Staying Warm While Boondocking - RV-Dreams Community Forum

TxYellowRose · RV-Dreams Family Member

Staying Warm While Boondocking

GENECOP · RV-Dreams Family Member

You would have to keep a window cracked open for ventilation, but in a pinch camping world sells a mini LP heater, it uses a 1 Gallon mini tank, just use care as it is not recommended for indoor use, G

GENECOP · RV-Dreams Family Member

I just checked, they are rated for indoor use. G

-- Edited by GENECOP on Thursday 18th of November 2010 07:32:44 AM

Luvglass · RV-Dreams Family Member

If it's only going to be for a few days as you travel south, then the bundle up solution is the most prudent.

If you see this being a regular need, then a propane heater is the way to go. There are a number of different models available that can be hooked up to your permanent propane piping for your stove and furnace.

Howard · Host

Yes, many boondockers install propane heaters that tie into the RV propane system. That's a whole other discussion. smile

But for temporary or back-up use, the portable propane heaters that use the 1 lb. disposable cylinders (that you can find just about anywhere) will serve your needs.

The Mr. Heater Portable Buddy uses a single 1 lb. propane cylinder and heats up to 200 square feet. It runs about $100.

The Mr. Heater Big Buddy uses two 1 lb. propane cylinders and heats twice as much area - up to 400 square feet. It runs about $150.

As Gene stated, both are approved for indoor use (in the U.S.), but venting is required. These heaters use oxygen from the area they are in and put off carbon monoxide, so care and proper operation is very important.

The owner's manual for the Portable Buddy requires a minimum of 9 square inches of ventilation. And the owner's manual for the Big Buddy requires 18 square inches of ventilation. So you have to leave a window or vent (or both) open a little bit.

Both have an automatic "low oxygen" shut-off and an accidental "tip over" shut-off. The owner's manuals also say "Never operate the heater while sleeping!"

Both can be connected to a 20 lb. propane cylinder (more efficient and cheaper use of propane), but the propane cylinder must be outside the rig.

Both are available at Camping World, but check out the Mr. Heater website for other retailers in your area.

Note: California, Massachusetts, and Canada have special regulations regarding these heaters.

We have a Dyna-Glo double cylinder propane heater like the Big Buddy. On "high" it goes through the propane cylinders quickly, but it certainly heats the entire rig. We can't leave it on high and stay in the same room. smile

Our heater came from Home Depot, but I don't think they are carrying them anymore. At least not on their website.

Hope that helps.

NorCal Dan · RV-Dreams Family Member

It might be easier to stop at a repair facility along the way and see if they can fix the furnace.

TxYellowRose · RV-Dreams Family Member

Thanks everyone for your replies.

Looks like the bundle up method will be the solution. Good thing we have plenty of books!

We anticipate this heading North at the wrong time of the year is a one-time thing - we hope! We are only doing it to get our rig taken care of at the Keystone Service Center in Indiana. We will be having the furnace issue addressed there.

Thanks again!

flyone · RV-Dreams Family Member

Betty, I read this on a forum, not sure if it was this one or not. Along the way to a colder climate--stop in a Good Will store and stock up on warm clothes, winter coats, and what ever one may need to stay warm. Then on the way back South (when you don't need them anymore) stop and drop them off at Good Will.

Flyone

Paul and Jo · RV-Dreams Family Member

The other thing that you have to make sure is that your line from the belly water tank to the interior is protected. I haven't figured that one out yet but, while boondocking one night in New Mexico, ours froze up and didn't thaw until we'd sat for an hour or so in the morning sunshine.

Safe travels!

Paul

rjenkins · RV-Dreams Family Member

Howard wrote:
The Mr. Heater Portable Buddy uses a single 1 lb. propane cylinder and heats up to 200 square feet. It runs about $100.

The Mr. Heater Big Buddy uses two 1 lb. propane cylinders and heats twice as much area - up to 400 square feet. It runs about $150.

Both can be connected to a 20 lb. propane cylinder (more efficient and cheaper use of propane), but the propane cylinder must be outside the rig.

On "high" it goes through the propane cylinders quickly, but it certainly heats the entire rig. We can't leave it on high and stay in the same room.

