Advanced Containment Systems restroom or shower trailers, environmental decontamination units and mass casualty decontamination units are built for years of use.  They are rugged enough to travel into remote locations and will stand up to the harshest conditions.  It’s our philosophy that every unit should be built military grade tough. 

Those units housed in the north, however, are subject to Mother Nature’s cold winter blasts and will need a bit of winterizing.  Even though all of our units are plumbed with PEX pipe, which will withstand the cold better than PVC, don’t assume your unit is cold weather protected.  

Getting winter ready isn’t hard and only takes 10 to 15 minutes, but here is what you need to know so your unit is protected.

For Restroom or Shower Trailers  

Find the drain valves at the low points under the trailers and open them up.  Gravity will naturally drain any water from the plumbing lines.  At this point open the interior faucets to avoid pockets of water in the plumbing.  Make sure your waste water tank is emptied as well.  Leave valves open during the winter months.  

If your restroom or shower trailer was ordered with heat trace tape, now is the time to plug it in.  This runs along water lines and wraps your waste water tank under the foam.  As an added precaution, if there was an air adaptor provided with your trailer, attach this to the water inlet and use a compressor to push air through the lines.  If you didn’t order this handy little device when your trailer was built you can order one directly through ACSI.

For Environmental Decontamination Trailers and Mass Casualty Trailers

Your decontamination or mass casualty trailer may have a little more plumbing than a restroom or shower trailer, and may take a few minutes longer to winterize, but the winterization procedure is basically the same but with possibly one added step.

As discussed above, open water drains at their lowest point under the trailer and let gravity take out most of the water.  The air adapter was included on these units, so hook it up and use your compressor to push out any remaining water.  Plug in your heat trace tape if so equipped.  If you are moving to the next step, shut the drain valves.

Some decontamination units and all mass casualty trailers come equipped with a pump to push propylene glycol (water line antifreeze) through the clean water lines.  If your decon unit doesn’t have this it can be purchased through us as an add-on.  This isn’t hard to use but we highly recommend it.  In the spring simply drain and flush out the lines with fresh water.

A Final Winterizing Tip

A lot of our customers order our heavy duty vinyl skirting for their trailers.  For weddings and events the skirting gives your trailer a tidier appearance.  It simply hangs from the underside of the trailer and goes to the ground.

But in the winter it can also be used as a windbreak.  The skirting helps to block the wind from getting up under the trailer, and on extremely cold nights many will place a heater under the trailer within the confines of the skirting, just as an added precaution.  If you are interested in purchasing skirting for your trailer, or possibly the air inlet or the propylene glycol pump, give ACSI a call at 713-609-1287, or contact us through our website.