Heating the van with the gas hob

janner

i'd rather go overboard with insulation,just the tea making and single ring cooking keeps my self build warm and cosy enough for me,
good luck.jan

ps,and not too warm in the summer
 
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Steve121

... if wind gets into the van and blows out the gas flame on the hob and you are asleep ??? then what ???

The flame failure device should shut the gas supply off. It's very simple to test if it's functioning correctly. And no, this doesn't mean I condone the use of any naked flame to heat the vehicle.
 

yeoblade

I've often put the full kettle on the stove till it boils, then turn off, to help warm the van. Bit like a C/H boiler really. Never left it on overnight though.
 

Alf

Keep a lookout for some electric nightstorage heater bricks or fire bricks I have a few but too heavy to post.

Alf



Been thinking of doing something similar. How long did the bricks hold heat for?
My diesel heater is either chucking out so much hot air, it turns the van into a sauna, or it's a luke warm draft. I should have put more outlets in.
 

n brown

Forum Member
you're a grown up, do whatever you're comfortable with. i've done it,like many others, also had unflued instantaneous water heaters and used open flame caravan fires. i'm still more or less here ,compos mainly mentis
 

Fletch6

You are an adult and you understand the dangers so go for it. We live in a nanny state, not a police state (yet). We all use the cooking facilities with the side effect of heat so what's the difference? I'm sure you'll be careful.
 

mandrake

re heating your van with the hob .
when we lived full time in our old bedford the carver fire gave up the ghost and at the time we couldent realy get the thing repaired cheaply enough it was never the best of things realy in my opinion anyway ,in fact it would have been cheaper to fit a second hand one realy plus we were slightly low on readies at the time ,so yes we used the hob for heat .ok not ideal but when needs must as they say ,anyway we had a co meter and never once did it register more than a few ppm no real concern unless we put the kettle on for a cuppa then the meter went through the roof within a few mins .no condensation to call anything either . then we got a portable heater super ser type from a booty sale complete with a bottle for a few quid and that was brilliant and used it all the time .we never had much trouble with condensation at all ,ok we had a decent ventilation and at no time was there any problem with carbon monoxide the meter never registered and believe me it was more than adequate to heat that van it used a 15kg butane bottle every 6 weeks or so . the van we have now has a carver 1800 fitted and to tell the truth thats not that good ,ok it heats the van adequately but takes a while to heat the van ,i do have one of those portable heaters at home wouldent be without one as a back up ,also i use it in the garage and i put it in the van one day whilst i was working in it and the van was lovely and warm in mins far better than the carver and at no time did the co meter i have in its one with a led readout the van register . just think this before the carver type heaters were designed all caravans and the motor caravans then had that type of heater fitted they dident kill owners on mass did they or set fire to every van they were fitted in ,ok dont leave it on when sleeping but other than taking reasonable care i would have no problems or worries using one in any van unless of course i had children in it then it would be a no no , ,anyway the modern ones now have a oxygen depletion cut off fitted .
 

Deleted member 951

Ventilation is the key.

I have slept in a tent with an open fire burning before now. Much as the Sami people have done for centuries.
 

ScamperVan

The 'diff.' is that while you are cooking or boiling a kettle, you tend generally to be awake and compus mentis, overnight you are neither, and you just might wake up dead.

Think you must have posted whilst I was editing - my edit illustrates my agreement with your point about alertness.
 

wakk44

I used the oven with the door open to heat the van a few weeks ago.We were out in minus temperatures on a meet when the leisure battery packed up leaving us with no heating(truma blown air).

It worked and just took the chill off in the van.There was a considerable amount of condensation that formed on the windows and skylights and I wouldn't recommend doing it for long periods and certainly not overnight.I just used the oven to heat the van for an hour before going to bed and similarly for an hour first thing in the morning.It served a purpose but can't be compared with the truma blown air system which is excellent.
 

Tbear

What we used to do is when I first got up, the kettle went on and I would put an extra ring on. Buy the time we wanted the second cup we would be down to one ring. By the time I had filled the flask the furnature inside the van was warming so no need for it any more. During the day we never used any form of heating. At night a quilt is a lot cheaper and never runs out. :)

The only time this let us down was if you needed a pee during the night. Burrrr!!

I would only take notice of the gung ho mob if they pledge a thousand pounds towards your funeral if it all goes wrong. :)

Richard
 

Geraldine

Forum Member
We have a camping heating thing which sits on the gas ring and glows. Only use it occasionally and put it on for maybe 10mins when need a boost. Works brilliantly and our PvC is well insulated. Also only when awake and dressed! Think for regular use I would want a designated heater but on odd occasions this is fine
Portable Mini gas Stove Heater Stoves camping stove mini camping stove mini oven | eBay

Does anyone know where you can buy these in the UK ?
Many thanks.
David
 

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