furnace change - Montana Owners Club

Montana_5066 · 10-11-2006, 03:32 AM

The furnace in our '05 Montana is located inside, under a cabinet and is very noisy and does a poor job of heating the coach. It has one 2" vent hose from the heater going thru the floor to the heating ducts. I would like to make that a 4" hose, but it disappears thru the floor. If I could get to the spot where the vent hose connects to the ductwork, I could convert it to a 4" hose and get a lot more hot air. I am also thinking about removing the heater entirely and buying two or three space heaters so I won't have to turn up the volume on the tv so I can hear it. Has anyone tried to relocate a furnace, say to the basement? I did that once on a bus conversion and it worked great.

mtpocket2 · 10-11-2006, 06:17 AM

We purchased a small ceramic heater. You would be suprised how much heat they put out. It's 1500/900 watt adjustable and has a thermostat. We use the propane for a quick heat up then with the ceramic heater the propane heater will only turn on once or twice a night in 40 degree temps. Only draw back so far is when the wife forgot and tried to use the microwave and a 4 slice toaster with the heater running. No can do. Makes breakers dance then you have peace and quiet for sure. I know a couple of people who leave one in the camper all winter. They believe the constant tempature helps the camper live longer. Try to find a circuit with very little on it.

OntMont · 10-11-2006, 07:03 AM

Take another look, I think you find that the 2" duct you refer to only supplies a little heat to the underbelly for frost protection. The main air flow goes directly into the main ducts.

bsmeaton · 10-11-2006, 07:08 AM

Geraldlanc,

Not sure what model Monty you have, but I believe the 2" vent hose your talking about only serves the underfloor space that heats the tanks. I just found mine from the bottom side. I believe the rest of the output is hard ducted to a main duct running front to back on the lower level, which converts to a 4" flexible duct at the stairs for the upper level vent (should be visible in your basement). I haven't ever remvoved the furnace, but I think you will find a hard duct below that serves as the main supply air duct.

I think it would be relatively hard to relocate it. The furnace is designed to be located up against an exterior wall for the combustion air intake and exhaust. All of my basement exterior walls are doors. Sounds like a lot of work.

I'm with MTPOCKET2 - we just use a small ceramic heater and it works wonders. You might even put your money towards an electric fireplace instead - quite a few mods listed in this forum and the result is some nice asthetics as well as a 1500w electric heater for the main area.

By the way, Welcome to the Forum!

Montana_5066 · 10-11-2006, 07:46 AM

Besides the noise factor, I get very little air flow from the registers in the floor. Could it be that there is a leak where the furnace mates up to the ducting below it?

bsmeaton · 10-11-2006, 08:00 AM

Couldn't hurt to check it, maybe feel around the furnace at the floor while it's running to see if it's leaking there. Wouldn't hurt to lift the floor diffusers and check the duct for obstructions either. The factory doesn't use the best housekeeping practices and there may be construction junk in there.

I will tell you they are not high CFM furnaces so I wouldn't expect it to part your hair when you look down a diffuser.

Brad

OntMont · 10-11-2006, 09:29 AM

Ours is an '05 too. The furnace is under the kitchen sink. Certainly you can hear it, but it is not so loud that it bothers us enough to try to do anything about it. The air flow is readily detectable at the registers. (and it does leak some where it is supposed to be sealed to the floor). Overall, it functions pretty well and does keep the trailer comfortable in moderate (i.e. not too windy and above 32 deg) conditions. When coditions worsen, it has a harder time keeping up. We use an electric heater when we have power, but that is not always the case when we are travelling, and overnighting at Flying J's.

If yours is really noisy with little air flow, perhaps there is something wrong with it that needs to be addressed. I'm not familiar with their inner workings, but there must be bearings and maybe couplings on the fan drive. Those might add to the noise and reduce the cfm, if they are not functioning right. Could you go to a dealer and compare yours to another one?

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