Are RV Fireplaces just for show?

[Sheriffbubba]

Ours does a great job of heating our rig unless it is really cold, then we use furnace or something else... We love our fireplace. It looks nice... Pretty real... And my better half insists that we have it turned on, even when it's warm, we just turn the heater off and use it for looks. Would definitely want one in our next motorhome.


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[Tugboat]

When there is a chill out it works fine and when it is really cold out have to use Maine heater. One thing to keep in mind is when it is on you are using the campgrounds electric not your propane.

[CampingCajun]

We had one in the fifth wheel, it was about useless. The only thing that heated up was the entertainment center directly above it. The MH doesn't have one & we don't miss it. The added storage space is worth more to us.

[TXiceman]

Originally Posted by reubenray

I cannot stand the smell of the propane furnace and I will not use it unless it gets down below freezing.

A propane furnace does not smell, once you burn off the lint that has settled on the heat exchanger. Nor do they add moisture to the air.

The flame is in an enclosed chamber that draws and exhaust from the out side air. The flame heats the sheet metal and the fan blows the air over the outside of the exchanger. There is no exchange or mixing of air.

I spent 45 plus years working with applied thermodynamics and heat transfer. There is very little difference in efficiency between one electric heater and another. There can be a perceived difference by people based on air temperature and air movement.

If seems the myths and wives-tales will live forever.

Ken

[hondavalk]

Since the OP is in Hawaii I would sat it's for show

[IC2]

Yes, we have a 'fireplace' in our 5er. It is quite possibly the poorest, least efficient example of a 750/1500 watt heat source that Keystone could have installed. Yes, the fake flames are pretty. No, it does not do a better job of heat distribution then the twenty buck, ~8" square, 750/1500 watt ceramic, Chinese made cube heater that we purchased at Tractor Supply a few years ago and which may be stored in a corner under the bed. Along with those negatives, it also wastes about 8 (or more) cubic feet of potential cupboard storage under the TV.

[PJinHawaii]

Originally Posted by hondavalk

Since the OP is in Hawaii I would sat it's for show

It's true that I'm in Hawaii now... and therefore don't even have an RV... but there is change in the wind... :-)

[PJinHawaii]

Are all RV fireplaces electric? or is propane an option?

I'm hoping when we get rigged up, that we'll spend lots and lots of time in national parks and off grid places where there are no CG hoookups.

With that constraint, sounds like I might want to lean away from the elec. fireplaces, even though a lot of people seem to like them.

[Deanza11350]

Used mine this past winter in Southern California and it helped keep the chill out, but I did still used the furnace when temps dropped in the 20's

[Mike and Cha]

Originally Posted by PJinHawaii

Are all RV fireplaces electric? or is propane an option?

I'm hoping when we get rigged up, that we'll spend lots and lots of time in national parks and off grid places where there are no CG hoookups.

With that constraint, sounds like I might want to lean away from the elec. fireplaces, even though a lot of people seem to like them.

All the ones I've seen for inside the MH are electric. There are propane ones you can use outside. When boondocking you can run your generator when you want to use the fireplace.

[Scarab0088]

Originally Posted by PJinHawaii

Are all RV fireplaces electric? or is propane an option?

I'm hoping when we get rigged up, that we'll spend lots and lots of time in national parks and off grid places where there are no CG hoookups.

With that constraint, sounds like I might want to lean away from the elec. fireplaces, even though a lot of people seem to like them.

No propane option, at least not one intended for interior RV use.
The open propane flame would require venting (air in and fleu).

Safe travels

[DrDaveMA]

We had been using a space heater and liked the heat it produced. We had unused space in our coach that we were using for paper towels. It had been designed for a dishwasher so there was power in the space.


I cut a fireplace into the wall. We found that we use it a lot. We were in Destin, FL in January where we had several nights below freezing. The fireplace kept us cozy and warm so we did not have to use either the heat pump or the Hydro Hot for heat. The fact that it has ambience also is just the icing on the cake.


I was also able to keep the storage space behind the fireplace, it looks like it was original in the coach. Yes, we lost a drawer, but in 2 years it has not bothered us.

[twogypsies]

Originally Posted by PJinHawaii

Are all RV fireplaces electric? or is propane an option?

I'm hoping when we get rigged up, that we'll spend lots and lots of time in national parks and off grid places where there are no CG hoookups.

With that constraint, sounds like I might want to lean away from the elec. fireplaces, even though a lot of people seem to like them.

For boondocking these are heaters that you would want.

For 16 years of full-timing we used the Empire brand Radiant Heater. It is very economical on propane and gives a constant warm heat without any noise. We'd highly recommend it or another type. Serious boondockers used these heaters.

Regardless of what you may hear these heaters are absolutely safe - if used properly.

We had it plumbed in to a dedicated propane line from our tanks. We could turn it any direction. It warmed up our 40' motorhome in 10 minutes. We never slept with it as we like sleeping in a cold room.

RV Heaters | Heaters | Empire Heaters

We certainly wouldn't run a generator to use one of those fake fireplaces.

[Mike and Cha]

Originally Posted by twogypsies

We certainly wouldn't run a generator to use one of those fake fireplaces.

Why not, when boondocking you run the generator to charge up the batteries or run your AC's, or other electric components if necessary. If you had one of those stand alone heaters you would have to use the generator to operate it. The propane heater you talk about is a good idea, but if you have the fireplace already it is no different than running the generator for the AC's, or other heating systems. We are like you we don't leave any heaters on when sleeping as we would rather be on the cold side when sleeping, but it is great to warm up the MH before getting in bed, and also charges up your batteries in the process.