The C02 monitor is a must. Yes, oxygen IS a concern. My cousin found 4 of his friends DEAD in a van with a catalytic heater. It was NOT sealed, just factory. Many have died in tents with these heaters too. Attention MUST be paid.
Now for winter, keeping warm
- Thread starter AMonger
- Start date
The C02 monitor is a must. Yes, oxygen IS a concern. My cousin found 4 of his friends DEAD in a van with a catalytic heater. It was NOT sealed, just factory. Many have died in tents with these heaters too. Attention MUST be paid.
chefdennis
Veteran Expediter
Workin on the 3rd winter with the Big Buddy heater....as bob said, open the vent a little bit and i open both windows about 2 inches.....and yes it ha a low oxygen sensor and would shut off if the oxygen became a problem. I carry 2 20 lb tanks so if one runs out, I don't have to be without heat at anytime and can then go refill the tank when I need to...
Oh I also carry over 10 gallons of gasoline for the generator too....
Thanks for your concren, but i am not concerned at all....
Oh I also carry over 10 gallons of gasoline for the generator too....
Thanks for your concren, but i am not concerned at all....
Interesting sleeping bag. This one might work, NOT a premium price either. An Espar heater would work even better.
Bass Pro Shops -20 degree Oversized Sleeping Bag with Hood
Bass Pro Shops -20 degree Oversized Sleeping Bag with Hood
bobwg
Expert Expediter
Hi you seem to be repeating your posts and thanks for your concern but as with everything people do in life comon sense , caution, and simple steps for safety like co2 monitor and open vent and windows a little should be no problem
bobwg
Expert Expediter
yes espar heater would be nice but last price i heard was something like $1,500 installed little high for me right now
I know they are sometimes repeating and I have no idea why. Yes common sense is needed. Only stressing what needs done. A LOT of people die each year doing things like this. Just a habit of mine. Used to be a firefighter and an EMT.
bobwg
Expert Expediter
A gremlin in your computer??
Might be. It might have something to do with switching to Crome. I have NO idea. Makes me look even dumber than I REALLY am!!
Love my Esbar Heater that Ray but in this its third year with no problems just needed a screen changed.
Being a ex fire fighter all thees people carrying the propane tanks worry me i would have never thought of them in working a wreck
I have told the guys I know to look out for them I know the ones Ive seen were only secured with bungee straps
Being a ex fire fighter all thees people carrying the propane tanks worry me i would have never thought of them in working a wreck
I have told the guys I know to look out for them I know the ones Ive seen were only secured with bungee straps
Phoenix4774
Seasoned Expediter
I was looking at the Big Buddy on Amazon and there was some advice in a review here:
Amazon.com: Mr Heater MH18B Portable "Big Buddy" Heater: Kitchen & Dining
"When one uses this heater with a 20 lb propane bottle & accessory hose, it is imperative that you always shut the tank off first & let the heater run until it burns off all the fuel in the lines.
*** IT IS IMPERATIVE TO FOLLOW THIS PROCEDURE ***
If one simply turns the heater knob to the off position, it will trap trap 100 PSI of propane in the accessory hose. When high pressure propane sits in the rubber hose, it will chemically react with the rubber and leetch a light oil. The oil will build up and quickly work its way into the heater, clogging both the regulator & control valve.
Another very important recommendation is to purchase the gas line filter. This will catch the oily residue and protect the combustion components of the heater should one forget to follow the precautions above."
Any recommendations on a specific brand sleeping bag?
Amazon.com: Mr Heater MH18B Portable "Big Buddy" Heater: Kitchen & Dining
"When one uses this heater with a 20 lb propane bottle & accessory hose, it is imperative that you always shut the tank off first & let the heater run until it burns off all the fuel in the lines.
*** IT IS IMPERATIVE TO FOLLOW THIS PROCEDURE ***
If one simply turns the heater knob to the off position, it will trap trap 100 PSI of propane in the accessory hose. When high pressure propane sits in the rubber hose, it will chemically react with the rubber and leetch a light oil. The oil will build up and quickly work its way into the heater, clogging both the regulator & control valve.
Another very important recommendation is to purchase the gas line filter. This will catch the oily residue and protect the combustion components of the heater should one forget to follow the precautions above."
Any recommendations on a specific brand sleeping bag?
chefdennis
Veteran Expediter
Again "common sense"....works every time....
