Heating an Eagle

[Mickey Bitsko]

I have the standard oem forced air heater in my Eagle, I'm considering a Wave , just not sure what size would be best.
Anybody out there with this type of heater in the cold country, I'm in Colorado.

 

[LuckyDan]

For an FWC the Wave 3 is the standard size, and a popular choice for cold weather camping as either an alternative or addition to the forced air system as it does not require battery power. It will increase condensation inside the camper but still not a bad choice. The link on the bottom you may find helpful. Congratulations on finding the Eagle you were on the lookout for.

http://www.wanderthewest.com/forum/topic/1652-olympian-wave-3-heater/

 

[Mickey Bitsko]

Thanks for the link, and thank you ! I picked up Eagle in Missoula Montana a couple weeks ago and went to Seattle then to the bay area and now in Arizona heading home.
Several times I've wanted to stop in nowheresville, But chose not to , I have nothing in the way of comforts, pots, pans coffee pot , the most important ! All I have done is load it on my Ford Ranger in the snow and hit the hiway, can't wait to tinker.
I do believe Santa is bringing me a Wave3.

 

[RyanOBrian]

What is your reasoning behind adding an additional heater? Do you insulate the windows or have the thermal pack?


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[Mickey Bitsko]

My thought is to take out forced air noise and electric consumption and just have basic heat source, I have thermal pack, what is best way to insulate windows ?

 

[Martyn]

The wave heater is un-vented. The safety warning is:

Safety Note: Any fuel burning ventless appliance needs adequate air exchange to replenish Oxygen and remove products of combustion. Standards require at least a 1 square inch fresh air opening for every 1000 BTUs of propane used by any appliance. Replacement air (oxygen) is provided best by two vents, one low on an outside wall and the other high on another outside wall.

Manufactures of this type of heater always talk about oxygen replenishment, but the main safety issue is Carbon Monoxide. I did a lot of research on heaters like this a few years ago and my overall conclusion from reading as much as I could find on them is they all produce CO in small quantities when burning, and in large amounts when malfunctioning. I recall that the suggested venting area to get fresh air into a confined space was around 14" x 14". That fact is usually in the fine print or missing all together.

Your other problem is this is a propane furnace and when the combusted air is also the heated air you are going to get condensation.

Staying warm is important, staying alive is more important.

 

[Mickey Bitsko]

Hm.. I'll have to rethink my heating source , are pop up's more susceptible to condensation than hard side ?

 

[brianjwilson]

Hm.. I'll have to rethink my heating source , are pop up's more susceptible to condensation than hard side ?

Most pop ups aren't well insulated. Four wheel campers in particular. The aluminum frame transfers heat/cold, the cabover area isn't insulated and you're laying on top of a piece of plywood. The entire base is just plywood. That doesn't mean you can't stay warm, but condensation happens. Obviously being well ventilated helps reduce condensation, and using "dry heat" like the forced air furnace. When it's really cold I put reflectix between all of the glass windows and the curtains. And when it's really really cold I put long strips of reflectix between the soft side and the arctic pack liner. While also leaving the overhead vent open. The other week I slept in it when the temps dropped into the teens, and the furnace ran once every 50 minutes set in the mid 50s. Of course there are temp swings with it, where a cat heater will be nice even heat. The furnace likely pulls 1.8 or 2.4 amps when the fan is running so it isn't bad if you have a decent battery bank.

Personally I don't feel comfortable sleeping with a cat heater running, especially with kids. There is/was a vented cat heater (platcat) but it's expensive and does use some battery power.

 

[Mickey Bitsko]

Okay..thanks... describe " decent battery bank". more than "one" 12Vdc ?

 

[brianjwilson]

I have 2 group 34 agm batteries. Probably somewhere around 140-150 amp hours? No issues getting through cold nights as long as we are reasonable about power consumption. Granted if I had my cold weather sleeping bag in the camper I would have just turned the heat down to 45. Which is tough to do with a toddler sleeping as well, still trying to figure out how to best keep my kid warm who is used to sleeping in the house, and previously slept with us while camping.

It really all depends on what you plan to do with the camper. What kind of weather you plan to camp in, how often you'll drive and charge the batteries etc. It may take some practice to figure out at works for you based on your usage.

There is some good reading material over at wanderthewest.com . Lots of threads on battery bank sizing, charging, solar etc.

 

[MINO]

I use a combination of the Wave 3 heater and a 12v bunk warmer to winter camp. The issues I have with the Wave 3 is it's directional heat and that it has some difficulties over 10k feet.
It takes the edge off in the camper, but it's still much colder in the bunk area.

The bunk warmer really helps with the cold. Some nights (when the wife wants it on medium) I've had to kick out from the bag or blankets as it's just too warm.
Such a weird sensation to be near sweating but my pillow feels like ice.

During winter, we can get a good 2 nights out of our battery using the bunk warmer. Solar is practically useless this time of year with the low sun and the occasional snow-cover.

On shore power, our little 600/1200w heater works great too.

 

[Mickey Bitsko]

Thank you, never heard of a "bunk warmer" , I'll give it a look. I don't "snow camp" anymore, I leave that to the young ones. But there are times when you get caught in a storm or cold snap, that is more of my issue. I have yet to open my new to me Eagle in the this cold weather..1* this morning and snow/ice, and a little apprehensive about lowering when it's this cold. I "assuming" the pop up fabric would not fold down correctly. Hopefully I'll never get caught in these temps.

I will be on the lookout for a good little electric heater for shore power... ceramic?

 

[MINO]

Thank you, never heard of a "bunk warmer" , I'll give it a look. I don't "snow camp" anymore, I leave that to the young ones. But there are times when you get caught in a storm or cold snap, that is more of my issue. I have yet to open my new to me Eagle in the this cold weather..1* this morning and snow/ice, and a little apprehensive about lowering when it's this cold. I "assuming" the pop up fabric would not fold down correctly. Hopefully I'll never get caught in these temps.

I will be on the lookout for a good little electric heater for shore power... ceramic?

Yeah, the sides do stiffen up at those temps.

12v Bunk warmer or heating pad. Popular with the Semi drivers. It's only a twin size but it works great to warm most of our king-sized bunk (Feet and head areas remain a little cold).
I'm thinking of adding another one so we have a "his and her side". Wife likes it too damn high - Some nights, I'd be in my boxers and socks trying to get out from the blankets, while she's in her thermals and wrapped like a burrito in a 30° sleeping bag on the bunk warmer. They cost about $100.
http://www.amazon.com/Mattress-Electrowarmth-Non-Fitted-T36-Campers/dp/B001122SZQ

I've also been happy with with our Crane Ceramic heater (EE-6490). Frankly, I picked it because of it's retro modern design. However, it's a very well made heater - All metal.
I've had it for 2 years now. It just sits in my rig and has been bounced around on some gnarly trails. We usually just have it on low, facing the bunk area. We loaned it to our friends that were tent camping next to us in 32° weather. Worked great.

 

[Mickey Bitsko]

Thanks again, Both of those heaters look great, Definitely goin for the ceramic heater, looks like a nice size for easy storage.
I think the heating pad would be perfect for us , we love warm flannel in cold weather, so a little heat up from the pad then turn off.
The po had just purchased a new AGM79 battery, should last a couple days/nights as you said before.