Chuck Richard 14 Report post Posted February 25, 2003 Heres what I made after I got tired of pumping windshield washer fluid through my units every night. Works great and can be made from things found at your local hardware store or HD or Lowes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jon 533 Report post Posted February 25, 2003 Chuck how about explaining how you made it and use it so others will understand better. Not having to worry about freezing weather here except a couple times a year I don't put anti freeze in my pump. Jon Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chuck Richard 14 Report post Posted February 25, 2003 I took a male hose end with a hose barb and attached a peice of hose to it. On the other end I placed a air valve into a bushing then into another hose barb and attached it to the hose. When I gei home and its going to freeze I just screw this onto my pump and throw the compressed air to it. I can make my whole system water free in just a few minutes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jon 533 Report post Posted February 25, 2003 Got it now, your basically draining your pump and re-priming it later. Sounds faster then adding anti-freeze each time. Anyone else have tricks they would like to share? Jon Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mike Hughes 18 Report post Posted February 25, 2003 How confident are you that it gets all of the water out? Whats the coldest temps you've subjected your wash unit to using this technique without having a problem? I sure hate messing around with antifreeze. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mike Cappa 14 Report post Posted February 26, 2003 I just picked up an Alkota unit and it has an air valve on the pump for this exact purpose. I picked it up in NC (70 degrees) pumped all water out with air. got home to Ohio (20 degrees) I ran water through the machine just to see if anything freezed, and guess what, nothing froze, or atleast not completely. I didn't turn on the machine but I let the water flow and it came right out of the hose like it was the middle of the summer. I think all pumps should have this feature, or atleast offer it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chuck Richard 14 Report post Posted February 26, 2003 Mike, it has gotton down to around 18 degrees with no problem. It will leave a few droplets of water behind but not enough to cause damage or problems. It used to take me about 45 min. to winterize, now it takes about 5.' When ever I get to the job I open the water valve and let the pump prime its self and then I go to town. To keep water out of the intake lines I feed air through til it starts bubbling in the tank the I shut the valve that lets water flow. The trapped air holds all water in tank so my intake lines won't freeze. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Littlefield 65 Report post Posted March 1, 2003 Chuck, where exactly on the pump would I attach the air hose adaptor? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chuck Richard 14 Report post Posted March 1, 2003 Screw it into the water intake. You can just hold the air to it til it starts blowing out the end of your pressure hose. It takes me about a min. per gallon to evacuate my system. Each unit holds 3 gal. of water from pump to hose end. The intake side usally has between 5-6 gal. Empty all your intake filters to keep them from busting. I forgot to about a month ago and the filter housing was laying on the ground the next morning. Kinda set me back a little but not a big problem. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
