Need cabin heater advice

[Mike Koss]

I have a 1981 Catalina 22 Swing Keel Version. Very nice boat, and I would like to extend my sailing season by adding a cabin heater-it gets cold early in fall and stays that way late into spring in this neck of the woods. I have researched the various heaters available. My question is, are there any non-vented heaters that anyone would trust, or should I just bite the bullet and install a vented type.Also, any thoughts on fuel type- solid, liquid, or propane? I would appreciate hearing anyone's experiences regarding this.Thanks!Mike

 

[tomD]

I have two heaters aboard

Unsure if this is safe or not, but here was my solution to heat in the cabin last spring: An 8000 BTU catalytic heater that runs off 1 bl propane bottles and a small electric heater that runs off 110 power.At the dock when in for the night we plug in the elelctri heater on a 50' extension cord, when away from power we use the catalytic heater but not on overnight. Cheap but likely not the best, no problems, and the ncie thing about the catalytic is we can sit out in the cockpit with it at our feet and it works quite well, heating the great out doors.

 

[Herb]

Did the propane also Did not like it

Hi there I did the same thing with the propane that Tom did however I was not as pleased with mine. It was an issue with the heater more than anything. The heater was not set up to handle the salt air ( I think) It cost around $100.00 and only lasted one season. I am wanting to bit the bullet and put in a vented system as well and am waiting to hear what others have done before I invest the 600.00 into a small oil fired vented system .

 

[Tom]

Risk

Any open flame will use up oxygen while producing carbon monoxide. Not worth the risk (death) to use a non-vented heater in my opinion. A vented heater is more flexible than non-vented, as you can sleep with it on if you develop a method of allowing outside air to enter the boat - and you will wake up in the morning.If using propane onboard, then you have to develop a safe method, outside of the cabin, to store the propane bottle (vented propane locker or hanging from a stern rail). The advantage of a kerosene/diesel heater in a small sailboat like yours is that the storage setup of the fuel is easier, as the fuel source can be stored inside of the cabin.Solid fuel will produce soot on the deck and ash within the burner chamber that has to be cleaned out periodically. Also slower to heat the cabin after lighting it up, and slower to react after closing or opening the damper to change cabin temperature. Also need a dry place to store the solid fuel. Might be a little harder than storing a spare gallon jug of kerosene in a cockpit locker.

 

[Mike Koss]

Thanks for you thoughts

Thanks for your feedback!

 

[Mac]

Cabin Heater

I have a hurricane lantern, 16 candle power. I leave my hatch cracked for ventilation. It keeps the cabin comfortable down into the low 40's and the V berth stays a little cooler for good sleeping. Burn parifine, smokeless, odorless. I overnight from early April through November and have got along fine with it, just provide some ventilation. If you are at the dock and have shore power an electric heater is the way to go.

 

[John]

See current issue of Practical Sailor

There's an article comparing some of what's available.