Portable Heaters

[brenkco]

I was reading in another thread that a lot of you folks use portable heaters to supplement the fireplace. Do you have any recommendations as to type and brand?

Another question, do some of you leave the fireplace heater on at night to keep the chill off? Any safety concerns?

Thanks!!

[HamRad]

Brenkco,

We have a small portable electric heater. No particular brand. They all have safety switches on them. Ours are just the standard type heaters. There are some that have fans on them to blow the heat out. Others that swivel. A swivel type with a fan would be nice. It would help distribute the heat.

If we were full timers we'd probably get one of the catalytic type heaters. They use very little propane and no electricity. They are much more expensive than the small electric types.

By the way we were at the south rim of the Grand Canyon this past April. It got down to 11 degrees a couple of nights. And our furnace went out on us the first night we were there. Thought for sure we'd get cold but between the built in fireplace heater and the small portable heater we stayed perfectly warm.

We run our fireplace day and night when needed and have never had any safety issues. The portable one usually is needed only at night during the coldest part of the night. During the day we simply disconnect and put the heater in the closet.

Good luck.

HamRad

[Kandharry]

Brenkco:
We don't have a fireplace but we do use a smallish
electric heater that has a fan and swivels (Hi/Lo settings,
thermostat, fallover safety switch).
In cold country we use it a lot and leave it on a low
setting overnight. During winter if the temp is near
or below freezing I leave it on low 24/7 while the
rig is stored.
Over the last 10 years of RVing we've gone thru 3 of these.
If I had to purchase one now it would be a Vornado. Quiet and efficient.
Harry

[bsmeaton]

We use a small ceramic for the bedroom and set it on the dresser. The fireplace does the rest. We do leave it on overnight.

Note - if temperatures outside are expected to fall below freezing, you really need to run the furnace or you run the risk of freezing water lines in the belly or basement.

[TLightning]

We have two Lasko towers...seven temp settings, oscillate option, high or low heat option, three timer settings, and a remote. WalMart carrys them for less than $50.

[Icehouse]

We do not leave the fireplace heater on overnight, but we do use it alot when we're up. We have a 110V plug in baseboard heater we use in the LR up against the slide wall. We have a couple of tower heaters like TLightning mentioned. They are remote controlled so when it's time to get up, we just hit the remote and pre-heat the bed/bathroom for a few minutes before we get out of the warm bed. And like Brad said, if it's going to get below freezing, you need to run the furnace to keep your lines from freezing.

[jsmitfl]

We use one of the oil filled radiators. Its a little heavy but we store it between the dr chairs and the sofa when traveling. Sit it in the middle of the kichen and set the thermastat. It does a great job with convection as far as the bedroom. They are like 60-80 dollars at wally world.

[BB_TX]

We use this heater http://www.laskoproducts.com/heaters/model_5900.html from Lasko. If it is cold at night, we set it near the base of the steps and aim it toward the bedroom and it blows a steady stream of warm air that direction. And my wife will sometimes use it during the day if she gets cold. Very quiet and stable. Wife also uses it at home in the bathroom for extra heat.
Got it at Sam's several years ago, but have not seen one there lately. Been wanting another so I don't have to move this one from the house to the 5er and back.

[mtpocket2]

We use that same Lasko heater as Bill and it came from Sams. One in front and one in back will keep the trailer plenty warm! Quiet also. I have not worked up the courage to keep one running when we are not there for extended periods.

[clutch]

We use two small electric heaters all winter in Az. One in the living area and one in the bed room. At night we turn down the one in the lr and shut the bed room door and use that one on low. We didn't buy a catalytic heater because you have to keep a window open and they creat a lot of moisture.

[snfexpress]

Here is my concern about leaving the fireplace on 24/7: http://www.montanaowners.com/forums/...hTerms=dimplex

Since I fixed it, no problems, and I *might* leave it on while we sleep.

As for freezing tanks and lines, I ducted a ceramic heater into the duct that goes into the underbelly rear of the black tank such that I can flip a switch and heat this area with electricity versus propane. I find that that the propane heater is quite inefficient and I *hate* the sounds it makes while I am trying to sleep.

We also have a couple of ceramic heaters (made in China, but better than the *really* cheap ones) in the 5er when it gets cold outside.