First Season of Camping in our Overland Expedition Vehicles Summit

[Victorian]

If you intend to take your composite camper out in winter, I'd strongly recommend paying close attention to thermal bridging. We have a couple of spots in the interior where the frost builds up very thick then melts to leave water pools in very inconvenient places (like the battery compartment).

Is in on the panels/ storage hatches? Or where does it build up? That's really bad!

 

[Alloy]

The Webasto has functioned well once sorted; the unit itself hasn't presented any issues but the hydronics plumbing has. When our Summit was manufactured, the Thermo Top hydronic unit was the only gasoline option. Now Webasto has a gas-fired air heater so another choice is available, we may even add the air heater to supplement the hydronics.

I prefer hydronic over forced air. What kind of issues does/did your system have?

If that's a metal fuel can it will be thinner (like 5gal Briggs and Stratton) than plasic tanks.....but......cheap metal cans aren't coated inside so they rust out if fuel is left in them. I use (before moving to plastic) to store them empty and replace the plastic cap with cloth to keep debris out.

 

[Alloy]

yes, my concern currently is the door. the one i have as a aluminum frame so there will be thermal bridging and a nice door like your is definitly expensive. That is the only thermal bridging i should have as everything will be fiberglass. But the small tear drop we had had significant ice build up in the metal window and metal door and metal compartment door. i dont think many people use those unit is such extreme weather but you see the weakness very quickly after a few days out there!!!

do you like your webasto heater? does it keep up easy? Another aspect i decide again is propane for cooktop. induction help a little in reducing humidity inside.

You may find yourself locked in when condensation between the alum frame and door joins together. It best to scrap off what you can.

 

[Trail Talk]

Is in on the panels/ storage hatches? Or where does it build up? That's really bad!

The basic cabin is tight and right, but at the bottom of an interior storage compartment beneath the dinette seating we get significant frost build-up. I believe the cause is that air from an exterior compartment is entering through a large gap. The other area is the metal frame around an old pass-through that was sealed up before delivery. I think the cause is simply that they didn't break thermal transfer between the outside and inside sections of framing. We've discussed some fixes.

 

[Trail Talk]

I prefer hydronic over forced air. What kind of issues does/did your system have?

If that's a metal fuel can it will be thinner (like 5gal Briggs and Stratton) than plasic tanks.....but......cheap metal cans aren't coated inside so they rust out if fuel is left in them. I use (before moving to plastic) to store them empty and replace the plastic cap with cloth to keep debris out.

I would not abandon the hydronics, the benefits are great. Aside from the conventional use to heat the cabin, its allowed us to use the truck engine to heat the cabin and the Webasto to warm up the truck engine. Air in the system and leaks have been the cause of numerous service trips back to OEV. The air was quickly remedied but leaks persist. Our next trip will test the latest fix so I remain calm and optimistic Still, for our travel plans, we do need a supplementary heat source for very cold conditions while off-grid and as a back-up.

Agreed that plastic fuel cans are best and I really, really want to use the nice black Scepter NATO cans we already have. They just don't fit, so now my thoughts turn to a RotoPax 3 gal we took North a couple of times. But I'd have to buy another, plus a locking mount (yeah, we actually had gas stolen in NWT). Regardless, I'm not going to risk some unknown metal can just because it does fit...

 

[Trail Talk]

Please help if you know the manufacturer with the "V" symbol on this can

Found the answer; Valpro of Latvia. Seems this maker is used by a great many retailers, like Wavian I think.



From the manufacturers website: 20 litre fuel can dimensions: 470x165x345 mm. 165mm is exactly 6.5 inches so that box is ticked. The data sheet lists powder coating outside, fuel resistant internal coating, 0.9mm metal thickness, drop tested to 1.2m, pressure tested to 1.0 bar. Lots of colours too. So far every retailer I've found online is either sold out or has a stupid price

 

[Alloy]

I would not abandon the hydronics, the benefits are great. Aside from the conventional use to heat the cabin, its allowed us to use the truck engine to heat the cabin and the Webasto to warm up the truck engine. Air in the system and leaks have been the cause of numerous service trips back to OEV. The air was quickly remedied but leaks persist. Our next trip will test the latest fix so I remain calm and optimistic Still, for our travel plans, we do need a supplementary heat source for very cold conditions while off-grid and as a back-up.

Agreed that plastic fuel cans are best and I really, really want to use the nice black Scepter NATO cans we already have. They just don't fit, so now my thoughts turn to a RotoPax 3 gal we took North a couple of times. But I'd have to buy another, plus a locking mount (yeah, we actually had gas stolen in NWT). Regardless, I'm not going to risk some unknown metal can just because it does fit...

Where are the leaks in the hydronic? Possible to get a photo?

In our 35' 5th wheel:
-our 9500btu (80% efficient??) will maintain 15C inside when it is -5C outside
-our 40,000 (rated 60% efficient) Suburban heater will maintain 15C inside when it is -20C outside

........ so a 2Kw (6800BTU or 3Kw (10,000) Thermotop should heat your camper....unless piping and convectors aren't sized properly.


Couple of months ago I went back and forth with a friend deciding on a back up heater. We considerd adding a 2nd Thermotop, also an AirTop or a Propex and decided on a Dual Top.

Stay away from anything (Mr Heater/Procom/Olympian) with an open burner/flame.........for carbon monoxide you may as well use the burners on the stove.