100acrehuphalump
Explorer
The L5 is definitely made for outdoor use, to hang from a hook. It'd be nice to have a propane & a H20 adapter for the outside of the camper, both outgoing.
Camper Heat
- Thread starter 100acrehuphalump
- Start date
The L5 is definitely made for outdoor use, to hang from a hook. It'd be nice to have a propane & a H20 adapter for the outside of the camper, both outgoing.
Overland Hadley
on a journey
The Buddy heaters do not work at higher elevations.
100acrehuphalump
Explorer
Good to know. How does the wave3 do at elevation? And Thanks
brianjwilson
Some sort of lost...
Get the furnace. The newer Atwood they use only draws 1.8 amps. Notice most of the guys who love the wave heaters are not in the damp Pacific Northwest. I don't like using cat heaters in campers here because it just adds more moisture into the air. One (or two) fantastic fans with a heater is great for drying things out a bit. That my experience from a hard sided camper. I don't have a FWC (yet) so I won't comment on specifics. However I do plan to order one with a furnace, water heater and inside shower pan. I agree that it should help if I decide to resell it, but I'd rather have it and not need it. My wife and daughter will appreciate it I think.
goodtimes
Expedition Poseur
That depends. I didn't have any trouble at all, but my girlfriend struggled a bit. Then I added solar & kayaks - it was a no go for Marisa & a bit of work for me.
After adding 4 external struts, we can't get a good balance between lifting and lowering. If they're strong enough to make lifting the roof relatively easy with a load, they're too strong to make lowering the roof easy when there isn't a load. Sure - that's a bit of a first world problem, just be aware that many people struggle to find that balance. As it sits right now, Marisa can't use the camper by herself - someone needs to help with the roof lifting/lowering.
we have spent alot of time in our popup. we close the windows and doors and the fantastic fan helps pull the sides in when putting the camper down.
also the fan helps vent heat while cooking when temps are warm.
took out the water system as we did not use it much.have met other people whose water systems leaked,broke.saves weight.
seems we can always find a place to shower.
as far as heat we bring a extra comforter along.In the morning I get up and make coffee,start breakfast and camper warms up in a couple minutes.
we took out the three way fridge and replaced with larger dometic ,really glad I did this.I like having separate battery.
perhaps the most important part of our truck camper rig are the tires,buy good e-rated tires.if going to alaska have two spares and air compressor and plugs
we have firestone airbags on our truck
good luck
kp
also the fan helps vent heat while cooking when temps are warm.
took out the water system as we did not use it much.have met other people whose water systems leaked,broke.saves weight.
seems we can always find a place to shower.
as far as heat we bring a extra comforter along.In the morning I get up and make coffee,start breakfast and camper warms up in a couple minutes.
we took out the three way fridge and replaced with larger dometic ,really glad I did this.I like having separate battery.
perhaps the most important part of our truck camper rig are the tires,buy good e-rated tires.if going to alaska have two spares and air compressor and plugs
we have firestone airbags on our truck
good luck
kp
I have used mine at 6,200' and it worked like a champ, but I have heard that if you get way up there it becomes very inefficient.
Cayuse
Observer
Like having the forced air furnace. It's really nice to be able to roll over and hit a switch to get heat going in the morning without getting out of bed!
Fantastic Fan will be the next thing I install.
Shower I'm not worried about as a Solar Shower has worked just fine for me and I can get creative when it comes to hanging it.
Fantastic Fan will be the next thing I install.
Shower I'm not worried about as a Solar Shower has worked just fine for me and I can get creative when it comes to hanging it.
calicamper
Expedition Leader
If you do your own build from the shell model - there is always the Marine fire heated units if you keep your eyes peeled they surface on craigs list occasionally. Very small units designed to be wall mounted some are diesel fired but many are units that burn various stuff and they do generate lots of heat. A very basic simple alternative to dealing with power and fuel systems heavy enough to support a heating unit.
trailscape
Explorer
These altitude stories initially scared me off from the buddy heater. But, I've been using it without issue here in Colorado and I love that heater. I typically use it at about 7,000 feet.
Overland Hadley
on a journey
locrwln
Expedition Leader
Not saying that you don't need to be prepared, but we drove this to Alaska, Baja, Death Valley and pretty much everywhere west of the Mississippi and in over 50k miles of driving it, I had one flat tire. We were on a gravel road in Idaho and the tires were at the end of their life. Not sure you need two spares for Alaska.
We have a Hawk shell and the heater is the one thing that we wish ours had. We have a Mr. Buddy and it's fine around Nevada (read low humidity), but it's hard to control the temperature. As others have said, it gets cold and you have to get up and turn it on. A short time later, it gets too warm, so you want to shut if off...
We just end up using it to do a warm up in the evening and in the morning. And yes it adds a lot of moisture, which is not a good thing in the PNW, nothing dries out.
Mine came without jacks, bought it from someone who never removed it. Found some on CL and they make all of the difference in the world, but like others, ours doesn't stay on all of the time either.
Jack
GroovyDad
Wanderer
I have a Mr. Buddy heater and that's all I need. I've tented and backpacked most of my life in all four seasons without a heater at all, so a Buddy heater is a big step up. I could not justify spending over $900 for a forced air furnace when most of my camping is three seasons. Plus, with the Buddy heater, I can leave it behind in the warmer months and save the weight and space a furnace would take up. In the long run, it depends on you camping style. I like to go light and agile because more luxuries come with more cost, weight and maintenance. Finally, you should check out allterraincampers.com if you haven't already. They're $2,000 to $3,000 less than a FWC for basically the same thing and they deliver all over the US. I have a ATC Bobcat and I couldn't be happier.
