Ceramic Heater vs Propane Use

BillMc40 · 11-02-2015, 06:45 PM

The wife and I went to Roaring River a couple of weeks ago. It was cool weather and we used a 20 pound tank and 3/4 of another. It was a four day three night trip. So I decided to buy one of these:
Lasko Full-Circle Warmth Ceramic Heater with Remote Control - Walmart.com
This last weekend we went over to the local state park for 3 days and two nites. The temp was mid 40s at nite and 60s during the day. The furnace only kicked on once. hoping to get 3 weekends this winter and was thinking this might help.
BillMc

**norty1** · 11-02-2015, 06:59 PM

We use several small heaters in our rig to avoid using the LP unless it's really cold. We set the wall thermostat to 64 or so and if the electric can't keep up, it comes on for a few minutes.

It really saves on propane usage.

North of 49° · 11-02-2015, 07:21 PM

Yup, that's what we do too. Both early and late in the season around here can get pretty cool at night. When we had a hybrid, heat was mandatory at night, as was an electric blanket. Besides, we're paying for the electricity whether we use it or not, so why not use that instead of propane?

Camper_bob · 11-02-2015, 08:13 PM

We use a small ceramic heater too. You'd be surprised how much it helps. Set the thermostat low, let the little electric heater go, and you'll usually only hear the furnace kick on a few times if at all. We went over a year before we had to refill our first 30 lb cylinder. Granted, it's TX, but October to February is prime camping season for us, and contrary to popular belief, it can get pretty cold down here sometimes!

Buckeye Hunter · 11-02-2015, 08:28 PM

Ceramic heaters are a must. With our pop up we frequently ran 2 in cold weather. One off the a/c circuit and the other off the other circuit in the camper. With that even in cold weather sometimes the propane would kick in. Middle of October we took the new to us had side out. One ceramic heater kept the camper comfortable with the propane only kicking on a few times if the door was open too long with the temps dipping to near freezing. Use the electric, you're paying for it already.

Hattie · 11-02-2015, 10:06 PM

Am assuming you have hook-ups, and we do have a small electric ceramic heater for such conditions. Just finished a week dry-camping in a NPS campground that strictly limited generator usage between 7-9, 12-2, 5-7. The days were mid/high-60s and nights were high-30s, so we set the thermostat at 50 and relied on our propane furnace. Thank goodness for topped-off batteries, a warm duvet, thermal PJs, and socks!

Pcschwenke · 11-03-2015, 07:12 AM

Many people use heaters without issues. Why not, the electricity is included in the lot fee. We decided against it, since it adds to the trailer weight. Since we already carry the LP, why not use it!

I would check to make sure you do not have a gas leak. That is a lot of LP used in a short period of time. We camped all summer with some nights down into the 30's in the spring and late fall. Our stove, outdoor grill all use the same fuel as well. We still haven't used 3/4 of one 30lb tank yet over 40+ days of camping. Believe me, our furnace was on a lot!

havnfun · 11-03-2015, 09:00 AM

This week, we are currently in a CG in Las Cruces, NM using ONLY the ceramic heater. Keeps the TT easily at 65 degrees when the nite temp dropped down to 39 degrees. Propane costs $$$ but the electricity is part of the space rent so why not use the CG's power? Just my 2 cents.
Happy RVing,
Jeff

**norty1** · 11-03-2015, 09:53 AM

We have been in cg's that charge a extra fee for using high current items like ac's and heaters.
I have no problem with that as long as I am told when making reservations or checking in.

Most cg's do not go this.

RP53 · 11-03-2015, 02:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pcschwenke

Many people use heaters without issues. Why not, the electricity is included in the lot fee. We decided against it, since it adds to the trailer weight. Since we already carry the LP, why not use it!

I would check to make sure you do not have a gas leak. That is a lot of LP used in a short period of time. We camped all summer with some nights down into the 30's in the spring and late fall. Our stove, outdoor grill all use the same fuel as well. We still haven't used 3/4 of one 30lb tank yet over 40+ days of camping. Believe me, our furnace was on a lot!

wow ! do you guys not use your hot water heater or is your elc.

