Wood stove in your motorhome or trailer

[GENECOP]

Many times because things have not been done before people will tell you it can't be done. If it where not for people thinking outside the box we would still be in the stone age. I try never to judge anything prior to investigation. G

[sdennislee]

Originally Posted by Dr4Film

If the location where I am ends up to be cold enough to need a wood stove to stay warm, my wheels would be turning heading south far enough until I find a climate where I don't need my Aqua Hot or my A/C to keep me warm or cool.

I chase the climate & since my home is on wheels, it gives me many options to choose from.

For those that like to RV in the winter time, RV's were not designed to live in full time in all types of weather. Put up a double-wide or build a coach-house with proper insulation.

Only my opinion.

Dr4Film ----- Richard

Hard to snow machine in the warmer climates. I agree on the other side though. I chase weather that does not require A/C. Anything over 75 is getting to warm for me.

[akartist]

I have a vintage 69 trailer and I have been using a cast iron tiny wood cook stove in it now for 10 years.
I am able to live in my trailer even in the winter because the wood stove does not create any condensation that would ruin most trailers in the winter.
Common sense is all that is needed to have a wood stove in a camper or RV.
I have my wall covered with concrete board and also added a sheet of it under the stove.
Both boards are covered with nice white split stone. I used a 4" pipe straight through the roof with a bolted cap. The pipe is double insulated 12" below the roof and 12" above.
I love not having to rely on propane for heat and cooking. Since I do not have a generator I would have to rely on RV parks or campgrounds to run a furnace. You may want to check out STARKEYS rolling homes site. All rolling homes have wood cook stoves and or wood stoves just for their heat. Most have lived and traveled in these rolling homes for over 30 years.
I carry my wood supply on the tailgate in a vintage aluminum coke cooler.
I also have a small wood box inside.
I got rid of my 30 ft. Winnie and now love the warmth and comfort of my vintage camper with it's oil lamps, wood cook stove and QUIET.
Best thing I ever did.
So don't be too quick to judge something unless you have tried it.
60 year old female here, so you guys need a little more adventure than just having a house on wheels. And thats just MY opinion. lol

[akartist]

Originally Posted by AFChap

I took some pictures a couple of years ago of a smokestack bolted onto the side of the motorhome. When I finally caught the owner and asked him about it, he said they had put a wood burning stove in, but after a couple of years never got it to draw well ...they always got smoke inside the MH. They ended up converting it to gas.

I would say their first mistake was having it vented out the side. No wonder they never got a good draw, straight pipe from the top of the stove gets the best draw, in addition to most people don't even know how to work a wood stove properly.

[Murf2u]

Woodstoves are fairly common on bigger boats and their reasonably safe and operate without much maintenance or problems.

We had one in our semi-converted tugboat for years, no issues at all.

However the old girl rarely hit potholes, never got driven on bumpy roads for hundreds of miles a day and if it had ever hit 65+ mph the woodstove would have been the least of my problems.

Those hippie school bus conversions in BC with woodstoves don't move. The ones that do, need the chimney fixed EVERY time they park them again.

[ROLLNSMOKE]

Originally Posted by akartist

I have a vintage 69 trailer and I have been using a cast iron tiny wood cook stove in it now for 10 years.
I am able to live in my trailer even in the winter because the wood stove does not create any condensation that would ruin most trailers in the winter.
Common sense is all that is needed to have a wood stove in a camper or RV.
I have my wall covered with concrete board and also added a sheet of it under the stove.
Both boards are covered with nice white split stone. I used a 4" pipe straight through the roof with a bolted cap. The pipe is double insulated 12" below the roof and 12" above.
I love not having to rely on propane for heat and cooking. Since I do not have a generator I would have to rely on RV parks or campgrounds to run a furnace. You may want to check out STARKEYS rolling homes site. All rolling homes have wood cook stoves and or wood stoves just for their heat. Most have lived and traveled in these rolling homes for over 30 years.
I carry my wood supply on the tailgate in a vintage aluminum coke cooler.
I also have a small wood box inside.
I got rid of my 30 ft. Winnie and now love the warmth and comfort of my vintage camper with it's oil lamps, wood cook stove and QUIET.
Best thing I ever did.
So don't be too quick to judge something unless you have tried it.
60 year old female here, so you guys need a little more adventure than just having a house on wheels. And thats just MY opinion. lol

Lol if I was 30 years older I'd marry you!.. Lol good to see someone else has the woodstove idea going strong... I am sitting here with my noisy electric heater, and my motorhomes furnace going and i am just at 20• C (70•F)...if it snows her in the next few days it'll be even colder...

Hey akartist, u should send some pics of your set up with the stove.do u travel around or just stay in one spot.?
I still get a laugh how some people are against a wood stove in a rv / motor home, yet with propane a hose could blow at any time,when u are cooking on the stove and for what ever reason the flam goes out, gas is still spewing out... Yet this is safe... ? What snout when my electric heater gets bumped over by a dog... And burned the camper down... Is this safe...? If everyone was born thinkingnthat wood stoves are the norm in a camper instead of propane, then y'all would say stoves are safe, but since mommy and daddy told u propane is the normal way to go,then thatust be carved on stone and correct... Right!?!.., lol
Have fun with your propane if 2012 really does happen... Lpl

[336muffin]

Pretty neat, but for the price of a installed and operating wood stove I can buy a lot of propane.

[ROLLNSMOKE]

Originally Posted by 336muffin

Pretty neat, but for the price of a installed and operating wood stove I can buy a lot of propane.

