Furnace Furnace Option - Needed?

one word...dogs and they even wake up early to lick the condensation off the windows for you after keeping you warm all night! spent several mid 20s to mid 30s nights with them this first winter and no one would believe us how warm and and well-insulated those little CIs really are! and every time, we had to run the fan (blowing out) or have the cross breeze of the windows or we'd wake up too warm.

while the dogs do keep us super warm, we do also have a mr. buddy. we never sleep with it but it's just right for 5-10 minutes of ventilated time before we go to bed and the same for when we wake up if needed. glad we didn't buy the furnace but ever grateful for our AC.

 

I did mean to add that yes, Carl—very true scenario. A friend of my uncle's actually died on his boat this very same way—anchored up at a larger flotilla kinda festival down here. Fell asleep in his cabin and died from CO off a neighboring boat. Obviously different scenario and yes, rare, but still a reality. Something to just be smart about.

 

We love our dogs but as tent campers with two medium plus size dogs when it rains it is a mess. I'll be glad to have a furnace. Hopefully we will only need it for short burst of heat and not have to worry to much about carbon monoxide concerns.
MDP
Mike & Denita

 

Wow. Another reazson to think twice about camping next to big RVs or folks with generators (not that we have much choice).

CO monitor sounds like a solid recommendation.

-Al

 

We live in Arizona and we got the furnace. It was very nice for camping in December when the temps at night got into the thirties.

 

Since getting the furnace on the 560 uses nearly all of the outside storage, where do you all put your the things that get dirty, like gray/fresh water hoses, chocks, door mats, hatchets, dog dish, leash, etc? Do you use the storage under the bed? Or a bin in the tow vehicle?

 

Huh?
I have the 550 and the furnace only takes up 1/2 of the lower storage bin. Top halfs are for the cabin storage. The other lower half I store my hoses, water, spray, propane, power and propane & electrical attachments.

While it won't hold the Door mats, I have a bin for that and other stuff. I guess you could get a tub and put the excess in it and put inside cab just for traveling and then slide it under the TD out of the way..

Again, 550 is different, so I might be way off base but the bin would still work.

 

My understading is the furnace will take up half of the "lower" outside storage. Put the fresh water hose in the floor storage bin of the cabin to keep it clean. Hatchet also goes in the cabin (zombie protection). Everything else should fit in the other outside half.
MDP
Mike & Denita

 

On the 560 the furnace takes of 80% of the lower half of the storage bins - the outside part. The upper half is accessed from the inside and is not affected by the furnace.

The outdoor storage compartment is just big enough to store a pair of wheel chocks, a 10' extension cord, and a few misc. small parts. There would not be room for hoses. When I use hoses, they go in one of the bins under the bed, since the bins are plastic and will keep water from spreading. Just don't leave wet stuff in there for too long otherwise there is a possibility for mold.

The other option for wet gear is the back of the tow vehicle, of course.

 

MDP taking a hatchet to a gunfight…. LOL.

 

Maybe a small hole or two drilled in the bottom of the plastic bins would allow for drainage of moisture for wet items like hoses(and ventilation)?

 

PUT DOWN THE DRILL and move away from the trailer….

I would seriously recommend against drilling holes in the plastic bins. Ima guess that water would splash UP from the road and create more problems than it solves.

 

If we camped all the time with hookups this would be a no-brainer and I'd just go with a 1500w ceramic heater. We camp at least half the time without. We're also in the future going to take an extended road trip so recoverable power is important too, when going with an electric option. So here are some alternatives I've got tossing around in my head. Please comment on any/all pros cons and add if you can. Have any of you without a furnace used any of these, and how was your experience?

1. Generator + 1500w heater
Pros: Would heat it up very quickly. Generator can also be used for other things.
Cons: You have turn the generator off/on. And this won't work at night or in the morning in most camp locations, too noisy. But would be a good option in the daytime to get rid of the cold inside if needed during extremely cold days.

2. Heated 12v mattress pad with timer
Pros: Low wattage, and you don't need to remember to bring it if you leave it on the bed.
Cons: Doesn't heat the whole cabin, just the bed

3. 200w Lasko Myheat with a Goal Zero Yeti 400.
Pros: This will run the heater approximately 2 hours on full charge. Can fit in cabin, generator runs silently, myheat very quiet as well.
Cons: For multiple nights, you'd have to have a source of power to charge the goal zero, but possibly generator solves this issue, as it will charge the unit in 5 hours. So then you'd have to listen to that for 5 hours. Also this small heater may only be effective down to the low 30's, but I've seen mention of people using this heater and seem to think it at least takes the chill off. A lot would depend on the thermostat setting.

