is it possible to heat bedroom area of 5th wheel trailer only to save on battery life

[allski]

Hi I am new to the heartland forums , Im trying to figure out if its possible to heat only the bedroom portion of the 5th wheel trailer while staying at un electrified campsites or Walmarts while on my way down south. Im interested in having the furnace come on less to preserve the battery life. will be staying at a 55+ RV site once we get there so not a problem then. Heading south soon from Saskatchewan to Apache Junction AZ. Will likely spend a couple cool nights in a parking lot in a few places. I should also mention the thermostats are both in the hallway of our camper near the bedroom and would be behind a closed door that we can seperate us from the living room and kitchen area. Has 2 thermostats cuz it has 2 air conditioners I guess. One doesn't seem to run the furnace only the one closest to the living area. there's also a fresh air duct outside the bedroom bathroom area we would be heating. Im also guessing the thermostat controller has a built in sensor that senses the temperature as I don't see where else it would sense temperature from? Any information is much appreciated.

 

[RoadJunkie]

The "stock" heating system is not zoned and therefore does not partition heating. Don't forget that you may also need to heat the basement to prevent freezing of the water systems, if you're dealing with such temperatures. If you're staying at Walmarts, then it is likely there are campgrounds in the near vicinity, so use shore power at a campground to keep comfortable.

 

[allski]

Thanks for the reply, Im not really worried about freezing as I winterized it a month ago and wont be using any water until I get it hooked up at our site. I can close the doors to separate the bedroom and bathroom from the rest of the trailer and close vents in the living area and leave the ones in the upstairs bedroom area open. There's 2 thermostats and it seems one of them runs the furnace and would be in the bedroom area. Just not really sure where the sensor is for regulating heat?Guessing its built into the thermostat control? Was just figuring I wouldn't heat the whole trailer for a few hours while we sleep if I didn't have to. A couple days into the trip it shouldn't get too cool at night and wont need to worry about it.

 

[david-steph2018]

No, there isn't really an easy method to do what you want. Even closing off the vents, the heat from the furnace will still go into the vent runs off the furnace. One way to reduce furnace run time is to maybe hang some blankets over/under the doors to keep the heat in the bedroom, where the thermostat is that controls the furnace. You may also turn the heat down, so the furnace run time is less.

We have been boondocking in Goshen, Indiana since Tuesday for RV repairs, and we are still on the 1-30lb. propane bottle. Not concerned about our batteries as we have a large lithium battery & solar system, plus generator if needed to recharge.

 

[hoefler]

Closing off vents will cause the furnace to overheat and shut down, possibly requiring a manual reset, depending on model and age of the unit. They are designed to have X amount of air moving across the heat exchanger to prevent melt down or fire.

 

[travelin2]

We’ve boondocked our way south in freezing temperatures a couple times. Set the furnace at 65, added a couple more blankets to the bed and snuggled in
Still had battery (not lithium) power in the morning.

Lyle

 

[allski]

Ok all good to know, havent become a boondocker as of yet so battery power is still a concern. Never thought it could actually start a fire since I do have vents open just not to the living area. I will definitely put pool noodles above and below the doors. Thx.

 

[Gary521]

The thermostat closest to the living area runs the furnace. Yes, it senses temperature that's how it turns on and off. I am guessing that the battery will not run down completely during the night just running the furnace. The battery should charge up the next day as you are hooked up to the truck going down the road. Don't forget to stock up on propane before you leave.

 

[Bogie]

You can always add a second battery.

Also, you can pack a couple of zero degree sleeping bags. Will keep you warm on very cold nights. Only problem with that is, who gets to get up first and turn on the heater?

 

[Chief51]

Hi I am new to the heartland forums , Im trying to figure out if its possible to heat only the bedroom portion of the 5th wheel trailer while staying at un electrified campsites or Walmarts while on my way down south. Im interested in having the furnace come on less to preserve the battery life. will be staying at a 55+ RV site once we get there so not a problem then. Heading south soon from Saskatchewan to Apache Junction AZ. Will likely spend a couple cool nights in a parking lot in a few places. I should also mention the thermostats are both in the hallway of our camper near the bedroom and would be behind a closed door that we can seperate us from the living room and kitchen area. Has 2 thermostats cuz it has 2 air conditioners I guess. One doesn't seem to run the furnace only the one closest to the living area. there's also a fresh air duct outside the bedroom bathroom area we would be heating. Im also guessing the thermostat controller has a built in sensor that senses the temperature as I don't see where else it would sense temperature from? Any information is much appreciated.

