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Need a Fuel Heater,Any brand or advice?


NikitaLee

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As you were told on another forum these heaters are diesel powered and would be a major retrofit on a trailer unless it already had a diesel tank. What's wrong with your propane heater?

Foretravel 40ft tag 500hp Cummins ISM  1455 watts on the roof, 600 a/h's lithium in the basement.

 

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We used a propane heater specifically made for a RV for 16 years of full-timing.  It provided awesome, safe heat.  All propane heaters are not the same.

Full-timed for 16 Years
Traveled 8 yr in a 2004 Newmar Dutch Star 40' Motorhome
and 8 yr in a 33' Travel Supreme 5th Wheel

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If propane was unsafe, it would never be used in an RV where people live and sleep.  All the rigs require a working propane detector as an additional safety measure.  Diesel fuel used to heat a living space can be quite messy and you have to figure out how to avoid the odor of the diesel.   All the propane furnaces burn the fuel using external air for combustion and exchange the heat to the inside air with a sealed system,  so the burning of propane is strictly outside the living space.

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My last rig was all electric or diesel. But I would never buy a stand alone diesel heater. Too risky. My diesel furnace was one designed to heat a semi-truck cab so ran off my conversion van's fuel tank. Is your rig small enough to have one of those installed?

Linda Sand

Blog: http://sandcastle.sandsys.org/

Former Rigs: Liesure Travel van, Winnebago View 24H, Winnebago Journey 34Y, Sportsmobile Sprinter conversion van

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8 hours ago, NikitaLee said:

I always feel that propane is unsafe,think diesel is better.

Welcome to the Escapee forums.

What type of RV do you plan to put this diesel heater into? If it is powered by diesel now it might be a workable plan as the larger diesel class A motorhomes have had diesel fueled heating from Aqua-Hot company for quite some time. While I have never owned an RV with one of them, I do know that they work well but also require regular maintenance to keep them working. As far as I know, the type heaters that you are looking at are all designed to be used in vehicles that are powered by a diesel engine and use it as a source. I have seen one of them installed in a boat but never have I seen one in an RV, but I'm sure that it could be done, but I suspect having it done could be very expensive. I would be very interested in knowing more about your plan to use diesel for heating, so please share your plans with us.

As to propane safety, no fuel is without some risk and that is true of diesel as well. I can tell you that I have used propane fuel in all of our RVs for 30+ years as well as to heat our home in rural WY and presently in rural TX. But I also realize that fear is something that can't always be relieved by any amount of logic so will say no more on that. 

Good travelin !...............Kirk

Full-time 11+ years...... Now seasonal travelers.
Kirk & Pam's Great RV Adventure

            images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQqFswi_bvvojaMvanTWAI

 

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   You could use a small fuel tank for that purpose. Say maybe 10 gallons. You would need to figure out how much that amount would work for you. It probably could be mounted just about anywhere , although it most likely to have a return line back to the tank also. Search the net for fuel tanks, so you could see what is available.

 

  I have a 9 gallon tank for the aquahot I installed in our fifthwheel. Now our truck does have 300 gallon capacity so I just use a automotive electric fuel pump and a 30' hose to supply the tank. Using a five gallon can was a pain to try and maneuver to fill the tank. So the the pump works great for filling the tank.

 

  Just a thought.    Vern

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 I would also say propane is safe to use if every thing is working properly. The first and most important item is the LP detection component.

 

 Now I have seen several people disconnect the lp detector through the years doing Rv repair. Not a good idea.

 

  I would say to learn as much as posible about how and why all the systems function in your unit.

 

  One of the extreme things I experienced doing mobile Rv repair was a dry battery. Customer called about her furnace not operating properly. So I get there and start testing things. Finally I asked her when the last time that she checked her batteries. 

 

 She looked at me with those deer eyes. Did someone steal them she said. No but when did you last check them. With those deer eyes she said 7 years ago when I moved here.

 The batteries were dry and needed replaced.

 I would suggest to read these and other Rv forums and try to absorb as much info as you can to better enjoy you Rv experience.

 

  Safe Travels,    Vern

   

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