Pcschwenke · 11-03-2015, 02:37 PM

Our family tries to use electric whenever possible for our hot water heater, but put it on both electric & LP for faster cycling when needed. We us our LP a lot for cooking and heating and refrigeration (while traveling). I figure that if we spend $30 for LP for a season, that's pretty cheap considering how much we spent on everything else!

rodandmir · 11-03-2015, 02:39 PM

We like electric heat as it is quieter than the furnace fan. It can get annoying in the night when everything is really quiet.
We run a cord from the power pedestal into the trailer to run a second heater for the kids bunk area if it gets really cold. 2 heaters trip the 15 amp circuit in our trailer

RP53 · 11-03-2015, 02:42 PM

we don't have that option ours is gas only and we use about a 1/4 of a tank per outing. guess that's not bad as we use it for cooking as well.

**norty1** · 11-03-2015, 03:08 PM

Our electric heaters have a low and high feature. We use the low which is only half the amp draw.

Camper_bob · 11-03-2015, 03:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pcschwenke

Our family tries to use electric whenever possible for our hot water heater, but put it on both electric & LP for faster cycling when needed. snip...

That's what we do too. I only turn on the propane for the WH when DW is in the shower so I have hot water when it's my turn. We also do most of our cooking without using our on-board propane for now. I have a Weber grill that uses the 1lb disposable cylinders (I have a bunch of them laying around, so I'm using them up before I retro-fit the grill to use the QC on the trailer). And other than the occasional pot of noodles or whatever, we use the microwave for cooking, and the Keurig for coffee. So we're power hungry and light on propane usage.

spoon059 · 11-03-2015, 05:57 PM

We have a pretty nice ceramic with a thermostat. We were camping a couple weeks ago and it got right at freezing both nights. That little 1500 watt ceramic kept our 29QBS comfortable. It was about 68 in the main cabin where the 10 month old slept, about 64 in the front bedroom and rear bunkroom.

We also use electric water heater (haven't used propane furnace or water heater yet, actually) when camp. Propane heat creates condensation inside. With the electric heat, it actually dries the air out a little, so we have considerably less condensation on the windows in the cooler weather.

**norty1** · 11-03-2015, 06:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spoon059

...snip..
Propane heat creates condensation inside. With the electric heat, it actually dries the air out a little, so we have considerably less condensation on the windows in the cooler weather.

I have to differ with your assessment of a rv propane furnace. Maybe on a open flame propane source you would get more condensation but my experience is it does not. The combustion on the rv furnace and any condensation is vented outside.

As I claim no engineering experience on this subject, I have used many for 15 plus years. Condensation does occur when there is a large difference in temperature from inside to outside. Usually a small window slightly cracked is what we use to reduce it.

Clayton4971 · 11-03-2015, 06:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by norty1

We use several small heaters in our rig to avoid using the LP unless it's really cold. We set the wall thermostat to 64 or so and if the electric can't keep up, it comes on for a few minutes.

It really saves on propane usage.

Sometimes we will keep the heat down in the main cabin and at night use a small Eden pure in the bedroom. When I get up in the morning I will turn up the heat for when the wife gets up. We use elec even when it's on our nickel you can zone heat this way.

BillMc40 · 11-03-2015, 06:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pcschwenke

Many people use heaters without issues. Why not, the electricity is included in the lot fee. We decided against it, since it adds to the trailer weight. Since we already carry the LP, why not use it!

I would check to make sure you do not have a gas leak. That is a lot of LP used in a short period of time. We camped all summer with some nights down into the 30's in the spring and late fall. Our stove, outdoor grill all use the same fuel as well. We still haven't used 3/4 of one 30lb tank yet over 40+ days of camping. Believe me, our furnace was on a lot!

We have 20 pound tanks. Those tanks were filled last spring. I still think we used allot.
BillMc

P25ct · 11-03-2015, 07:36 PM

This October we kept the Unit on a site. As luck would have it temps dropped below freezing 4 or 5 nights. Supposed to be 45 or so. So to my point. When temps below freezing its time for furnace. Heats the underbelly and keeps lines from freezing. For temps above freezing at night, heat pump (I don't have one) electric fireplace and those ceramic heaters. Electric is included in site cost regardless how much you use. Get your money's worth. During day the electric fireplace and a ceramic set on low in the rear room does more than enough. Anyway that's my 2 coins. The furnace heat is pretty dry like any forced air heat unit. Wake up with dry mouth. Need lots of water.

You may also like: