Quieter alternatives for propane furnace in extreme cold

[EsTC]

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!

[Freep]

One alternative is custom molded earplugs. I can't sleep without them and they eliminate all those little sounds that used to wake me up. I'm a light sleeper too.

https://smile.amazon.com/Radians-26NPR-Custom-Molded-Earplugs

[Bert_the_Welder]

jamesinkster wrote:
I'll admit I didn't read the full thread, but we live in BC as well and do lots of winter camping (on mountains during ski trips) with our older mid-90s Northern Lite.
Over the years I've tried a few options. Currently we use a Dickinson propane fireplace -- which is awesome and uses virtually no electricity (it can be run with or without the fan) and sips propane, and is noise-free. We can ski all day and come back to a toasty camper. We have it mounted at the foot of our 'couch' and it also provides great ambiance inside the rig at night (a flickering fire!)
I should note -- I've also gone to lengths adding lots of rigid insulation, and spray foam where applicable (gaps, the vent lids etc). It makes a big difference. Between the camper and the truck bed I also have 4" of rigid insulation.

When it gets down -15C or lower, the Dickinson takes the edge off but you're still cold. So, this year I added one of the cheap $150 5kw diesel heaters and we love it. I mounted it further back, near the door, so it does a great job of keeping that area and the floor warm.
We've used it on a few trips this winter and it's been great. The biggest problem we've encountered is a bit of condensation on our old single-pane windows and the "problem" that it just plain gets too warm in there! Unless it's -20C we can't run both at the same time.
Last week we were camped on a mountain in a snow storm with 70km winds and one night I found myself standing at the opened rear door in my underwear trying to cool down 🙂

Ukee in the house!!!:B Was up there for a get-away pre-covid. Love it up there!

Would be great to post a bunch of pic's of your various set-ups, in a thread, if you're inclined.

Where does the Dickinson chimney exit? Do you get much less condensation from it as apposed to the stock furnace?

Since those diesel heaters have become so popular and don't add moisture to the air, I think they'd be a great addition if one could remove the stock furnace and retro fit a Wabasto in it's place. Especially given their fan so heat could be sent into the basement/water tank compartments.

I'd like to hit Mt. Washington some time in the winter with the camper. Are there RV specific parking spots or do you just park in a pay parking lot?

[jamesinkster]

I'll admit I didn't read the full thread, but we live in BC as well and do lots of winter camping (on mountains during ski trips) with our older mid-90s Northern Lite.
Over the years I've tried a few options. Currently we use a Dickinson propane fireplace -- which is awesome and uses virtually no electricity (it can be run with or without the fan) and sips propane, and is noise-free. We can ski all day and come back to a toasty camper. We have it mounted at the foot of our 'couch' and it also provides great ambiance inside the rig at night (a flickering fire!)
I should note -- I've also gone to lengths adding lots of rigid insulation, and spray foam where applicable (gaps, the vent lids etc). It makes a big difference. Between the camper and the truck bed I also have 4" of rigid insulation.

When it gets down -15C or lower, the Dickinson takes the edge off but you're still cold. So, this year I added one of the cheap $150 5kw diesel heaters and we love it. I mounted it further back, near the door, so it does a great job of keeping that area and the floor warm.
We've used it on a few trips this winter and it's been great. The biggest problem we've encountered is a bit of condensation on our old single-pane windows and the "problem" that it just plain gets too warm in there! Unless it's -20C we can't run both at the same time.
Last week we were camped on a mountain in a snow storm with 70km winds and one night I found myself standing at the opened rear door in my underwear trying to cool down 🙂

[MT_BOB]

LOL,have to agree with Bert.Pretty much everything mentioned here will consume lots of power,not ideal for dry camping.Learn to sleep colder.Biggest thing not mentioned-heat loss.Windows are your enemy, especially one in the overhead bunk.I blocked off the front ones,and insulated them.All other windows have glass inner storm windows.Pillow/foam inserts for the roof vents,held in and sealed with velcro.Inside part of the rooftop A/C removed and sealed.And many other things I have done to my old rig,to be more comfortable in cold weather,which also make it cooler in warmer weather.

[Bert_the_Welder]

You REALLY must be set on camping if you have a 3 yr old and a wife that has trouble sleeping and parameters that seem almost impossible to overcome to achieve any level of comfort above just 'survivable'!
Does ur wife know you're planning this??? Ha ha ha!
One area that's cheap and easy to fix is the ear plugs. I have custom ones. For in my shop and 'sleepers' for bed. I can't sleep without them as I sleep next to a badly running gas lawn mower......
The 'sleeper' version is scooped out to make them more flexible so you don't notice them when your head is on the pillow ear down. She'd still hear the kid, it just dampens down the frequency. 20+ yrs and comparatively cheap like Borscht.

