wall mounted fish house heater

[wall_guy_101]

Want to replace my wood stove with a propane heater.I've been eyeing up those ventless heaters.Any pros and cons would be greatly appreciated before I invest!!!!!!!

[hanson]

After many months of asking questions and hearing opinions on fish house heaters. I decided to go with an Empire direct vent furnace for my house for a couple reasons. I plan on sleeping in my house and I want the exhaust from the furnace to be vented outside. I honestly don't want to go into a permanent sleep because of my ice house heater.

But, there are many people here who use the ventless blue flame variety of fish house heaters with success. The one negative is that they DON'T VENT OUTSIDE.

I guess in my opinion, If I wasn't going to be sleeping in the house, I might consider a ventless heater.

Do a couple searches for heaters and you'll find lots of good info. This topic has been touched on a couple times in the last few months so the topics shouldn't be buried too far back.

[LundDude]

I agree, i took out my forcedair heater last year and i installed the empire heater. What a difference it made, i no longer have to charge up the batteries all the time for the blower, also i think they are much more efficient to run.

[KidWalleye]

I have the Pro Com ventless style heater, I love it. It is the ceramic style so ther isn't really an open flame. I also can run the heater 3 or 4 weekends on 30 pd tank. I did put a CO detector (peace of mind). Never had it go off. I've slept in it probably 40 times. I got mine at Northern. The guy there seemed to really know his stuff. The main reason I didn't go direct vent was the vent cover would get in the way of the crank for the wheels. Anyway I think most of the people on this forum don't like the idea of a ventless because they don't really know how they work. Keep in mind mine is the ceramic stlye not an open flame.

[Tahoe2349]

A "ventless" heater has its place and time which are usually related to your fishing habits, house (insulated and vinyl/thermo windows) & safety concerns.

We have one in a shack we use as a spotter house!! Plain old shack with a couple of windows and insulated. Temporary fishing (short stay) a VENTLESS is ok in my opinion. You always have venting issues and air movement hassles due to condensation with a ventless heater. You need windows, or vents for air transfer and 12V fans to move the air to cut down the water in the air/house. Heat control is another issue with the control knobs for settings on a ventless can tend to be a hassle as well.

In a nice house with fishing partners/kids along frequently and any over-nite habits I would only consider a VENTED heater set up. More comfortable heat, no humidity/water issues rotten your windows and house away and simply a more efficient safer way to heat.

There are reasons a VENTLESS heater runs one fourth the cost of a VENTED heater, and reasons why a VENTED is the choice 75% of the time even with the cost.

No body I know would pay $600 (minimum) for a VENTED if the $150 VENTLESS was a equal. When it becomes a $$$$ issue we generally "ignore" the Pros and Cons anyway in my opinion

[vikingtom]

Have had my ventless 3 years now. Slept in it over 100 times. Still able to walk on water in winter time. Do have CO detector.

[JIGLFIN]

Have read some HORROR stories about heaters that obsorb

oxygen and emit CO!

So we Installed the Orbis "fully vented" heater in our

sleeper unit and included a CO detector for peace of mind.

Its a 15000 btu unit, heating an 8x12 house, which is more

than enough, at -20. This is another consideration when

purchasing.

Good Luck;

JIGLFIN

[Rick]

Quote:

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Have had my ventless 3 years now. Slept in it over 100 times. Still able to walk on water in winter time. Do have CO detector.

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Vikingtom, even if you slept in it 1000 times, all it takes is once and we wouldn't hear about it from you here. Any heater uses oxygen and unless it's 100% efficient at burning the fuel, and I know of none, they emit some toxic gases. Your house may have enough leaks to allow for a decent air exchange with your ventless. Others may not. Another thing you don't do is bring your propane tank inside your permanent fish house. Maybe the new valves have changed things for better safety, but a few have not fared well who did bring them in.

[captainshane]

I HAVE HEARD THERE IS A MOISTURE BUILD UP WITH THOSE. I DON'T THINK I COULD TRUST THEM ANYWAY.

[fubar]

All houses should be vented. Please remember the two children that died on Mille Lacs last year. They were in a house with a vented heater. I agree your chances are better with a vented heater, but no matter what type you buy,vent the house.

[IcePro]

There are two things in Ice Fishing that you can consider never to be safe:

1. Safe Ice Conditions, Ice can never be considered safe.

2. Proper Ventilation in an Ice House

We all have heard stores of people and or vehicles going through the ice. Even though hundreds of people are already on the ice.

And

The stories of people dieing in there fish house because of lack of ventilation. You might consider your house / home safe (the one you live in) but you hear of people dieing ever year because of a problem with their furnace. Most of these people have no idea what a fish house is.

You can do several things to improve your survival in a fish house: installing a CO detector and a vented heater are two of them.

Several years ago my son and I were fishing in a portable house and each of us were feeling tired and our eyes were burning. I told my son that we should go outside to get some fresh air. When the door opened up the lantern instantly became 50% brighter. I truly believe if we decided to spend the night in the icehouse we would have not enjoyed another day of ice fishing, because that would have been our last day.

Your life is in your hands...install a heater in your house that you are comfortable with.

[iffwalleyes]

I just bought one of myself this year. I have always liked them. Several of the fish houses at resorts at lake of the woods have these and I have always like them. I was getting tired of my direct vent heater that every time there was a oz. of wind the pilot snuffed out. I plan on sleeping in my house after I have this installed, but like mentioned you need vents and windows which my house have plenty of. I have a 6x6 vent near the floor and 4, 2" circle vents by the ceiling. Plus I have two window on the side that will open up. I also think that is importanted to have a CO2 detector in any house that uses a propane heater. One other thing that I would like to mentioned is that several of the new ventless heaters have a low CO2 shut offs like the Mr Heater Buddy. The one that I bought I made sure had one of these. So do some research. If you don't install them correctly they might not be as save, but if you do it properly you should be just fine.

[LittleRanger]

What are you all paying for the VENTED heaters and where are you getting them? Are they easy for the thiefs to steal off the wall? Can you cook or heat on them?

[beer batter]

I bought mine last year at Fleet Farm, it was the Orbis brand 15k btu. They are very easy for thieves to steal. A few kicks to the door, a pry bar between the furnace and the wall, and your new furnace is gone and now you're left with a hole in the wall. At least I got to use it a few times before it happened...

If that is a concern (as it should be) go with something more portable or something that doesn't look worthwhile for thieves to steal. I know a guy who built some pretty solid framing around his wall mount furnace so that the theives could not get behind it with a pry bar. It's worked so far I guess.

[hanson]

Little Ranger-

My direct vent 15,000 btu Empire cost me about $460 and some change. Most of the fish house suppliers should be able to get you one. They are also available at Road King Outdoors by clicking the following link.

http://roadkingoutdoors.com/accessories.html

As far as theft, that is a concern of mine. There is not much that holds the heater to the wall. I'm going to take another look at it this weekend to see if I can get some big bolts through the back and into a couple studs in the wall. I was also planning on framing in a little cabinet around it so it'll be harder to get in and monkey with it.

[wall_guy_101]

I greatly appreciate all the helpful information.I ended up buying a ventless procom ceramic heater as well as carbon monoxide detector.Price was $160 after taxes for a 15000btu from northern tool. I will certainly keep everyone posted throughout the ice fishing season on pros and cons.Thanks again for info