Keeping Warm

[Ian Hulley]

Folks put the cooker or these little gas heaters and they give off CO, normally if cooking the window, roof vent or similar is open. Use them as a heater and folks who were cold get warm and go to sleep, cooker/heater stays on and guess what ? ... you wake up dead ... that's DEAD ... you get no second chances with CO in a confined space, you can't smell or taste it and by the time you see a slight haze you probably already have received a fatal dose. The blood system prefers to absorb CO to O by a factor of something like (and don't quote me) 30:1 the cure is to be put in a decompression chamber and exposed to extremely high levels of O in order to purge the blood cells.

With an Eber or Propex etc the heat comes from fresh air being heated by hot surfaces which are heated by gas or diesel etc, all combustion gases (inc CO) are exhausted to the outside. These heaters have fail-safes to switch off if exhaust gases are detected in the combustion air inlet and if temperatures are exceeded because the outlet is blocked.

Darwin's theory alive and well.

[kevtherev]

one thing to add to Ians fine comments.. Your gas stove or that gas heater uses life giving oxygen, so without ventilation CO absorption by your blood proportionally increases, until you stop breathing.. two hours later in a confined space

[DentedDevon]

Ventilation is the important bit ....

An l p g (calor or gaz) appliance burning with sufficien oxygen is safe , producing only carbon dioxide and water vapour.
HOWEVER if there is not enough oxygen to completley burn the gas, CARBON MONOXIDE is produced.
Plenty of ventilation = plenty of oxygen = safe burning of gas.

If you can see the flame, it is using the oxygen around it and you need ventilation (cooker, tent heater etc)

Fridge often takes air from inside van with the flue outsude , block the flue and the fumes come back into the camper , means less oxygen in air , means carbon monoxide produced , when was your fridge last serviced ?

If you cannot see the flame and there is a flue for the heater outside ( propex eber etc), the air is taken from outside the van and the burnt gas goes out through the flue.
This has to be the only safe way to heat the van with gas for any length of time.

Beware of appliances burning with a lazy yellow flame or making alot of soot - theses are sure signs that there is not enough oxygen to burn all the gas and carbon monoxide is being produced

[Stubfin]

My old mate Greg, sadly demised, did a 'roots' trip back to Trinidad. On the local radio the news guy reported the death of a Trinidadian who was having problems getting to work on time. He rigged a timer to deliver an electric shock to his bed frame. The reporter said: "And in the morning him wake up dead". I was a fire-fighter and I wouldn't contemplate using any of the gas options even with alarms fitted and I have seen many oil-filled rads in a dangerous state. Come on folks, heat is generated by rubbing things together and retained by decent insulation. Otherwise get a car and stay in a travel-lodge?

[AngeloEvs]

I still prefer my low profile fan heater! Can't knock it over, thermostatically controlled, timer so I can switch it on to full power just before I wake, easy to stow away and, when my shoes and socks get sodden, I put em in front of the heater and dry them ...... Take more than the whirring of a fan to keep me awake at night!

[PetenAli]

We have a fan heater - £22 from Argos. It has a thermostat and warms us up within 10 mins. We can get too hot very quickly with this set up - but that's another story! Obviously we can only use it with a hook up. Also thermal screens on the windows help a lot as does the one around our pop top - see this thread: viewtopic.php?f=10&t=75382.

Currently looking on fleabay for a Propex. Looks like we will need to fork out £200 - £300 for a decent one. It will be worth it when we find one though. We have some friends with a Splittie panel van and their Propex is amazing. When we get one we will have it professionally fitted as we are very aware of CO risks etc as noted in earlier posts on this thread.

PetenAli

[rainman]

I can vouch for the efficacy of a small oil-filled electric radiator. I've been out with it a couple of times now and it really did keep the van lovely and warm. The only downside is it limits me to camping with EHU.

[Cruz]

When we get one we will have it professionally fitted as we are very aware of CO risks etc as noted in earlier posts on this thread.

PetenAli

Propex units vent exhaust gasses to the outside

[Titus A Duxass]

Propex units vent exhaust gasses to the outside

Not only that but the burning chamber(what the hell is the English for this - it's Brennkammer in German) and the heat exchange area are separate so that the gasses don't go in the wrong place.

[PetenAli]

Not only that but the burning chamber(what the hell is the English for this - it's Brennkammer in German) and the heat exchange area are separate so that the gasses don't go in the wrong place.

Propex units vent exhaust gasses to the outside

Well maybe we'll fit it ouselves. Friends with the splittie did. Doesn't the gas side have to be done by a Corgi registered person though?

[Titus A Duxass]

Well maybe we'll fit it ouselves. Friends with the splittie did. Doesn't the gas side have to be done by a Corgi registered person though?

Fit yourself and then get it checked out by a professional.
I did my myself, there are some guides about fixing your copper pipe etc.

[PetenAli]

Fit yourself and then get it checked out by a professional.
I did my myself, there are some guides about fixing your copper pipe etc.

Thanks - good plan. Heat in the camper? Seems a bit soft but I guess its a function of aging! Only just getting used to the idea of having hook up!

[kevtherev]

Doesn't the gas side have to be done by a Corgi registered person though?

No .. just get it checked for gas leaks

[jamesc76]

Heat in the camper? Seems a bit soft but I guess its a function of aging! Only just getting used to the idea of having hook up!

No its so you can camp all year round with out freezing ya balls off!

Dont see many tenters this time of year for a reasion!

[Ian Hulley]

You missed the obvious part James old chap ...

1987 Westy Syncro 2.1 DJ