# Cabin Winterizing



## Welchman (May 12, 2006)

Hello--

I'd like to hear some advice from those of you who have experience getting northern Michigan cabins ready for winter. If possible, I'd like a list of the steps you go through to winterize your cabin. 

Also, I've got one specific question: Will drywall be damaged if a building is left unheated over the winter?

Many thanks!


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## msuchodo (Dec 4, 2007)

Welchman,
It would help if you described what is currently in your cabin ie toilet, sinks etc
I have had a cottage in the past, and a stick built barn now, the process is pretty much the same. 
Hook a hose up to your water heater and drain (remember to switch off the circuit breaker to it first and cut power to your pressure tank)
my well has a check valve, so i remove the cap and loosen the nut on the valve with a long piece of copper pipe so that water flows back into the well
open all faucets, showers if you have them
flush toilet and remove any standing water from tank 
add antifreeze to all drain traps, toilet tank etc


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## P.R.S.F. (Jul 2, 2008)

Make sure to blow the pipes out with compressed air.


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## JasonCarp (May 9, 2005)

The cold won't harm the drywall by itself. Moisture is a much worse culprit of drywall damage. If it is too dry, you may get some seam cracks from shrinkage of the joint compound. 

If it is newer drywall I'd be more concerned with that. If it has been through some winterizing it will probably be okay.


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## maak (Aug 15, 2006)

Make sure you put the lid on the toilet down and weigh it down. We got a mess of dead ground squirrels in the cabin one year. We still have to shoot the bats out of the rafters in the Spring. It's not easy finding all the little gaps in a 1938 log cabin.


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## Laketrotter (Jan 26, 2008)

I have a cottage that gets winterized every year and left unheated until spring. I use an air compressor to purge the water out of all the pipes, and RV antifreeze to the toilets and also the toilets tanks, all the traps in the sinks and drains. I don't have a dishwasher or a washing machine, they require draining the pump and disconnecting the fill hoses. The only mistake I made once was trying to heat the place up for one day in February, it was about 10 above. The kitchen flooring warped due to the heat expanded the flooring near the vent. I found out later you are supposed to heat the house up slowly in stages, 50* then 55* then 60*


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## jeffm80 (Feb 23, 2002)

I use my mobile home about 2 times a month during the winter and I winterize it after each use, it take me 50 minutes for the complete job, here's what i do.

1) turn off power to the pump
2) turn of gas to the water heater
3) I have a water spicket next to the pressure switch under the home that I hook a garden hose up to and completly drain the system
3) I also have a garden hose hooked up to the water heater and it gets drained
4) once all the water is draind out, I disconnect the garden hose from the spicket and install a blow out adapter fitting I bought from a mobile home parts place. http://www.mobilehomerepair.com/icealarm.htm
5) hook up portable air compressor and fill entire system with no more than 35 psi of air
6) start opening faucets on and off one at a time switching between hot and cold (including shower heads)
7) once you get nothing but air from all faucets, your good to go
8) next I flush all the toilets and plunge as much water from the bowl as possible, in the tank I open the flapper and By hand I push as much water out and down the drain as I can . add a couple cups of RV anti freeze to the tank and the bowl and your good to go
8) add RV anti freeze to all sink and tub traps
9) if you have a washing machine, I'll set the dial to the spin cycle and let it run for a minute and then stop it and pour in a cup of RV anti freeze, turn the spin cycle on again for a few seconds to allow the the anti freeze to get into the outlet hose. all done.....This is only my second winter of doing this and I havn't had any problem yet (knock on wood) !! hope this helps


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## Deadbuck (Oct 29, 2003)

I have a basement at my vacation home. it makes it very easy to drain the pipes. Just have to shut off the power to the well. Then open all the faucets upstairs. All water runs out into the sump pump hole. I have a dishwasher and washing machine. I just put some of the pink antifreeze inside them. Run a spin or drain cycle to get the pink stuff in the drain lines. I remove the water pump for the dishwasher and frig. Only 2 screws for each pump and one water line. I take them home with me. Not sure if all the water comes out so I just keep them in the downstate house for the winter. I have done this for 2 winters now and had no problems. What I have been worried about though is the sump pump. so far so good,but in the spring when you get thaw, freeze,thaw,freeze i am worried that the pipe on the opposite side of the check valve freeze. If pipe breaks the spring thaw water will have no place to go. Sump pump will run continuously. So far so good with that too. I just keep a eye on my electric bill. If it shows I used any electricity i know something is wrong and I need to make a trip up there. Another think I have been doing is taking video of the place how I left it in case someone breaks in or burns down I have record/proof of what I need to claim.


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