Be Careful with those Mr Buddy heaters!

[JustKip]

You NEED fresh air inside to use one!



and a CO sensor.

https://www.kxly.com/news/kennewick-...AShuyGFsCDukrQ

[john61ct]

yes

true for any non-vented fuel burning heater

Olympic Wave produces at a slower rate but still

[Johnny Mullet]

Any time I use propane heat or use the oven I always crack open the roof vent.

[cadillackid]

I have a large garage.. I bought a propane salamander heater.. I was in the garage restoring Bus heaters for my superior and had that heater blowing on me as it was 20 something outside.. im done with that thing.. I just ordered a 95% efficient gas furnace to install for real in there..



I was sitting down working, and I didnt feel sleepy, i didnt get drowsy.. when I stood up I was light-headed.. a tad bit confused.. my heart raced a zillion miles an hour..



for several days I had a bit of brain fog.. occasional episodes of heart-race for a couple minutes at a time.. this was very different from when my gas fireplace in the house wasnt drafting correctly.. in that case I would get a bit drowsy.. my CO detector i bought went off the minute i installed it..



in the garage these propane fumes did a much worse number on me.. No no no to any Open Flame non-vented combustion for me..



if I ever convert a bus I'll be using an RV furnace or vented diesel-water or diesel-air heaters...



as for my house i went back to burning wood as the fire is hotter and drafts correctly and no more CO detector episodes..



im sure the combustion is probably cleaner on a mister Buddy than on a salamander but still...
-Christopher

[CaptSquid]

I have no problems with my Wave heaters, as I have several side windows and the main door that do NOT seal.

[DIYLoFi]

After reading about CO poisoning tragedies, I keep two going, different brands, for redundancy, in a cabin with a woodstove. it can happen when you sleep! I'm okay showing $12 worth of paranoia

[brokedown]

I'm all in on the diesel air heater. It ticks all the boxes. Importantly, it doesn't poison you and make you die. But it also doesn't add humidity to the air, doesn't consume a bunch of electricity, doesn't make a lot of noise, and doesn't require me to carry an additional fuel.

Contained combustion propane should be very good too but I've got 100 gallons of diesel capacity vs a 4 gallon propane tank.

[Mekanic]

Originally Posted by DIYLoFi

After reading about CO poisoning tragedies, I keep two going, different brands, for redundancy, in a cabin with a woodstove. it can happen when you sleep! I'm okay showing $12 worth of paranoia

X2 And I do heat with a mr heater brand heater. (I also have a tgwinn CO detectors and keep a window cracked open)



For those that are not aware opening a roof vent will do NOTHING by its self since CO is heavier than air. The CO will sink to the floor and fill the space from the floor up.
Also Mount any CO detector as low as possible (NOT on the ceiling)

[john61ct]

Cracking a vent placed anywhere will dissipate the CO just fine, air does circulate and mix faster than the CO gets produced, not like opening a tank of the stuff.

[TheArgobus]

He was using a Mr. Heater brand heater, which was hooked up to a five-gallon propane tank, to cook a roast on a skillet inside his van right before his death Thursday morning, Leach said, adding that carbon monoxide is an odorless gas.

So he was using a propane heater, and presumably a propane stove too? It really drives home the point that any time you're burning propane--whether from a heater or a stove or a tankless water heater--you must open a window.

[john61ct]

Every small living space should be sealed tight and have very controllable ventilation.

So yes cracking a window is one way, but just one way.

Cooking for long periods is very different from short.

The alarm is essential.

[Lkn4it]

There are several YouTube videos showing that Mr Buddy heaters have oxygen depletion sensors. That heater should have shut off long before that man died.

By the way, there are grates that you can buy or make that allow you to cook on your Mr Buddy heater.

I am not defending Mr Buddy. I have never used one. I am just saying something is wrong in this article and I wish we knew more about what happened. It should be impossible to die from using a heater with an oxygen depletion sensor. These are pretty much fail safe unless they have been tampered with in some way.

I am going to look into this more and will make a post if I find out anything more on this.

[wireguy]

I lived in my van with three dogs one VERY cold winter in the desert just north of Tucson before I found and bought my property. I used a Heater buddy every night and it saved our lives. That van was far from air tight but every night I would awaken freezing. The heater was out. I would open the door for a minute, close it and the heater would light right off and warm it up again. The oxygen deplete sensor worked perfectly. I suspect there was more to this story than is being revealed - which isn't to say one can be careless with any combustion device.

[Lkn4it]

Here is a link to a more accurate article. The man was using a parabolic heater. As usual, the news did not bother to check facts.

https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https...izJl_u8f732FUQ

[musigenesis]

This post made me investigate diesel stoves, since I'm planning on doing a diesel air heater and it would be nice to use just one fuel source for everything. $2000+ kinda ruled it out for me, though.

[Lkn4it]

There are diesel heaters that are Chinese copies of the expensive ones. They seem to have good reviews. They are selling on eBay and Amazon for under $200. That is less than I paid for an icehouse heater. There are many videos on YouTube discussing these.

[john61ct]

The so-called safety features on Mr Buddy are extremely rudimentary.

CO production could be through the roof and it would keep chugging away for hours.

Oxygen getting low is not what kills people.

I bet they could not be sold in other developed countries with stricter consumer protection agencies.

[Lkn4it]

The oxygen depletion sensor is the same as all gas heaters are required by law to use. CO is produced when a flame is burning in low oxygen. Anything that affects the flame will cause the heater to shut off. I have personally been in places where a heater shut off on low oxygen. There are many videos on YouTube explaining and testing oxygen depletion sensors. I have and will continue to trust my life to them. Millions of people trust their lives to them every day.

[john61ct]

CO is always being produced, just a question of how much.

Wave catalytic much less, but still there.

Always crack a vent or you can die even with the low 02 sensor.

Always use a CO alarm.

Best of all, get a proper unit that burns outside, or at least is vented.

Really not much money these days, much safer, healthier and very fuel efficient.

[banman]

Originally Posted by john61ct

CO is always being produced, just a question of how much.

Wave catalytic much less, but still there.

Always crack a vent or you can die even with the low 02 sensor.

Always use a CO alarm.

Best of all, get a proper unit that burns outside, or at least is vented.

Really not much money these days, much safer, healthier and very fuel efficient.

Exactly!
always use a CO alarm
Make sure the CO meter is placed at waist level -- CO is heavier than 'air' -- this is NOT a smoke alarm...

When I lived in my ol' Fireball camper there were a couple cold nights when having the propane lanterns and oven going triggered the CO alarm. This was way before my wife or I felt "tired, or light headed"...
And there was nothing 'air-tight' about my 1962 Fireball...