Date:         Mon, 27 Aug 2007 23:14:38 -0700
Reply-To:     Michael Elliott <camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Michael Elliott <camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM>
Subject:      Re: Zodi Tent Heaters
Comments: To: Troy <colorworks@GCI.NET>
In-Reply-To:  <000801c7e935$91c39140$0201a8c0@troykv7nw3q4te>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed

Might draw more than .5 amps, the battery they sell for use with it
seems be one of those little 7Ah sealed lead-acid and it says it will
run the blower for 4 hours. So maybe 1 amp-hour to run the blower. One 1
lb green bottle of propane is said to last 3 to 8 hours, depending on
how high you set the burner.

I have a similar Zodi heater for showering. The single-bottle (10,000
btu) version is tippy, so running your ducting (see the movie "Brazil"
for more on this) and stabilizing it will be important. The two-bottle
version (20,000 btu) looks to be more stable, but might topple in a
strong wind. It looks like you don't have to turn on both bottles if you
don't want it.

An ambitious person could probably mount the burner under or atop the
Westy some darn place out of the wind and snake tubing to it from the
van's propane tank, mount a control valve inline so you can adjust the
heat from within the van . . . add a piezo clicker to light the thing,
and a fan switch. I'd put a thermal switch in the unit so if the burner
was lit the fan would come on automatically, if it's not already built in.

It's intriguing -- a Propex or Eberspacher would be silly in my van,
which lives in Southern California, but this little thing might be just
the ticket. I'd just need to figure out how to snake the hot air duct
into the van.

--
Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott
71 Type 2: the Wonderbus
84 Westfalia: Mellow Yellow ("The Electrical Banana")
74 Utility Trailer. Ladybug Trailer, Inc., San Juan Capistrano
KG6RCR



Troy typed:
> Has anyone tried using the Zodi tent heaters? It appears to be a pretty nice design using a 3 or 4 inch diameter hose to heat the interior, while the actual unit sits outside, thus preventing carbon monoxide and condensation buildup on the interior. I would love to have one of the propex heaters, but probably out of my price range. My local outdoor shop happens to have the 20,000 BTU model on sale for $99.00, and if this is a decent unit, I would like to grab it quick. It appears that either one or two of the ubiquitous 1 pound propane bottles bottles can be used, and that they can also be dimmed or turned down, as 20K BTU is probably way overkill for a westy interior. The only drawback I see is the fan is operated on 12 volts, and the unit comes supplied with two alligator style clips, which didn't seem too appealing. I don't see why a person couldn't adapt a cigarette lighter adapter plug-in though. The fan itself I doubt drawls even .5 amps. Commets?
>
> Troy
>