Winter preparation in progress

[Wrknrvr]

   We have decided to shovel snow in Montana this winter. So i have decided to install a furnace to heat under the rv. 

 

  So I have a extra suburban furnace the I am installing under the rear passenger slide. There will be 6” ductwork to the front of the underside. And one to the drivers side slide.. it will be controlled by a thermostat under the rear of the rv.

 

   Just thinking to do it now before snow is flying.

 

 

   Vern in a T-shirt 

Edited October 9, 2020 by Wrknrvr

[Ray,IN]

Do not forget to run the exhaust OUTSIDE the under-skirting.

[Wrknrvr]

   So this is a photo showing the door in place to access the furnace. I will cut the holes in the door to accommodate the intake and exhaust just like it would be installed in a normal position.

  I do need to install a thermostat in the space it is going to heat. And will install a switch on the interior of the rv . Also will have access for a propane line to the furnace from the bottle and regular sitting on the outside of the closed area.

 

 

   Vern in a T-shirt 

[Ray,IN]

This is just my opinion; I think placing the furnace exhaust that close to the slide seals may allow  CO to enter the RV when exhaust fans are used, as make-up air must come from outside the RV. I'm no expert on HVAC though.

Above all else, keep your family safe.

Edited October 10, 2020 by Ray,IN

[Wrknrvr]

  Got rained out on this subject today. My two factory furnace installations are closer than this unit to the slide seal. But this idea of gas exhaust entering is a good thought to pay attention to. I do have a gas detector  so I may just try it when furnace is operating in a windy condition.

 

  I was just getting to cut the holes for the intake and exhaust when the weather turned into a problem. Will post pictures of original furnaces also when I can get back to that subject.

 

  Thanks for the concern.

  Vern in a T-shirt 

[Wrknrvr]

I finally installed the exhaust pies on the furnace.

  It has decided to rain and blow high winds for a few days. So this project is on hold for a few days.

 

   Vern in a T-shirt 

 

Edited October 13, 2020 by Wrknrvr

[Wrknrvr]

   This photo shows the factory installed twin furniture in our Teton fifthwheel. And how close they are to the slide seal.

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  But that is a good point to check for fumes  entering anywhere.  I did finish the installation  with a regulator and all proper fittings. I used my test propane assembly from my rv repair business to see how my idea will work. When testing for propane leaks on my connections I noticed my regulator was leaking just enough to smell it. So I installed a new one before trying the system. The heating system is controlled by a switch inside the rv. With  a thermostat installed in the basement area that turns the furnace on and off as needed. The thermostat is set at 62 degrees. It sets under the slide end where my recliner sits. You can hear it turn n and off. But very little noise. I did run ducts to the other side and to ifront of the axles.

  I used 1 1/2” pink styrofoam insulation board to close the underbelly in. It is all enclosed. About 50 percent of the edges are sealed. Hopefully I will be back from a small job today and get the rest of the sealing done before we get snow and high winds this afternoon.

 

  So the passenger side slide floor does does warm up nicely.  Which should cut the interior heat operation cost. Cost of this operation to be determined over the winter.

 

 

   Vern in a T-shirt 

Edited October 23, 2020 by Wrknrvr

[Darryl&Rita]

Given the difference that skirting makes, by itself, this will make a huge difference in the comfort level of your winter. I've used a flameless catalytic heater under an RV before, but they add too much moisture to a confined space, and needed more venting than I was willing to deal with.

[Wrknrvr]

   So today I am going to test outside under camper furnace for operation.

 

  This is the temperature of the slide floor at about5:42 am. The furnace was turned off last night at about 9:15 pm. The overnight temperature outside was about 22 degrees.

 

  So I put a remote thermometer on the floor to record the temperature increase. If it does.

  Today it should stop snowing where we are in Montana, then start blowing the snow around. And temps to drop into the single digits tonight.

 

  Stay safe    Vern in a T-shirt 

[Wrknrvr]

 

  So the furnace has been on for just over an hour the temperature has risen to 59 degrees. It may have come up since the photo was taken.

 

  Vern in a T-shirt 

[Wrknrvr]

  At 7:54 am the temperature is

 

  The furnace has run constantly  since turned on at 5:45 am  Now remember it also has to heat the tires and axles as they are enclosed. Once it gets to temperature it cycles on and off as the thermostat is satisfied.

 

   Vern in a T-shirt 

[Wrknrvr]

It works better if you keep propane in the bottle. We had 2 degrees last night. Got up and the slide floor was cold. Furnace would not stay lit.

  Went out to check and thetank was empty.

 

  Vern in a T-shirt 

[Dutch_12078]

This is what I use to keep track of my portable LP tank levels:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01C5RQJHS/

[Randyretired]

I have been looking into buying a large permanent type of propane tank for when we are at our mountain property for our 5er. When using heat we can go through a fair amount of propane and constantly filling small bottles is a pain.  A couple hundred gallons would be a lot more convenient and the delivered propane seems to be a little cheaper when purchased in volume.

