Heater Buddy/Olympian Wave

10-20-2003, 11:20 AM

Well, it's that time of year and the cold is upon us. We are planning a two week trip to Big Bend for Christmas and will not have hookups. The big question is which heater is best for the needs of TMers and also safety rules for use. It appears that the Heater Buddy is most recommended but the Olympian Wave Catalytic heater is safer and more expensive.

If I use the Heater Buddy, what and how much venting would be required to avoid any dangerous CO2 problems?

I checked a previous thread about the heater but this wasn't addressed. Also, I imagine that if I use the hose from the tank that I would run it under the flap, correct? I want to be toasty not .......toasted

.

**Civil_War_Buff** · 10-20-2003, 12:42 PM

Chris,

I have used the Mr. Heater Buddy quite successfully. It has a sensor that will turn the heater off if the O2 level gets too low. The only venting that I do is to open the roof vent 2-3" and it seems to work just fine.

Yes, the hose run under the flap if you use the "big" tanks, I have only used the 16.2 oz bottles so far, and one of those will last ~8hours on the low setting.

**mjlaupp** · 10-20-2003, 12:42 PM

FYI
Heater Buddy on sale at Northern Tool @ $79.99 + S&H.
www.northerntool.com
Search for item # 173634
MJL

RockyMtnRay · 10-20-2003, 01:22 PM

Quote:

It appears that the Heater Buddy is most recommended but the Olympian Wave Catalytic heater is safer and more expensive.

Heater Buddy also won't work at altitudes above about 7500 feet. Olympian Wave is good to around 12,500 feet. Probably not an issue unless you intend to use it in Colorado or the higher campgrounds in Arizona and New Mexico. Heater Buddy is nearly useless in Colorado since the vast majority of campgrounds in the state are well over 7500 feet in elevation.

10-20-2003, 04:04 PM

That's a good price Mike, I paid $105.00 for mine, but it was money well spent. I use mine all the time just here in my basement. (Puter's in the rec room). As the central air keeps the upstairs nice and warm, it unfortunately doesn't keep the downstairs very warm unless I make it piping hot upstairs. My rec room is almost half the length of the whole house, and the heater buddy heats it quite nicely. I'll use it when I'm not planning on building a fire in the fireplace.

[glow=red,2,300]Happytrails........[/glow]

10-20-2003, 08:55 PM

Chris,
I mounted the mid size Olympian on the end of the kitchen cabinet in our 3124. I teed into the propane line to the furnace and ran a length of flexible hose to the heater. I wrote a description of this installation about a year ago.
It works very nicely - quiet and non polluting.

Bruce

10-21-2003, 10:08 AM

Thanks for your input. I think for this trip I will use the heater buddy because I can always use it around the house.

But, Bruce I like the Olympian and the mounting idea. I wonder where I could mount and tie into a line on my 3326? Possibly near the door on the back of the dinette, that is where the furnace is located. Does the heat make it to the back of the TM if it is facing the living area? Where or how can I find your description of the installation you did?

10-21-2003, 03:47 PM

I wanted to tie into my old refer line when I first got my heater buddy as I no longer have the three way, and there's a perfectly good line to tie into, but was told since the gas was already regulated by the time it got to that line, the regulator on the heater buddy would cause it not to work. Is this true? Can I still tie into the gas line from my old refer? Would be a LOT easier than having to run two 12' hoses all the way out under the flaps to the toungue.

[glow=red,2,300]Happytrails.........[/glow]

**Bill** · 10-21-2003, 04:51 PM

Happy -

I don't have a Heater Buddy, so let me ask a question. Does the Heater Buddy accept a small hand-held (14 oz or 16 oz) bottle of propane? If so, then it is expecting high-pressure propane.

In your TM, the regulator is mounted on the tongue, right next to the propane tanks. Everything downstream of the regulator is low-pressure propane. Unless the Heater Buddy instructions specifically say something to the contrary, it can't work on a low-pressure feed. Since the feed to your refrig is low pressure, it won't work in its present form.

BTW, you might want to contact the Heater Buddy manufacturer. It is possible that they offer a retrofit - a different orifice for low-pressure propane. Much like the different orifice that lets you change a BBQ, for example, from propane to natural gas. If you find this to be true, let us know.

On the other hand, it is cheap and easy to buy a T that will screw into the high pressure line ahead of the regulator. Then run a permanent high-pressure propane line under your TM to your Heater Buddy location. This could easily be a new PERMANENT line - no reason why it has to be a temporary hose routed through the seals. Or I think you could detach the old refrig line from its source, reattach it to the T, and make a high pressure line of it.

Good assembly practices, including copious leak checks, are necessary, but I bet you can handle that. Go for it!

Bill

**mjlaupp** · 10-21-2003, 04:58 PM

[quote author=Happytrails link=board=1;threadid=1461;start=msg10302#msg10302 date=1066772833]
I wanted to tie into my old refer line when I first got my heater buddy as I no longer have the three way, and there's a perfectly good line to tie into, but was told since the gas was already regulated by the time it got to that line, the regulator on the heater buddy would cause it not to work. Is this true? Can I still tie into the gas line from my old refer? Would be a LOT easier than having to run two 12' hoses all the way out under the flaps to the toungue.

[glow=red,2,300]Happytrails.........[/glow]
[/quote]

Sorry, but the heater buddy is a high pressure gas appliance. It will have to be connected to one of the tanks ahead of the TM auto tank switching regulator. :'(
MJL