Pellet stove for a MotorHome

[halfpipe]

Happy New Year's
I've got an old Travco 27' Motorhome that I want to heat with a small pellet stove.
Have a heilsa heating my small home in Nova Scotia and figure a really small pellet stove would work in a Motorhome Bolted down of course
crazy idea or possible?

 

[kinsmanstoves]

Seen dv LP units but not a pellet. Guess it would work but not sure if I would try it.

Eric

 

[bbfarm]

I think you'd be crazy to do it with propane tanks mounted on a motor home!!

 

[rwthomas1]

Since boat routinely heat with drip diesel heaters, propane heaters, solid fuel heaters, etc. and they do so with propane on board, I can't see that as being a problem PROVIDED your propane system is in good condition and not leaking. Propane is heavier than air, so it finds the lowest point and pools like water. A problem with a boat since the low point is the bilge, the propane collects there, until it explodes. A motorhome is much less tight, any propane gas should find its way out and dissipate. Commonsense ain't so common anymore, but I don't see how a pellet stove, correctly installed, is going to be a problem. It might be way to much heater and run you out of the coach though.

 

[tjnamtiw]

Since pellet stoves in 'mobile homes' have to be earth grounded to the chassis, I'm thinking you'd have to drive a stake into the ground at the campsite if you're running on the genny. Maybe even with 'shore power'. Over the road would be another question all together.

 

[halfpipe]

Still searching for a baby pellet stove
I'm thinking a 5000btu pellet stove with a water heating component would be just the ticket.
The combustion air intake would come from inside the Coach, sucking in all that moisture laden air that is produced by the propane kitchen stove which condenses on everything. Leave a little vent open somewhere in the coach and enjoy a natural air exchanger. With the bonus of impurites in the breathing air being sucked into the pellet stove rather than accumulating and posing various risks,
The water which is heated incidentally by the pellet stove could be circulated in the tank compartments helping to prevent freeze ups there.
When the Motor Home was moving the stove would have been stopped obviously beforehand and you'd get an automatic leaf-blower effect.

 

[hoverfly]

You could probably put this a window unit in a motorhome but would require considerable amount of reinforcement. However pellet stoves overall for a motorhome might be a risky bet. You could also try looking into one of these outdoor pellet stoves again it might be a risky bet.

 

[Putzn34ford]

I think you'd be crazy to do it with propane tanks mounted on a motor home!!

What are your thoughts on the exhaust pipes running by the propane tanks by inches? How about the propane running to the fridge, heater, and water heater, all in pretty much enclosed spaces.

 

[Putzn34ford]

Never seen so many trying to shoot down a new idea. I know this post was from years ago, but I just had to respond. 15 years ago I did a city bus conversion. I installed a pellet stove with a hot water heater exchanger. It works wonderfully. Ask any body with just a little common sense. It is more efficient by far for heating, and much safer then having flammable liquid gas on board. The only draw backs that I have had is that it's a little dirty, and you have a little maintenance. You don't have to have a bonding wire run to it. The third pron on your outlet is earth ground, and the RV is insulated from earth by rubber tires. I hope you did it, rather then being one of these others sisn out saying it will never work.

 

[alternativeheat]

Don't forget the idea of pellet storage.

I think you will find the condensation is part and parcel with campers in general in cool weather, even in a 27ft camper you just don't have the air space and wood absorption of a home. I had a travel camper ( tow behind) that did the same thing in the right weather conditions I( aluminum sided no less). I don't think it has anything to do with propane fuel, it's the difference of warm interior and damp cool outside temp. If you think about it your gas range has an open flame burning interior air already. There were times I used a single burner on the stove top to heat my camper vs burning the propane heater that was built in. That heater was a gas hog but not the burner. Heck even the oven was more efficient to run than that built in heater.

 

[pvfjr]

I think you'd be crazy to do it with propane tanks mounted on a motor home!!

I can't imagine this would be any worse than the inherent risk with the propane appliances themselves. Have a propane range? You're literally piping propane out to an open flame--the most sure-fire (see what I did there?) type of ignition source, and you're doing it on purpose. There's no way a pellet stove could be worse than the status quo for propane use.

I think you will find the condensation is part and parcel with campers in general in cool weather, even in a 27ft camper you just don't have the air space and wood absorption of a home. I had a travel camper ( tow behind) that did the same thing in the right weather conditions I( aluminum sided no less). I don't think it has anything to do with propane fuel, it's the difference of warm interior and damp cool outside temp. If you think about it your gas range has an open flame burning interior air already. There were times I used a single burner on the stove top to heat my camper vs burning the propane heater that was built in. That heater was a gas hog but not the burner. Heck even the oven was more efficient to run than that built in heater.

Propane does indeed produce water vapor:
C3H8 + 5O2 = 3CO2 + 4H2O

This would only apply to the range and/or lanterns, of course, as the fridge and furnace should be vented to the outside. You're right about the insulation issues though, it's a huge contributing factor. The small air volume, vapor aspirating residents, propane byproducts, and huge temperature delta between exterior surfaces and inside air all play a role. Airstream actually put double pane windows in their trailers for a long time to help alleviation the condensation issues. It's definitely par for the course if it's cold outside.