 

[podwerkz]

Where I am, 100 gallons or more of propane gets you the bulk rate, around 70c cheaper per gallon, and delivered...check to make sure, but a 120 gallon tank might be just big enough to get you the bulk rate where you are.

[Kirk W]

When we were out in east TX we had a 200 gallon propane tank. I soon discovered that there was a discount on the price if you purchased more than 100 gallons. Less than 50 gallons there was a delivery charge. 

[Wrknrvr]

  Normally we would be on our way to Arizona or south somewhere. But with the covid thing happening we decided to stay put in Montana. Now at that time,that decision looked really good. But the covid thing is spreading in Montana also.

 But here we sit. And going to make the best of it. We hope.

 

  So my main heat is diesel as I installed a Aquahot several years ago. It works really great in the area where I could run piping for heat exchangers. But putting them in the slides would be sorta difficult. So with the slides extended the bottom of the slides do get cool or cold, depending on outside air temperature and wind speed.. especially when temps are near 0.

  So I decided to install the skirting which took more time than I thought it should. But it is done. So the idea of a furnace underneath really came from having getting it on trade labor last winter just Incase. At that time I did not know what just Incase meant on this subject.

  Bulk propane may be an option for that furnace if things stay cool. I do need to get a bulk container for diesel fuel. As now I just have a old propane tank converted to a diesel tank. And at 0 degrees at night it needs filled every two or three days. I ran it out of fuel once. Will not do that again.  I normally only get down about 5 gallons on that tank until I fill it again. Our truck holds 300 gallons of fuel. But that fuel has road tax on it which is about 50 cents to the gallon. I think a 55 gallon drum will suffice for the diesel tank. May get one of those today.

 

 

   Vern in a T-shirt 

 

   

[bigjim]

1 hour ago, Kirk W said:

When we were out in east TX we had a 200 gallon propane tank. I soon discovered that there was a discount on the price if you purchased more than 100 gallons. Less than 50 gallons there was a delivery charge. A

Are you sure yours wasn't a 250 gallon tank.

[Kirk W]

4 hours ago, bigjim said:

Are you sure yours wasn't a 250 gallon tank.

While you put that in as part of your quote from me, having used the tank for 8 years, I do believe that I know how big it was. Yes, 250 gallon tanks are more common, but I do know the difference.

[bigjim]

I have seen smaller but usually a 150 gal. but have mostly seen 250's,500's and 1000's, not to say there aren't others out there. Was yours a newer. Was it a vertical or horizontal. Just being nosey.

[Ray,IN]

Something else to consider for heating under the RV: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07NL8YHGV/?coliid=I2QDI23HKWYPGM&colid=IIT191TPI0O4&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

[Kirk W]

17 hours ago, bigjim said:

Was it a vertical or horizontal.

It was a horizontal tank, leased from the propane supplier, Airgas Supply out of Mineola, TX. 

[Dutch_12078]

A full "250 gallon" propane tank actually holds 200 gallons of liquid propane, retaining 20% of the capacity for expansion. The "250" is the rated water capacity.

[Kirk W]

19 minutes ago, Dutch_12078 said:

A full "250 gallon" propane tank actually holds 200 gallons of liquid propane, retaining 20% of the capacity for expansion.

True and our 200 gallon tank was limited to 160 gallons for the same reason. Actually, in the 8 years we used it, the most I ever had delivered was the first time it was filled when they put in 146 gallons. Since it was a previously used tank it was not empty when it arrived. Even a new one typically has some propane when installed because the company purges it of air as part of the installation process. 

[bigjim]

22 minutes ago, Dutch_12078 said:

A full "250 gallon" propane tank actually holds 200 gallons of liquid propane, retaining 20% of the capacity for expansion. The "250" is the rated water capacity.

I knew that  but just had not been aware of the 200gal. Then I got to thinking in some other parts of the country I had seen some vertical type tanks with a lot bigger diameter than the 100 pound cylinder and have no knowledge of them. I helped install and installed lot of 250 horizontals when converting from butane to propane.  Until just now I never thought about the size of the buried butane tanks. I wonder if they were a more of less standard size.

Did they have you set up on a route delivery system vs a call out.  They were trying to get folks set up that way way back when I delivered for a propane company.  If you did it by call out there was a significantly higher cost.  We tried to do it gently as people were used to the old method. Otherwise you could be running from one side of the delivery area to another.  Of course if you were a big enough customer it might get waived.  I had one in Forney that had a 6000. gal tank that was intially filled by a transport but we kept it topped off.  (green houses)

Edited October 27, 2020 by bigjim