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Old 11-12-2016, 12:45 AM   #1
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Model: ACE 29.3 (2016)
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THOR #4032
Electric heater(s) in Ace - Have you used one?

Our propane furnace is very loud when in use.. it is close to the bedroom and can disturb our sleep. When plugged into shore power, we were wondering how a portable electric heater would work... has anyone tried it and how did it work for you?

Thanks,

Bob

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Old 11-12-2016, 01:48 AM   #2
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I have not tried an electric heater when camping but I did use one last winter while the RV was in the driveway and I was getting ready to go to Florida. I did not want the water pipes to freeze after flushing the RV antifreeze. I used one of those 1500w heaters that look like an old radiator. It did keep the temp above freezing inside when 25 F outside but it never got warm enough to take my coat off for the 2 days it was on.. The propane heater got the temp to 65 F in about an hour just before I left. If its just chilly out and you need to move the temp 10-15 deg OK but if it is really cold out forget it.
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Old 11-12-2016, 01:48 AM   #3
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A ceramic heater will give the best bang for the buck. Be sure you don't plug anything else into the same circuit, heaters will max out load on most circuits, anything else and you'll trip a breaker.

I used two ceramic heaters in the Tuscany we had and kept our coach cozy except in really cold conditions.
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Old 11-12-2016, 02:52 AM   #4
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We traveled to the northeast a couple of weeks ago and experienced nights in the 30's . A 1500 watt electric heater maintained temps in the low 60's at night in our Vegas 24.1.
I think we used the propane furnace twice first thing on a couple of mornings to get things toasty for showers.
Temps were pretty comfortable during the days so the electric heater was maintaining an already warm coach.
The electric heater is a great supplemental heat source .
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Old 11-12-2016, 04:03 AM   #5
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Electric heater

Hi , I've found one at k mart a few years back that has 2 settings, high and low.lowputs out 500 watts, high puts our 1000 watts,it's small about 12 Inc by 8 by 8 deep..knock it over and it turns off..low setting is perfect, and can b ran on generator too..
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Old 11-12-2016, 04:25 AM   #6
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Problem with most electric heaters is they mainly radiate hear to objects not warm the air. I use this heater. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0000...acL&ref=plSrch
Does a much better job but it still needs some help. Use the furnace and get it up to temp then the heater does a pretty good job maintaining it. I used on in my 33' class a in 5 degree weather and it kept it in the 60's.I will run it in the very cold months in Chicago because extreme cold is rough on things. I try to keep it above freezing.
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Old 11-12-2016, 05:55 AM   #7
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We have excellent results with a small Voranado heater. The fan is quiet and circulates the air well. It has a thermostat setable in degrees. It maintains a constant temperature in the motorhome with very little noise/

https://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&ke...l_1k44eksbqr_b

Ken
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Old 11-12-2016, 01:53 PM   #8
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Easy answer - use the electric heaters when you have shore power. Rare for us to need heater because plan is to stay where AC is needed. With kids in NC to see, occasionally that strategy doesn't always work. So we bought a small, electric heater with a thermostat at Walmart for about $15. Between that and the electric fireplace - toasty.

Also, simple out of convenience we often use a small electric frypan vs gas top. And we always use our convection over vs the gas oven. Gas oven makes the coach just too hot.

Just our two cents.
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Old 11-12-2016, 03:03 PM   #9
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Electric heaters

I used two ceramic heaters all last winter. They worked great, easily maintained 55 degrees when stored here in east Tennessee. We also use them when "camping out" when we are hooked up, quieter than the furnace. The furnace is great if we want to take the chill off in the morning. I installed a electric fireplace with heat under the dinette for heat and ambience.
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Old 11-12-2016, 03:15 PM   #10
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I mainly use an electric heater in winter to exercise the generator.

The first weekend we went camping with our Axis it was in the 30s the entire weekend (during the day too--what you get when camping in Michigan in April, either 30s or 70s nothing in between!). That weekend we used a full tank of propane; didn't have an electric heater for the RV yet.
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Old 11-12-2016, 03:24 PM   #11
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i purchased one of these for the bedroom and i love it. low amps, quiet and works. mounts on the wall and very slim design. used it all last winter camping.

