Lets just dispel a few thoughts here , we are talking about statics with a ceramic toilet like you have at home, you know the one you chuck loads of bleach and other chemicals down how this is going to hurt the cat i dont know .,and they are not made by Thetford, no way would any right minded person do this with a tourer type cassette toilet ,with out causing damage ,it is the same with the traps from sink and basin just like at home in a static , think about what goes down your kitchen sink , totally different rules for tourers
personally I just leave the taps etc open, that way anything that does freeze has expansion space, most damage caused by freezing is coused by splitting because of expansion anyway.
------------- 'Plastic Pig' driver
(got a new plastic Hyundai - Santa Fe)
2011 -
? Mr PP has just gone and bought another business, holiday?...we should be so lucky!
Quote: Originally posted by plastic pig on 26/11/2008
me i wish i never posted now
lol.why?.there other sites and not this one asking the same questions about the frost precautions.the general consensus so far is that there is no adative safe to do this.
------------- the only silly question is the one you do not ask.
Quote: Originally posted by plastic pig on 26/11/2008
F**k me i wish i never posted now
glad you did as one member aint got a clue to what you were on about,hows he get rid of the antifreeze fom his car,prob could do with drinking some to defrost his brain,
------------- Think this year is to follow old meet friends for 2014.
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Screenwash is toxic & flammable! strange but true! Just look on the side of the container it comes in!
As for antifreeze for statics & thetfords, what about good old common or garden table salt.........yes I do know that its toxic in large enough concentrations.... but it wont harm the ceramic toilets or plastic constituants of waste pipes or the "thunder box" bit of the thetford & its considered safe to dospose of down the drains! & as its a naturally occuring substance, its consideredc ecologically sound as well
------------- GeorgeB
I'm a Grumpa....its just like being a Grandpa..only grumpier!
As for antifreeze for statics & thetfords, what about good old common or garden table salt.........
interesting georgeB,do you have a breakdown of the mix to prevent freezing water?ie.how much salt say for 4 litres of water.i know i use it regular on the drive when it freezes over and it works immediately.
------------- the only silly question is the one you do not ask.
The U bend of a standard household toilet holds about 1 litre of water so I'd use about a heaped tablespoon per litre there, u bend of a sink, about 150 to 200 mls so a level desert spoon should do it.
As for the thetford, well I use the van through the winter & don't put anything in it whilst its in use, based on the fact that whilst the van is in use the heating system is on. I always drain down the water systems & empty the thetford "thunder box" & drain out the water from the flush tank when I leave site , but when it's returned to storage i leave about 500ml of water in the thunderbox with 1 desert spoon of bicarb of soda & the same of ordinary table salt, I leave the flap open so it doesn't stick, the bicarb stops it smelling & the salt stops it freezing, not that it'll do much damage there anyway
------------- GeorgeB
I'm a Grumpa....its just like being a Grandpa..only grumpier!
i am going to do a few test myself for future reference,ie.fill a plastic cup with strong salty water,drop a few rubber washers in salty water.it may take some time, could be months to see what happens to the washers and containers.if there is no damage at the end of the test i will use salt.
------------- the only silly question is the one you do not ask.
Had the Car antifreeze poison discusion on general not so long ago , with some clever dicks saying dip your finger in to and taste it , if its sweet theres is antifreeze in ! , I pointed out that was dangerous advice to put on a forum and would recommend that glycol antifreeze does not get ingested in any quantity .
Ethylene glycol poisoning is caused by the ingestion of ethylene glycol. Ethylene glycol is most commonly found as the primary ingredient of automobile antifreeze and hydraulic brake fluids. It is a highly toxic, colorless, odorless, almost nonvolatile liquid with a sweet taste. Following ingestion the symptoms of poisoning follow a three step progression starting with intoxication and vomiting, before causing metabolic acidosis, cardiovascular dysfunction, and finally acute kidney failure
I use a compressor to blow out the pipes in Winter. I take the shower head off and get my wife to open the taps in turn while I blow the pipes using a low pressure. Never had a problem. I also use a sponge to mop out the toilet cistern.
What a load of ****. Antifreeze is toxic so is formaldehyde which I suspect most of you use in your cassette toilet as for damaging plastic, rubber seals, metal etc have any of you actually looked under the bonnet of your cars.
The cooling system of your cars will include rubber hoses metal/plastic combination radiator head gaskets of various materials.
like everything else used at correct dilutions and disposed of in the right drains you will be fine as I have been putting a 25 percent solution in my toilet and in drain traps for the last 35 years.
Always be careful of posters who with good intentions or Trolls who have no good in them at all, quoting Canadian/American regs which are much stricter than others due to their (in many cases basic septic tank systems)locations meaning lack of main sewers.
Where I hope we can all agree is don't put it in any water system you wash or drink from.
The original post was by a tourer owner and did not mention statics. No-one in their right mind would use chemicals like anti-freeze in the freshwater system. Why use anything in the waste and toilet systems - they are open and won't succumb to frost damage if the majority of water is allowed to run off. I don't put anti-freeze in the home toilet system, so why would anyone bother in a static. It is expensive.
As a side issue about toxicity - does anyone else remember the Austrian wine scandal when German testing labs discovered the Austrian wine industry was adding diethylene glycol to some of its wines.
The only assumption I can make on Thetfords comments are that they are giving advice on which type of antifreeze can be used without damaging their appliance, but are not assuming that the un-witting caravanner would then decant the solution down the drain at the end of the winter season! Theoretically you can collect the antifreeze from a thetford cassette at the end of the winter and dispose of it safely, however this is not really practical on a static caravan. The best and safest method is to take a little extra time and a little more effort to rid your system of remaining water, negating the need for antifreeze altogether.
Cheers
Joe
Not necessarily correct, anti freeze based on Propelyne Glycol can legitimately be labelled non-toxic
See below
Propylene glycol, is considerably less toxic than ethylene glycol and may be labeled as "non-toxic antifreeze". It is used as antifreeze where ethylene glycol would be inappropriate, such as in food-processing systems or in water pipes in homes where incidental ingestion may be possible. As confirmation of its relative non-toxicity, the FDA allows propylene glycol to be added to a large number of processed foods, including ice cream, frozen custard, salad dressings and baked goods.
Another alternative is Glycerol which is non-toxic
I'm wondering at what temperature a mix of pink fluid and water freezes. I use pink fluid in my fluch and pure water freezes at 0 degrees but with the pink fluid it must be a lower temperature.
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Topic: frozen pipes no more
