32º freezes water, as we all know. Don't you put a heater in at night, or park in a warm garage? Don't take a chance on nothing happening inside your van when it hits 28º.
As Larry mentioned, the length of the freeze determines the damage. As Jim pointed out, slow thaw or you will cause damage yourself by trying to use the machine when it still has frozen internal places.
Years ago I did just that - tried to run a frozen machine. We had a night of 29º and I didn't put a heater in that night. When I tried starting the machine, the Cat pump wouldn't pressurize, so I kept trying to turn the clutch ON and then OFF again and again to get it going. One of the connecting rods in the Cat snapped in two, and that was it for that pump that morning. I do keep a backup, so I had to switch out pumps for the day. Then I had to order a new connecting rod, seal, etc., for the Cat.
That Cat pump I repaired is still good today.
Just a few weeks ago I had to have brakes done on my Astro van (truckmount inside). They left the van out overnight (27º) even though they said they would keep it in the garage. I did the slow thaw thing, all day. Luckily, the only permanent damage was the high pressure gauge, and the water temp gauge (delicate things go first). I had to get both new gauges and replace them.
