7 replies to this topic

[tanyj]

Has anyone ever removed the installed heater & just relied on a Buddy Heater, or something similar? If so, did you gain much storage? Pros & cons of this mod, please.

We have a '92 Grandby & love it.

[SunMan]

I've heard of lots of people using the buddy heaters with much success, but never anybody removing a factory furnace to go that route.

The concensus here seems to be that a factory furnace is a must have option. This is coming from a guy who doesn't have one, and wishes he did. That being said, my Black Cat heater does get the job done.

[davinski]

well, I've a Hawk Shell and no factory heater. Sometimes I wish I did when it is really cold and the temp is below freezing. I do like the fact that for the summer, I don't take the big propane tank and have lots more room for my junk. In fall, winter, spring, i take the little buddy. I only use it when I am awake so that the risk of fire and all is lower. Lots of down stuff for the times that it is off. i don't have a cold insulation setup, but that I do wish I had. May make one one day.

I also have a small ceramic electric heater that I use if I just happen to have access to AC power. very small, works well and no propane. I use it when camped outside a friends house, or a state park with hookups during the cold seasons. If I know I will have no access to AC power, then I just leave it at home.

If the temp is really really low, like below 20, sometimes i will keep the top down, and sleep just on the fold out couch. Thicker padding, warmer, and very cozy. Not a lot of stretching room, but it is a bit warmer.

Good luck.

Dave in Seattle

[Mark W. Ingalls]

I have a Hawk and a Little Buddy that I converted over to use with the regulated propane line in the camper. I unplug it and store it in the garage during the non-heating months.

I would prefer to have a permanent furnace (and an arctic pack).

The storage that is available in leu of the furnace isn't very high quality-- long and narrow, I have to unpack everything in front to get anything from the back. Plus, when I am using the Little Buddy I have to store and use it somewhere, and that storage|use space is premium, in the sense that I have to work around the heater, open the vent, be careful not to break the ceramic catalyst tile (like I already did), and constantly fool with turning it on and off, because it is unregulated.

If I had the furnace already, or if I lived where it actually snows, I would definitely prefer the furnace. Here in Houston, having already owned the space heater, I'll stick it out until some of the higher camper priorities have been filled.

Maybe this helps someone?

Mark

[DLN]

I installed the factory heater about 6 months after we got our camper and don't regret it at all. We tried a Coleman Cat heater on two trips that first year and were cold most of the time. I have to agree with Mark that the storage you gain from removing the heater isn't that convenient to use. I'd say keep the heater you've got and carry one more portable storage container.

[drakeslayer]

I've used a Big Buddy in an Alaskan and it worked great. You could make it too hot easily so low was the prefereed setting. I rigged mine on the 25' hose so I could set it up outside for sitting in chairs and stating warm.

I am a light sleeper so the forced air(stock) heater in a 4Wheel wakes me up every time it turns on or off and the one in my Grandby did so excessively. As soon as I find a Keystone I'll be taking the stock one out and putting in the Big Buddy.

[winter200]

Havent used the my big buddy in my camper yet but my opinion is that I would never use it as a replacement for a forced air heater. I have used my big buddy countless times in fish houses and It always seems to give me a headache from the exhaust. Not to mention the moisture that ventless heaters produce. I like the sound of the fan on the heater running so that doesn't bug me. You may have noticed that I am in the process of rebuilding a FWC now (which never seems to progress much) but the lp tank takes up so much room that I am planning on leaving the tank on the exterior and carry it inside when I am on road.

[brett13]

Factory heater is great. Very efficient. 1 tank of propane worked 7 nights straight in 25-40*F nights last spring. In the summer, I leave the propane tank at home and use the outside tank cabinet for storage.