I just stumbled across this video on Buddy Heaters.ARE BUDDY HEATERS SAFE IN AN RV? WE ASKED A FIREFIGHTERI agree with the two people in the video - me personally, I won't use one. I'm the ultra paranoid type when it comes to life safety - what "could" happen? I call it Risk Mitigation.Another reason I wouldn't buy one is because it's one more piece of equipment to deal with.Here's my method of heating the RV when cold weather camping while boondocking / remote camping:Lock my EU2000i to a tree at the end of a 50 foot extension cord and run a small space heater that has three wattage settings on the lowest setting (600 watts). If I fill the generator with gas before I go to bed, it will run all night.Doing this burns about 1 gallon of gas, and likely ends up being more economical than running a Buddy heater all night.The generator scenario won't work in a campground though due to quiet hours, etc.Well, you are probably asking yourself "Why not just run the furnace?"People look for alternate methods of heating for several reasons:Cost reduction (RV Propane furnace consume a lot of propane)Noise Reduction (RV Furnaces make a lot of noise - it wakes me up multiple times at night in my very small RV, which is a truck camper)Conserving battery power. (RV furnaces use a lot of battery power)In below freezing temps, running the furnace some is going to be a must if your RV has heated underbelly - this keeps the water lines from freezing, etc.Anyway, food for thought.

Well there is that recent report of the urban outdoorsman killing himself accidently with a Mr Heater. But it was the parabolic type, which is marked for outside use only, he disabled all the safety features, turned it face up and was cooking on it. Result: lots of Carbon Monoxide. And one bright red urban outsdoorsman.I know some people use the blue flame type heaters in their RV and do it safely. They claim major propane savings since RV furnaces blow a lot of expensive hot air out of the RV and suck in lots of cold air for the furnace combustion.We haven't camped in a cold climate enough to worry about it tho.

I'm not into conservation.. I like 72° and the only way to get that is with my furnace.

I get to 72 f using electric heat.

agesilaus wrote:They claim major propane savings since RV furnaces blow a lot of expensive hot air out of the RV and suck in lots of cold air for the furnace combustion.We haven't camped in a cold climate enough to worry about it tho.The combustion chamber is located such that the cold air input does not enter the RV, neither does the humid air created as a result of burning propane. If you use one of the buddy heaters in an RV might just as well use the propane oven to heat with. Just be prepared to get things incredibly damp, or watch the heat go out a window that needs to be open to reduce humidity. My opinion...

wildtoad wrote:The combustion chamber is located such that the cold air input does not enter the RV, neither does the humid air created as a result of burning propane.x2. They're designed that way for a reason.

Very good video on Buddy Heaters | Good Sam Community

30 Replies

beemerphile1
Explorer
Dec 28, 2019
noteven wrote:
MrWizard wrote:
Catalytic heaters do Not have ceramic tiles
They have "glass"? mat that is coated with Platinum
Which is the catalysis

Yes “tile” was an incorrect term. It has screen like mats as you describe.

Not the Big Buddy or the Portable Buddy. Whatever heater you are referring to, it is not the MH18B
noteven
Explorer III
Dec 27, 2019
MrWizard wrote:
Catalytic heaters do Not have ceramic tiles
They have "glass"? mat that is coated with Platinum
Which is the catalysis

Yes “tile” was an incorrect term. It has screen like mats as you describe.
noteven
Explorer III
Dec 27, 2019
beemerphile1 wrote:
noteven wrote:
beemerphile1 wrote:
noteven wrote:
My CO dtetector reads 0 (zero)when held 6” above an operating Big Buddy on any setting. Is that because a catalytic heater is a catalytic reaction not combustion...

The Big Buddy is not a catalytic heater, it is a blue flame heater with a ceramic brick to diffuse and disburse heat.

Model MH18B - is not a flame heater. It is a 2 tile catalytic heater.

