Heat Pump/Heat Strip in Duotherm Penguin

[pdemarest]

On the tail end of a 10 day road trip through Arizona. Stayed at Grand Canyon last night at their RV park with hookups and tried to run my heat pump/strip to supplement the LP furnace. It got down to 15 degrees and it seemed like the furnace couldn't keep up with the cold so I selected the "Heat Pump" option on the HVAC controls and got no heat. My rig is a 2003 Premier that had all the options including the Penguin A/C. According to the sales brochure this unit came with a heat option of some sort but all I have is the installation guide, which covers multiple models of the Penguin. Any idea how to tell if there's a heat option in this unit? Is there a trick to getting it to work? If it doesn't have this feature, can it be added?

Other than that I am really enjoying this rig. Having a small home on wheels that can be parked almost anywhere is a great feature, and the turning radius is amazing. Can't count how many times I found myself saying "I'm so glad I don't have a bigger motorhome".

[kdarling]

Do you have the heat strip installation guide?

http://bryantrv.com/docs2/temp/heatstrip.pdf

Can use that to check.

In Section E, I notice that it mentions setting a DIP switch on the control center, if you have that, to enable the strip if it's installed.

[caconcourse]

On the tail end of a 10 day road trip through Arizona. Stayed at Grand Canyon last night at their RV park with hookups and tried to run my heat pump/strip to supplement the LP furnace. It got down to 15 degrees and it seemed like the furnace couldn't keep up with the cold so I selected the "Heat Pump" option on the HVAC controls and got no heat. My rig is a 2003 Premier that had all the options including the Penguin A/C. According to the sales brochure this unit came with a heat option of some sort but all I have is the installation guide, which covers multiple models of the Penguin. Any idea how to tell if there's a heat option in this unit? Is there a trick to getting it to work? If it doesn't have this feature, can it be added?

Other than that I am really enjoying this rig. Having a small home on wheels that can be parked almost anywhere is a great feature, and the turning radius is amazing. Can't count how many times I found myself saying "I'm so glad I don't have a bigger motorhome".

The RV heat pump generally doesn't work below about 38 degrees, just because of physics, and a temperature limit switch that turns the compressor off at around 38. Here is a link to some more info:

https://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuse ... t/true.cfm

Clay

[pdemarest]

kdarling - that installation diagram showed a braided wire that I recognized when I pulled the two vent covers off while looking for a model number. So, I now know that I do have a heat function in my A/C.

caconcourse - that link was great. Now I'll know when I can use that function and when I can't. Part of the problem we experienced up at Grand Canyon was that I was low on propane and was worried I'd run out in the middle of the night, so I was turning the furnace on and off to save LP. Next time I'm in some place that's that cold I'll start the engine and run the cab heat and the furnace until I get the rig warmed up and then turn off the engine and let the furnace run all night. I also think that my wife will be checking the weather forecasts in advance so I don't drag her to a place that's going to be 15 degrees!!

Thanks!

[Scott]

Hey Paul,
If you're usually plugged in, consider using an electric space heater. Yeah, it's one more thing to pack, but for around $20-30, it might be worth experimenting with. Mine is compact (about 10 inches square), 1400 watts, it's much quieter and less windy than the furnace, obviously saves propane, and it really warms the coach quite well. Plus it's dry heat, and there's essentially zero threat of carbon monoxide. Just a thought...

[Blue~Go]

I don't plug in often, but when I do I go with the same method Scott recommends: Basically, a <$20 electric space heater from a box store. Pretty compact to pack along, and hard to beat for heating when electricity comes with a site. (Although in some instances you'll have to watch amps - but that's true of anything you are running off a power post.) As rarely as I plug in nowadays, I still pack the electric heater along because it stows so small and can be so useful.

Also, it's easy to move around in the living space - right at the bathroom door when you want the bathroom warm, etc.

I spent a couple of winters living in a small trailer in a place with nights in the teens and 20's F. There I found that one of the electric oil-filled radiator heater was FAR preferable to the blown air space heater suggested above. Super even heat, none of that "warm when the heater's on, then instantly cold when it shuts off" effect --- even in a poorly insulated trailer. Cozy and comfortable. I wouldn't have given it up! But, it's kind of bulky and heavy to carry in a Chinook, hence the little space heater. But, if for some reason I were going to be stationary in cold weather, I'd buy one of the radiators and then give it away or sell it before leaving.

[A Rooney]

I have lived in trailers with those oil filled radiators,but several years back I bought a Milwaukee heated jacket that ran off the same 12volt lithium batteries their power tools use....it has three settings and I use low.Just recently I found they sell a long wire and adapter to plug into a 12 volt outlet like the one under the cabinet...low uses .5 amps medium 1 amp and hot 1.5 which is less than the furnace blower if I recall (have to check that).My dad grew up in the Great Depression,and after we were all asleep he would turn down the heat,so I got use to waking bundled in a warm blanket watching my breath fumes.I understand times have changed,people have too.... From the days of toasty coal bed warmers on long sticks run between sheets ....I try and conserve energy,not very many folks style.....I have this weird philosophy (most of my philosophy's are weird) that heavily heated spaces contribute to colds and flu,or diminish ones resistance to them. I am not suggesting to anyone else to follow along....but I did want to post that these tiny electric blankets ( that's what those heated jackets are essentially) are a great way to get a little extra warmth without expending lots of amps out of your battery bank.Rooney

[Scott]

Oh man, I'm with your Father. I secretly disengage the furnace in the deep night. I really don't like heaters, unless entirely necessary, and only if there are means to support it. And hot noisy air blowing around is damaging to my slumber, and mood. If we're in the teens, I'll fire up the Honda generator and run the electric space heater to reduce the feedback from the complain train (aka golden retriever).

[Blue~Go]

I guess I'm a combination person: I like it cold when sleeping (all the better to appreciate the sleeping bag or blankets!), but cozy when I'm up and about. Heating solely with wood (previous cabins, not the Chinook), was perfect: Fire would die out overnight and that made for cold sleeping, but then when you do burn the stove you want to get it good and hot for efficient burning/chimney. Nothing like lounging around in a tee shirt and shorts when it's below zero outside. (Of course, you do have to get up in the morning to get the fire going, so it's not all fun and games )

[pdemarest]

Thanks, guys - I do have a small electric heater that I could use. Considering safety and available space where do you place your electric heaters?