It's Collllllld! Crack the roof vent while running furnace overnight?

[loganmartin]

Originally Posted by DGrissom

Hi,
We took "Rocko" out this past weekend. L.M., as you indicated it got pretty cold. We ran the furnace with the windows and vent cracked a smidgen. I do this as much for my wife's sake as she feels a tad uncomfortable with the unit completely sealed up. I guess I'm willing to sacrifice a few BTU's for peace of mind.

I don't think the camper got too cold with the above concessions. I noticed it was much warmer in the front of the trailer near the furnace. There seemed to be a cold draft coming from the "Cool Cat" (maybe I need to check for the holes that "cleancut" reported.).

"cleancut": Do the holes have any provisions for filters?

BTW. It was a great outing. Nothing like a cold day to make one appreciated moving from a Tent to an A Frame!

Good deal! I like to think of my camper as a "4-season" unit. Coming from the tent, this climate control thing has me plain giddy. It could be our climate down here, but honestly, I can handle the cold waaaaaay better than the heat. Humidity is da debil. Our camper will see more storage from June-August than the rest of the year. We are already planning our New Years trip/celebration.

Yeah, I'm gonna have to go looking for these AC holes. Just when you think you've got a handle on things. I didn't even know there was a filter for the Cool Cat either. Time to read up a little I suppose.

LM

[Tinsu]

Originally Posted by DGrissom

Hi,
We took "Rocko" out this past weekend. L.M., as you indicated it got pretty cold. We ran the furnace with the windows and vent cracked a smidgen. I do this as much for my wife's sake as she feels a tad uncomfortable with the unit completely sealed up. I guess I'm willing to sacrifice a few BTU's for peace of mind.

I don't think the camper got too cold with the above concessions. I noticed it was much warmer in the front of the trailer near the furnace. There seemed to be a cold draft coming from the "Cool Cat" (maybe I need to check for the holes that "cleancut" reported.).

"cleancut": Do the holes have any provisions for filters?

BTW. It was a great outing. Nothing like a cold day to make one appreciated moving from a Tent to an A Frame!

As an alternative to the camper's NG heater, I purchased this ceramic heater at Lowes when they closed them out after last winter. It's a great way to heat the camper and save gas if you have electricity. It's very quiet too.

Shop Lasko 2-Heat Ceramic Tower Electric Space Heater with Remote Control at Lowes.com

[thehamguy1]

I think the holes referred to are in the drain built into the plastic drip pan the Cool Cat sits in. The pan catches any condensation from the A/C and lets it drain outside. There's another drain just like it in the floor of the refrigerator control area in case any water gets in through the grilles that cover it. Unless the design has changed, that's how it is in my early 2011 model.

[Rintreglia]

Originally Posted by handbuilder

I dont leave a window cracked for the purpose of running the furnace...my CO detector should alert me to oxygen issues...my unit so far has been really snug, dry and warm. Weve been in some pretty hard cold rain with no problem. The only time I noticed daylight cracks was the time my unit was not completely level side to side..because its not one.solid.piece the tendency for the bidy to torque is greatly increased.

My first hint that its not level side to side is watching hiw well the dutch door catches together. The first few time I used the trailer, I bent the snot out of the right corner seams door halves come together and slightly overlap. Anothr sign the it is not level side to side is when the roof latch is harder to secure on one corner than the others..and this is the only times I have noticed daylight crack. DH says I should not bully the latch up...the trailer design will never be stable like a one piece traditional travel trailer & advises/reminds me to level all the way around....dont know if this will help others, but it has worked for me.

I did the same thing to my door and it pisses me off every time I look at it!

[IndyRC]

If I'm reading correctly, it seems like a number of people use the furnace instead of the heat pump. Is there a reason for that?

Thanks,

Ryan

[gregory]

I'm just guessing here but, they are either camping in really cold climates or they are "boon docking" (primitive camping) without electricity available. Even with electricity available, you need to use the gas furnace when the overnight temps are expected to dip below 42 degrees. The heat pump does not heat at lower temps than that.

It would be nice if the gas furnace could be set to automatically over-ride the heat pump at a certain temperature...ah, only in the perfect world.

Deb

[IndyRC]

Ok thanks. I wondered if it was due to colder temps. Mostly I was curious if there was a reason to use the furnace over the heat pump at all times, not just when the heat pump wouldn't keep up.

Ryan

[PopBeavers]

I would use the heat pump when the temps are only a little bit code and the electricity is free.

We boon dock almost exclusively. In my TT, soon to be replaced with an FR Solera, I set the furnace to 55, the lowest that it will go. I do not yet know what I will do after the Solera arrives.

[DGrissom]

Originally Posted by IndyRC

If I'm reading correctly, it seems like a number of people use the furnace instead of the heat pump. Is there a reason for that?

Thanks,

Ryan

Actually, the heat pump is not even supposed to be able to come on if the temperature is below 40 +/-2deg. according to one of the reference manuals I read (note the inside fan will run but not the compressor).

http://www.thorindustries.com/script.../get.php?id=50

WE camped a couple of weeks ago and the temperature dropped below 30 deg. F. I noticed that the Heat Pump quit cycling on as the outside temperature hit the low 40's. That furnace felt mighty good!

