Adding e hear soarse

[Goliath-goes]

Has anyone installed or had installed the add on electric heater coils into furnace allowing heating without burning propane would you recommend and what is the cost for this sorry for incorrect spelling on header. Phone has its own ideas sometimes

[NH_Bulldog]

Originally Posted by Goliath-goes

Has anyone installed or had installed the add on electric heater coils into furnace allowing heating without burning propane would you recommend and what is the cost for this sorry for incorrect spelling on header. Phone has its own ideas sometimes

We just use a small ceramic heater on the countertop and it heats the entire interior quickly and cheaply ($30 for the heater).

[IMASAP]

Originally Posted by NH_Bulldog

We just use a small ceramic heater on the countertop and it heats the entire interior quickly and cheaply ($30 for the heater).

^^ We do this also. I know this doesn't directly answer your questions, but an inexpensive and easy option.

[flybouy]

Originally Posted by Goliath-goes

Has anyone installed or had installed the add on electric heater coils into furnace allowing heating without burning propane would you recommend and what is the cost for this sorry for incorrect spelling on header. Phone has its own ideas sometimes

You can go back and edit the title. It would be beneficial if you clicked on "UserCP" and added a signature with year, make and model of your trailer and yow vehicle. That way readers will know what you have and prevent a lot of back and forth posting just get that info.

I have seen posts about someone doing this in the past but here come the questions.....do you have 30 or 50 Amp shore power and what brand furnace?

[wiredgeorge]

Originally Posted by flybouy

You can go back and edit the title. It would be beneficial if you clicked on "UserCP" and added a signature with year, make and model of your trailer and yow vehicle. That way readers will know what you have and prevent a lot of back and forth posting just get that info.

I have seen posts about someone doing this in the past but here come the questions.....do you have 30 or 50 Amp shore power and what brand furnace?

Wouldn't the A/C unit in some campers have the provision for a heat strip?

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

Wouldn't the A/C unit in some campers have the provision for a heat strip?

Most (at least many) RV rooftop air conditioners do have the capability to support a "heat strip". They are all 20 amp/120 volt appliances, so the maximum BTU output for a "resistive coil heat strip" is limited to around 5600 BTU. Due to the r-value and the close proximity of the ducting to the roof of the RV and the length of duct runs in most RV's, that 5600 BTU when coupled with the volume of air being pushed through the ducts results in "cool" to "chilly" air being blown from the ceiling outlets.

While there is "some overall temperature gain" with most A/C heat strips, the ceiling ducted systems are significantly inferior to the older "air outlets on the ceiling unit" style of air conditioner. That's the "old style A/C" before the advent of ducting ceiling systems...

If I were to need or want supplemental heat from the rooftop unit, I'd opt for a "replacement heat pump" not a "resistive coil heat strip".....

Essentially, with a 5600 BTU heat strip, you might get half of those BTU's delivered to the coach cabin. With a ceramic or oil filled radiator of the same BTU output, you get all the BTU's in the cabin... That's why "A/C heat strips" don't provide much "interior cabin warmth" in nearly all situations.

[flybouy]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

Wouldn't the A/C unit in some campers have the provision for a heat strip?

To add to John's points the air conditioner heat strips don't heat the underbelly.

[dutchmensport]

The advantage of adding the electric heat to the furnace, is the ability of the furnace to blow heat through the air ducts. In many different models, the floor is heated by these heat ducts, and the heat ducts heat the underbelly and / or basement area.

If a heat strip is added to the air conditioner unit, it will never blow under the floor. My Montana has an air conditioner/heat pump. When heat is pumping from the roof, it's never reaching under the floor, the under belly, or the basement area. Ceramic heaters are fantastic also. We have 3 of them, plus an electric fireplace, plus the heat pump. But only the furnace blowing on propane pumps the heat under the floor, which also makes water usable in the camper way below freezing temperatures without having to add anything special ... like under skirting for example.

Maybe the original poster WANTS the heat pumping through the furnace ducts, under the floor, and not just in the living compartment????

[wiredgeorge]

Well, not in a position geographically to care about heated underbelly and use a ceramic heater on cold mornings plus a shot of the campers's heater to take the chill off, if needed. Might not have been a bad idea to make the camper's heater propane/electric like the fridge to begin with as folks who stop at full hookups would benefit.

[dutchmensport]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

... Might not have been a bad idea to make the camper's heater propane/electric like the fridge to begin with as folks who stop at full hookups would benefit.

I agree. I never understood why RV furnaces were not designed with both electric and propane. I don't think it would be that difficult to do, although it would raise the price some. But the advantage of an electric furnace would truly be a sweet idea.

Maybe it's not done, because electric heat would draw too many amps. And when campers have only 30 amps available, it's real easy to exceed that real fast, especially with electric heat. Maybe just sticking with propane furnaces is a deliberate decision for this reason.

[Goliath-goes]

My high country also has heat pump/AC I was watching about these furnace inserts and was wondering if anyone had any experience with it. I also have the fireplace that puts out a lot of heat just not in basement

[Goliath-goes]

I saw them on you tube. That’s why I was wondering about them. Supposedly this company has a deal with keystone or something and has been approved to be installed without voiding warranty

[JRTJH]

We've got at least one member who is active on the forum and has the electric "add on conversion" to his existing furnace. I'd bet that in the next day or so, he posts his comments about that system.