We do have hotels up here......there are nice options. Don't feel you have to rough-it to have a Canadian winter experience. Har har! 🙂
You just have to wait a while before coming!
Good luck with the project. Hope you find a good combo that works!

[StirCrazy]

JoeChiOhki wrote:

EsTC wrote:

JoeChiOhki wrote:
How deep are your pockets? Hydronic heat would be definitely quieter, but you'll be investing a few thousand to upgrade.

WesterRoamer on this forum several years ago, did a detailed piece of upgrading their unit to an espar hydronic heating system to replace their original furnace.

I somehow missed this comment in my previous post.
I would say I am willing to spend enough to make this happen, but I don't expect to spend tens of thousands. I hope to be able to manage all of this with less than 10K.

Less than 10k would be very doable, you'll probably be in for around $5500-6000 depending on number of the distributing units needed and the main boiler/heating unit.

any links for this, I was looking for info on the adle system but they wont sell to normal people only companies.

Steve

[JoeChiOhki]

EsTC wrote:

JoeChiOhki wrote:
How deep are your pockets? Hydronic heat would be definitely quieter, but you'll be investing a few thousand to upgrade.

WesterRoamer on this forum several years ago, did a detailed piece of upgrading their unit to an espar hydronic heating system to replace their original furnace.

I somehow missed this comment in my previous post.
I would say I am willing to spend enough to make this happen, but I don't expect to spend tens of thousands. I hope to be able to manage all of this with less than 10K.

Less than 10k would be very doable, you'll probably be in for around $5500-6000 depending on number of the distributing units needed and the main boiler/heating unit.

[rtk2]

At extreme temperatures, most are not concerned about cost, inconvenience or noise. We are just happy to be warm. Equipment must work and you need lots of fuel. Your supply line for water, food and fuel is critical. After all, we are discussing remote locations with limited services in extreme conditions.

[Kayteg1]

I don't know what World you guys are living in, but I can't find any part for any item I use easy to find.
Even DPF filter for my car had to come from Stuttgart, while nobody is even trying to look for parts for androids, toasters, even big screen TV.
Once the item breaks past the warranty, we just toss it.
When I like propane fuel better for its cleaner fumes, carrying propane for 3 nights in the cold would involve 80 lb of weight, would bring propane evaporating issues and be hard to refill far away from big city.
Diesel will do the same with 10 lb of weight, the tank can be hold in inside closet and any farmer will have fuel for it.

[jaycocreek]

If you read the quote,it was an RV repair man that said the parts were hard if not impossible to find on the cheap Chinese version...He had nothing to sell...

I'm not for or against them,I simply don't need another form of heat,my Wave heater and furnace work just fine and I live in a very cold place in the winter..

[StirCrazy]

jaycocreek wrote:
It's not all good..

However, the Chinese heaters tend to get a bad reputation for reliability, parts availability and, most importantly, safety. Chris Emmerson of CJE Caravan Repairs has seen a lot of dodgy products come through his workshop, but increasingly he is being asked to fix issues associated with cheap ducted diesel heaters.

Chris said, “Caravan and motorhome owners are tempted to purchase these units because of the huge price difference between them and the name brand equivalents. The problem is the cheap heaters are often inferior in many ways.”

They often cost less than dinner for two, but are the diesel heaters offered online hot stuff or fire risk

Chris told us most of the issues he has are to do with replacing faulty parts, which he says are difficult, if not impossible, to source. “The companies that sell these cheap heaters are located overseas and often do not return emails if a warranty claim is made or if replacement parts are required, making repairs almost impossible.”

the only people saying that is the ones trying to sell or service the expensive ones. there are several people who have bought all and ripped them appare and the only difference is how the plastic housing is held on or if the circut board is totaly potted with water proof conections or not (but why does that matter in a interior install) for the actualy unit they are pretty much identicl, some have different numbers of fins and such like that.

Steve

[Kayteg1]

jaycocreek wrote:
My microwave screen never went blank,I don't buy cheap knock offs..

:B

Did you try to find 'Made in...." label on it?
:B :B :B

[jaycocreek]

My microwave screen never went blank,I don't buy cheap knock offs..

:B

[Kayteg1]

jaycocreek wrote:
It's not all good..

Thousands of users say otherwise.
Did you try to get answer from your microwave oven manufacturer when display went blank?
The new generation Chinese heater do have several safety features and computerized troubleshooting system.
When it gets annoying waiting - the computer will not fire the burner till it checks that combustion chamber is cold and has good ventilation.
Low voltage codes, overheating codes, no firing codes - you name it.
Than when heater fails, you can take it to a shop , who charge $180/hr for troubleshooting, call technician to your site for $350, or spend $110 to buy whole new unit.
But then 98% of failure is the owner who never learn how to maintain/clean the unit.
Your choice.