Calling all van dwellers

So I've just started living in my van and I have a safety concern I'm hoping someone has already worked through. So I bought a mr. Heater portable buddy w/ extension hose to run off a 20lbs propane tank. I also bought a carbon monoxide detector and I know to keep at least a window cracked for ventilation. My concern is the propane tank. Everything I've looked at says to keep the propane tank outside. I currently have no way to mount it outside or mount it in the side (as seen in Alex honnold's van life vid). Am I going to kill myself if the tank is inside? How have others dealt with this issue? All opinions and ideas are welcomed and appreciated! I'm paranoid and don't want to wake up dead!

Why would you worry about sleeping with a bomb inside your van? :)

I am worried, that's why I posted the question. :)

The flimsy sheet metal of a typical work van wall will do absolutely NOTHING to shield occupants from an exploding 20lb propane tank. However, mounting the tank outside is not because it's a "bomb" and you are worried about it exploding. The concern is a slow leak filling your van with propane and the occupants asphyxiating in the middle of the night.

Jcrigler - the propane tank should be mounted inside the van, but in a SEALED enclosure with a direct exterior vent. There are lots of ways to accomplish this, from very cheap DIY (plywood, 8 mil plastic sheeting, and a joint sealant) to fancy commercially-bought enclosures.

Jon H wrote:The flimsy sheet metal of a typical work van wall will do absolutely NOTHING to shield occupants from an exploding 20lb propane tank. However, mounting the tank outside is not because it's a "bomb" and you are worried about it exploding. The concern is a slow leak filling your van with propane and the occupants asphyxiating in the middle of the night. Jcrigler - the propane tank should be mounted inside the van, but in a SEALED enclosure with a direct exterior vent. There are lots of ways to accomplish this, from very cheap DIY (plywood, 8 mil plastic sheeting, and a joint sealant) to fancy commercially-bought enclosures.

Wouldn't that same slow leak filling the van become an explosive vapor? Just waiting for an ignition source like a heater? Not sure if the asphyxiation would occur first or the explosion. I'm just wingin' it here, but it seems like both would be a concern.

Someone in steamboat just died doing this exact thing. Ive heard of wood burning stoves inside vans, but diesels only. (Slightly comical idea but fun). The best alternative would be a solar set up and a small electric heater, though more expensive it can be applied to several different purposes making it hurt a lil less.

the propane tank storage is the least of your worries if you're planning to run a propane heater in an enclosed space overnight.

i'm interested in how wide open you'll have to keep the door to the van to keep the CO detector from going off constantly. further, CO isn't the only gas product of combustion that'll kill you... and then whether the heat loss to the outside will cancel out any gains from the heater.

others mentioned how to mount the tank with proper venting.

Look into a Wave 3 Catalytic heater from Camco.

You could always drive somewhere warm...

I'm guessing you're good to go. Put some super soapy water on the fittings, and if they're not bubbling, you're solid. Biggest worry with a buddy heater is oxygen depletion, co2 isn't a concern; but a cigarette lighter won't light inside my van when it's all sealed up and my heater is running full bore. But happily I'm still alive. Just have to crack a window if I want to enjoy a cig, or a smoke.

Make sure the propane tank is lashed solidly into a place where, if total bummer you were in a wreck, it wouldn't be the first thing to go.

Congrats on living in a van!!!

On a side note, what do people do with their mini propane tanks they use for cooking? I havent seen many people mount those on the outside of their vehicle.

Thanks everyone for yor comments so far.

20 kn- I'm wondering the same thing. It seems like it is widely accepted to use those green 1lb propane tanks inside (I've seen several van goers do this) but wildly unsafe to use a bigger propane tank inside. I think either could be equally harmful, potentially. So, is it more or less agreed that it's the potential of leaking propane as to be the biggest concern here? I'm giving "Mr. Heater" the benefit of the doubt here and going to assume that, if used according to the directions, is safe to use in my van as they are advertised to be safe in tents, campers and RVs.

Also, to clarify, I never plan on running the heater while sleeping, that def. seems too sketch, only to keep the space warn while cooking or whatever.

If you guys are that worried about a leaking propane tank then I assume you would absolutely not live in a house with gas as a source of energry.

They do leak and they do explode but it's not enough of an issue to keep millions of families from using it as an energry source.

To the OP, I would do exactly what your plan is. Crank that baby up when your awake and moving around then turn it off when you sleep. Propane can get expensive if you leave it on while you sleep. If you got the cheese though then rig up a solar panel and get a electric space heater. Those things will make the inside of your van down right toasty my friend.

I had a 20 gallon tank in my van and had no issues. If you really want to be safe I believe they sell a propane sensor. Good luck.

Oh yeah. I would not run a mr. heater inside your van unless it was well ventilated. I had a suburban heater in my van and it vented out. Hope this helps.

We got an electric heater for the back of the van. So far works great except we may need another battery to back it up. It already has its own but runs it down before the end of the night. Down blankets do work. Something else we will be investing is feather bed and full on down pillows. Good stuff! for Canada!
There is not much sun here in the winter so solar would not be practical in our case. My grandmother survived many Russian winters in down blankets and feather beds. No burning wood at night. We would wake up with frost on the floor! Did not think much of it back then...

Since it hasn't been said yet... Your going to die.

go to a RV/camping motor home store, they have what you need, they do this all day long in motorhomes and campers. good luck take notes and be careful, this can KILL you if done wrong. be safe.

I have a propane detector in my van in addition to the carbon monoxide and smoke detector. It is hard wired to the 12V system as are most but you can get ones that have a battery back up that may suffice for when you are worried about taking the big nap.

Hunter Hayes wrote:Someone in steamboat just died doing this exact thing. Ive heard of wood burning stoves inside vans, but diesels only. (Slightly comical idea but fun). The best alternative would be a solar set up and a small electric heater, though more expensive it can be applied to several different purposes making it hurt a lil less.

The solar set up to run an electric heater is not real plausible on top of a van.

Consider the following (it's been a while so if there are any electricians out there, go easy on all of my mistakes):

A 1000 watt heater will require 83 amps to run an hour.

A AMG 200 amp batter would run the heater for only 1.2 hours before getting below the 50% charge threshold (you don't want to run AMG batteries below 50% or they lose cycles).

Except the heater is likely AC and your solar system is DC, thus you need a very nice sin wave power inverter (~1000$) and your only going to get about 85% efficiency on conversion.

So that puts us at around 1 hour/battery. To heat the van for 6 hours we will need 6 batteries (200*6 = $1200).

Now to recharge these batteries in a day you will need some serious solar power. In ideal conditions a 100 watt solar panel will put out about 8.3 amps an hour. That means it will take a single solar panel +60 lighted hours or so to recoup the 500 amps you've burned from running your space heater for 6 hours.

If you want it to be recharged for the next night, you will need at least 1000 watts (@ at least $1/watt) of solar power on top of your van. Good luck with that install.

Don't forget combiners and charge controller (I don't even know what that will run you).

All that considered, I think propane is the way to go. If your serious about it, get a Vented Cat heater ( ventedcatheater.com). They are safe and will work much better than a MR buddy. You'll still need to figure out the propane concern though.

I tried a MR buddy and it never worked consistently for me. Now mine won't even fire up anymore (maybe because I live well above the operating elevation). Not to mention, the by product of Catalytic heaters is h20, which means that while you get warm, you'll also get wet.

Hope that helps

first of all,

YOUR DEFINITELY GONNA DIE!

that said, I haven't died with the Catalytic Wave Heater (propane)

rvwholesalers.com/catalog/w…

running over night in my van without windows open, even a crack. this heater somehow does not release CO or CO2 so you won't be poisoned (catalytic reaction). I have enough gaps and cracks in the doors that oxygen supply is no problem. I know at least a half dozen others who have all not died with this setup in their vans. I have a 5 gallon tank, and with this running a few times a week I still get easily a month out of the tank. (including fridge and 2-burner stove running on propane) I think these heaters are pretty efficient.