Wildcat 29RLBS 5er

[CORNBOY]

Congratulations on your purchase! We fulltime in a Wildcat 31 QBH and we really lke ours. We are currently in Colorado where the temp has gotten down to -9 this winter. In April we head to Anchorage Alaska.

 

[Maxtor]

insulation

Hey Cornboy;

By your post, it looks like the Wildcats are very well insulated. At those temperatures, most would freeze. The heater must work very well also.

 

[CORNBOY]

They are, but it isn't too hard to make them better. It is easy to put reflective insulation in the belly and put 3M plastic kits on the inside of the windows. During the really cold months I run a ceramic heater in the basement because the "forced" heat to the basement area really isn't enough to keep the water lines from freezing. To keep gas costs down we also use a ceramic heater in the living area. It keeps the furnace from kicking on too often. The only other issue we have had is condensation and we control that by keeping two windows cracked open. We run a hose heater on our city water hookup and wrap the hose and hydrant in insulation. We learned some very valuable lessons our first winter. But we have stayed thawed when many neighbors in Montanas have been frozen.

 

[Maxtor]

Cornboy

Thanks for the information on insulating the Wildcat. We do not plan on using our coach in the winter, but I know that in some parts of the country it can freeze anytime of the year. In December and January we get down to low 30's here. July and August we get highs of 110 to 115. Of course there is no humidity or we would have all died out years ago. I think the ceramic heater is a very good idea and we will get one or two.

What is a hose heater?

 

[CORNBOY]

Hose heaters are about 1" wide electrical heaters that plug in to regular 110v. They come in different lengths and can be purchased at WalMart or Home Depot. I wrap my hose and hydrant with them and them put insulation around it all.

 

[Maxtor]

Hose heaters

Thanks Cornboy;

I doubt that we have any of those around here. I might have to special order one.

Maxtor

 

[WD40]

(I think the ceramic heater is a very good idea and we will get one or two. )
Maxtor, Your 30 A will not run two of these and if it is that cold out side run another cord outside and plug it into the 20 A plug in. I have camped in down to +10 and never used but one in ours. Had to use a little more gas heat on those days.
I think Hose heaters are sat to come on when the temp drops to below 34. They always worked great for us the winter we lived in our trailer.

 

[Maxtor]

Thanks Doug;

I doubt that we will be in that cold of weather very much. My idea of RVing is to go between April and November, before the bad winter weather arrives. December through March, the 5er will be in the garage keeping warm, and we will be in the house keeping warm. We also plan each June and July when the temperature is 110-115 here, going to the coast where it is 60-70 degrees. For 2007 we plan a long trip, and should be back to Redding before winter hits the States. Having one ceramic heater for emergencies is a good idea.

Maxtor

 

[CORNBOY]

Good point about the 30A not running two heaters. I forgot to mention that. I have a friend in camp that has 50A and can't run two heaters. Personally I would think it could handle it. I run a seperate extension cord for the heater in the basement. If I don't use an inside heater I will burn through a 30lb cylinder in about 7 days. If I use the heater I can run 10-12 days. It makes a big difference over time. The electric is included in the campsite price so I like to take advantage of that. My hose heater is set to come on at 38 degrees. By the way we're sitting at 24 degrees and are in a blizzard warning.

 

[WD40]

CornBoy, Come on down. It's 57 here and some clouds. Rain is on the way.