Are you kidding me? Well i guess if u live some where warmer than Canada the woodstove idea isn't as attractive...and if it's just for camping and not living them yes maybe leave the propane system as your only heating source... I've alteady spent 250 dollars from summer intil now ( i camp almost all summer) and a small woodstove set up wouldn't be much more than that plus it'll last a lifetime.and you'll be ready if the 2012 thing is for real.. Lol

[ROLLNSMOKE]

Originally Posted by Poptop

My daughter had a 22 year old 2600 sq ft custom built log home in northern NY. They used a top-of-the-line wood burning stove for supplemtal heat to their furnace. I say she "had one" because last month the wood burning stove was responsible for the place catching fire and the home is no more. I just thanks to the Lord no one got hurt. Far as I'm concerned I can afford electricty and propane for my MH.

What did the stove fall apart at the seems... Lol someone probably installed it wrong...i doubt that the " approved" stove was the cause.. If that was the case im sure your daughter would be a whole lot richer now because of a law suit....

[Night_Sailor]

Originally Posted by LadyFitz...

I checked out the stoves in the OP's link and the only concerns I would have with them would be the lack of provision for outside combustion air and <snip> vibration and flexing from moving the RV, especially TTs and 5ers, loosening up chimney joints. With the possible exception of Class As, boats are more rigidly constructed than RVs.

I realize this is an old thread.

A flex type vent pipe and secure mounting would eliminate your second concern. Outside air is a good idea--I'd want that for my propane locker as well as for wood fire combustion. The double wall idea is good, for the roof joint, but single wall would be better to transfer more heat if needed to the interior--it depends on whether you don't have enough heat or if you have too much with a stove that is too large.

I have been in the marine industry for 4o years. Most fires start at the electrical panel. And there are a number of propane explosions that blow the decks or transoms off boats. Yachties shut off the propane at the tank, letting it burn out before shutting off a stove and an inline solenoid valve--that sort of overkill is necessary with propane. Likewise having an externally draining propane locker. These are huge steps to necessary take to use propane safely.

I often sail offshore, and one thing you can't do is run out of something because then you have to wait, perhaps days to resupply. I take this attitude with me camping. I don't want to run out and I'd rather not have to resupply--I'd rather use what is handy--like wood. I have been heating with wood for 35 years--better wood than foreign oil.

I have a Barth all aluminum Truck Camper that I'm restoring. I stumbled on this thread because I intend to boondock, mostly in northern Canada and when driving cross country in the US. Wood is free and available, and good exercise to collect. Many locals will chop up scrap wood and give it to you for free--you are helping them get rid of some clutter. Or you can find free scraps and chop it up with a saw fast and easy!

I can get water anywhere, and I plan to rely on solar for my hot water, electricity and DC refrigeration, and fans for cooling.

An RV would have less vibration than a boat on the ocean--sail offshore to understand this. Wood stoves work well on boats; they are not dangerous if installed properly, and they stay in place if built properly. As the OP said, if they can be used on a boat they can be used in an RV. For example, on boats a shield is often placed near a stove. Likewise a grab bar running parallel to the stove pipe is often used. I would do the same thing in an RV.

Wood stoves are great for drying things and keeping the inside warm and dry. I can't stress the dry part enough on a boat it is wonderful.

Propane is far more dangerous than any wood stove. Also a short at an electrical panel due to water intrusion, and gasoline would be more dangerous than a wood stove. Which is why most yachties choose diesel as a fuel source. Many yachties prefer CNG to Propane, and except for the lack of availability of CNG in many parts of the world this would be everyone's preference. Yachties accept the danger of propane but are extremely careful with it.

Burning wood is nowhere near as dangerous. Wood is far safer in comparison. The main issue with a wood stove is choosing to size it so it doesn't overheat your RV, boat or cabin. Installing spacers and air gaps mitigate the overheating issue. And I'd like to point out that these steps are done once--not every time like with propane. Forget a step with propane and you could blow the boat up! Wood does require tending, but it is fun and interesting, and worth the effort for the warm dry heat.

If you think a wood fire is dangerous because of propane--then the danger is the propane not the wood fire.

Another concern is the weight of a wood stove. A yacht can afford to carry a bit more weight, an RV cannot. I plan to use a Dickenson wood stove, which should suit my needs--occasional use in colder weather. The Dickenson is not air-tight, so I might just make my own stove instead.

While, I am also considering a non vented propane heater (to eliminate the power draw, and for in motion heating) and a diesel cook stove. I would like to eliminate propane if possible. I like diesel cook stoves but they are more fussy than propane and put out a lot of heat--a plus, and they also offer a coil for heating water. I like that I can do three things with a diesel cook stove--cook, heat, and heat water--but they don't make sense in a warm climate.

Lets talk some more about propane. Propane is dangerous. It is commonly used for furnaces, non vented heaters, cook stoves, and water heaters. I am looking at ways to eliminate my propane dependency. As I mentioned, I can use solar for hot water--as long as there is sun, or electricity for heating.

I prefer to cook with propane as it is fast and easy. If I only use propane for cooking, a tank should last a very long time, and a smaller tank might be sufficient. I can use the normal precautions, or perhaps mount a fold down stove top outside my camper to cook in warm weather. I have no experience with propane powered refrigerators. My brother tells me his worked for many weeks with no issues.

One thing worthy of discussion is keeping a camper warm while unattended or while in motion. I'd feel comfortable leaving my woodstove running while unattended, but not while in motion. So in the winter, some other source of heat might be needed to keep a camper warm enough that water tanks and pipes would not freeze while driving long distances. Electric heating elements could work but I have no experience with that. More complicated, but better for a truck camper, would be a register hooked up to the motor to act as a remote heater with a fan to keep the camper above freezing.

While I have not made up my mind about some of these things, a wood stove is something I definitely will have in my camper.