Off Grid Heating: Propane vs Wood Burning

[lornaschinske]

Tiny House Blog. Pro's/Cons of each. Might help some.
4 Ways to Heat your Tiny Home

I still think a combination of two heating types is the best setup. For me that is electric and LP.

This may seem like the wrong time of year but deciding now and having all summer to install for next fall/winter is better than waiting until November. You can usually order the heaters online year-round. You may be able to pick up some end-of-season deals at the smaller stores. For big chains, Spring started back in January.

And test your heat system BEFORE it gets cold and I don't mean the day before a storm is to hit. Everyone with a heat system should clean and do a test run by the end of Sept to mid Oct... depending on location. If there is a problem, you need time to make repairs. It's amazing how many people wait until the last minute to set their buses/RVs up for freezing winter temps... and all the stuff is gone from the stores... bought by everyone else.

FYI: Home Depot get one or two shipments in of space heaters. When they are gone, they are gone. Customers generally buy up the space heaters at the first cold spell. By Christmas, there are about 5 heaters left of any kind.

 

[nat_ster]

Heating with propane directly with catalytic heaters cause moisture build up.

Heating with wood makes a nice dry environment inside the bus.

Here in winter, moist heat from a propane catalytic heater would be almost useless. The amount of heat needed causes so much moisture buildup, clothing, shoes, ect will not dry out.

Wood stoves dry heat is perfect for drying out in winter, and preventing moisture from condensing on bedding, clothes, walls, ect.

Cost

There is always something around to burn. Trash, fallen branches, grass, pallets, coal from the river bank, ect.

When your propane tank is empty, you have no heat.

I like propane for long term storage, and cost.
However for point of use, wood is a winner without question.

If using propane indirectly, it works great. In propane furnaces, hot water tanks, and boilers, the moisture from the propane never reaches your living area.

Nat

 

[bansil]

I agree with two sources also, we use 1) electric heaters and 2) we head south or don't Glamp until spring

And don't forget mother nature, parking so long side of bus gets morning sun and the evening sun, you can use the windows as thermal heat sources and even utilize the window radiant heater things like at mother earth (using old windows)