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I use my van all winter and didn't want to drain off so I mooched about and came up with mono propylene glycol as an alternative.
Apparently it's used extensively in food production so we all consume it regardless one way or another. Anyway, I mixed it 25% and 50% in samples and stuck it in the freezer overnight. 25% went very slightly slushy and 50% poured out as water from the tap. Manufacturer assures it's safety. I don't drink from the water tanks anyway,just used for washing up etc. So I've put 20 litres of 50/50 in fresh tank and run it through catching it at the taps and shower etc and chucking it back in the tank to be sure it's throughout the system. Water system is now in lockdown until April and we use site facilities. Come April I'll pump it back into a drum for next time and flush system thoroughly. We carry on using the toilet using 25% mix. Should be fine methinks. What's puzzling me is why MH outlets have no idea what it is ? It's widely used in the states to safeguard pool systems and in the marine world.
Anything to add anybody ?
Welcome to the forum, and please forgive me if I'm being overly suspicious, but we frequently get first posts very similar to yours which turn out to be a thinly disguised sales pitch by someone associated with the company.
Please confirm that you have no association with the manufacturers of the product, and assuming that to be true - enjoy the forum and all it has to offer.
As to the product, I can't immediately understand why one would go to all that trouble and presumably some expense when draining down is so much simpler and arguably safer. What's the advantage of draining down, then partly refilling with the antifreeze mixture . . . why not just drain down and leave it, or am I missing something?
Definitely no trade links Dave. Vehicle electrician , so deal with most stuff myself. I'm genuinely befuddled why nobody stocks it unless it's for liability reasons i.e. young uns' taking a huge swig of it neat as it is odourless and colourless but no, they all say they've never heard of it?
As for why bother, primarily because I want to keep the toilet in use and secondly because I didn't drain down, I just dropped my tanks and refilled. Plus a touch of doubt always lingers whether all the plain h2o is all out. No hoses off and all that stuff.
I log on here and elsewhere regularly but havn't bothered to register because I generally just use forums to pick up tips. I've been doing motorcycle road trips and camping for 30 odd years and decided it was time for more comfort. Still do the bike trips though in summer. I can take the bride along now too
51 plate Autosleeper Topaz by the way. Love it while I'm still in reasonable shape. Will need something bigger to retire into though.
Thanks for the reply and definitely not am I plugging anything. Bought it retail locally. Be interested if anybody else has any longer use experience ?
Mono propylene glycol (MPG), otherwise referred to as propylene glycol (PG), is a product that is used in the manufacture of high performance unsaturated polyester resins (UPR), as well as engine coolants, antifreeze applications, aircraft wing and runway de-icer, food, pharmaceuticals and personal care products, and paints/coatings.
The manufacture of plasticisers and hydraulic brake fluids consume considerable quantities of propylene glycol and it is also used in the manufacture of non-ionic detergents which are utilised not only in the petroleum, sugar refining and paper making industries, but also in the preparation of toiletries, antibiotics and liquid washing formulations.
Propylene glycol is an excellent solvent and finds outlets in printing inks, alkyd resins and as an extractant.
Propylene glycol is relatively non-toxic but is a mild irritant.
I wouldn`t drink it.
Dave p
______________________________________________________________ I never wish anyone dead, but I do take pleasure in reading some obituaries
snipped:- I want to keep the toilet in use and secondly because I didn't drain down,
Hi Dolce...
If using the toilet is one of the main reasons for adding the antifreeze then I am assuming the toilet in your van uses water from the fresh tank to flush, just as ours does.... but even with the fresh water system drained down you could still use the toilet by filling a trigger spray bottle with water and and flushing with that...
That is what we do if we want to use the van as a day van when the system is drained...of course if we were away longer we would fill the tank and re drain on returning home.
Not that I am poo pooing your solution (word play & pun, sorry could not help myself ...no criticism intended )
Mike
______________________________________________________________ When confronted by a problem, you can solve it easily by reducing it to the question, "How would the Lone Ranger have handled this?"
I wonder why you feel it necessary to go to those lengths?
I have read what you say but surely one advantage of having the system drained is that your weight is reduced? Refilling even 25% of the water volume simply raises the mass again.......
If you are a vehicle electircian and use site facilities have you looked at the possibility of installing small tank heaters into the fresh and grey water? If you are on EHU these could be run 24/7 ad should prevent the temperature dropping.
Although so far the weather looks wet and windy rather than the freezing temperatures we had at this time last year.......
I would just have concerns that having any liquid in the freshwater tank could lead to it being ingested, eve accidentally.
OK my experience is based in rural Devon rather than Cheshire, but are very low temperatures that much of a problem in your area?
This is not meant to be critical, merely wondering why you have chosen to take this route of using anti-freeze in the water, Spykal;s suggestion for the loo works well - many people use it all year round as it can be much more effective than the built in flush, particularly if you line the bowl with a single ply paper serviette before use - it breaks up quickly and without causing problems in the holding tank.
Hi Mike,
Separate tank dedicated to the loo so easy to carry on using it.
Just returned from 10 days away and we don't do number 2's in the cassette so 2 litres in the tank was a 25% mix and it's still half full..... I'm happy with the set up and was more curious why it's not more popular to do so than mess about draining. As I initially said we don't drink from the tank anyway. The prop glycol is in all sorts as a previous reply states so if fear stops anybody from using it ,it's unfounded fear because we're all consuming it regardless.
No tools required. Just pump it back in a drum for reuse and flush thoroughly come spring. Can't come soon enough...............20 mins already added to the daylight.............Safe journey every time.
John
Hi dave,
My post was really asking why nobody does it rather than asking for approval. I didn't go to any lengths ? I stood in the van after sticking 20 litres mixed in the tank and pumped it through each appliance thoroughly, returning it to the tank on collection. I'll do the same to flush it out. It's a solvent and will flush out no problem.
I'm 54 , my wife 52. Sink top is on so we're not going to use it by mistake. We site throughout winter but no more than an hour from home so I'm not worried about carrying 20 litres around. I could easily install heaters but I want to leave it on my drive without hook up. No poisons here guys and gals, I researched it thoroughly and it's nothing like automotive antifreeze. Most sanitize their tanks with a small amount of bleach or sanitizing tablets both of which carry all sorts of chemicals as indeed does your tap water.
Finally, we're all ingesting this stuff daily in small amounts. I don't intend to ingest any extra from my van. My manual tells me to remove heater and pump in and outlets and other stuff. No need to.
I'd still be interested to hear from anybody with experience of what I've done. All replies are interesting and I take no offence but I still believe it to be an obvious solution to draining.
Cheers. John.
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France
(word play & pun, sorry could not help myself ...no criticism intended 
