Big Buddy Heater????

[Bill Turner]

Are there any Tradgangers out there who have used the Big Buddy heater in a camping situation? Do you have problems with condensation on the inside of your tent or trailer? Do any of you use the heater with a hose attachment and a large propane bottle? It is my understanding that a single hose equipped, with a fuel filter, will run the Big Buddy and is more economical then using the standard one pound propane bottles. Input from experience Big Buddy users will be appreciated. Thank you.  

[blueline]

Bill I love it when I used it a few weeks ago. In a tent, my cooking gear out side with a 10' hose just the heater in the tent. It got to hot for me in the tent, I will use it again though.
did get a little con. but not my concern...  I am more concerned with fumes and had NONE. I reccomend it with the the low oxygen shout off system.

[Paul Mattson]

Using the heaters in a tent can be very dangerous.  They are not vented and should never be used in a confined space.  Low Ox sensors do go bad.

[Jason_MO]

I have had the standard heater buddy for about the past 8-10 years I guess.  We used it exclusively in a tow behind model camper that was about 18ft, I think.  I ran a hose out the back window to a 30g propane tank and we usually cracked a window on the opposite end of the camper and the roof vent.
That heater could run you out of that trailer it would get so warm in there!! Always toasty warm and no issues!

[sendero25]

I have two of the "portable buddy" heaters.
I have used them for two years in my 10x15 cabin.
They work great!  Last weekend it was 18 degrees at night and I ran one, and when it ran out of fuel, I lit the other, they ran all night and kept me plenty warm.
The only ventilation is my nightly "calls to nature" when I open the door!
I never need to run both at once, one is plenty for the space I have.
I've never had a condensation issue in the cabin.
John

[The Vanilla Gorilla]

I thought about using one while sleeping in the shell in the bed of my pickup.  As for fumes and condensation, you should be alright if you leave a window slid open a bit.

You could just fire it up and leave it going to get it nice and toasty before going to bed, then again for getting it warm before you crawl out of your bed.

[wihill]

I've got the standard Buddy, it'll cook me out of my ice shanty in no time flat.  With a 3.5 season tent or breezy canvas you should have no problems.  Get the line and filter for the external tank, the 1#er's will work for an over-nighter but will put you in the poor house before you know it.

[BowHuntingFool]

Are you guys worried about the fumes?? I use a tent with a tarp over it when its in the teens, I'm thinking this could be an issue??

[blueline]

You must have ventalation!!!!

I am liking the tee pee design more and more

[ryped]

I've been wondering about these too, are they quiet? Completely silent?

[Lupe]

I've got a little buddy heater I got at a local farm store I use it to heat my tent blind it gets hot quick. And when we smell the fumes we jsut turn it off or a bit.

[Lupe]

for a bit

[Monkey Wrench]

I've got the "little buddy" one for my pop-up camper.  It does have a low oxygen sensor and will automatically shut off.  I would put a battery powered back-up sensor in there if I used it more often.  But the way I see it, one of two things will happen concerning oxygen content.

1) Your tent doesn't leak much air and is well insulated.  In this case, that heater will heat you clean outta there in an hour or two anyway.  So you'll naturally shut it off.

2) Your tent leaks like most.  It will heat the air to something more tolerable, but enough fresh air is getting in through the crack and crevices and general lack of insulation.  This will be the case for about any tent.

In either case, the low-ox sensor is probably your back-up plan.  A battery powered one would be a third level of safety.  Anything is dangerous if you carry the logic out long enough though...maybe a bear will eat you and you won't have to worry about it!!!

[joevan125]

As long as you have some ventalation you will havde no problem, been using them for years.

[pronghorn23]

I got one for Christmas for use in duck blinds but haven't tried it yet. I'll have to try it this weekend while working in the garage.

[lpcjon2]

The part that will kill you,you won't smell they are the byproducts of the burn.that is a fact.I work for the state medical examiners office and I have seen it!

[Rick P]

I use the "little buddy" when ice fishing with my three year old or in the pop up when camping with the family. I would not use it in my mountain tent, even if I was dumb enough to pack it in! 4 season tents, especially those designed for mountaineering are just too tight. I will occasionally use a candle in a camp lantern for extra heat but normally my body heat keeps the tent bearable even in sub zero temps.

[Rick P]

Originally posted by lpcjon2:
The part that will kill you,you won't smell they are the byproducts of the burn.that is a fact.I work for the state medical examiners office and I have seen it!

Happens enough up here that all home are required to have CO2 sensors and we still loose a family or two every year. Nothing to mess with that for sure!

[knobby]

We've used a small Buddy heater in a larger tent when hunting early Sept. in Wyoming. We only use it for a few minutes right after the alarm goes off, and again a short time before we hit the sleeping bags for the night. Just enough to knock the chill out. We don't run it over night, because we have warm enough sleeping bags that it isn't needed. They are a nice, quick heat source if you want one.

[Ragnarok Forge]

C02 cannot be seen, smelled, or recognized until it is way to late.  Hundreds of people a year die from it in America.  Buy a better sleeping bag!  Running a propane heater with someone awake at all times is safe enough.  Doing it with everyone asleep is asking to get dealt out of the equation.  It is not a question of if you will get C02 poisoning by sleeping while running propane, it is when.  

We had heaters in our tents in the Army and always had a fire watch on them to keep everyone safe.  Most often we didn't bother with them no matter how cold it was.

Better safe and a bit cold than comfortable and whole lot dead.