Friday 2nd December 2016
It was quite frosty here in Widecombe this morning. Both Ann and I have finally finished our round of doctors' and hospital appointments - I suppose that's what happens when you get old! Anyway we're ready to set off travelling at long last.
We're leaving this Sunday 4th December. Today I'm going to start preparing the van - putting it onto mains power, turning on the fridge, heating it up and so on.
The cold weather this morning should have given me a clue as to what was the problem when I put water into the van but nothing would come out of the taps this afternoon. However by then it was warm and sunny and the idea that I could have a frozen pipe was the last thing on my mind. Surely after all these postponements we were not once again to be delayed setting off? I took a quick trip down to Tamar Trailers in Plympton to ask for their help by which time the frozen pipe had started to unfreeze and the water started to flow when you turned on the taps! You can imagine how stupid I felt. I always drain down the water system on the van when it isn't being used to prevent frost damage. Unfortunately you can never drain it completely. All it takes is for a small section of pipe to retain a little water which can then freeze up and cause a temporary blockage.
The cold weather this morning should have given me a clue as to what was the problem when I put water into the van but nothing would come out of the taps this afternoon. However by then it was warm and sunny and the idea that I could have a frozen pipe was the last thing on my mind. Surely after all these postponements we were not once again to be delayed setting off? I took a quick trip down to Tamar Trailers in Plympton to ask for their help by which time the frozen pipe had started to unfreeze and the water started to flow when you turned on the taps! You can imagine how stupid I felt. I always drain down the water system on the van when it isn't being used to prevent frost damage. Unfortunately you can never drain it completely. All it takes is for a small section of pipe to retain a little water which can then freeze up and cause a temporary blockage.
2 comments:
I had exactly the same problem Roger, but first I had to thaw the outside tap and the hosepipe in order to fill the van up! Once full with water I left the pump running and the flow gradually increased. Hope that it didn't damage the pump!
Hi Andy -thanks for your comment. I feel really stupid for not realising that that it was a frost problem! Roger.
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