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Old 11-28-2015, 05:06 PM   #21
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Location: Billings, MT
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Year: 2003
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Chassis: HDX
Engine: Cat C7
Rated Cap: 84 passenger
The onboard heaters keep about a 20-30º temperature difference above the outside. This is fine if the temps outside are 35º+. But in single digit temps, at the moment, I'm stuck with high idle and enough blankets on the bed to prevent movement. Come the 3rd when my SSDI comes in, I'm getting a propane heater. A week of freezing my anatomy is more than enough for me.

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Old 11-28-2015, 05:35 PM   #22
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Air leaks can rob a surprising amount of heat. If the windows are leaking, and what bus windows don't, then heat-shrink film (the kind used for retail packaging) held in place with double-sided tape can help control air leakage and can also work like a second pane of glass to reduce convection cooling (the chilling of the air near the glass, which then falls downward, and creates an air current near the glass). There's a convenient Frost King branded kit for this available in home centers but heat shrink film from any source is equivalent and could be cheaper.

Apart from the windows, check other penetrations like the overhead flashers, the electrical panel door outside the driver's seat, look for a fresh air vent in/below the dash by the driver's seat, etc. Some Thomas models have an air vent in the roof too. This one I think isn't visible from the inside; a louvered panel on the roof ahead of the front escape hatch is the tell-tale sign.

Any measures like these will make you a little more comfortable now and save you propane later. If you're in a place with electric hookups, maybe consider an electric blanket. I find it's hardest to stay warm at night when I lay motionless in the dark as opposed to the daytime when the sun shines and I'm moving about.

Remember with propane heat if you have combustion inside the conditioned space (open burning, catalytic heater, whatever) then water vapor is added to the air. That needs to be vented out to limit condensation on/inside the walls, which could cause all kinds of water (and ice?) damage, including saturating the fiberglass insulation. And CO/CO2 venting, replacement oxygen, etc.
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Old 11-28-2015, 05:38 PM   #23
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Thanks for the clues. I plan on blanking out the majority of the windows, i.e., removal and installing plywood, and installing 1" rigid foam on the sides. I'll have underneath sprayed as well.
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Old 11-28-2015, 10:29 PM   #24
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I'm parked fur the night. It's 5 outside and we are plenty warn. Insulated curtains over the windows and a webasto.
Driving today was ok but had to have heaters blaring. Finally pulled the curtains and that helped. Good day to find where your air leaks are.
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Old 11-29-2015, 03:07 PM   #25
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I ran out of diesel this morning. Methinks that the t-stat needs replacing, too. The cores only registered 80º.

Where in MT are you?
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Old 11-29-2015, 05:34 PM   #26
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We were in Deer Lodge this morning. We're from Trout Creek area.
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Old 11-29-2015, 05:44 PM   #27
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Quote:
Originally Posted by family wagon View Post
Some Thomas models have an air vent in the roof too. This one I think isn't visible from the inside; a louvered panel on the roof ahead of the front escape hatch is the tell-tale sign.
You're talking about the gizmo that looks like a whale blowhole, right?
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Old 11-30-2015, 04:04 PM   #28
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Bummed a propane heater from my brother last night and added another curtain in the front half of the wee beastie. Those curtains make a major difference! Of course, insulation will help, too.
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Old 02-03-2016, 10:20 AM   #29
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I might be a day late and a dollar short here, but when I go tent camping in cold environments (like 20 degrees and below) I take my Mr Heater Big Buddy and 2 20 pound propane cylinders.

Turn it on high for about an hour, and then once is nice and warm, put it on medium or low. Last me a week and a half per propane cylinder and keeps me nice and toasty all night long.
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Old 02-24-2016, 03:50 PM   #30
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I'm having trouble with my floor sweating, similarly to the windows during cold weather. This was a wheelchair bus and it seems the floor has no insulation whatsoever and draws moisture to the point of pooling slightly in the early cold mornings. I'm thinking of spraying insulation on the underside of the floor. Does anyone have any experience with this type of spray on insulation in or on vehicles?
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Old 02-24-2016, 04:59 PM   #31
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No experience YET with underfloor spray-on insulation. But, I DID have carpeting/linoleum installed. Those two items alone will insulate the floor and help make it a bit more habitable. Mind you, the flooring set me back $700 and the installation another $500. But I don't have any sweating.

