View Full Version : heater
what is the best type of heater for tent?:confused:
It depends. But I'd say young, leggy and of whatever hair color she was born with.
Son,when you are as old as me and have as many miles on you you need something besides long legs or sleeping bag to keep you warm:rolleyes:
brotheral
10-16-2010, 20:05
I wouldn't use any heater. Just setting yourself up for a possible tragedy.
You can stay quite comfortable with proper gear.... If not just stay home.
Thanks Brotheral, i see these propane tent heaters was wondering if anyone has used them before
Son,when you are as old as me and have as many miles on you you need something besides long legs or sleeping bag to keep you warm:rolleyes:
How about long legs AND a sleeping bag? :)
The reason i am looking i plan to hike thru the winter
That would be good with Jim Beam along with it
Ok, serious answer... Before I started backpacking we'd go car camping. We went once when it was cold and I picked up one of these: http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=coleman+tent+heater&hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=Yyw&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&prmd=ivs&resnum=3&um=1&ie=UTF-8&cid=17677657709578537099&ei=FEC6TIXcNcP_lgf4qOS4Cg&sa=X&oi=product_catalog_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CEMQ8wIwAA#.
My experience was that a tent doesn't retain the heat and a 1# propane canister only lasted 3 hours or so.
What heat is given off is concentrated around the heater and quickly escapes.
Based on that I wouldn't take it again, especially hiking because it would weigh a ton.
No heater is really practical. A propane heater doesn't last long and is heavy. A candle lantern doesn't add much heat. Both are risky. You could dig a fire pit. Again, that is risky and takes a lot of work. You could take along something leggy or a dog, but both almost certainly require that you carry some of their gear and food. A nearby fire adds radiant heat, but at the risk of flying embers and all the risks that come with an unsupervised fire.
Other ways to stay warm. Don't get cold. Warmer sleeping back. Add down to your down sleeping bag. Warmer softer pad. Booties. Down balaclava. Better campsite selection. Eat hearty before bed.
Thanks Brotheral, i see these propane tent heaters was wondering if anyone has used them before
My dad used to use one when I was a kid. He was careful not to seal the tent up too tightly (carbon monoxide can build up and kill you).
In a small tent (not a huge cabin monster like my dad had) you're better off not messing with the CO content. Better to wear warm clothing and use a hot water bottle in the sleeping bag if you're still cold.
Lone Wolf
10-16-2010, 22:08
what is the best type of heater for tent?:confused:
a hot chick?
Trailweaver
10-16-2010, 23:59
After I saw two campers air lifted out of a campsite from CO2 poisoning (I think they were taken to Atlanta) I can't think of any reason I'd ever put a heater in my tent. They were in their 20's. They remained in a coma for a few days, and then were taken off life support. This was years ago, but it stayed with me, obviously.
The very nature of the tent - small, thin-walled, full of holes and zippers - makes sense that you can't heat it.
halftime
10-17-2010, 00:09
Coleman BlackCat
Forever North
10-17-2010, 00:20
It depends on the weather on how many dogs you may need to keep warm.
How did I forget. A wood stove works too. They're much bigger than I'd backpack with though.
Feral Bill
10-17-2010, 01:04
It is quite possible to keep warm in far below zero weather without external heat. Leftye has it about right. You can learn to do it with book learning and succesively more challanging trips, or perhaps a winter camping class. Don't forget that there are parts of the trail that are deadly dangerous in winter.
FB
futureatwalker
10-17-2010, 03:08
A couple of thoughts:
A few years ago I did a few days on the trail near Harpers Ferry in November. There was an unexpected cold snap at the time; it didn't get above freezing during the day, and at night it must have fallen to the 20s or teens.
Looking to save weight, I brought a thin blue foam pad to sleep on. My friends and I stayed at a shelter one night - had the whole thing to ourselves. I mocked my friend's heavy therma-rest and 0 degree bag, until I woke in the middle of the night, and was cold.
From this and other nights out this is what I'd recommend to stay warm:
1) good sleeping bag, and definitely a good therma-rest pad,
2) stay in a tent, not in a shelter. the tent will be a little warmer. try to camp
on some leaves - not directly on the frozen ground.
3) wear thin long underwear and, critically, warm socks or booties, to bed
4) if it's really cold, boil some water and put it back in you water bottle. make sure it'
closed securely, and put it in the bottom of your bag when you go to sleep. this will keep you toasty for several hours!
Good luck!
couscous
10-17-2010, 12:22
Another option is to put an air-activated heat pad in your sleeping bag and preheat it before getting in. Hot Hands has several options to choose from.
http://www.heatmax.com/HotHands/productpics/superhothands.jpg
Those heaters are too heavy. Just get a thicker sleeping pad like one of those Thermarest basecamps and get a 0* rated sleeping bag. Couscous idea is good too. Those things are worth their weight.
KnittingMelissa
10-17-2010, 12:44
Stay dry, that's very important. Eat plenty to keep your fuel up. Have a sleeping bag rated to the conditions (if it's going to get below freezing, a 40F bag isn't going to cut it). Bring hand warmers, those things are awesome. If you have a metal water bottle, boil the water in it, seal it (usually no more than two thirds full), stick it in some socks, and sleep with it.
Hand warmers don't always work, so bring extras if you really want to use them. I totally forgot about the hot water bottle thing since I don't bring a cooking kit.
Morning Glory
10-17-2010, 14:53
I do the water bottle thing too, except I pulll one of my spare socks over the bottle. This keeps the bottle warm longer and it keeps the bottle from being too hot when I first put it in my sleeping bag.
Additionally, site selection is key. Avoid sites with katabatic air (cold, sinking air.) These are usually the established sites and the types of sites newbies will choose. Sites near lakes and streams. Avoid those and choose a site mid-slope where cold air won't fall on you. Also avoid sites on high ridges.
Choose a site that has a thick layer of duff underneath you and some trees above to hold in your heat.
Then add plenty of good insulation, a belly of food, perhaps a hot water bottle, warm hat and make sure you go pee even if you think it's too cold to get out of bed. You should be fine so long as your insulation is good.
Used one of these in the Army, Kinda heavy tho -M1950 Yukon Stove. :D
Compact and lightweight, the Yukon stove is primarily designed for heating tents but may also be used for heating water, cooking rations and various duties, Utilizing leaded gasoline as its normal fuel, the Yukon is fully versatile and can be adapted for burning white gasoline, kerosene, fuel oil, diesel oil, naptha, jet fuel, coal and wood.
Using only 5 gallons of fuel, the Yukon will heat the inside of a tent to a temperature of 54C (60F) and maintain it for about 15 hours, when the outside temperature is 6C (15F). Gravity fed by means of a 12 foor rubber hose and drip interceptor for clean efficient operation.
Built to rigid military specifications, the Yukon stove is designed for fast, easy disassembly. Compact, lightweight construction permits all of the Yukon's parts to be stored within the stove body for complete portability.
http://www.herman-nelson.com/images/items/727_994_5.jpg
http://www.herman-nelson.com/images/items/727_995_5.gif
Odd Man Out
10-18-2010, 20:53
In my Boy Scout days, we were known to heat rocks on a large campfire, and then put them in the tent at night to warm things up. Of course Boy Scouts back then were know for their LAMTBAP ethic (leave as much trace behind as possible).
Haha, I used to do the rock thing as a boy scout, although I wrapped it up and put it inside my sleeping bag. Unfortunately everything I carry now is synthetic and would melt in an instant with a hot rock.
I agree with a number of the previous suggestions:
*Set up tent away from wind/drafts.
*Enough insulation underneath you--dry leaves, CCF pad on top of blow-up pad.
*Eat lots of hot food and drink hot beverages. On a very cold night, eat around dusk, then again at 9ish and again around 5ish in the morning. You need a tent and stove and sleeping bag setup that allows you to
*Keep the time between stopping hiking and getting into bag very short so you will carry the warmth of hiking into the bag with you.
*In really cold weather, I make two hot water bottles, Nalgenes. One goes by feet and the other goes near femoral artery. Be very careful that they don't leak before you take them into the bag, and don't burn yourself.
*If you need to pee during the night, get up and do it. (Take a pee bottle into your tent to make things easier.) Having a full bladder will make you feel cold.
*Have a couple of pieces of fabric to put in cold spots in your sleeping bag. For instance, wrap a shirt around your head and neck to keep air from leaking out the breathing hole; and put a spare hat or jacket over your feet to keep the a bit warmer.
Again, the main thing is not to ever let yourself get chilled. As soon as you stop hiking, layer up before you start to cool off. Get into your sleeping bag asap to start building up the warmth there.
4eyedbuzzard
10-18-2010, 21:21
Here's a few suggestions on staying warm in the winter while hiking
http://www.seriousfunnewzealand.com/aboutnz/new-zealand-hiking-trails.cfm
http://gosouthamerica.about.com/od/sportstrek/Trek_Hike_and_Climb_South_America.htm
It's five o'clock (summer) somewhere...
Good full belly of fats and protien, hot cup of soup just before bed. A set of DRY clothes just for sleeping. A temp apropriate sleepling bag and pad with a hot water bottle placed at the feet. If you don't want to go out of the tent at night for a nature run carry an extra bottle for just that purpose, it takes more energy to keep warm with a full bladder. Find a sheltered camp site to reduce heat loss. No caffiene or booze they don't keep you warm. Good luck with your hikes.
Odd Man Out
10-18-2010, 23:30
...Again, the main thing is not to ever let yourself get chilled. As soon as you stop hiking, layer up before you start to cool off. Get into your sleeping bag asap to start building up the warmth there.
Years ago my father taught me the opposite. He said you shouldn't get into you bag when you are perspiring, so he would lie down on top of his bag until he got chilled, and then he would get in his bag. I still do it because that was the way I was brought up, I suppose. On a cold night, I may only be on top of the bag for a few minutes. On a warm night, I might fall asleep on top of my bag. Then at some point in the middle of the night I wake up cold. I get in the bag then and then I am nice and toasty. I know it sounds counter intuitive, but it works for me. Anyone else use this system?
