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Quieter alternatives for propane furnace in extreme cold

EsTC
Explorer
Explorer
After considering all of my options between trailer, sprinter van, etc., I determined that a TC works best for my purpose which is travelling to, and boondocking in, remote areas. Several areas that I am considering travelling to in the winter are in northern Canada where the temperature may reach 0 Fahrenheit. I must have working water system in these trips, which is doable with a propane furnace after some additions and modifications. I am open to buy any lightweight short bed camper such as Northern Lite 8-11SP, or Wolf Creek 850, or Lance 865.
The problem is that DW sleeps very lightly at nights and the propane furnace noise will be a deal breaker (or even non-starter) for her. I am looking for alternatives to propane furnace. I am open to replace the propane furnace with more than one appliance if needed, but the one or more appliance must heat the basement, camper, and water. What are my alternatives.
So far Alde system sounds like a good option. But I am unsure about how much and what kind of challenge should I expect if I want to replace a propane furnace with an Alde system.
Another good option is a Truma Combi. Again I am unsure about the challenges and complications I must expect. Although the first challenge is to find a Truma Combi.
Another option is to replace the propane furnace with an Aitronic D2 which will heat the camper and basement, and buy a separate water heater. Airtronic D2 is a fantastic heater, but this route requires buying two appliances and I am yet to find an efficient, lightweight, stand-alone water heater.
Yet another option is to heat the camper using Mr. Buddy, Plat Cat, or panel heaters and then use a few fans to push warm air into the basement. The problem here is I still need to find an efficient, lightweight, stand-alone water heater. Moreover, I am not sure whether pushing warm air with fans into the basement will keep water tanks from freezing in extreme cold that we will be in (I have considered adding thermostat-equipped light bulbs or small electric heaters or pads close to, or around, tanks, but found that unrealistic and prone to failure given the complexity of adding several of these and their electricity consumption).

If you have any idea about any of these or something different that may direct me to a solution I have not thought about, please share it with me. Thanks!
49 REPLIES 49

Geewizard
Explorer
Explorer
You're going to experience temps WAY below 0 F where you want to go. And a whole lot of other issues will come up other than water. Even starting a generator could be an issue.

Where do you live now and what's your experience with winter camping of any type?
2021 Winnebago Micro Minnie 1708FB
2014 Toyota Tundra Double Cab
300W solar, MPPT controller, LED lights
Xantrex Freedom X Inverter 3000W
2 Fullriver 105AH AGM batteries
Air Lift WirelessAIR and air bags
Hankook Dynapro ATM 10-ply tires

cewillis
Explorer
Explorer
Platinum cat is definitely my choice.
Cal

joerg68
Nomad III
Nomad III
Don't Cirrus campers come with an Alde heater from the factory?
2014 Ford F350 XLT 6.2 SCLB + 2017 Northstar Arrow

Reality_Check
Nomad II
Nomad II
Ear plugs...

You seemingly have the desire and tenacity for your project, but my quick response is 'wince'. But curious.

To answer the question about forcing the heat into the basement, our AF (and others no doubt) use nothing more than a small fan that circulates a fraction of the room air. The propane heater is extremely quiet and we leave it on all year. The heat from it helps also. Long term zero temps are clearly a different story, but we've had no problem being in the teens for a few days, or below freezing avg temps for week plus.
'16 F550 CC, 4x4 with Link Ultraride air suspension, '18 AF 1150. Just so we can play with our snowmobiles, dirt bikes and fishing boat. And new 20' tag along...kayaks, bikes, mc's and extra water and food!!

jimh406
Explorer III
Explorer III
First, I’m a light sleeper. My wife never wakes up.

I find the propane furnace fine, but I do a few things. 1)Turn down the thermostat at night. We usually have it at 60. 2)Put Reflectix in all of the compartments, under the bed, and in all windows and skylights. We remove the Reflectix from windows/skylights during the day. 3)Have a warm cover. We use down.

Those things help us minimize the number of times the furnace cycles.

Finally, there are some older threads on winter camping. You can do a custom search or google search to look through those archived threads.

'10 Ford F-450, 6.4, 4.30, 4x4, 14,500 GVWR, '06 Host Rainer 950 DS, Torklift Talon tiedowns, Glow Steps, and Fastguns. Bilstein 4600s, Firestone Bags, Toyo M655 Gs, Curt front hitch, Energy Suspension bump stops.

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