installing propane gravity furnace in Boler - Fiberglass RV
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Old 09-03-2011, 11:31 PM   #1
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Trailer: 1970 Boler
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installing propane gravity furnace in Boler

Looking to install a Wagon Master furnace in my Boler.

I have seen some next to the table/bed and other next to the ice box.....

Do they get hot enough to melt the bedding or sleeping beds ?? ....I am worried that grill gets too hot to be safe next to the bed so I am going next to the ice box... I think.

My main question is the spacer btw the front of the furnace and the cabinet (photo below in lower left corner)....I need to make one as its the only part I am missing.....I need to know if its fiberglass re-enforced with wood, metal, etc...

thanks
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Old 09-04-2011, 07:15 AM   #2
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Hey Kurt,


I am in the same Boat, and about to instal mine sometime next week,

I am putting it in the same location as in your picture, only i have two horizontal openings there now, so i need to make a vertical support on the right side of the furnace, .......


I am (sometime this week), hook up the used furnace just sitting in the driveway, 1 to make sure it works, and 2 find out what get hot and what doesn't, ....

once i do that i'll let you know if the front edge your talking about get hot,


from looking at my furnace, i don't think it would get that hot, the "fire box" is more in behind the front grill, .....


also, BTW mean "By The Way", not "Between", but i knew what you meant :-)
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Old 09-04-2011, 09:29 AM   #3
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Is a gravity propane furnace the same thing as those convection type propane furnaces which were so common in the early seventies?
No electricity or fan , just a cool air vent at the bottom and a hot air vent at the top.
If so, we had one right next to the bed in our 1969 Thorobred stickbuilt.
It worked great! It was quiet with even heat and was no hotter at the grill than our new suburban fan-forced unit. Plus it used less propane and no worries about battery loss.
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Old 09-04-2011, 09:29 AM   #4
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Spacer

Kurt,
That same snow crushed furnace I got the emblems from has that spacer. PM me if you want me to get it for you.
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Old 09-04-2011, 03:01 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by floyd View Post
Is a gravity propane furnace the same thing as those convection type propane furnaces which were so common in the early seventies?
No electricity or fan , just a cool air vent at the bottom and a hot air vent at the top.
If so, we had one right next to the bed in our 1969 Thorobred stickbuilt.
It worked great! It was quiet with even heat and was no hotter at the grill than our new suburban fan-forced unit. Plus it used less propane and no worries about battery loss.
I have often wondered why the're called gravity heaters here when they're convection heaters.
If a new one was available today I would change my noisy fan suburban.
John
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Old 09-04-2011, 07:53 PM   #6
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Kurt,
That same snow crushed furnace I got the emblems from has that spacer. PM me if you want me to get it for you.
pm on route!!
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Old 09-07-2011, 12:16 PM   #7
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Originally Posted by Kurt in BC View Post
Looking to install a Wagon Master furnace in my Boler.

I have seen some next to the table/bed and other next to the ice box.....

Do they get hot enough to melt the bedding or sleeping beds ?? ....I am worried that grill gets too hot to be safe next to the bed so I am going next to the ice box... I think.

My main question is the spacer btw the front of the furnace and the cabinet (photo below in lower left corner)....I need to make one as its the only part I am missing.....I need to know if its fiberglass re-enforced with wood, metal, etc...

thanks
Hi Kurt,

I had a WagonMaster furnace in my old Boler, and now have a Duotherm in my Trillium. Both work great for providing heat with no battery draw.

HOWEVER, if I was installing it, I would not put it right beside the bed. It gets really hot, especially at the top where I am sleeping. In my Boler, I burned my arm while sleeping twice as the Boler bed is narrow enough that my wife and I sleeping together tended to maximize our space by (me) hanging a bit over the edge. I burned my arm enough to leave scars for several months, not to mention waking up to a burning pain in the arm in the middle of the night.

So, I would install the heater in the middle opening of the kitchen counter, not the one nearest the bed. It will not affect the fridge because it only gets hot right at the top. That way you will not risk any burns while sleeping.

