1

(Official discussion) Best off-grid space heater

11

  • Comments (11)

    • 7

      Two questions:

      1) are you sure your room calculations aren’t off by a factor of 10?

      2) why do the affiliate links take me to Amazon in Spanish?

      • 6

        Hello,

        The room calculations came from the manufacturer, but we did calculate BTU/Square feet and nothing looked odd. Which one looked off? I checked all the links and they appear to be opening in English. 

      • 6

        “The calculation would be (10 x 20) x 45, which breaks down to 30 x 45, or 1,350 BTUs.”

        10×20 is actually 200. 200×45 is 9000.

      • 3

        For which product?

      • 5

        Not a product. Your section about calculating BTU requirements for a room. 

      • 8

        Great catch. Corrected. Thank you very much. 

    • 9

      From what I have read, the typical 1 lb propane bottles are for one time use only and shouldn’t be refilled because they are not designed to be refilled.  There are not only safety but legal implications as well.  A good article on this topic is at https://thecampingadvisor.com/legal-safe-to-refill-1lb-propane-tanks/#tab-con-1.  I prefer to use 1 lb propane tanks that are designed to be refillable.  The tank is purchased empty and is significantly more expensive than a disposable one but it is designed to be refilled for up to 12 years and is much safer.  A refill kit can be purchased as well.  It should be noted that there was a recall on this product in 2017.  An excellent video on these tanks and the refill process is at https://youtu.be/3W-yLgq134w.

      • 5

        Thank you for sharing that video. Although the disposable bottles can be refilled, I think I would feel much more comfortable getting some of those flame king ones meant for refilling. I like the kit that comes with them that is shown in that video. 

        Just from an environmental perspective, I think those 1 pound disposable containers should be banned, be made with the ability to safely and easily refill on your own, or be able to be traded in at your local grocery store for a full one like people do with the 20 pound tanks. Like the guy said in the video, he can go through one or two of those a day, and I feel like if all campers and preppers were doing that, we will just have huge piles of those empty metal tanks in landfills. 

      • 5

        Thank you Sir. 

    • 3

      For warming up a large space like a garage or a barn getting a construction heater is the way to go. They are noisy, but put out a ton of heat. They run off of propane or kerosene and do require a supplemental electricity supply to power the fan that pushes the air, but you can find cordless versions that use the same battery that your DeWALT drill uses like this 68,000 BTU model.

      61xdt0AWHCL._AC_SL1227_

      Here’s a 220,000 BTU kerosene heater. 

      Screenshot from 2021-11-11 14-40-57

    • 1

      Two Mr. Buddy space heater hacks to better circulate warm air or turn your the heater into a cook surface.