B 17 CB...heated bathroom

[Franswa]

that 2" duct that came out at the register below the left dinette seat never put out a whole lot of heat....and with a 4" duct/register pumping out a ton of heat just four feet away the former seemed sort of redundant...

I replumbed it so it now sends its heat to the bathroom...(the small amount of heat it produces should be a good match for the small volume of the bathroom)

I had sourced a louvered outlet for it so it would be waterproof...but then I found a spot that gets covered by the shower curtain when that is in use...so I used a SCH40 plastic fitting to enter the bathroom (friction fit going through the FG wall)

looking forward to see out it works when I head out next week

(not sure what I'm going to do with the now unused register below the seat...I may leave it in for ventilation....or I might make a new, wider shoe drawer)

[Borrego Dave]

Sounds like a pretty good idea of putting heat where it's needed. By looking at your pic I think I would angle the outlet a just a little bit downward toward the shower so no water runs back down the piping. Probably wouldn't hurt anything if it did though, just my 2 cents.

[Franswa]

I thought/fretted enough before doing this...you always do before cutting into the fiberglass

the outlet is covered by the shower curtain when tha is going on....it's well off the floor (plugged/slow drain) and I left the outlet about half an inch "proud" of the wall (cleaning the bathroom walls)

[Franswa]

it's all about the details ain't it ?....

my shower curtain is stored on the right wall between the light and the door....when I first put it up I loosened the light fixture and slipped the edge of the curtain behind it so that it is "trapped" there....tight to the wall, no fear of water getting behind it during a shower

when I change out that curtain I'll do the same again...

while storing the curtain at that end of the curtain rod might not be the intuitive thing to do (the PO used to store it at the other end behind the toilet)... it means that it can hang there staight dowm all the time... so when deployed it stays real close/tight to the wall and door with no creases/bulges

[Night Sailor]

My bathroom is not heated either. And it has the only window that is not double paned. It gets mighty cold in there. It would be a special order for a small double pane window. Perhaps I should follow your lead sandpit a duct into it. I could put a Y on one of my ducts and a vent like you did.


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[Franswa]

my bathroom does not have a window...just a roof vent that is usually cracked open....so yeah, it gets cold in there alright...I think that after a while the temperature of the whole FG enclosure drops and acts as a "cold sink"....

I haven't been able to see if it works in the real world yet (weather's been dreadful here for the last three weeks) but I'm hoping that periodic shots of heat (furnace cycles) will keep the FG warmish and improve the situation considerably....

when I'm plugged in somewhere I'll have to turn the furnace on for a while before having a shower

[Night Sailor]

If I open the bathroom door in the winter it is clearly much colder than the test of the camper. The vent fan is loud and annoying. Clearly they cheaper out on the bathroom in my case. Loud vent fan, no heat, single panel window. All of which I should change. The window would be about $150, fan/ vent upgrade still more. The heat ducting would be relatively cheap. I might also need a return air path.


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[Franswa]

my bathroom came with NO window and NO fan....just a top hatch.....the PO added one of those big air covers over so you can leave the hatch open during travel and/or big rainstorms.....

lucky for me it did have a light in there... so I wired a computer fan to the light circuit...it's small but it works...I also changed the crank that worked the hatch...man, THAT was annoying... hitting your head on that all the time...this one's flush

I'm curious why you'd want return air....air is going to come from the inside of the coach (through the furnace) your fan, even off, should be able to bleed air out...no?

[Night Sailor]

Those hoods are only good for keeping out rain and snow. I would close up everything while traveling. I've found lots of dust and dirt inside when traveling in what I thought were dust free areas.

Perhaps you are right about return air. I'll try it without first. On the other hand, in extreme cold weather I've noticed it gets mighty cold in there. If I don't use it or heat it I'd save on propane. The best option would be to change the window from frosted to double pane tinted with a curtain or towel rack over it for privacy, get a removable insulation pillow for the vent, a new quiet vent and fan, and pipe in some heat . That would provide heat and energy efficiency. Expensive but I can do it in phases. I put it on my list and start with the window and insulation. At some point I'll have this camper perfect. As of now two thing are broken. My refrigerator control board (I think) and my wall mount fan has a open circuit uncertain positions. The contacts or wire inside must be fragile.


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[lonnyda]

With my Bigfoot 17, it had a Fantastic Vent with fan in it. I called the factory and ordered a double thick cover and installed that. It made the world of difference in the warmth in the wet bath. Of course when you opened the vent, it would cool down but leaving the door open for a short bit warmed it up again.

I have done that modification to all my vents since then in each of our Bigfoot trailers.

Hope that helps someone out there!

[Franswa]

If I don't use it or heat it I'd save on propane.My propane bill is relatively small compared to everything else...with me that would not be a consideration...or at least it would be way down "the list"

The best option would be to change the window from frosted to double pane tinted with a curtain or towel rack over it for privacy,....I thought of putting in a window....would be nice....it would end up pretty high up (from outside).. and pretty small to boot...I don't see any privacy issues for me...and yours would be way higher again

get a removable insulation pillow for the vent, a new quiet vent and fan, and pipe in some heat ....I didn't have a fan...but if your bathroom fan is as loud as my kitchen fan I can just imagine the annoyance factor!! I found that the little computer fan, besides being inaudile, moves an "adequate" amount of air for/from my bathroom....I'm actually thinking of replacing the kitchen fan with another of those computer fans....super cheap....might not move the same amount of air....but might just be enough for my needs.....and easily changed back if it don't pan out

At some point I'll have this camper perfect......LOL...good luck with that one!!!....we both suffer from the same syndrome I think....we should find/invent a name for it....LOL

As of now two thing are broken. My refrigerator control board (I think) and my wall mount fan has a open circuit uncertain positions....My fridge went south too.... got "confused"and would shut itself off now and then...I found a used (from a parted out RV) 2way circuit board and control panel that fit my unit exactly (from same manufacturer)....I never used the DC for cooling anyway....cost me 150 bucks

your window thinking is probably right because the rest of our bathrooms are essentially insulated (dead air space).....you're trying to deal with a much colder environment than me though...a bigger challenge for sure....every little bit is gonna help...good luck to ya

cheers, F