I have seen those before and was wondering how long will it last with a one gallon cylinder. Howard mentions it will go quickly. Being totally ignorant with this, does that mean overnight, or a couple of days use or what?
Thanks

bjoyce · RV-Dreams Family Member

The smaller one will run 3 hours on high or 6 hours on low per 1lb cylinder. We used to use one before we ran a propane line inside and got a larger unit. This is from memory, but I know it did not last that long.

-- Edited by bjoyce on Thursday 18th of November 2010 07:43:57 PM

NorCal Dan · RV-Dreams Family Member

I made my recommendation to get the furnace fixed because I thought this was a new rig and under warranty. Is that not the case? You should be able to get it fixed for no cost and bypass all the headaches of trying to survive the cold. Did you winterize your rig for the trip? I'm not familiar with your rig but some use the furnace to provide heat to the water compartment and holding tank area to keep them from freezing. Maybe it's not that cold along your travel route...

TxYellowRose · RV-Dreams Family Member

Dan,

Thanks . . . we are headed to the Keystone Factory Service Center in Indiana to have not only the furnace but a multitude of other issues addressed/fixed.

The good news is that today I finalized a route that will keep us more southerly, going through Kentucky and then straight up through Indiana. I found campgrounds (actually talked to them) where we will at least have electricity and several that can fill our fresh tank if we need it.

Bill, thanks so very much for your route recommendation. It looks very do-able and if the season were different we would take it. I really appreciate the effort and your phone calls!

My major concern was having electricity so we can at least stay relatively warm should the weather turn nasty. One night at a truck stop is fine but if we had to lay low more than that due to weather, well, I really want us to be able to have some power, open the slides, and keep us and the rig reasonably warm and safe.

So we have reservations at year-round campgrounds where we will have power! I spent all day on it, but am very much relieved.

Hey, what's a bit of extra miles - one of the goals of full-timing is to see the country, right? We would both rather toodle along through Kentucky than Ohio!

Thanks ever so much to everyone!

We'll be heading out Monday.

Goshen here we come!

TxYellowRose · RV-Dreams Family Member

Flyone,

Thanks for the advice and it's good. I've heard that same thing, too.

Having lived in Minnesota for a couple of years, we kept our heavy-duty winter items - parka, boots, gloves, etc. I even still have my clip-on cleats for ice! I think we're good there!

Cheers for the thought!

TxYellowRose · RV-Dreams Family Member

Dan,

Yep, we do have the "heated" tanks with use of the furnace. I guess the tanks now are my only bit of concern; however, looks like temps will be above freezing during the daytimes and the coldest weather will be when we hit Indiana/Goshen. That's with the latest prediction of the storm system sweeping through the country next week.

My suggestion to the Service Center will be to address the furnace first!

We'll try to make as much time as safely possible to beat the nasty weather if/when it hits. Our itinerary has a day or two built in for pushing on or laying over as necessary.

All - any suggestions on winter travel re: tanks or anything else appreciated!

Keep 'em comin'! biggrin

cherylbrv · RV-Dreams Family Member

TxYellowRose wrote:
Thanks everyone for your replies.

Looks like the bundle up method will be the solution. Good thing we have plenty of books!

We anticipate this heading North at the wrong time of the year is a one-time thing - we hope! We are only doing it to get our rig taken care of at the Keystone Service Center in Indiana. We will be having the furnace issue addressed there.

Thanks again!

Hi,

I know this is a rather old thread, but I do have a question... when there is a repair issue, is it always necessary to travel back to the place where you purchased the RV, or can repairs be made pretty much anywhere?

Terry and Jo · RV-Dreams Family Member

Cheryl,

I will state that if it regards warranty work, any dealership that carries the same brand "should" be able to do the repairs. I say "should" because one occasionally runs across a dealership that does NOT want to do warranty work on any RV that they didn't sell themselves. Should there not be a nearby dealership, if one contacts the manufacturer, they may authorize repairs at another facility, whether it be a dealership for another brand or for a mobile RV repair service.

If it does not classify as warranty work, then any dealership or mobile tech can likely do the repairs, provided they are equipped for repairing whatever is broken. For instance, some dealerships and mobile techs may not work on hydraulic slides or levelers.

Hope this is helpful for you.