Wall Mounted Electric Heating | Best Electric Heaters Energy Efficient | Envi High-Efficiency Whole Room Electric Panel Heater


patrick
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Old 11-12-2016, 03:32 PM   #12
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it took us over two years of full timing before we got even close to needing more propane since we use Electric Heaters almost exclusively - the only other time is when we are not on shore power or generator and might use the furnace.

the sound of the furnace blower and the need for propane tanks and refilling is why so many coach builders are moving toward Electric Only coach designs. Propane certainly has a good purpose, especially if you like cooking with it, or you have easy access to refilling your tank, but it is becoming less of a standard in the rv industry, especially in higher end coaches where you have room for 8 or more coach batteries.

if you drycamp or boondock as a regular habit, propane makes sense because you only need electricity to run the blower, and you're less reliant on shore power, generator, or even solar.
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Old 11-13-2016, 02:17 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bob Montgomery View Post
Our propane furnace is very loud when in use.. it is close to the bedroom and can disturb our sleep. When plugged into shore power, we were wondering how a portable electric heater would work... has anyone tried it and how did it work for you?

Thanks,

Bob
Bob, I don't like the regular "electric" heaters because I fear they are a fire hazard. We have used two different ceramic heaters for a few years now and they work great. One is the small box type and one is a tower that rotates back and forth.

As someone already stated, you have to know where to plug them in at because they will quickly overload a circuit. If outside temps are down in the 50's overnight we can simply leave one of these running in the drivers area while sleeping and when we get up in the morning the living area is in the mid 60's but the bedroom stays cool.
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Old 11-13-2016, 02:33 PM   #14
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Originally Posted by pjciii View Post
i purchased one of these for the bedroom and i love it. low amps, quiet and works. mounts on the wall and very slim design. used it all last winter camping.

Wall Mounted Electric Heating | Best Electric Heaters Energy Efficient | Envi High-Efficiency Whole Room Electric Panel Heater


patrick
Nice compact unit. Have you had a chance to try it when outside temps are in upper 30's and 40's and if so, does it keep your RV comfortable?
Thanks.
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Old 11-13-2016, 04:32 PM   #15
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i have camped down into the teens with it earlier this year up in N GA mountains. it worked well in the bedroom or back of the class c. kept the rest of the coach in the low 60's to high 50's at max setting. i did have to offset in morning with a little propane furnace for the DW till she got warm. i was fine.
patrick
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Old 11-13-2016, 06:56 PM   #16
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Would probably do ok in my travels as I try to stay out of freezing temps, but sometimes get into them. Now, if there was a vacant wall spot to hang it. Not sure I have one until I can stop over at the parking lot and check it out.
Thanks for the info.
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Old 11-13-2016, 11:02 PM   #17
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Your lucky you don't have that Aquahot junk. Doubt it will keep our Tuscany 40DX warm if temps are in the 30's. Had it worked on 5 times last year in Quartzsite and it's some better now but way short of my expectations. 1 1/2 years old. About to leave for Q Tuesday and hope for better results. Hope my experiences are not the norm for this?
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Old 11-14-2016, 02:21 AM   #18
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Mcr, you don't want to hang an electric heater on the wall, some draw air from the rear and blocking the air could cause overheating. Also, remember, the wall beard is flammable and you really shouldn't be hanging something hot on it for safety reasons.
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Old 11-14-2016, 03:54 AM   #19
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Originally Posted by SuperD View Post
Mcr, you don't want to hang an electric heater on the wall, some draw air from the rear and blocking the air could cause overheating. Also, remember, the wall beard is flammable and you really shouldn't be hanging something hot on it for safety reasons.
Very good point.

A small automatic electric heater with a small fan, like I linked to earlier can set on the floor out of the way a bit, and be placed in storage when not in use. Our Voranado is small, quiet, and thermostatically regulated. we use it anytime we can, because it is much quieter that the furnace.

Ken
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Old 11-14-2016, 11:04 AM   #20
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Mcr, you don't want to hang an electric heater on the wall, some draw air from the rear and blocking the air could cause overheating. Also, remember, the wall beard is flammable and you really shouldn't be hanging something hot on it for safety reasons.
The Envi wall heater seems to have enough safety features, but there is no suitable wall space to hang one that is centrally located. Guess I will stick with my electric space heater.
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