Propane Furnace vs. Electric Space Heater

If it gets below 40 you will want to use the electric heaters to supplement the furnace as the electric won't be enough, and you should run the propane furnace in freezing weather to help keep the tanks and pipes warmed. Espsecially true if it's windy.

It really depends. Here were we are the electricity comes almost all from Hydro power, that means power is cheaper then anywhere else in the country.
For us, electricity is cheaper, that being said a 35000 BTU propane furnace would take 7 @ 1500watt heaters.

I'd guess that your power is fossil fuel, which means it might actually cost more then propane.

It depends on the cost of the propane, the cost of the electricity and the amount of heat you need. I find that if I can't keep things comfortable with two space heaters the furnace comes on. If I need to heat the area quickly (like first thing in the morning) the furnace comes on. If I am just keeping things warm during the day and into the evening, when you get a big boost from solar heat gain. the space heaters can do the job. You get a certain amount of heat energy for both propane and electric resistance heat. When electricity costs 10 cents per kilowatt hour, the break-even to propane in direct cost per BTU is $2.40 per gallon. A gallon of propane weighs 4.7 lbs, if you measure by the 20 lb tank.

So, presuming that you can heat your space to your comfort level with space heaters, you need to find out what your cost per KWH for electricity is and compare that to your cost for propane, and apply that to the ratio of 10 cents per KWH equals $2.40 per gallon, and see where you are at. All other things being equal, like your furnace is in good working condition and you don't have to drive fifty miles to fill up your propane tanks.

Brian

In South Carolina, probably. But keep the propane on hot standby just in case air temps really drop AND the furnace heats your tanks or wet bay to keep the them from freezing. I don't think freezing water lines, drains or tanks while in SC is going to be a problem as long as daytime temps are above freezing and the coach is kept heated, but why risk it.

I have become some what of an expert on this subject. We are living in our motor home while our new house is being built. We moved into the motor home in the middle of October. We are in NE North Dakota and the outside temp right now is 7F. We have been down to -14F. We have two 1500 watt Infra Red electric heaters, one at each end of the motor home. Each heater raises the temperature inside the motor home 20F above the outside ambient temperature, so with only electric heat with the outside at 7F we would have 47F inside. We have had problems with the propane heat with below zero temps. We have an external 125 gallon tank connected with an Extend-A-Stay. When it was filled to 80% last, after the 40,000 BTU propane heater ran for awhile the propane liquid to vaporization couldn't keep up with the furnace. We now have enough vapor space in the tank to keep up. I had to temporarily use a smaller tank kept warm in the heated garage to get us by. Also temporarily used a Big Buddy and Portable Buddy with 1# bottles to get us through the tank changes.

So to sum it up, if you get down to 40F, one heater would keep the RV at 60F and two could keep it at 80F.

I also put electric heaters in the water, sewer and water heater bays. I put a small Lasko 200 watt personal electric heater near the dining room table where we sit.

jhilley wrote:
I have become some what of an expert on this subject. We are living in our motor home while our new house is being built. We moved into the motor home in the middle of October. We are in NE North Dakota and the outside temp right now is 7F. We have been down to -14F. We have two 1500 watt Infra Red electric heaters, one at each end of the motor home. Each heater raises the temperature inside the motor home 20F above the outside ambient temperature, so with only electric heat with the outside at 7F we would have 47F inside. We have had problems with the propane heat with below zero temps. We have an external 125 gallon tank connected with an Extend-A-Stay. When it was filled to 80% last, after the 40,000 BTU propane heater ran for awhile the propane liquid to vaporization couldn't keep up with the furnace. We now have enough vapor space in the tank to keep up. I had to temporarily use a smaller tank kept warm in the heated garage to get us by. Also temporarily used a Big Buddy and Portable Buddy with 1# bottles to get us through the tank changes.

So to sum it up, if you get down to 40F, one heater would keep the RV at 60F and two could keep it at 80F.

I also put electric heaters in the water, sewer and water heater bays. I put a small Lasko 200 watt personal electric heater near the dining room table where we sit.

Those 200 watt Lasko heaters work very well. I have two wet bays and have a 200 watt heater in each. Wife also has one in the bathroom which works well for the small area. Your Winnie must be better insulated than ours. Last night it was down to 20 degrees with 30 mph winds and it took three 1500 watt heaters to keep the motorhome at 73 degrees.

If you go HERE you can download a small program that will make the simple calculation for you.
It allows you to enter the appliance efficiency.

According to an email to me from engineering at Suburban Manufacturing, the efficiency of RV furnaces ranges from 70 to 80 percent. Water heaters are 70 percent on gas.

Note: Because Microsoft in their infinite wisdom didn't include the software to support the older help file formats, for Windows Vista and higher you will need to download and install a Microsoft program that allows you to use help files with the "hlp" extension for whatever operating system you are using - if you want to use the help file (not really necessary to use the program).
You can download it here Microsoft Knowledge Base. Scroll down to select your operating system.

Which costs less.. Well if you are paying for electricity generally Propane is cheaper however there is a chart that compares them.. Alas, i do not have it.

IF electricity is included in the site rental you are looking at ZERO v/s So much per gallon.. No contest.

Hi,

I do have the ability to heat 100% electrically. To solve the water line freeze up problem I replaced the return air grill with dual window fans. They are thermostatically controlled using a mechanical thermostat.

They draw about 30 watts so I run them while trundling down the road from the inverter.



Happily, for me, they send a bit of air through the furnace duct work, too.

Bart31 wrote:
Hi All,
I was wondering if I could save money by using space heaters instead of the furnace on the about 7-10 days a month I can't use the heat pumps down here in SC during winter.

Which costs less to heat the Coach?

Thanks for ur input :)

Don't forget the furnace also heats the water pump and pipes. We tend to use electric when there is a chill in the air, but run the furnace when required.