[Jeep4Two]

My heat pump will work down to 38f, observed on two trips so I get exactly the -2 degrees.

On my unit the u it will cycle on, compressor will run for about 30 secs, then compressor shuts off below 38. Fan keeps running.

If forecast is below 38 for the night the ceramic heater gets switched in before bed.

[loganmartin]

Originally Posted by gregory

I'm just guessing here but, they are either camping in really cold climates or they are "boon docking" (primitive camping) without electricity available. Deb

^^^
This. Most of my camping is off the grid in cooler temperatures. I haven't even had the opportunity to test the heat pump yet.

LM

[IndyRC]

Great info about the heat pump!

Thanks for sharing,

Ryan

[gregory]

Originally Posted by Jeep4Two

On my unit the u it will cycle on, compressor will run for about 30 secs, then compressor shuts off below 38. Fan keeps running.

If forecast is below 38 for the night the ceramic heater gets switched in before bed.

On our trip to the panhandle of Florida last December, we had a similar experience.

We had the heat pump on and went to bed, not knowing that the temp was to dip below 40 that night. We woke up around 2am absolutely freezing! The compressor had shut off but the fan kept running, blowing that cold air around. Gary got up (bless his heart) and flipped off the heat pump then turned on an electric heater that we fortunately had taken with us. In a short amount of time it got nice and toasty.

We kept an eye on the forecast for overnight lows from then on.

Deb

[Jeep4Two]

I've used the ceramic heater and also left the circulating fan of the cool cat on. It was nice. Helped keep the temp even and drowned out any noise from the early risers

[gregory]

Originally Posted by Jeep4Two

I've used the ceramic heater and also left the circulating fan of the cool cat on. It was nice. Helped keep the temp even and drowned out any noise from the early risers

Hum, I need to think about this for a minute...let's talk it through:
What if there were a thermostat on the electric heater. Could you run them both at the same time, with the electric heater thermostat set low enough to come on if it got too cold for the heat pump to heat?

Not trying to be lazy, but sometimes there isn't any TV or radio signal for a weather forecast.
Also, sometimes you miss the report altogether or the weatherman is just wrong.

Deb

[Jeep4Two]

That's actually a good idea. If you can dial in the right setting for tie ceramic heater then you'd be golden.

I'd say find a setting for the heat pump about 8-10 degrees above what you have your ceramic heater set in. When the heat pump fires up and it's too cold, the fan keeps running and a few degrees drop later the ceramic heater kicks in and you are good till the morning.

Nice. Ill have to try that out next spring or fall.

[lotsip]

Originally Posted by Tinsu

As an alternative to the camper's NG heater, I purchased this ceramic heater at Lowes when they closed them out after last winter. It's a great way to heat the camper and save gas if you have electricity. It's very quiet too.

Shop Lasko 2-Heat Ceramic Tower Electric Space Heater with Remote Control at Lowes.com

This is what I use all winter....in my house, keep the home thermostat at 60, and keep this little Rosewill heater at my feet where i spend most of my time, the counter in my kitchen with my computer, tv and fridge next to me Will take it with me in my A122

Newegg.com - Rosewill R-HT-001 Quick Heat Ceramic Heater with safety tip over switch

[lotsip]

Originally Posted by gregory

On our trip to the panhandle of Florida last December, we had a similar experience.

We had the heat pump on and went to bed, not knowing that the temp was to dip below 40 that night. We woke up around 2am absolutely freezing! The compressor had shut off but the fan kept running, blowing that cold air around. Gary got up (bless his heart) and flipped off the heat pump then turned on an electric heater that we fortunately had taken with us. In a short amount of time it got nice and toasty.

We kept an eye on the forecast for overnight lows from then on.

Deb

Deb, I was thinking of doing some camping on my trip coming up in the panhandle, the state parks there seem to have more sites available for this winter than further south........may I ask where you like to camp there ?

thanks

[gregory]

Originally Posted by lotsip

Deb, I was thinking of doing some camping on my trip coming up in the panhandle, the state parks there seem to have more sites available for this winter than further south........may I ask where you like to camp there ?

thanks

We stayed at two along the panhandle:
Ochlockonee River State Park (south of Tallahassee) and Big Lagoon State Park, Pensacola, FL

Both were nice, reasonably priced with decent enough bath houses.

At Big Lagoon we watched several TV stations using rabbit ears. The rabbit ear reception though at Ochlockonee River SP was pretty sketchy.

Deb

[lotsip]

hey deb, just picked up my a122, my toyota towed it nicely, they spent like two hours with me at the rv dealership goin over every inch of it, so much to remember, but, i understood most everything when they said it, ha, lots to learn, and read !

wanted to set it up when i got home, but, it was dark, and cold, so, will do that tomorrow ! thanks for the two park tips, i will check them out when i get a chance! will post pics tomorrow if i have time and remember