Date: Fri, 15 Oct 2004 11:01:05 -0600
Reply-To: Andrew Fox <afox@CNR.COLOSTATE.EDU>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Andrew Fox <afox@CNR.COLOSTATE.EDU>
Subject: Re: Propane heater question - Portable Buddy Heater
In-Reply-To: <b3a1e7ad04101509184d13f37c@mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII
Since I mostly camp by myself in winter here's my solution to loosing heat
thru the poptop:
I dont pop it all the way just enough to have enough headroom to stand
which is about 13-14 inches at the latch for me, im 5'7". I do this by
placing a water bottle (1.5 liter juice bottle) in between the roof and
poptop. If you do this you will loose much less heat, you can bundle up
the fabric which makes it more insulating, or you could cut some
insulation which would be much smaller and easier and effective for the
front section, than the whole poptop. The only problem is hte bar which i
though about removing for the winter but never did, maybe you could make
the bar quick releasing.
On Fri, 15 Oct 2004, Craig Oda wrote:
> Doug,
> thanks for the information. After pondering life and the change of
> the seasons in my driveway as I observed the leaves changing color and
> falling on the roof of my Westy, I came to the realization that thin
> canvas on the Westy tent isn't much good at insulation. So, I bought
> a 4' by 10' roll of bubble foil from home depot and a 15' roll of
> 2-faced velcro tabe. I realize that I'll need another roll of bubble
> foil, but Home Depot is close to my house and I thought I would add
> the first roll of bubble foil first, then decide on the width of the
> 2nd roll. Do you have any tips for securing the bubble foil to the
> tent? I'm thinking about the exterior tops and bottoms, probably 3
> inch long strips of velcro spaced out.
>
> I'm thinking about four pieces of foil bubble wrap:
> 1) front tent window section and wrap around 2-3 feet on each side
> 2) left side
> 3) right side
> 4) rear skinny piece
>
> I'm probably going to try this with a coleman powercat and see how it goes.
>
> Thanks.
>
> Regards,
> Craig
>
> On Thu, 14 Oct 2004 22:32:37 -0700, Doug in Calif <vanagon@astound.net> wrote:
> > If heat is escaping out the top you will not get much in the lower bunk even
> > if you have a blast furnace going.
> > Top insulation will help and you will be able to get by with a much smaller
> > heater.
> >
> > Insulating the sidewalls of the vanagon with bubble foil and doing some type
> > of window treatment, (cold curtains ect) will help allot.
> >
> > Doug
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "Craig Oda" <craigoda@GMAIL.COM>
> > To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
> > Sent: Thursday, October 14, 2004 5:51 PM
> > Subject: Re: Propane heater question - Portable Buddy Heater
> >
> > > The Big Buddy is rated at 18,000 BTU and comes with a fan. Think this
> > > more than required? It adds about 3" each to the height, width,
> > > depth.
> > >
> > http://www.campingworld.com/browse/skus/index.cfm?deptID=&subOf=&skunum=2706
> > 2&src=UPSE
> > >
> > > I have a Coleman Powercat rated at 3,000 BTU and it definitely is not
> > > warm enough.
> > >
> > > I have not put aluminum bubblewrap insulation around the upper tent of
> > > the Westy yet. Someone recommended this. However, I'm thinking that
> > > maybe it will be kind of inconvenient to set up in actual use? Maybe
> > > a big heater will be more convenient?
> > >
> > > BTW, the standard place to put these things is on the main cabin floor
> > > in back of the two front chairs, right?
> > >
> > > I'm kind of deciding between getting a bigger heater and using the
> > > Powercat with more insulation. The advantage of the powercat is that
> > > I think it may be safer.
> > >
> > > Even the Portable Buddy has 3X the heating power of the Powercat. the
> > > Big Buddy has 6X.
> > >
> > >
> > > On Wed, 13 Oct 2004 14:12:51 -0700, Sharon Mendonca
> > > <bobonsharo@sbcglobal.net> wrote:
> > > > While we're on the subject of heaters, has anybody tried one of these?
> > They say they're safe for indoor use, but you never know.
> > > >
> > > > ===========================================
> > > > Click on the link below to find out more about this product
> > > >
> > > > Portable Buddy Heater
> > > >
> > http://www.campingworld.com/browse/skus/index.cfm?skunum=19573&affiliateid=2
> > 20&kcode=04991
> > > >
> >
> >
>
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