Bob,

I was hoping no one would catch it, but in hindsight it is good to have
this cleared up for the archives. I was saying that the housing is "zero
clearance" meaning items can be packed up against it. I didn't mean that
you could pack solid around it, and I remember not making that clear in our
conversation...my fault. As Larry said the housing itself is the intake so
care needs to be made not to pack items all around it. I just meant that
you didn't need to worry about if an item was touching the housing. I've
packed rubber soled hiking boots touching the heater with no problem. It
does not get too hot to safely touch. Larry is correct though that the
black heater tube gets very hot. Almost untouchable...I haven't had any
problems though. Typically I've packed the bench medium full but made a
concious effort to keep loose items around the housing.

I agree with Larry...the heat is neat. My wife and especially my new baby
agree. Here as some pics of the first Westy trip to Moab with the little
one.

http://www.philandsuzanne.com/tripsalbum002.html

-Phil
89 Westy