Hey Allski,
My wife and I are going through something similar (not exact) to what you’re trying to do. We are rehabbing an old house right now that is taking a long time. Thought we’d be done, but we are still 2-4 months away. We are staying in our Heartland Cyclone toy hauler in Northeast, Ohio. Last night, it hit 32 degrees for the first time and that’s cold in a trailer. Absolutely sucks at 4am to get up and pee. 😩 We haven’t turned on the propane yet. Instead, we are using the electric fireplace to heat. There is no way to just heat 1 room on these trailers. Even if you closed up the vents somehow, the air is still going to circulate throughout because these things lack proper insulation to heat just 1 room. It might be worth it for you to invest in a portable generator if you don’t have one. Our toy hauler has a generator and we use it when we dry dock at Walmart or anywhere else. It’s a game changer! An electric blanket might also be a thought. Yes. You need to plug it in, but it shouldn’t take a lot of juice to keep you warm.
Be safe on your trip. Enjoy!

 

[jerryjay11]

Closing off vents will cause the furnace to overheat and shut down, possibly requiring a manual reset, depending on model and age of the unit. They are designed to have X amount of air moving across the heat exchanger to prevent melt down or fire.

As a retired HVAC Tech I agree with this highly. Closing off vents can cause this...Constantly overheating a heat exchanger can lead to shorter life span with cracking of the metal. A cracked heat exchanger means exhaust fumes will enter the living space, hopefully setting off the CO detector. As for the battery, as long as it is charged, serviced regularly, and not too old it should last for the night.

 

[allski]

Thanks again for your replies, I do have a generator but trying to travel light and it wont be of much use once we reach our site in Apache Junction. I think the electric blanket to warm up the bed at least is a good idea, my wife already thought of that one and we may burn a few candles to help with the heating as well. Will likely run the heater for a while to heat it up initially with the truck running. Not sure if the trailer grabs power from the truck if the key is not on or running? Not wanting to drain the batteries so much that we cannot push the slide back in in the morning. I did purchase a couple NOCO battery booster packs in case of emergency if the truck or trailer battery went dead. So should be able to get the slide back in to get going again. Just don't like draining a battery that far.

 

[rhodies1]

I personally would not leave my fireplace on all night unattended. If you take the time to check the electrical cord on these units they get really warm if you run them constantly for a long time. I do not trust them to overheat and cause a fire. My opinion only.

 

[Gary521]

If you are not leaving tomorrow, why don't you do a little test to see how it all goes. Run the furnace all night and then try to pull in the slides. What is it going to hurt to run a little trial? Science is wonderful. Running the battery down is not going to hurt anything.
As someone else suggested, you can always stay at a regular RV park.

 

[david-steph2018]

Thanks again for your replies, I do have a generator but trying to travel light and it wont be of much use once we reach our site in Apache Junction. I think the electric blanket to warm up the bed at least is a good idea, my wife already thought of that one and we may burn a few candles to help with the heating as well. Will likely run the heater for a while to heat it up initially with the truck running. Not sure if the trailer grabs power from the truck if the key is not on or running? Not wanting to drain the batteries so much that we cannot push the slide back in in the morning. I did purchase a couple NOCO battery booster packs in case of emergency if the truck or trailer battery went dead. So should be able to get the slide back in to get going again. Just don't like draining a battery that far.

One question not asked is, how old are your batteries? What condition are the batteries?
Would it be a good decision to replace batteries before the trip?

Remember the furnace will not run all the time, but cycle on/off.

 

[JohnDar]

On the topic of closing off furnace vents. If you replace the stock floor registers with adjustable ones, there is no way closing off some to redirect the flow will result in damage or fire. Did it with the 3670 we had for almost 11 years. That’s not the same as blocking the lines right at the furnace, which could very well give you grief.


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