Furnace on when towing??

[Silvertwinkie]

Ok, I admit, kind of a newbie question, but I gotta ask....

Can you run the furnace while towing the coach.

Reason I ask is simply that I'll be camping in the new Twinkie in a few weeks when I pick it up and it will be at or below freezing with a long way back with freezeable stuff the way home.

If I use the logic of having the fridge running on LP....but hey, you all know my logic sometimes escapes me!

Anyone...anyone?

Eric

[j54mark]

Suburban (furnace manufacturer) says "don't".

They claim it is also illegal in some states. I have no information to offer on my own authority, just passing along what they say.

Mark

[Silvertwinkie]

Thanks Mark....anyone have info on the Atwood?

Eric

[thenewkid64]

Maybe I shouldnt, but I do/have done it numerous times. I have always had a suburban model.

When we were towing in WI in the late fall, early winter and still using the trailer I would run it to keep the plumbing from freezing. Towing really sucks the heat out.

Both of my MH have had no engine heat. The heater cores have leaked and they are a bear to find (NLA) so if it is cold the only heat is the furnace. I really needed it on the way home from Washington state this summer. It got Coooold in the rockies.

I have not found any adverse effects to the furnace, or that the CO Monitor did not object.

[uwe]

If one installs some sort of a magnetic quick release to one's trailer hitch, with a switch by the brake controller, then one can just " ditch" the trailer if it explodes while towing with the furnace on. This would keep the tow vehicle from also falling victim to the flames.

Just some pre-weekend humor........

[Pick]

Uwe, how about replacing one of the propane tanks with a halon tank? As soon as you see an orange flicker in the rearview mirror, hit the halon button.

Or, better yet, instead of filling your tires with nitrogen, fill the interior of your Airstream with 100% nitrogen, while towing. The furnace gets it's oxygen from outside the coach, so no problem!

[thenewkid64]

HA HA HA

I am also one of those lunatics that tows/drives with the refer on gas. If you hear about a MH exploding in flames at some point in the future it may be me. Of course it would more than likely be the 50 Gallons of Gasoline stored in a thin steel tank. The propane tank will likely survive the crash.

[85MH325]

is not so much that you'll have issues going down the road, although I suppose that a leak from a loose fitting or pinhole in a gas line inside would be disasterous...

The problem is that IF you're involved in an accident, and a propane line is severed with the valves open, AND there's a spark, you're toast. So is everyone else around for a hundred feet or so. And then, of course, THAT will probably cook off the gas in your gas tank as well... NOT a happy thought...

Roger

[thenewkid64]

Roger,

I don't necessarly want to revive the oftenly and sometimes heated (pun intented) discussion of gas on when towing. But I will say this. The development of the OPD standard was done after the DOT requirement for Frame mounted tanks to have a high flow cut off. This cut off is threaded on to the tank with the regulator and protected from shearing by a collar. If the gas line gets cut or severed this cut off is in place to stop the flow of gas. The OPD on the removeable tanks has the same feature. That is why you have to turn them on slow if the LP system is empty. The out rush of gas for the intial fill can cause them to close.

I do take precautions to keep myself and others on the road and in fuel stations safe. I also will stop to turn it off when by law I have to when transiting tunnels, etc.

This is my way of doing the RV thing. Others can and will do what they feel comfortable with doing regarding LP.

[RoadKingMoe]

I always tow with the refrigerator on gas, and with the furnace running if it's near or below freezing. As said, with OPD valves, it isn't a big deal.

[Silvertwinkie]

Well, after weighing the pros and cons, I've decided to run the furnace while towing. The main reason is that the coach will have items in it during transport from the pickup that will freeze and could cause issues.

As has been stated, I keep the gas on when I have the fridge on, so as long as the furnace can deal with the additional wind issues for intake and exhaust, then it looks like I may use that to keep the interior warm since the heat strip is kind of out of the question.

Eric