Dakota
Veteran Expediter
Yea but we live in a world where common sense was left at birth and people do dumb things. Imagine sitting at the truck stop and see a van go off like a roman candle. Wont be a pretty site. I personally wouldnt use one but good luck to the ones that do.
guido4475
Not a Member
Is the Army-Navy surplus store a good place to get a good quality sleeping bag? I'm going to get one soon, to be on the safe side if I break down.Sorry, my comfort means too much to me not to idle in the cold.Been there, done that.
I'm getting a sleeping bag and insulated sleeping pad from REI along with North Face fleece vest and jacket with Windwall technology. Combined with my Carhartt watch cap and gloves with thinsulate insulation I expect to be warm in all but the most extreme situations.
You mean like the common sense that tells you cranking up the engine for 15 minutes every few hours is enough to recharge a cranking battery after having run a 12-volt or inverter load off it? The same common sense that says a battery is a battery is a battery and you can utilize a cranking battery in the same manner as a deep cycle or hybrid battery? That common sense? Because it's pretty common.
chefdennis
Veteran Expediter
I don't think battery technology is common sense...even after years in the automotive industry, while i had what I thought was a pretty good idea on which batteries would do what, but I can tell you that I have learned a TON from reading your post on the topic.....
but burning off the propane from the supply tank after turning off the tank valve, well most people I would think do that even on their gas grills sitting in the backyard...hell maybe i am giving people too much benefit of the doubt....
but burning off the propane from the supply tank after turning off the tank valve, well most people I would think do that even on their gas grills sitting in the backyard...hell maybe i am giving people too much benefit of the doubt....
Me neither. I know it's not. But what _is_ the more common is what I outlined above.
You're giving people too much benefit of the doubt.
Far as I know, every gas grill manual says turn off the gas as the source first, then the burners. Some people do it that way, some don't. But I wonder how many people know why it should be done that way? And it's not because the propane "will chemically react with the rubber and leetch a light oil." Trust me, if it'll "chemically react" when the heater is turned off and the hose is pressurized, it'll "chemically react" when it's turned on and the hose is pressurized.
It's caused by the same problem as propane conversions in automobiles, sort of, the same physics, anyway, and why the converter temperature in an automobile conversion is so critical. When exiting the bottle under pressure, the propane and whatever contained is (the bottle, the hose) becomes very cold. When gaseous propane is drawn at a high rate, the latent heat of vaporization required to create the gas will cause the temperature of the bottle and the hose to drop. This is why water condenses on the sides of the bottle and then freezes. Same with air conditioning refrigerant bottles.
When the heater (of gas burner of a grill) is turned off first, and then the valve on the bottle, the high pressure gas is trapped in the hose. It will quickly warm up, re-liquefy, and increase the pressure well beyond the rating of the hose. Normally, propane won't "crack" (as in petrochemical refining) below 140 degrees F, which results in a plethora of residuals like the oily hydrocarbon heavy ends, semi-solids, and paraffins, but the rapid cooling of the hose when the bottle isn't turned off first will result in a small amount of these residuals as the increased pressure drops that 140 degrees down considerably. Add to that the ethanethiol (A.K.A. Ethyl Mercaptan an oily substance, cited by the Guinness Book of World Records as the "smelliest substance" in existence) that is present in all LP gas. It's the oniony smell associated with the normally oderless propane.
High pressure LP hoses are specifically designed to allow ethanethiol, and the residuals that bond with it under pressure, to permeate the reinforced rubber at a certain pressure. That's to let you know if you have a gas leak and/or a bad pressure situation. When the heater is turned off first, and then the valve, the increased pressure in the hose will be enough to let these residual oils and a minute amount of ethanethiol escape through the walls of the hose. It's not enough ethanethiol to be alarming, since you've pretty much been smelling it all along. But it's enough to create an oily mess.
Try uncoupling the hose from the valve before you turn the valve off. There's an oily mess for ya. Don't ask me how I know that.
Besides, it was many, many years ago and my curiosity about why a colorless, orderless gas would be that oily got the better of me, hence my education with propane. It's not as likely in a propane heater or gas grill as it is in a malfunctioning automobile conversion (where compressor oil also come into the mix), but there will be a natural build up of these residuals on the heater, regardless of when you turn the valve and heater off. Turning things off in the right order helps a lot, but the build up will still happen, which is why the recommendation for the gas line filter is such a good one, even if for the wrong reasons.
There, another post just chock full of semi-useless information.
AMonger
Veteran Expediter
Hey, what about those emergency jump start batteries? I was thinking it would be handy to have if running these heaters kills your battery, but then I figured, why not just charge the emergency jumper as you drive and then use IT to power a heater?