Just to point out:
of course these heaters need to have some venting area the nine square
inches means having one of your front windows open 1 inch, and these heaters
still put out enough heat to compete with that very well.  I still don't
think I'd go to sleep like that.

But the oxygen sensor feature is something the Mr. Buddy heater has going
for it that other unvented heaters don't.  If the failsafe functions
correctly, it will shut off before it kills you  (and as long as you
followed the directions and cracked your window, this shouldn't be an issue
anyways).  This is why these heaters are approved for indoor use while
virtually all other similarly priced units (the colemans, etc) are not.

For those of us that can't drop nearly a grand on a propex (why so
expensive??), the Mr. Buddy's are a great way to warm up the van in the
evening or in the morning, or in emergencies.

-Wes

On Wed, Feb 4, 2009 at 4:17 PM, Mike S <mikes@flatsurface.com> wrote:

> At 03:24 PM 2/4/2009, Larry Chase wrote...
>
>> To quote from the Mr Heater Manual;
>>
>> "This is an unvented gas-fired portable heater. It uses air (oxygen)
>> from the area in which it is used. Adequate combustion and ventilation
>> air must be provided."
>>
>
> Why stop there, except to mislead? It goes on to say:
> "This heater requires a vent area of 9 square inches (example 3" x 3"
> opening) minimum for adequate ventilation during operation"
>
> That's not much of a requirement. I suspect (but won't claim it as
> fact), that most Vanagons are less tightly sealed than that, and that a
> normal Westy canvas breathes at least the equivalent to that. If there
> are any doubts, one doesn't have to open a vent or tent window very
> much to get 9 square inches. The O2 sensor/shutoff is just a backup to
> that very minimal requirement.
>