Terry

Jwar · RV-Dreams Family Member

Just wondering, I had a problem with mud douber building a mud nest in one, was an easy fix with a coat hanger after I finnaly realized what the problem was. Just a thought..John

rvingft · RV-Dreams Family Member

Be safe in Goshen. We have a job there the 8-10th, but won't have the RV with us. If you end up needing a hotel, the Best Western on Lincolnway East is a great one. LOTS of room for RVers to park. Many of the RV delivery guys stay there.

Terry and Jo · RV-Dreams Family Member

Jwar wrote:
Just wondering, I had a problem with mud douber building a mud nest in one, was an easy fix with a coat hanger after I finnaly realized what the problem was. Just a thought..John

John,

If you go to an RV store and look for mud dauber screens, you can prevent them from even building their nests. If you've not seen them, use google images and type in "rv mud dauber screen" to see all the various styles that there are. Here in Oklahoma, it is always a good idea to have them on every RV.

Terry

Terry and Jo · RV-Dreams Family Member

rvingft wrote:
Be safe in Goshen. We have a job there the 8-10th, but won't have the RV with us. If you end up needing a hotel, the Best Western on Lincolnway East is a great one. LOTS of room for RVers to park. Many of the RV delivery guys stay there.

Terry and Candace,

The original posting of this thread was back in 2010, so the Goshen event was a long time ago.

Terry

Lucky Mike · RV-Dreams Family Member

I had a Friend up in the Conways of NH that used a wood burning Forced hot air unit the size of a 25 gallon drum. outside. that used 4" flex duct connectedto the RV with solar powered fans durring the day and battery backup at nite.......was a really nice compact unit and put out a ton of heat...........of course this is my second year up here in the snow banks of NH in an RV.........its cheaper to just go south!!!!!!!!!!!!!LoL

-- Edited by Lucky Mike on Tuesday 1st of January 2013 05:24:44 PM

Soody · RV-Dreams Family Member

As I live in the NE and can count on being without power for periods of time in the midwinter, I am a wood burning enthsusiast. So When I go FT I will consider one of these for boondocking or maybe even primary heat during cold climate stays. They are fuel extremely efficient especially in such a small place.

Kimberly Stove

http://unforgettablefirellc.com/

Anyone have one or seen one?

PIEERE · RV-Dreams Family Member

Read about someone who used it in a Toyota mini C. This would be ideal especially without having a generator on board. I wonder if one would cause the rv and me to smell like woodsmoke.

Terry and Jo · RV-Dreams Family Member

Soody wrote:
As I live in the NE and can count on being without power for periods of time in the midwinter, I am a wood burning enthsusiast. So When I go FT I will consider one of these for boondocking or maybe even primary heat during cold climate stays. They are fuel extremely efficient especially in such a small place.
Kimberly Stove
http://unforgettablefirellc.com/
Anyone have one or seen one?

I would wonder about two aspects of using wood heat. First, how high above the RV's roof would the chimney need to be to get good "draw" for pulling out the smoke? That might be a factor with regards to your RV's overall height. Second, when traveling, would you be limited to having to buy firewood as you traveled, and if so, would all your places of staying have firewood to sell?

While the "footprint" was only 2 square feet, that can be a lot in an RV.

Terry

Soody · RV-Dreams Family Member

From what I have followed on the website, this Kimberly Stove has a secondary burn (gassifier) that re-burns the smoke in the upper area, creating much of the real heat and lowering its emissions. Extremely efficient/ low ash. I have not seen a chimney height/clearance spec but that is a great point. They can vent using 3" double wall exhaust pipe like on pellet stoves. I think the smoke is easily drawn out and don't think it's going to be an issue like for maybe a traditional wood burner. They recommend pieces of non-treated pressed sawdust 'logs' or 4" pieces of scrap hardwood. (8+ hrs with 1/2 log) I am thinking that properly sizing the wood would be more of an issue than obtaining it, lol.

But beyond just the heat, I am intrigued by the accessories. These units are geared toward off grid situations and they offer options to heat water, 12V battery charging, a cooking/baking oven and working on an enclosure to provide wall mount model for tiny home situations. Sounds like a boondockers dream. One photo on the website shows a motor home install and it doesn't look crazy intrusive for what you gain.

Don't know if it is correct for my TT currently but if I move to a larger unit in a couple years or if I am doing fair stretches of boondocking (as I plan to) I will look into this as a top option. Who knows what they'll have developed by then. Like the sound of a wall mount but not thinking I have enough wall. :)