Olympian Wave 3 Heater

[SunMan]

Rather than hijack deltarat's furnace install thread I thought I'd start this one as I've also been contemplating a more permanent heating situation. A couple of years ago I was looking at a used Kestrel with one of these heaters in it:

http://www.adventurerv.net/olympian-...er-p-1679.html

http://www.rvstuffusa.com/wave3catalyticsafetyheaterbyolympian.html

Anybody have any experience with these?? I talked w/ a local RV shop and the guy raved about them (naturally, he wants to sell me one) and even showed me his install in his 5th wheel. Apparently the plus side is zero battery draw and they are not affected at altitude. Thoughts... good, bad or otherwise?? I promise, you won't hurt my feelings

 

[JaneS]

I have the wave and really like it. I have it mounted under the refrigerator. I've had it since 2004 and it's been very dependable and easy to use. I've rarely had to use it above a low setting because in a small space (Eagle) it warms things up fast and keeps things plenty warm.

 

[Marc]

JaneS

Do you have any pics of your install we could see ??

 

[mtn-high]

Have you had issues "at altitude" with the stock heater(s), SunMan? (anyone?)

 

[JaneS]

JaneS

Do you have any pics of your install we could see ??

I can take some. But I'm not handy like you guys are - I paid someone to do it for me.

 

[SunMan]

Mtn,
Thought I had read about some pilot sensitivity issues at altitude but moreover I was referencing issues with other catalytic type heaters at altitude.

Jane, If I were to go this route I was thinking of mounting one below my old ice box too as it seems to fit perfectly dimension wise and would be easy to feed off of the propane lines previously plumbed for the fridge option. If you had some pics I would be interested too, especially how the gas line is run.

 

[snow hunter]

my 2 cents

I have the wave catalitic heater and a stock forced air heater and there is advantages to both and thats why I use them both.

At first I kick on the stock heater it works much faster and very well not sure above 7000 thou.
I then will use the wave for the rest of the time because it is silent and uses no electric unlike the stock heater which has a fan and goes on and off.
It does take a little longer to heat the camper with the wave by itself but not a problem.
My set up is tied into the main propane line with a T and mounted close to the floor.
I think the main reason it was installed with the stock was the past owner was with out 12 volt.I have it and dig it.

any who you can't go wrong, imo.good luck and stay warm.

 

[SunMan]

Thanks Snowhunter, that looks pretty sweet. Is it easily removable or permanently mounted? I kind of envision mounting one that is somehow removable with a quick disconnect for when not needed.

 

[snow hunter]

yeah sunman it is easy to install and remove .just put a turn off valve somewhere and remove the mounting screws to the heater.The hose could then be used for your outside needs possibly or taken off as well.

 

[Alex]

When you run the heater do you need to leave a crack open on the window? The stock force air is too noise a night so most of the time we turn it off. This heater seems to be great supplement to the stock furnace.

 

[Rockjok]

Yes, you do need to have ventilation with a catalytic heater. I usually open the roof vent slightly and have a window corner open at night. To get the "cross" ventilation required I also leave one of the turnbuckle access holes open a bit.

I also have a couple of household CO detectors in use tho' I'd kinda like to get one of the "stock" ones that comes with a non-shell camper.

Rob

 

[SunMan]

Thanks for the input everyone. I reckon a thumbs up from Les is all one really needs!! Looks like I'll be marching down this path.

 

[pvstoy]

Had one in the old Fleet. Worked great as all said above.

But it has no thermostat so it is cranking out the heat. We found we had to turn it off before bed. Then it was cold at morning and took a while to get it going. So we did not fire it up for the short time in the morning. If you had both heaters would be the best but how much room do we have.

 

[mtn-high]

FWIW, I've yet to have my camper BELOW 4500 ft....live at 7250...and have camped and used the "stock" heater as high as 11K....no problems whatsoever. Ditto with the Refrig/Freezer. Hopefully this will continue!

To show how different we all are... I wish the furnace fan ran all night. I run the small fan on the refrig to keep some sort of noise going all the time...LOL. (my first choice is a raging creek...followed by wind... but that isn't always possible...so the furnace is a Godsend/backup)

mtn

 

[jrfromafar]

Thought I'd shake the dust off of this thread & get a fresh update - if possible - about heaters. I am familiar with the Atwood furnace - had one in my Burro - it worked great - battery charge was really never a problem for 5 days or less. Over 5 days & the fan was really complaining.

This time around, in my '72 Alaskan, I don't have the room to install an Atwood, and am not willing to pay a great deal of money - so I'm thinking of just getting a Mr Heater - it's half the cost of an Olympian.

http://www.mrheater.com/product.aspx?catid=41&id=24

Anyone familiar with them?

 

[chnlisle]

We liked the Mr. Heater and this too.

 

[jrfromafar]

I noticed that the Heatmate takes denatured alcohol - isn't that rather expensive? $20 a gallon.

Lol beware - google "heat mate" and you'll come up with all sorts of topics

 

[SunMan]

All I can tell you is that 5 years later my Olympian is still getting the job done. In fact it has exceeded my expectiations. Sometimes you get what you pay for. Ultimately it boils down to how much cold weather camping do you see your self doing?

 

[caseboy]

i have used the same old olympian for 20yrs in all kinds of rigs-- tent trailers,5th wheel,alaskans(2). mine is free standing and easily portable and packed away.we just use the little colman bottles.we usually set it up on a counter top so it's out of the way. if it's really cold, we leave it on low over night(with co detectors and windows vented. we get about 10hrs on a bottle at low setting.if i remmember right, it cost me 250 bucks way back then. it shows no sign of wear now. i think is was a pretty good investment.
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[jrfromafar]

Sun, you were convincing - but when I saw Caseboy's feet toasting - it's a done deal - I'm springing for an Olympian !!