Fall / Winter Hunting Trip

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Tsuriman

Member
Joined
Sep 12, 2016
Posts
6
Looking for some advice on freezing temp RVing. 

(I'm hunting where it will be cold, I cant go hunt in a nice warm land far south.)

Ill be Boondocking of sorts toward the middle of November in Northern Illinois.  We will be hunting on farm land and have no access to water or electrical. 

My rig is a '89 Coachman Class C. 

Plan #1 for electrical:  purchase a 1200W Gas powered generator $120 at Costco.  To keep the batteries charged and furnace running.  Maybe a TV at night. 

Plan #2 for electrical:  purchase a 3000W inverter generator (either gas or dual) to use for future boondocking in the summer to run everything, including A/C, etc.  Much larger investment $650-850.

Plan for water:  Ive been searching the interwebs and this forum for information. Right now my gut tells me I will be heating up water on the propane stove for sponge baths and washing up etc.  So I will have a large supply of water.  I plan to avoid filling the tank with any gray water, if I do, I will have the drain opened. 

Plan for toilet:  Out of doors if and when possible.  But I am thinking of an anti freeze option.  I really want a place to #2 indoors.  I have heard that windshield fluid is a cheap and eco friendly option.  I love it as I have a few cases from about 2 years ago when auto store had it on sale for $.75 a gallon.  Thoughts?

Plan for heat:  I love winter, prepare well and generally don't get cold.  The furnace has worked ok in the few attempts to turn it on.  I just bought the RV a few weeks ago, so I am not sure how it will perform in sub zero temps.  I assume that the system is 12v ready but will it perform better with 120v generator?  I am guessing if the generator can handle it, an electric space heater may help boost.  Also wondering if running my Ford 460 engine with the heat on high, at night, might recharge the batteries and supplement the heat.  I don't know if it is worth the wear on an already old engine (but only $92K).

Any thoughts?  From experienced boondockers!

Also the manual says the RV does have some protection from freezing weather but doesnt specify.  Anyone know where I can find more info about my Coachman?

Thanks
Ryan
 
I am a newbie as well and have been asking a lot of questions and getting a lot of help.
If you will read some of my post you will see that We share a lot of rhe same situations.

Although you will be hunting in freezing temps and I only occasionally experience freezing temps.

I too looked at the little generators I did a lot of reading of reviews and it seemed like a hit or miss proposition .
AND I could not run an A/C during the summer months with them,so would have to buy another generator later.
The inverter generators were too expensive .
This is the Generator I picked both for the fact there were great reviews on the generator everywhere I checked
and the fact that it can be started with a remote so dont have to go outside to start or shut off .
I got mine here and had it delivered to my local store for Less than $450.00
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Champion-Power-Equipment-46539-3500-Watt-RV-Ready-Portable-Generator-with-Wireless-Remote-Start/21390866

For the heat I will either use the furnace (if it works )or a Big Buddy Heater(make sure to have adequate ventilation_).
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Mr-Heater-Big-Buddy-Portable-Heater-Liquid-Propane-Dual-Heating-System-F274800/4382667

I plan on using the water tank as we don't experience much freezing temps BUT if we have an unusually cold hunting season I can always fall back on what I used for years in a Popup camper.
A five gallon bucket that I used inside and just put a small flat piece of plywood on top to keep odors inside the bucket.
Then when I came out of the camper i dumped the contents in an old creek that runs through our farm and rinsed it out .
Not very high tech but it works great.
I also took sponge baths using unheated water.

There is a lot of knowledge on this site and Hope I have helped you !

Craig
 
Thanks Craig,
Sounds like we might be hunting the same land!!    We have a little stream running though the farm we hunt. 

The bucket / stream option sounds like a good idea.  I can still do in the peace or the camper but don't have to worry about cleaning out the black tank. Maybe Ill buy one of those bucket toilet seat covers. 

You also talked me out of the big inverter generator for now.  My brother was going to give me a deal on his daily used 3 month old 3000W B&G for $650.  I just cant justify spending that much when I don't plan on using it all that much. 
 
Haha.
Well Ive been called out on that.  Showering in scent removing soaps is recommended by some hunters.
 
      I have been deer camp boondocking off grid for years and can't tell you what you will like best but here is what works for me.
      I have a 28 ft fifth wheel and use 2 deep cycle batteries to power the lights and furnace fan. recharge with a 3000 watt generator each evening using a smart charger instead of depending on the onboard converter. A much smaller generator would do this but this is what I have. The wife likes her comfort and tv. We fire up the genny at dark and run it till 10 so we get plenty of charge on the battery and since the load isn't really heavy the gas usage isn't too bad.
      For water I have 3 55gallon barrels that I take to town about every ten or twelve days and pump into the fresh water tank with a sureflo pump. Hot showers every night sure feel good. Grey water goes down a gofer hole and black tank is good for 3 weeks most times. If not we have a potty wagon for that abd stump holes in the woods. 
      As for heat, fortunately it doesn't get that cold here but he wife is cold natured and likes the heat set on 70. So we go through a 30# tank about once a week. That 
is for hot water showers and dish washing too.
 
Just how long is this hunting trip? Are we talking a weekend or a couple of weeks? How often will you be doing this sort of thing?

I live and hunt in MI. I also know what cold weather camping is all about. Off grid and no water supply. Been doing it for years. The reason I ask the above questions is if you are planing a short stay and only on an occasional/one time basis, I wouldn't shell out a bunch of money all at once. Go with just enough to get the job done this time. Then make improvements as you learn over time.

Remember that your rig has quite a few years on it and you will be depending quite heavily on a couple crucial systems (12V and heat) that can make or break an enjoyable trip. 




 
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