My Trillium has the furnace installed next to the bed, but on the closet side of the trailer. The Duotherm furnace is much wider than the Wagonmaster, and the burner, which also gets hot, is located on the left side of the furnace. This means that the really hot part is about 8 inches away from the bed, far enough that it is not a problem.

Hope that helps,
Rick G.
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Old 09-07-2011, 05:41 PM   #8
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Set it on something nonflamable outside and fire it up then check to see what the temp is.
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Old 09-12-2011, 11:35 PM   #9
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Hi Kurt,

I had a WagonMaster furnace in my old Boler, and now have a Duotherm in my Trillium. Both work great for providing heat with no battery draw.

HOWEVER, if I was installing it, I would not put it right beside the bed. It gets really hot, especially at the top where I am sleeping. In my Boler, I burned my arm while sleeping twice as the Boler bed is narrow enough that my wife and I sleeping together tended to maximize our space by (me) hanging a bit over the edge. I burned my arm enough to leave scars for several months, not to mention waking up to a burning pain in the arm in the middle of the night.

So, I would install the heater in the middle opening of the kitchen counter, not the one nearest the bed. It will not affect the fridge because it only gets hot right at the top. That way you will not risk any burns while sleeping.

My Trillium has the furnace installed next to the bed, but on the closet side of the trailer. The Duotherm furnace is much wider than the Wagonmaster, and the burner, which also gets hot, is located on the left side of the furnace. This means that the really hot part is about 8 inches away from the bed, far enough that it is not a problem.

Hope that helps,
Rick G.

Thanks Rick, helps a lot. Thats what I will do then....put it in the middle, thats the info I needed to make this choice. Just need to get going on some cutting and mounting and I can take it in to have the new propane lines ran from the tank. My tank expired in 1995
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Old 09-13-2011, 06:45 AM   #10
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Was able to fix our original furnace so glad to read this will be more careful while using the furnace
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Old 09-22-2011, 06:03 PM   #11
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You may not need the spacer if you are putting it beside the fridge.

My boler American has a notch in the streetside wheel well to allow for the furnace to sit flush. Some of the bolers I have seen do not have this notch which might explain the need for a spacer.
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Old 09-22-2011, 08:23 PM   #12
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yup, no notch in mine
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Old 01-21-2012, 10:30 AM   #13
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Anyone have one of these "spacers" for sale they are not using? I need the fiberglass spacer btw. the cabinet and the furnace grill for mounting my furnace in my Boler.
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Old 02-11-2012, 12:00 AM   #14
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Name: Don
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Help please

Hi guys, I just took my boler in to get my wagonmaster furnace serviced , they said I needed a new gas valve, does anyone know where i could find one of these, otherwise I have to pay $500 for them to fix because they have to bring all the gas stuff up to code, does this sound correct. And does anyone know where the gas valve is located and what it looks like. Id apprieciate it if anyone could help me out, thanks.
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Old 02-12-2012, 03:40 PM   #15
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Hi Roy. If you see this, how big is the notch in the wheel well? As I cannot find this spacer I may need to go that route to mount mine next to the ice box.
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Old 02-25-2012, 06:22 PM   #16
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Originally Posted by bolerdon View Post
Hi guys, I just took my boler in to get my wagonmaster furnace serviced , they said I needed a new gas valve, does anyone know where i could find one of these, otherwise I have to pay $500 for them to fix because they have to bring all the gas stuff up to code, does this sound correct. And does anyone know where the gas valve is located and what it looks like. Id apprieciate it if anyone could help me out, thanks.
Look up a Robertshaw 710-20-something-series snap-action gas valve. They make a few in this series; one of them is for propane, the others can be converted. It is not a direct fit and requires gas-fitting experience. I believe this valve is the only one in existence that can be retrofitted to the old non-electric gravity furnaces (which I have, too!)
The Robertshaw 710-205 is $127 at Graingers in natural-gas version, they sell the propane conversion kit for ~$30 I think.

The gas valve is that thing at the bottom of your furnace, with the knobs and pilot controls on it. The temp-sensor bulbs seem to fail on all the old ones I've messed with and I can't find those seperately.

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