Looking for heater recommendations
We are going camping quite a bit in cooler temps, and in lieu of running the propane heater all night, I would like some suggestions for a good, small electric heater for my Jayco X17Z. I am also c...
Forum Discussion
Heat is heat. The oil filled heaters will lose much heat initially just heating themselves up before it starts to radiate. They'll retain heat though and radiate it after power is off but there's no free lunch here. This type would seem to avoid the heat swings of cycling a heater on and off all the time. A conventional electric heater of 1500 watts is unlikely to cycle much in cold weather and will run all the time. A model that partially sweeps will move the little heat it produces to much of the camper.
The "blast from the center" ceiling air conditioners in many campers of this size offer a "heat strip" option that can, in some cases, be retrofitted. Has the same 1500 watts, though, so don't expect it to heat the camper on a frosty morning. We had one and the only advantage was it was built-in and not using floor or storage space.
The furnace we had in our popup did a very nice job of heating the cabinet on the wall opposite it. I added some baffles to direct the heat toward the center of the camper. Our hybrid has only two outlet so heat can be spotty there too.
A digital thermostat on the furnace will help avoid the heat swings common in a camper.
-- Chuck
The "blast from the center" ceiling air conditioners in many campers of this size offer a "heat strip" option that can, in some cases, be retrofitted. Has the same 1500 watts, though, so don't expect it to heat the camper on a frosty morning. We had one and the only advantage was it was built-in and not using floor or storage space.
The furnace we had in our popup did a very nice job of heating the cabinet on the wall opposite it. I added some baffles to direct the heat toward the center of the camper. Our hybrid has only two outlet so heat can be spotty there too.
A digital thermostat on the furnace will help avoid the heat swings common in a camper.
-- Chuck
