HELP - potentially toxic lines? |
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sdc143
Newbie Joined: 18 Jul 2013 Location: Colorado Spring Online Status: Offline Posts: 14 |
Topic: HELP - potentially toxic lines? Posted: 08 May 2015 at 6:07pm |
Good day. Please hoping for some help here. When my husband winterized our Rpod 182G, he used regular car antifreeze. I know - let's just move on from that fact. 7 months later, we had our service department dewinterize it and they said that the antifreeze used wasn't RV antifreeze and our lines might be toxic. What?!? How bad is this? Are our lines toxic? Will Spring Fresh sitting in our lines for a few days or a week or a few times through help this? any other suggestions on how to fix this to be safe for our kids and hopefully not have to replace all of the lines? Any ideas or suggestions would be most appreciated.
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fwunder
Senior Member Joined: 04 Oct 2013 Location: New Jersey Online Status: Offline Posts: 1676 |
Posted: 08 May 2015 at 6:36pm |
Yikes! Yes, ethylene glycol (auto antifreeze) is toxic. First thing I would do is make sure that is what was used. If you have the container or know the brand, read the label carefully.
Don't panic. Long story, but I have had clients put diesel fuel in water tanks. That's really bad! Don't drink the water. We generally don't anyway. We find it easy to carry drinking and cooking water bottled. We're spoiled with our well water. Flush, flush and flush again. If it were me, I would fill and drain fresh water tank and HW tank several times and empty. I would hook up city water line, open faucets and grey water outlet and let them run. I would flush fresh water pump by letting it run for minutes at a time after flushing tanks. That's probably all I would do, cuz We don't drink the water. If you are still concerned about drinkablity, you should take a sample (after doing all the above) to s testing lab. We have done this for our well water a few times. Tell them your concern and they will guide you. Most important. Don't panic. It's not a good thing, but diluted ethylene glycol is probably not as bad as the bacteria growing in most water tanks. Let us know you resolution. Fred |
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2014 RPod 178 => MyMods and Buying Habits
2008 4Runner Limited 4.0-liter V6 Yes, those are wild ponies dining on grass while dumping tanks! |
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fwunder
Senior Member Joined: 04 Oct 2013 Location: New Jersey Online Status: Offline Posts: 1676 |
Posted: 08 May 2015 at 6:49pm |
Not wanting to give any (bad) advice, did you just use the FW pump winterize hose? If so, perhaps just the pump, lines to the faucets and faucets themselves are contaminated. Not the FW tank or HW tank.
fred
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2014 RPod 178 => MyMods and Buying Habits
2008 4Runner Limited 4.0-liter V6 Yes, those are wild ponies dining on grass while dumping tanks! |
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furpod
Moderator Group - pHp Joined: 25 Jul 2011 Location: Central KY Online Status: Offline Posts: 6128 |
Posted: 08 May 2015 at 7:39pm |
If I learned a single thing from my favorite chemist, it's "the solution to pollution is dilution"
I would hook the hose up, open every tap, open the grey water drain, and let it run for an hour or so. Or longer. What is coming out is effectively just fresh water. If the FW holding tank was contaminated, do the same, just do from there. It won't hurt the pump a bit to run for an hour or two, it's rated for continuous duty. |
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furpod
Moderator Group - pHp Joined: 25 Jul 2011 Location: Central KY Online Status: Offline Posts: 6128 |
Posted: 08 May 2015 at 7:53pm |
My favorite chemist says ethylene glycol has zero reactivity to pex tubing.. rinse well.. be happy. Don't do it again.
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techntrek
Admin Group - pHp Joined: 29 Jul 2009 Location: MD Online Status: Offline Posts: 9062 |
Posted: 08 May 2015 at 9:58pm |
Agree, rinse the lines for a few minutes and you'll be fine. Make sure you use the pink stuff next year.
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Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual
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wingnut2312
Senior Member Joined: 25 Aug 2013 Location: MI Online Status: Offline Posts: 231 |
Posted: 09 May 2015 at 9:34am |
You may want to contact the company and ask their opinion. I doubt the bottles are still around, but it would probs be a safer bet.
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2014 rpod 182G
Ford Expedition |
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furpod
Moderator Group - pHp Joined: 25 Jul 2011 Location: Central KY Online Status: Offline Posts: 6128 |
Posted: 09 May 2015 at 10:25am |
The problem with this is you are going to get the legal departments answer, not the chemistry departments. I don't know how much it would cost to re-plumb a 182G, but "not cheap" is my swag. My answer to rinse and move on comes directly from a chemist. I would be willing to postulate that it actually happens on a measurable basis, but the owners don't notice, and rinse well and sanitize at the start of the next season, and the newspapers aren't littered with 2nd page articles of dead RVers from anti freeze confusion. But that reminds me, after rinsing, make sure you sanitize properly. |
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Leo B
podders Helping podders - pHp Joined: 13 Jan 2012 Location: Lyndonville, VT Online Status: Offline Posts: 4517 |
Posted: 09 May 2015 at 10:48am |
Their legal department would not give you anything thing in writing saying that you could rinse it and be safe. They are all about liability.
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Leo & Melissa Bachand
2017 Ford F150 2021 Vista Cruiser 19 csk Previously owned 2015 Rpod 179 2010 Rpod 171 |
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sdc143
Newbie Joined: 18 Jul 2013 Location: Colorado Spring Online Status: Offline Posts: 14 |
Posted: 26 May 2015 at 1:51pm |
Thank you all. Had the RPod out this weekend after lots of rinsing and sanitizing. Not worried any longer thanks to great advice from you fine folks. THANK YOU!
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R-Podimus Adventures Abound!
'14 182G HRE '14 Toyota Sequoia 2 little boys and 2 yr old mutt |
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