Years ago my father taught me the opposite. He said you shouldn't get into you bag when you are perspiring...
That's not really the opposite. It may even be the same thing. In my case I do try to get under my quilt as quickly as possible once I make camp, but I slow down before reaching camp so I dry off and stop sweating. It accomplishes what Marta was saying and the goal of your father.
Rocket Jones
10-19-2010, 06:27
I agree with a number of the previous suggestions:
*Enough insulation underneath you--dry leaves, CCF pad on top of blow-up pad.
I've done zero cold weather camping, but I've read about taking a CCF pad in addition to your regular pad in the winter. I'd never heard before that the CCF goes on top of your regular pad.
Learn something new every day. Thanks!
fredmugs
10-19-2010, 07:53
I just came back from the Whites where the lows were around 30 (30 to me is like 0 to the rest of you). I did the boiling water bottle thing for the first time and it worked great except that I kept mine up against my ribs. I also found a use for those merino wool hiking socks by wearing them to bed.
peakbagger
10-19-2010, 08:06
The use of a fuel based heater in an enclosed tent shouldnt not be considered as an option especially in below freezing conditions. Any fuel burning device potentially can introduce carbon monoxide into the tent. There are reports evey few years of people dying in their tents, there have been at least a few incidents up in the whites. Coleman recalled most of their catalytic heaters that tended to be the baddest actors, but propane heaters also have killed folks.
The other reason is that running a hot appliance in a nylon tent is an invitation to burn down the tent or at least melting it making your situation even worse.
I uses the heated water bottle trick and if its real cold, I heat two and place one in my insulated water bottle carrier. As the night goes on and the first bottle cools down, I pull the other one out.
I would skip the heater- it just seems like too big of a risk- and use all of the layering advice and instant heating pad items mentioned in the fine pieces advice above.
beakerman
10-19-2010, 14:28
For me its all about dry...dry socks and underwear. I can sleeep in sub zero weather if I have dry socks and dry underwear on. I know that seems obvious but really for me that is the key.
When its cold I keep separate long underwear to sleep in. I use CCF for a pad when its' freezing and when its subzero I'll use a self inflator and a CCF (CCF on top). And if it's really really cold or if it's unexpectedly cold and I didn't bring two pads I'll toss in the old hot water bottle trick.
I typically will make camp then start dinner, while things are coming to a boil I'll quck pop in the bag and put fresh clean long underwear on, change my socks and put camp shoes on. Then I'll eat and clean up, sit by the fire until it dies out (if I have one), have a nice hot cocoa and then off to bed.
This routine gives me time to cool down from setting up camp and then I get nice and dry. Eat some warm food and drink and hit the sack.
I have tried the propane heater thing whle car camping with no luck. It just doesn't put off enough BTU's to offset the losses through the walls.
Wise Old Owl
10-19-2010, 19:42
Son,when you are as old as me and have as many miles on you you need something besides long legs or sleeping bag to keep you warm:rolleyes:
WHHHHEEWWW... Thats Older than wine.....:D
Serious - Many of the materials melt or catch fire today and in spite of "flame retardent" ideas - its all crap - Modern recommendations would still include a cup of hot tea or cocoa before bed and a hot water bottle.
Speakeasy TN
10-20-2010, 04:34
I'm a big fan of the Hot Hands products. My feet are the problem area for me. I just can't sleep with cold feet. But you give me warm dry longjohns and warm feet and it's nitey nite! And fair warning..... if I'm sleeping, I'm snoring!
My favorite piece of winter gear:
http://www.nunatakusa.com/site07/other_bags/raku.htm
I have to say that I generally neither change into dry clothes before getting into the bag, nor wait for the sweat to evaporate. Of course, I'm not a heavy sweater in the first place, so in the cold weather it's not much of an issue. I've got a microfleece outfit made by Solstice that is awesomely warm when damp and/or wet. I wear it all day, then wear it to bed. It's lovely and dry by morning.
I've been playing around with gear/clothing/behavior for a quite a while. It's good to start out in safe settings, where you can bail easily if you've made a huge booboo. It's amazing how the little details make the difference between being toasty warm, and being miserable.
One thing I would never do is fall asleep with a carbon-monoxide-producing device in the tent. I really like waking up in the morning.
turtle fast
10-20-2010, 12:57
I have winter camped here in Wisconsin along with the falling snow and campfire I got the best sleep of my life and stayed warm. First you need to insulate your bottom from the icy ground. I had used an old blanket on the floor next a blue foam pad on top followed by my thermarest. Secondly, have a sleeping bag rated for below or at your expected weather temps....I use my zero bag. Finally I use once in awhile the hothands in the bag especially by the feet. Lastly if it gets colder, I take the blanket part not used and wrap it over the sleeping bag. If all else fails, stay by the fire all night and don't sleep!
halftime
10-29-2010, 22:31
http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=32117&c=member&imageuser=19377