Westfalia (Pink Flamingo - Pastel White/Pink)
'88 Vanagon GL Westfalia (Frankie Says - Wolfram Gray)
'02 Eurovan Weekender (Green Apple)
'95-'03 Eurovan full campers and weekenders (rental fleet)
'84 -'91 Vanagon full campers and weekenders (rental fleet)
'72 Porsche 914 (Greta - RIP)

www.RockyMountainCampervans.com

[DenverB]

congrats, you just bought the best ski chalet ever. I love ski camping in the EVC.

on to your issues: the water system should be drained in the winter - it is not designed to function in freezing weather. Water expands when it freezes and can cause some major damage to your pump, water lines and plastic fittings -- many of which are hidden in the recesses of your van. the pump itself is mounted basically to a steel support beam at the rocker panel (in a really cold spot).

You won't notice the leaks until it's too late and the subfloor of your van becomes mushy and wet. If you keep the inside of the van warm, you can *cautiously* use the gray water -- but even then just dump water outside.

trust me, next time it's warm enough and your van isn't frozen: dump your fresh and gray water tanks. I'm re-doing a rotten subfloor right now and while I enjoy the work, it's a major pain in the ass to do. Four hours plus just to remove the thing.

Your furnace could be facing a few problems. It's not altitude or extreme cold, as my furnaces work fine here up to ~9000 feet and well below zero.

it sounds likely that there's water in your tank and your regulator is freezing up. Find a propane service shop and have them inject methanol into your tank. The owner's manual for the Winnebago talks about the process and why the regulator freezes up. This doesn't happen much out here in Colorado with our dry air, but a few times this winter we've had some wet storms and I had two renters experience the same thing in the same night in different vans in Telluride because of this. Where you live, I can imagine this could be a more constant issue.

also: try replacing your thermostat (http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=613043&highlight=)

Finally, check your aux battery. if the charge gets too low your fan will still run, but the failsafe for the propane will go and you won't ever get it lit. This *almost* sounds like your problem, except for the part about how your heater will work in warmer temps.

Regardless: if the battery came with the van, probably time you get a new one. you can step up to a size 31 DC marine battery from the 27dc it likely has in there, that should help.


If those don't help, it may also be time for you to service the heater itself (or have it serviced). They are relatively easy to pull out (I'll have a write up on it in a few days here) and commonly the exhaust/intake vents are clogged up with things like hornets nests, etc. it's worth checking out.

I agree that as a camper, they need some tweaking to be a four-season rig, but with a little prep they work great even in zero degree temps.

Just a few things like pulling panels and insulate behind them (ever notice how cold your closet gets?), getting a quilted liner for the tent top, putting insulated covers on the front three windows and wearing a pear of sweatpants goes a long way though.
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'77 Transporter/camper (Bussy - Reef Blue/Pastel White)
'67 bug (Santos - VW Blue)
'84 Vanagon Westfalia (Pink Flamingo - Pastel White/Pink)
'88 Vanagon GL Westfalia (Frankie Says - Wolfram Gray)
'02 Eurovan Weekender (Green Apple)
'95-'03 Eurovan full campers and weekenders (rental fleet)
'84 -'91 Vanagon full campers and weekenders (rental fleet)
'72 Porsche 914 (Greta - RIP)

www.RockyMountainCampervans.com

[krowe4]

Hey DenverB,

Thanks a bunch! I appreciate the advice. You're right in that our winters are much wetter than Colorado's, so maybe that's the issue.

The battery hasn't reached anywhere near low the last couple weekends so I don't think that is the issue. I think I'll start by having some methanol injected into the tank and see if that fixes the issue.

Thanks for the other tips... I like the idea of insulating the van a little better to make the best use of the heat we have.

Best,
Kyle

[Richardginns]

Regarding the heater issue, A full tank or near full of propane really helps in cold weather with "that heater", Well worth doing,

[1961tbird]

BTW - Fancher's in Michigan makes a nice insulated tent insert.

[MrPulldown]

The fresh water tank and the pump are both located inside the cabin correct? If I am driving in freezing temps, and the cab is warm, I would not be risking the fresh water system freezing.

I have all my water currently drained as the van sit in freezing temps regularly.

I store gallon water jugs in the fridge (turned off) and it works great as an insulation box to keep them from freezing. I do not use the gray tank, but if I needed too I have a bottle of RV anti freeze that I would pour in. A trick my RV'ing father-in-law taught me.

I am taking off for the coast soon and would like to have a tank of fresh mountain water. MY plan is to fill it right before I leave and to drive straight there. However I will be traveling for many hours in low temp mt regions.

Prior to my return I will drain the tanks. Does anyone see a problem with my plan.
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2002 EVC

[Blaque Jacques]

yes the tank is in the left rear under the closet and the pump is behind the cabinet under the sink. As long as you have the heat on while driving I think that you should be fine!
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86 2wd Westy GW2200. 97, 99 02 EVC. Lots and lots of bikes

[MrPulldown]