Yup, I were sit'n there on the couch last read'n another one them old cowboy books. I got bout 3 hunnert of them ya know. Give or take a few. Dang, it's get'n kind of chilly in here. Well, before morn'n, it was slap ass cold outside.....37 degs 'cord'n to my Walmart special temperature thingy. When I got up @ 4am, it were a mite cold inside too (Billy Bob does not use any source of heat while wrapped up in 20 pounds of blankets).
There's a lot of controversy over what types of heat is safe in an RV. Myself, I will never use any kind of open flame for heat while I am sleep'n. That's just common sense far as I'm concerned. After learn'n the in's an' outs of boondock'n, it common sense to not use any heat at all while sleep'n.....no matter how cold it get. That why God invented blankets an' sleep'n bags ya know. A experienced RV'er ain't gonna be camp'n in no place what is cold in the first place. That why he has wheels on his house.
The first heater we gonna discuss at this time is the built in furnace what come with the RV. They do a purty darn good job of keep'n a rv warm in cold temps. But they have a drawback. They burn gallons of propane with right bout 40% of the heat go'n outside an' do'n nuttin. Very low efficiency rating if'n ya know what I'm talk'n bout. Don't take long an' you gonna be look'n for a propane sell'n place. They also have a 12 volts fan to circulate the heat through the ducts an' a combustion fan to blow all that heat outside. This ain't a problem if'n you're hooked up to power. But lets suppose you are camped out in the middle of nowheres with no available power to hook up to (boondock'n). The batteries are gonna be dead before the morn'n dew lifts....and ya gonna freeze slap to death. In most cases right bout 4am.
The next best choice of a "safe" (???) heater is a catalytic heater. Since these heaters have no flame (burn by chemical action) (don't ask me how...Google is your best friend), they are safe to use in an RV....even while you are sleep'n. They do use a bunch of oxygen for the process to work, so ya got to crack a winder open a bit. Something like bout a inch or so to bring in more oxygen. Only drawback is the price. $300 plus.
Then there's the Mr Heater (Buddy). It has an open flame (carbon monoxide). And it uses oxygen just like any other propane powered heater is gonna do. Crack a winder ya know. Don't go to sleep with it on. Since the old Billy Bob is cheap, he uses a 18,000 btu Mr Heater ($150 with hoses and fittings). Like what I were say'n, I don't use heat while I'm sleep'n. Although, I have been knowed to take a nap with it on. Right under that cracked winder ya know. So I rekon it's just as safe for me as any the others. By the way, there are thousands of RV'ers using the Mr Heater in their rigs an' every one of 'em is still alive an' travel'n our great nation. 'Cept maybe the "dumb" ones. Life is good when you're warm.
A note here.....don't take my word for it. Do your own research.
Brewed me up that pot of Billy Bob beef stew soup yesterday. Boy howdy that were a good decision. That stuff is goooood. Ate me up two great big ol' bowls that stuff an' sleeped like a baby last night. Good for ya too. See all them veggies in there?
By the way, I throwed out the rest of them damn beans. One night of poot'n an' toot'n was all I could handle.
Have ya ever throwed money around? Well old Billy Bob do. I got one dollar bills lay'n all over the place. Reason is, they take up too much space in my wallet. In a months time ya got a half a inch dollar bills in your wallet an' there ain't no room for hunnerts an' twenty's. I just stacks 'em up till they a couple inches an' then I go spend 'em. I could just use my credit/debit card for all my purchases, but that ain't the way Billy Bob works. I don't keep no record of my spend'n, so cash purchases for smaller expenditures works out fine for me. When I ain't got no more cash, I know I done spend too much. That's my way of book keep'n.....an' I'm stick'n to it.
Oh.....got all them damn dishes all wash up an' put away yesterday. I'm one proud camper. There was a counter under there....yeee haa.
There's a lot of controversy over what types of heat is safe in an RV. Myself, I will never use any kind of open flame for heat while I am sleep'n. That's just common sense far as I'm concerned. After learn'n the in's an' outs of boondock'n, it common sense to not use any heat at all while sleep'n.....no matter how cold it get. That why God invented blankets an' sleep'n bags ya know. A experienced RV'er ain't gonna be camp'n in no place what is cold in the first place. That why he has wheels on his house.
