12 Volt heaters

I was wondering about a 12 Volt heater in a 560. Would it use the battery up fast? Or can you just leave the tow vehicle on and plugged in and keep it on. Like if your in really cold weather?

 

I searched around for a decent 12v heater but every one I found had terrible reviews. I did get a small, regular 110v ceramic heater with a thermostat. That really did the trick, but of course requires you to have shore power. The thermostat really helps because it would heat us right out of the camper in about 10 mins if we didn't have it.

That said, even in 24 degrees I was pretty darn warm after I got in bed under a comforter and an LL Bean Hudson Bay Point blanket!

 

Billy,

Like Dan said, it is not going to be a effective solution. Just not enough watts available to do the job. You are looking at a 150-180watt heater only. To warm the cabin in any notable manner would require 300+ watts. That is why Dan's 110v heater does such a nice job. A AC heater would be 750watts minimum (1000watts more likely)so can roast you out in short order.

Now, if you can get the dc heat under the blankets that is a much smaller effective area you need to heat. That is why a couple people under a good blanket can stay so warm in our trailers. That is 80-100 watts of heat per person. If you can get your hands on a DC mattress heater that may do what you are trying to accomplish. We used to sell the Electrowarmth queen sized mattress warmers. But, Electrowarmth stopped making the queen sized ones. They still offer singles which do actually do the job. A number of customers over the years have gave us super great feedback on the use of these mattress warmers.

Cary

 

What if I put the Mattress heater/ Blanket under the Green Mattress on top of floor board. I have a nice sleeping bag. I wonder if that would create a nice heat. Maybe on top of that reflective insulation wrap some of you all have been using.

 

Billy,
I have the older Trucker Heat Pad that Camp Inn originally suggested, they stopped making them now so others took their pace.

For my pad, there isn't enough "juice" to heat up the thick green pad. There's barely enough to get through my 2" foam pad. I don't feel the heat until I'm on the bed and scrunch down the foam pad.

Me thinks putting under the green pad won't work as well. Might get slightly bit warmer but barely noticeable.. try it, maybe the newer ones have a little more juice, dunno...

Jenn:
Pad timer... that is a good thing as I have, on many occasion, thought the dial was on off, only to wake up to a dead battery.

Also, when coming home and parking it.. I thought for sure the pad was "OFF", but 4 days later checked it and it had been on and of course battery completely dead. I used to unplug it just for that reason but then figured I had it "Wired" in turning it OFF.. heheh, but last trip, Thanksgiving, came home 5 days tried to turn the light on, dead battery... so far, it's showing a recharge but there is a new battery in the winds...

So I unplug it now regardless.
I was having a problem with the faulty plug as one the wire connection piece wouldn't expand all the way out and it would short and blow a fuse every-time. Went through a whole Lotta fuses before I had a "Doh" moment... just have to unplug each time and check the wire thing when I plug it in. Once in, I turn it on to test and If i don't see the light "Dim" a fraction, I know I blew a fuse..

Just gotta learn what works and what doesn't to work around it...
With that pad, Heater, and the 750 down Comforter, I'm good to go. Have to have connection to do the heater or it will drain the battery at 3 am, cause EVERYTHING that can go wrong, will go wrong at 3 am... heheh, that's the way things work eh???

HTH...

 

Billy, Alan here...

Look at fpoole's td and note the decals on the side. Place a few of them inside and it will get so hot the fire dept will need to quench the heat.

 

The 12 volt mattress pad only comes in twin size now. I ordered one and the instructions say to pin it to the mattress. I plan on placing it under the memory foam mattress topper. Will it stay in place without pinning? Should I get a fitted mattress pad to put over the green mattress and pin it to that? What has worked for you people who have them?

 

I have the twin, it is just laying on the mattress, then wool mattress topper, then the upholstery grade fitted sheet. pictures here...but you can't see the bunk warmer, but it is there.http://www.campinnforum.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=20045#Post20045

 

I have yet to see any condensation under the mattress. but I don't full time. There were trips in the spring and again in the fall when it was much colder outside, so condensation could have/should have occurred, so I recommend trying it!

the twin pad I have is not fitted, so nothing to trim away.

 

Is the overall problem with condensation "under the mattress" just a "wet" floor OR does the mattress itself absorb water??? We, as most of you know have PACO PADS.
We have had ONLY ONE instance with condensation and it was entirely our own fault for not leaving BOTH WINDOWS cracked 2 inches (not enough "breeze"). I was wiping drips off the ceiling!!! Learned a valuable lesson....BOTH WINDOWS CRACKED GOOD NO MATTER HOW COLD IT IS OUTSIDE!!
However, our "mattress" did not absorb any water.

 

I already did get the bunk warmer. It is flat. No skirt. Has tabs that they tell you to pin to the mattress. They even sent the pins and really emphasize the importance.I plan to have a memory foam topper on top of the green mattress so I was wondering if I put the bunk warmer in between the two if it would lay flat and be effective. It looks like I will need to experiment with it.It sounds like condensation can really be an issue. Jenn, do you leave your mattress propped up when you are traveling? Do you leave anything open for ventilation when traveling? I have been wondering about the hypervent material. It is quite expensive so I would want to hear some positive comments before investing in it.

 

http://electrowarmth.com/12-volt-bunk-warmers
Jenn, I have Memory Foam on my beds at home. I ordered them on line but forgot where. I'm going to try to find the web site again. I got one at Costco but it is softer and less dense. I will probably take one off the bed to use for a while in case it doesn't work out for the teardrop.

 

Great posts about the ElectroWarmth twin-size mattress pads. I ordered one from Amazon (with no skirt) but was worried about battery drain. EW's website claims the pad pulls about 3 amps (times 12 volts yields 36 watts; yeah--a physics major when I was young and pretty, ah.) Therefore for a fully charged 33 amp-hour AGM battery, figure on no more than 11 hours if your pad is pulling 3 amps--And less time if you're using the lights, charging iPads, etc.

 

I've learned that memory foam transforms into ROCK at around 45 degrees!

 

I have been wondering at what temperature the foam gets hard. I used it in my tent on top of the cot and it worked fine but always in summer. I will be doing some early spring and late fall camping but doubt if I will camp in winter for a while.

 

Also remember it's memory foam that gets hard, the CI mattress isn't that. some people get memory foam toppers, and those may get hard. Because of posts talking about that type of thing, I opted to get a natural wool mattress topper and not a foam-type topper. I do have a memory foam type pillow in the CI, and yep, on a cold night that thing was a rock. Thankfully I have another pillow as well--I used that one instead!

A wool topper may not be for everyone, but for example some people adore those eggcrate toppers, and I can't stand sleeping on those. Use what works for you, but don't be afraid to change and try something different if it's not working out!

 

"...eggcrate toppers.."
I use a mattress pad on top of that and seems to work ok... oh Geeze, now that you mentioned it, I'll be focused on it next time I sleep.. THEN I'll notice it.. LOL....

I have the heating pad underneath the 3" foam and I guess resolves the temp-to-rock thing... until the next time of course, (see eggcrate toppers)

 

See, it's all relative. I have my 'perfect' bed, you have your 'perfect' bed... and only a few elements in common. Lol. I sleep well inside, and that's all that matters in the end!

 

I have to admit that I love the mattress that comes with the camper, as is. We have a firm Tempurpedic in the house, but the one in the 560 is more comfortable to me.

 

We have a 1 !/2" wool topper that Joan recommended, we love it. Susan and I sleep like babies in Dewey, very comfortable.