Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
 

Go Back   Montana Owners Club - Keystone Montana 5th Wheel Forum > GENERAL DISCUSSIONS > General Discussions about our Montanas
Click Here to Login

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 01-19-2014, 12:37 PM   #1
majaste
New Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: lansing
Posts: 3
M.O.C. #11765
heater with slides in?

Thank you in advance for all your experienced replies

my question is, if your stopping overnight at walmart , not unhooking, not putting out your slides , but it is cold can you turn on the Montana's RL3850 furnace ? will it heat without the slides open?
 
majaste is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-19-2014, 01:02 PM   #2
mhs4771
Montana Master
 
mhs4771's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Sebring
Posts: 3,657
M.O.C. #9969
As long as you're not blocking the vents. We and others have run the furnace while traveling from the Frozen Tundra to Warmer climates.
__________________
Michelle & Ann
2018 Chevy 3500HD High Country DRW 4X4 Crew Cab w/Duramax/Allison, Formally 2010 Montana 2955RL, Now Loaded 2016 SOB, Mor/ryde IS, Disc Brakes & Pin Box, Comfort Ride Hitch, Sailun 17.5 Tires.
mhs4771 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-19-2014, 03:07 PM   #3
Rondo
Site Team
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Omaha
Posts: 6,749
M.O.C. #7560
The furnace will heat BUT-- we had a session at the Fall Rally last year in Goshen on the furnace and water heaters. The reps told us to never run the furnace with the slides in because some of the vents will be covered and that can cause the furnace to actually overheat and cause problems. They also told us not to replace the OEM vents with the closable one because that will do the same thing to the furnace. The furnace is set up for so much output and if the vents are blocked or closed it will not operate as it is suppose to.
Rondo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-19-2014, 03:15 PM   #4
bncinwv
Montana Master
 
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Winfield
Posts: 7,327
M.O.C. #6846
Quote:
quote:Originally posted by majaste

Thank you in advance for all your experienced replies

my question is, if your stopping overnight at walmart , not unhooking, not putting out your slides , but it is cold can you turn on the Montana's RL3850 furnace ? will it heat without the slides open?
Not quite sure what you asking with regards to the model number (RL3850?), but our 3850FL does not impede any vents nor intakes with the slides in and neither did our 3750FL. We do run with the furnace on in colder temperatures since we carry our crated furry friends in the rig when we are travelling. This is not a recommendation, just relating what we personally do.
Bingo
__________________

Bingo and Cathy - Our adventures begin in the hills of WV. We are blessed by our 2014 3850FL Big Sky (previous 2011 3750FL and 2007 3400RL) that we pull with a 2007 Chevy Silverado Classic DRW CC dually.
bncinwv is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-19-2014, 03:22 PM   #5
DQDick
Site Team
 
DQDick's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Wilsey
Posts: 18,799
M.O.C. #11455
Our slides cover half of two vents when they are in, but I have added a vent in the basement so the folks at the Rally in Goshen thought i would be just fine and we've done it a number of times with no ill effects.
__________________
Dick, Joyce, Diego, Picatso and Gustav
2017 3720 RL, and 2013 HC 343RL
Pullrite Hitch, IS, Disk Brakes, 3rd AC, Winegard Traveler, Bathroom door mod, Dometic 320, couch for desk swap, replaced chairs, sun screens, added awnings, etc.
DQDick is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-19-2014, 03:26 PM   #6
Art-n-Marge
Montana Master
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Murrieta
Posts: 5,816
M.O.C. #9257
Send a message via MSN to Art-n-Marge Send a message via Yahoo to Art-n-Marge
Our bedroom slide with the king size bed, covers a furnace vent in the master bedroom. For this reason I don't run the furnace when enclosed. One should be able to get a vent cover to block the vent and then the heat should be directed to the other vents, but I wouldn't trust allowing the heat to enter under the bed.
Art-n-Marge is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-20-2014, 12:28 AM   #7
MIMF
Montana Master
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Goshen
Posts: 1,058
M.O.C. #2827
majaste, here is my experience. Our old Challenger is about the same floor plan as the 3402RL. It has 4 floor vents or registers right down the center of the coach. I have no idea how many are cut in the ducting for the under belly. I had to change the the register grates to the type from Lowe's that I could close because, when the furnace would run, wife and I would get roasted out in the bed room at night! There are 2 of them upstairs. 1 beside the shower and 1 beside the bed. They are about 4 feet apart. The other 2 are down stairs. 1 at the rearward end of the galley island and one back in the living room by the swivel recliners. Now, early in it's life in 2005 when I was traveling to the annual MOC rally in Minden, NV, I did sleep in the coach at night with the slide rooms in. But, the floor of the sofa slide and the main door side slide do not cover the grates completely and are 2 to 3 inches above them. At the time, the 2 grates up stairs were still the open factory type. Even up in the Rockies, the furnace warmed it up quickly with no ill effects. It worked just fine!
MIMF is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-20-2014, 12:50 AM   #8
Phil P
Montana Master
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Okeechobee
Posts: 2,150
M.O.C. #11206
Hi

Our 3665RE covers all but one heater vent with the carpet that is on the slides. The bedroom one is covered by the slide cabinets. This leaves one vent open. The item that looks like a heater vent in the basement isn’t connected to anything.

I would worry about setting something on fire with the carpet over 2 of the vents in the living room and the bedroom vent under the wood cabinets.

So in my case if it gets so cold in the US during the winter that couldn’t go south far enough to stay warm so I would have to move the trailer with the heater on I will put it on a barge and take it to Puerto Rico. LOL

Phil P
__________________
2009 Montana 3665RE
2009 Duramax 3500 DRW quad cab
personal web page https://www.sallyscoffees.com
If you get a page not available then remove the "s" after HTTP
Phil P is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-20-2014, 03:13 AM   #9
steelpony5555
Montana Master
 
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Copperas Cove
Posts: 1,426
M.O.C. #12096
I had an RV repair guy tell me that these furnaces require at minimum 4 heater vents to be uncovered.
steelpony5555 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-20-2014, 03:52 AM   #10
dieselguy
Montana Master
 
dieselguy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Haysville
Posts: 4,261
M.O.C. #3085
We saw several SOB's at recent RV shows with the floor vents that can be closed individually, so I guess the answer to "can you close off a vent without issue" is variable. That being said, one would be a fool to close off all but one; however we installed a louvered floor vent without issue in our fiver for the same reason as MIMF. During the summer, we install the magnetic floor vent covers to help the A/C and keep debris from falling into the ductwork. I know ... rambling and didn't directly answer your initial question.
dieselguy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-20-2014, 07:22 AM   #11
TYR
Montana Fan
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Posts: 238
M.O.C. #9976
The above answers pretty well cover everything, but I'll chime in anyway.

Our furnace vents don't get covered with the slides in and, when traveling during Winter coming from Goshen back to warmer climes in 2010, we ran with the furnace thermostat set to 50. Sure made a difference. After we started doing that, I realized I had been previously towing a block of ice. Just about literally.

Made a heck of difference.

Betty
TYR is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
slides Slink Montana Problems, Problem Solving & Technical Help 7 01-25-2015 01:06 PM
Slides Ruth Repairs & Service 2 06-25-2014 06:59 AM
slides gitrdun Montana Problems, Problem Solving & Technical Help 16 06-09-2012 01:14 PM
Slides Wiesehan General Discussions about our Montanas 8 01-05-2010 09:38 AM
slides Ronald General Discussions about our Montanas 2 03-02-2007 01:23 PM

» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.3
Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by Montana RV, Keystone RV Company or any of its affiliates. This is an independent, unofficial site.


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 03:24 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.