The first heater we gonna discuss at this time is the built in furnace what come with the RV. They do a purty darn good job of keep'n a rv warm in cold temps. But they have a drawback. They burn gallons of propane with right bout 40% of the heat go'n outside an' do'n nuttin. Very low efficiency rating if'n ya know what I'm talk'n bout. Don't take long an' you gonna be look'n for a propane sell'n place. They also have a 12 volts fan to circulate the heat through the ducts an' a combustion fan to blow all that heat outside. This ain't a problem if'n you're hooked up to power. But lets suppose you are camped out in the middle of nowheres with no available power to hook up to (boondock'n). The batteries are gonna be dead before the morn'n dew lifts....and ya gonna freeze slap to death. In most cases right bout 4am.
The next best choice of a "safe" (???) heater is a catalytic heater. Since these heaters have no flame (burn by chemical action) (don't ask me how...Google is your best friend), they are safe to use in an RV....even while you are sleep'n. They do use a bunch of oxygen for the process to work, so ya got to crack a winder open a bit. Something like bout a inch or so to bring in more oxygen. Only drawback is the price. $300 plus.
Then there's the Mr Heater (Buddy). It has an open flame (carbon monoxide). And it uses oxygen just like any other propane powered heater is gonna do. Crack a winder ya know. Don't go to sleep with it on. Since the old Billy Bob is cheap, he uses a 18,000 btu Mr Heater ($150 with hoses and fittings). Like what I were say'n, I don't use heat while I'm sleep'n. Although, I have been knowed to take a nap with it on. Right under that cracked winder ya know. So I rekon it's just as safe for me as any the others. By the way, there are thousands of RV'ers using the Mr Heater in their rigs an' every one of 'em is still alive an' travel'n our great nation. 'Cept maybe the "dumb" ones. Life is good when you're warm.
A note here.....don't take my word for it. Do your own research.
Brewed me up that pot of Billy Bob beef stew soup yesterday. Boy howdy that were a good decision. That stuff is goooood. Ate me up two great big ol' bowls that stuff an' sleeped like a baby last night. Good for ya too. See all them veggies in there?
By the way, I throwed out the rest of them damn beans. One night of poot'n an' toot'n was all I could handle.
Have ya ever throwed money around? Well old Billy Bob do. I got one dollar bills lay'n all over the place. Reason is, they take up too much space in my wallet. In a months time ya got a half a inch dollar bills in your wallet an' there ain't no room for hunnerts an' twenty's. I just stacks 'em up till they a couple inches an' then I go spend 'em. I could just use my credit/debit card for all my purchases, but that ain't the way Billy Bob works. I don't keep no record of my spend'n, so cash purchases for smaller expenditures works out fine for me. When I ain't got no more cash, I know I done spend too much. That's my way of book keep'n.....an' I'm stick'n to it.
Oh.....got all them damn dishes all wash up an' put away yesterday. I'm one proud camper. There was a counter under there....yeee haa.
When direct fired heating, like catalytic or Mr. Buddy, is used, the required venting reduces the efficiency of the heating to no more than 80% at best. If you turn the furnace off at night like the other heaters, it will not run your batts down either. Current design RV furnaces run at a little over 70% efficiency. As BB says do your own research and choose what you feel is correct.
ReplyDeleteNot to doubt your 70% plus efficiency rating, but all my research is at best 60% for furnaces. As for Mr Buddy and catalytic heaters, a 1" opening in more than enough for fresh air.
ReplyDeleteLove that Mr. heater, sure does the trick, and is safe as long as do it right.
ReplyDeleteHey Billy-Bob if you boondock that much have you ever thought about just hanging one more propane tank and about 75 gal more of water????
ReplyDeleteI like having cash on hand too, and you're right about all those $1 bills taking up too much room. Makes it seem like you have lots of money, but maybe you don't. They are handy for the Salvation Army at Christmas time as well as the homeless vet standing on most street corners.
ReplyDeleteI usually switch the two AC units to heat and if I am not plugged into shore power, I run the generator. Since it is up front and the bedroom is in the rear, it doesn't bother me. If it gets too cold, I turn the furnace on so that the basement gets heated along with the water tanks. My old RV had tank heaters.
ReplyDeleteI always reach out to Newtown Heating to make sure that I have a working unit when I travel in my RV. I love traveling in it, but if you don't have heat or air conditioning, it can be BRUTAL!
ReplyDelete