4. Hot water bottles
Seems to work for some, as in this thread:
http://tinyyellowteardrop.blogspot.com/2013/01/how-do-you-stay-warm-in-teardrop-trailer.html

5. Small dc ceramic heater
http://www.ebay.com/itm/12-VOLT-CE...537?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item48612c77e1

would perhaps supplement the other options, don't think it would work by itself very well.

6. Mr. Heater
Pros: portable, doesn't require any power, just propane
Cons: They seem to advertise this as "indoor" compatible, I have difficulty in trusting that. It supposedly has an oxygen sensor which does auto shutoff, not sure I would bank my life on the quality of that little sensor. But might work in a pinch with windows open.

So all of the dc options above would be supplemented by a 120w solar panel. Plus failing that, there's always the tow vehicle which will charge the battery in ~1 hour.

So I'm currently leaning against the furnace but we've got a while to decide so I'm taking the time to see what if anything can be done without it.
What you all think? Any other options you've used?

Dave

 

Dave..

Another option is buy a warmer sleeping bag. Normally, I use 20 Degree sleeping bags... and sleep on top of a Sleeping Bag Liner. For those really cold trips, I swap the 20 Degree bags for minus 35 Degrees bags.

I have the furnace option. My experience is that I'm a much happier camper with furnace even if its just taking the off the midnite chill at altitude.

 

Get the heater. A one or two minute blast to take the chill off is all you need. Store the extra stuff in a plastic bin and as others have suggested stick it under the trailer when camping. It will also be nice when the time comes to sell it. I noticed that they were glad they got the A/C. It depends on what part of the country you are in. If you plan on doing a lot of traveling do both. You can't add either.

Dave

 

I have used my Mister Heater in the winter during wilderness camping. I set up the side tent and put the heater on the top of an action packer and leave the door open. This puts the heater in easy reach. I leave the fan on with very little opening to move very little air. I open the window in the door on the opposite side. This pulls in fresh air, plus what comes in thru the side tent. This works OK, but must be really cold before I set it up....in the low 20s. Steve

 

I'm in Florida and I LOVE my heater on chilly nights. I'm very thin-blooded but it sure takes the chill off, I like being cozy. It usually doesn't run too long but it feels wonderful.
I disabled the installed CO monitor because it kept going off for no good reason (windows open, no heater). I bought a plug in/battery that I keep in the left lower cabinet, I open the door to it at night if I'm running the heater.

 

Bear, as always, your opinion is worth much!

 

I apologize in advance if I'm repeating what others have said, but this thread is a little too long to read them all.

We have a goose down comforter that is more than adequate for keeping us warm down to around 45 degrees or so without having to bundle up with additional clothing. If it is colder than that, my advice would be to camp somewhere with shore power. If it's not going to get much below freezing, a ceramic heater will keep the chill away, but I'd mainly just use it to warm the cabin up before jumping in for the night and then crank it up again in the morning.

The downside of a ceramic heater is that the heat doesn't get to the footwell. You could simply wear heavy socks, but we've got a surplus 110v heated mattress pad that we always have on the mattress. It has several settings and individual controls for both sides of the bed. We only use it if it gets really cold, opting to chase after the sun and warmth rather than suffer the cold. But it's there if we need it or we get blasted by a fast moving cold front.

If you were wanting to camp off the grid, the same setup would work with a generator.

I'm with some of the others, unless you are camping in the cold a lot, don't opt for the furnace and save the space and propane for other needs.

If it ever gets down to -2 I'm staying in a hotel, and I'll just hope the plumbing doesn't freeze up.

There are plenty of reasons for going with the furnace option. I think I read where someone (Evan?) goes skiing with his rig and is able to camp out in the parking lot. That makes a ton of sense, as that isn't someplace where you'd want to leave a generator outside all night, and a few nights of that and you've paid for the furnace. Like anything, it all comes down to how you think you'll utilize your rig.

 

I kind of wish I went with the furnance option as I am learning how wonderfully empty campground are in the winter........wonder if it can be added post production?