If you survive the most dangerous part of your camping trip which is the drive on the road to get there, use these heaters safely.

Nope, nowhere on the Mr Heater website do they claim it to be a catalytic heater.

Ok you win.
MrWizard
Moderator
Dec 27, 2019
Catalytic heaters do Not have ceramic tiles
They have "glass"? mat that is coated with Platinum
Which is the catalysis
beemerphile1
Explorer
Dec 27, 2019
noteven wrote:
beemerphile1 wrote:
noteven wrote:
My CO dtetector reads 0 (zero)when held 6” above an operating Big Buddy on any setting. Is that because a catalytic heater is a catalytic reaction not combustion...

The Big Buddy is not a catalytic heater, it is a blue flame heater with a ceramic brick to diffuse and disburse heat.

Model MH18B - is not a flame heater. It is a 2 tile catalytic heater.

If you survive the most dangerous part of your camping trip which is the drive on the road to get there, use these heaters safely.

Nope, nowhere on the Mr Heater website do they claim it to be a catalytic heater.
pianotuna
Nomad III
Dec 25, 2019
There are lots of electricity free vented propane heaters. Use one. Here is an example:

https://www.gasheaterstore.com/Williams-2509821-Monterey-Plus-Top-Vent-Wall-Furnace--25000-btu--Propane-LP--10-Year-Warranty_p_80.html

Here is another:

https://www.gasheaterstore.com/Empire-DV215SGXLP-15000-Btu-Direct-Vent-Propane-Wall-Furnace_p_64.html
Smitty77
Explorer
Dec 25, 2019
We have both the little and big Mr Heaters. Depending upon travel mode, we carry the small one with us most of he time. If going somewhere where we expect extreme colds, we'll swap out the little one for the big unit.

We do not use it for 7/24 heating. We use it for getting the coach up to temperature fast in the AM. I'll usually get up about an our ahead of the DW, and run the unit (And I do run it on our kitchen table:)!). On the big unit, I'll put on high, and turn on the auxiliary fan, until the temps inside reach mid 60's. Then step it back to low, which is he same BTU as the little unit on low too. It's on maybe an 1 1/2 - 2 hours total. When we swapped out our real danger, the Norcold 1200, I had the Propane Line stubbed out into the toe board below the Samsung RF18, with a quick disconnect and 1/4 on/off valve. So I can use a hose to the Mr Heater, with the appropriate filter inline.

All of this is while boon docking camping.

I'm anal about our safety in the coach, and have three different CO detectors. I have two windows opened the appropriate amount, and also the kitchen roof, closely above the table with the Mr Heater on it, is open 3-4" too. We do have multiple static dehumidifiers. THE UNIT IS NEVER LEFT UN-ATTENDED.

I feel it's just another part of our RV'ing arsenal, and like an device - if not maintained properly, and used properly - can be dangerous. But I feel ours is safe to use, obviously.

When not boon docking. We use Electric Floor Tile Heat and HydroHot on Electric element only, as well as a portable 1500W electric heater, for most of our coach heating. (In our rig, I need the HydroHot on aways, on real cold temps, to keep the water bay heated.)

I do feel this is one of those situations where all of us much make our own decisions.

Travel safe, have fun,
Smitty
ppine
Explorer II
Dec 25, 2019
Thanks. I use them to take the chill off with good success.
drsteve
Explorer
Dec 25, 2019
pianotuna wrote:
drsteve,

Popups are possibly the safest for use with either cat or blue flame heaters.

If I wanted blue flame, I have three on my cook top. I don't do well breathing in combustion byproducts.

That's how we figure it too. The pup being a pup is not as airtight as a hard sided trailer, and we leave the roof vent cracked open.
pianotuna
Nomad III
Dec 24, 2019
drsteve,

Popups are possibly the safest for use with either cat or blue flame heaters.

If I wanted blue flame, I have three on my cook top. I don't do well breathing in combustion byproducts.