Quieter Furnace Option for Sport 22?

[chaeha]

Just wondering if there is a quieter furnace option for us with the Sport 22. I have a 2013 with a Atwood Model 7912-II which does the job but is loud! Not sure if the newer Sports are using the same furnace or if some like the Basecamp Truma heater would work in the same foot print.

[Lumatic]

Check out wall mounted catalytic heaters. You need to crack a window for ventilation and it warms objects in a room, including people, not the air. Has a O2 sensor that shuts it down if the oxygen level gets low. Completely silent.

[chaeha]

My local mobile RV repair guy just attempted to remove my furnace to repair the ‘sail’ switch but said that even after removing all screws it wouldn’t easily come out. Anyone else have similar issues with Sport models? Guess I’ll have to take it to Airstream NW in Portland, Oregon where I bought it.

[keweenawbee]

Try whatever we have in the 2018 model, it is almost unbelievably quiet compared to our LP furnace we had in our last trailer. One caveat about those is clearly half of the generated heat seems to exit outside. In our last trailer (which was a leaky popup) we used a Buddy Heater since they are almost 100% efficient and would shut it off at night and get under a down comforter. Really saved on propane use.

Ironically it is now mid Sept and after many cold days/nights and all the cooking we are still on the original LP tank loads from the dealer we purchased it from in June!

[chaeha]

Originally Posted by keweenawbee

Try whatever we have in the 2018 model, it is almost unbelievably quiet compared to our LP furnace we had in our last trailer. One caveat about those is clearly half of the generated heat seems to exit outside. In our last trailer (which was a leaky popup) we used a Buddy Heater since they are almost 100% efficient and would shut it off at night and get under a down comforter. Really saved on propane use.

Ironically it is now mid Sept and after many cold days/nights and all the cooking we are still on the original LP tank loads from the dealer we purchased it from in June!

You have a 2018 Sport? Or different model? I know the current larger sized trailers have quieter furnaces than the single axles.

[waninae39]

we bought this unit off amazon

Lasko Ceramic Extended Heat Zone Tower Heater Model CT30710 with Remote Control

its

• very quiet,
• works off Ac, not gas
• incl Remote Control
• Quiet Force Blower
• 1500 Watts of Comforting Warmth

[chaeha]

Originally Posted by keweenawbee

Try whatever we have in the 2018 model, it is almost unbelievably quiet compared to our LP furnace we had in our last trailer. One caveat about those is clearly half of the generated heat seems to exit outside. In our last trailer (which was a leaky popup) we used a Buddy Heater since they are almost 100% efficient and would shut it off at night and get under a down comforter. Really saved on propane use.

Ironically it is now mid Sept and after many cold days/nights and all the cooking we are still on the original LP tank loads from the dealer we purchased it from in June!

If you do have a Sport it would be great if you tell me the exact model number of the furnace you have!

[keweenawbee]

Originally Posted by chaeha

If you do have a Sport it would be great if you tell me the exact model number of the furnace you have!

I will but it is up at camp right now so it will be a few days. From the way the weather has changed I'm sure I will be using it too! I do recall Patrick at Colonial mentioning the furnace upgrade for the 22fb in one of his videos. We love it. Our popup furnace had no vent runs, only it's faceplate grill facing into the camper isle.

Now the air conditioner is a different story, it cools no problem, but it is torturous. I think we'll have to wear bluetooth headsets when trying to listen to music or video.

[chaeha]

Originally Posted by keweenawbee

I will but it is up at camp right now so it will be a few days. From the way the weather has changed I'm sure I will be using it too! I do recall Patrick at Colonial mentioning the furnace upgrade for the 22fb in one of his videos. We love it. Our popup furnace had no vent runs, only it's faceplate grill facing into the camper isle.



Now the air conditioner is a different story, it cools no problem, but it is torturous. I think we'll have to wear bluetooth headsets when trying to listen to music or video.