On the walls, go to your local big-box hardware store and purchase some 1" double-faced rigid foam panels. For a big bus, you'll need 8 4'x8' sheets for the sides and an additional two for the windshield and door. That'll set you back about $200.
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Old 02-24-2016, 06:20 PM   #32
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11 below ZERO

I would like to offer some first hand FYI experience on heat. Propane produced the worst humidity problems of anything I have used. Kerosene is a close second. In both cases, you are burning petroleum products. I love burning dinosaur juices but ventilation IS ABSOLUTELY a life or death decision.! Yes, buses are pretty leaky but not so much that you can close it up. The cross flow of one fully open window combined with all the leaks seemed to do the trick so long as the window was down wind. If not it'll get pretty chilly, pretty quickly once you get below about 25*. The closer you get to single digits the harder it is to ventilate and not lose too much of your heat. At times, you may need to adjust the window a couple of times during the night. Not really so bad but I'd rather be sleeping. At (-11*) it took the wood stove, two kerosene heaters and a Lil Buddy propane heater just to get to 63*. But hey, 63* is fine with me.! Don't be surprised if you can leave that (ONE) window wide open IF it's the only one. Once the wood stove was up and running, the only purpose to the kerosene or propane was to provide a faster warm-up while the stove builds up to operating temperature. Biggest thing to note is that the wood stove does NOT produce the moisture problems like propane or kerosene. To the disdain of my cat, I was not heating the bus while I was at work. At 4-3/4lbs she knows how to find her way under the big blanky.
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Old 02-24-2016, 06:23 PM   #33
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Oh... and the wood stove just about eliminated any moisture problems.
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Old 02-24-2016, 06:36 PM   #34
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I've never applied under-floor foam, but my bus does have it. I think it was factory applied. 280k miles and 15 years later it's still in pretty good condition. Unfortunately I don't have any before-and-after data to be able to say how much difference it makes. Mine doesn't have a smooth surface like you might expect from watching the spray foam how-to videos on youtube. It looks like it was applied one spot at a time, like a thousand foam stalactites clinging to the bottom of the floor. They're about 2-3 inches diameter at the top tapering to a point where the flow cut off and the sprayer moved. It's kind of like a row of frosting squirts decorating the edges of a cake..

Any kind of combustion inside the bus will raise humidity levels and provide more vapor which becomes pools on that cold floor. If you can heat the place while controlling the vapor that'll help keep things drier even if cold. A wood stove does this by exhausting via its chimney for example, whereas propane or kerosene heaters vent their exhaust and water vapor into the space being heated.
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Old 02-24-2016, 06:59 PM   #35
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I actually do have my feet resting on a wood stove in the bus. I didn't get the pipe hooked up to exhaust the wood stove. I had begun using propane so eventually I've put the ceramic heater inside the wood stove. The wood stove gets hot and I think it's burning the propane more efficiently in a protected environment. It was cold in the bus while it was freezing outside while heating on propane. That's a lot of steel and glass to try to keep warm.
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Old 02-24-2016, 07:13 PM   #36
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Do most of you guys actually strip out the interior of your bus so you can insulate, wire and plumb them? So far I'm still going with the a'natural bus with 4' long power strips from Harbor Freight for power distribution. Buses are remarkably safe vehicles. Problem is there's a couple cold months when heating is a problem. I like the "head south" idea.

You're all right, the wood stove will take care of the moisture problem. I'm sure wishing I had one of those pellet stoves made for tent camping.
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Old 02-24-2016, 07:26 PM   #37
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Quote:
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I had begun using propane so eventually I've put the ceramic heater inside the wood stove. The wood stove gets hot and I think it's burning the propane more efficiently in a protected environment.
Eek! Make sure you're getting plenty of oxygen in there. A ceramic heater normally burns well with very little carbon monoxide produced, but if the oxygen supply is limited.. for example by being inside a closed box.. improper combustion can result, with increase CO as a likely outcome. Also the heater could overheat.
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Old 02-24-2016, 08:20 PM   #38
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Family Wagon; just try sealing one of those buses up during freezing weather. They leak like a sieve. I wanted to try living in the bus during freezing weather and it wasn't terrible. Still a lot like camping. Yes, lots of fresh air. I still have the original doors which don't exactly seal tight. A veil of plastic over the windows makes a marked difference. I prefer black plastic over my tinted windows. You ever tried sleeping in one of these things? They seem pretty bright inside early in the mornings, but then I kept all the windows. Yeah decisions, decisions.
This bus looks like a class A motor home with a school bus paint job, with the exception of the windows. I like the anonymity of a school bus paint job because nobody looks at buses twice.
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Old 02-26-2016, 01:09 PM   #39
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Hello,
Paul here. I have a question for you guys, how does one go about the process of keeping a skoolie warm in the winter? I already have planned out the walls, (inserted with pink insulation). Ive been planning on using multiple electric heaters, to keep the place warm. Is there maybe a way to seal off the windows?
Please just comment anything that you think is useful to know about heating...
thanks,
yours truly;)

I am playing with a hot water circulation unit under the floor. But I have also used a coal stove and of coarse propane. But hot water I believe would be the best...
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