heating in winter

[SuzyQ51]

do you have to be plugged in to electric for the furnace to work? i know the furnace is propane, but do you need electric to run the thermostat and blower?
Thank you.

[GordonThree]

Winter camping is the best IMHO - it's often very quiet, and little crowds depending where you go.

just takes preparation and more money for fuel.

late December in Capitol Reef NP, it was down in the teens at night, 20s during the day. I was the only one in the campground. Asked the ranger if I could ignore generator hours to keep my heat on - they said no problem! So little blue ran pretty much all night keeping my plumbing heat and tank heaters on, and recharge batteries from the propane blower furnace, which was running more often than not. Same deal at Natural Bridges. Little blue ran all day and most of the night... Woke in the morning and it was buried under over a foot of fresh snow. Refilled with gas and it started right up.

[DownTheAvenue]

SuzyQ51 wrote:
Thank you all for your input. we will definitely find a campground that is open all year for the first leg of our travel to Florida

You did not ask about winterizing the water system, but you are real new and have little knowledge of RVs. If your water system is not winterized, and you travel in sub freezing temperatures without the RV heated, you can sustain serious damage due to freezing water pipes.

[pianotuna]

Hi SuzyQ51,

Welcome to the forums.

The real answer is "it depends".

For example, if you are in a class C it and traveling many hours per day then the vehicle alternator may often charge up the "house" batteries (which power the furnace).

If you are hauling a travel trailer not much charging will happen.

Where are you starting from and what type of RV do you wander down the road in?

If you plan on using campgrounds, take along an electric heater to provide some of the heat.

There is a wonderful thread on winter camping under the full time forum.

SuzyQ51 wrote:
do you have to be plugged in to electric for the furnace to work? i know the furnace is propane, but do you need electric to run the thermostat and blower?
Thank you.

[ScottG]

THe answer is yes, you need a constant source of 12V power. It takes a lot of current to run the blower so being plugged in is needed.

[time2roll]

Best to check your systems before you roll. Even if you plan to be plugged in you want to make sure your battery system will get you through one night if required. Check propane daily.

[DutchmenSport]

SuzyQ51 wrote:
Thank you all for your input. we will definitely find a campground that is open all year for the first leg of our travel to Florida

Once you get South of Indiana and hit Kentucky, most KOA's and Good Sam campgrounds will be open year round. Not sure about Kentucky, but South Carolina State Parks are open all year round.

Indiana State Parks are open all year round to, but you won't have water anywhere in the park. You will have electricity at the campsites.

[RedRocket204]

Trackrig wrote:
So yes and no. You don't need shore power to run the furnace blowers, the batteries will take care of that, but you do need something to recharge the batteries............

Bill

Exactly. A relatively inexpensive solar system will generally take care of recharging the batteries for you. Solar being preferred in my view but you need to be aware that the panels will need go exposure throughout the day. So, minimal shade, no snow cover and hopefully more sun than clouds.

[TexasRangerRzR]

And also to be watched is depending on how cold it is, the LP gas will go pretty quickly.

[SuzyQ51]

Thank you all for your input. we will definitely find a campground that is open all year for the first leg of our travel to Florida

[Trackrig]

So yes and no. You don't need shore power to run the furnace blowers, the batteries will take care of that, but you do need something to recharge the batteries............

Bill

[Grit_dog]

Most (all?) RV furnaces are 12V.
Warning though, they use some power. I can kill 2 decent batteries in one night not plugged in, in real cold weather.

[newman_fulltime]

no, but your battery wont last long