Great! Thanks for the info.
If anyone else with a newer Sport 22 can find their furnace model number let me know.

[chaeha]

Originally Posted by keweenawbee

Try whatever we have in the 2018 model, it is almost unbelievably quiet compared to our LP furnace we had in our last trailer. One caveat about those is clearly half of the generated heat seems to exit outside. In our last trailer (which was a leaky popup) we used a Buddy Heater since they are almost 100% efficient and would shut it off at night and get under a down comforter. Really saved on propane use.

Ironically it is now mid Sept and after many cold days/nights and all the cooking we are still on the original LP tank loads from the dealer we purchased it from in June!

Airstream has confirmed for me that the newer furnace in the Sports is the AFSD12. Let me know if that matches your Sport. I may have to upgrade if it’s as quiet as you say.

[keweenawbee]

Originally Posted by chaeha

Airstream has confirmed for me that the newer furnace in the Sports is the AFSD12. Let me know if that matches your Sport. I may have to upgrade if it’s as quiet as you say.

Ok, let you know in a few days. I just may have to switch an LP tank or two this trip, I have not done that yet with this trailer.

[keweenawbee]

Originally Posted by chaeha

Airstream has confirmed for me that the newer furnace in the Sports is the AFSD12. Let me know if that matches your Sport. I may have to upgrade if it’s as quiet as you say.

That is the model # on the manufacturer's manual that came in my owner-literature kit. I removed the panel below the sink but cannot see any nameplate however. There are waves and the wind is blowing a bit off of Lake Superior so I actually have to put my hand in front of the vents to determine if it is running or not (very quiet). It was 39 degrees I started the furnace when I arrived, unloaded the van at my shop, returned to the trailer and it had already brought the temperature up to the set-point of 64 on the stat.

[SilverHouseDreams]

I too have an older model with a noisy Atwood 7900, now i am intrigued by the possibility of having quiet heating. Perhaps I need to find some other TTs that use similar sized furnaces to listen for comparison, as it’s nearly impossible to find a Sport on a dealer lot.

[chaeha]

Originally Posted by SilverHouseDreams

I too have an older model with a noisy Atwood 7900, now i am intrigued by the possibility of having quiet heating. Perhaps I need to find some other TTs that use similar sized furnaces to listen for comparison, as it’s nearly impossible to find a Sport on a dealer lot.

From Airstream HQ...

‘The newer furnace model can be retrofitted into the unit but it would require some pretty detailed modification to the Airstream’.

I’m going to see if my dealer in Portland, Oregon can do the work.

[SilverHouseDreams]

Originally Posted by chaeha

From Airstream HQ...

‘The newer furnace model can be retrofitted into the unit but it would require some pretty detailed modification to the Airstream’.

I’m going to see if my dealer in Portland, Oregon can do the work.

I too am in PDX, curious what you find. Though I’m likely to cheap or impatient for the dealer option.

[chaeha]

Originally Posted by SilverHouseDreams

I too am in PDX, curious what you find. Though I’m likely to cheap or impatient for the dealer option.

Would be great if other with newer Sports could post their experience with their newer furnaces in terms of how quiet or not they run.

[chaeha]

Just ‘unearthing’ this older thread to see if anyone has personal experience with installing a newer furnace into their Sport model. Comments about difficulty of install and noise level would be appreciated. Thanks!

[chaeha]

Anyone know what the appropriate replacement dometic model would be for my 2013 Atwood 7912-ii?

[chaeha]

Well for the record…I was able to easily replace my Atwood 7912-ii with an Atwood 7920 purchased off eBay. Super simple to do.

[TouringDan]

Readers of this thread might be interested in post #293 in my project thread- Dan’s 66 Tradewind Improvements in the Airstream Knowledgebase section. This post and others describe the replacement of the original 20,000 btu/hr model with a smaller 12k model that is smaller, quieter and more efficient particularly in terms of fan power. I believe the noise level was about 50 dB and the fan current was 1.8 amps.

Dan