Nighttime heating

[NickA]

We’re boondocking in Utah at 7000ft and the temperature is getting down to about freezing every night. We’re limiting the interior heating to 50~55F at night to save on propane, but it occured to me today that we have three heating ducts inside - one at the back in the dinette, one at the front in the bedroom and be in the middle by the shower. The heater is at the front so that one gets the most hot air, and very little makes it out the bedroom one. I like the idea of closing the curtain between the kitchen and shower area and blocking off (either fully or partially) the dinette duct outlet at night. That way we’re not wasting heat keeping the front warm all night, and more should make it to be bedroom. Is there any reason why this is a bad idea? Could it damage the heater by increasing air resistance on its output? There’s no built in cut-off or flow restriction to allow us to do it more easily, which seems odd. Thanks!

[OTRA15]

As long as the furnace fan is still free to move a fairly good volume of air, this should be OK IMO. Does your owner's manual say anything about restricting the heat duct air flow?

The hiccup, however, may be that the warm air in the bedroom will not reach the thermostat, to turn off the heat when the bedroom gets warm. Where is the thermostat, and how low can you set it?

Is there a second heat sensor someplace, like in a closet, which is a factor? Is the heat set up for 2 zones maybe?

If the thermostat is a long ways from the "hot" bedroom, you may have weird temperature "cycling" up and down, which may wake you up because the bedroom gets too warm IMO.

Please let us know how it goes.

[KK4YZ]

You really should be getting decent airflow through even the furthest away vents. I noticed the cabinet space under the sink getting much warmer than the rest of the trailer and found a tear in the ductwork down there. A little bit of duct tape improved the situation quite a bit.

You might have a tear or obstruction somewhere along the line.

[Dennis C]

Originally Posted by KK4YZ

You really should be getting decent airflow through even the furthest away vents. I noticed the cabinet space under the sink getting much warmer than the rest of the trailer and found a tear in the ductwork down there. A little bit of duct tape improved the situation quite a bit.

You might have a tear or obstruction somewhere along the line.

I have experienced the same issue. When I was dewinterizing this year, I noticed that the duct going to the bedroom was squashed, and it restricted airflow. I tried my best to open it up, and it helped a bit. I'm still planning to check my ductwork under the sink near the furnace.