Replacement furnace for '72 13' boler? - Fiberglass RV
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Old 11-09-2011, 11:23 AM   #1
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Name: Kevin
Trailer: Boler
British Columbia
Posts: 22
Replacement furnace for '72 13' boler?

I am considering a replacement for the original furnace in my Boler. The original propane one works ok, but I am not overly comfortable with the surface getting so hot with a little one in the trailer.

I would like something more efficient and safer. What are people using for replacements?

Kevin
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Old 11-12-2011, 03:11 PM   #2
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Name: Doc
Trailer: TrailsWest CAMPSTER 1970
Washington
Posts: 56
Kevin, what kind and model is in your unit now........It would be good to tlhat first.
Doc the boonDOCer @ campfrugal
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Old 11-15-2011, 11:24 AM   #3
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Name: Calvin
Trailer: 1975 Boler
Ontario
Posts: 1
Kevin,
I have a 1975 Boler model B13-B and the gravity feed furnace in it is a
Suburban model GT63A. Yours may be the same.

I am currently trying to fix my furnace as it needs a replacement burner head
which I cannot find.
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Old 11-16-2011, 05:56 PM   #4
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Trailer: 74 Boler 13 ft / 97 Ford Aerostar
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KevC View Post
I am considering a replacement for the original furnace in my Boler. The original propane one works ok, but I am not overly comfortable with the surface getting so hot with a little one in the trailer.

I would like something more efficient and safer. What are people using for replacements?

Kevin
You cannot buy the gravity type furnace any more, all the newer ones have are fan-forced and require some power to run. If you remove your old one, I expect that you will have a line of people on this site wanting to obtain it from you. Not me, I have one already.

That said, the advantage of the fan forced furnace is that, like your home ducts, the hot part is behind the grille and they therefore don’t feel as hot as the old ones. However, some people do say that the fan-forced furnaces wake them up at night since the fan is only a few feet from them.

I agree that the front grille gets very hot at the top, hot enough to burn the skin. In my old Boler I burned my arm twice on the furnace while sleeping because it was placed right next to the bed. If I had kept that trailer (I sold it to get a bigger bed and a front dinette in the current trailer) I was going to move the furnace to the middle of that cabinet, where it would not be able to burn me.

The newer furnaces tend to be horizontal and deep, and the standard Boler placement was in the kitchen cabinet right by the wheel well, which is why the old furnace is tall and shallow. There is a good chance that, if you install a new one, it might not fit into that space and you would have to find a new spot for it.

Many people use catalytic or other portable heaters and not a furnace at all. However, the furnace has the huge (for me) advantage of not using room air since it has its own input and output air and is sealed away from the breathing air in the trailer. I personally would much prefer to have a furnace installed.

As for efficiency, I don’t think the newer ones are much more efficient. My old gravity type is rated at 12000 BTU input and 8400 BTU output, which is pretty good. Basically it just burns the gas and heats up a sealed metal surface, which then transfers the heat to the room.

Good luck
Rick G.
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Old 11-16-2011, 05:59 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Calvin Jones View Post
Kevin,
I have a 1975 Boler model B13-B and the gravity feed furnace in it is a
Suburban model GT63A. Yours may be the same.

I am currently trying to fix my furnace as it needs a replacement burner head
which I cannot find.
True, they don’t make these any more. However, I have often wondered why the burner has to be that exact type. The various furnaces I have worked on all had radically different shaped burner heads, that all worked the same way.

I wonder why you could not use a replacement grill from a propane barbecue? It works exactly the same way. The only issue would be finding one small enough to fit into the chamber, but I have seen some that I think would fit many furnaces.

Just a thought.
Rick G.
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Old 11-17-2011, 12:54 PM   #6
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Name: Kevin
Trailer: Boler
British Columbia
Posts: 22
My Boler is in storage, so I can't get the model number. My furnace seems to be in pretty good shape, so maybe I'll be leaving it in until I start having problems with it. It is true that the silent running of the furnace is nice compared to a noisy fan.

Thanks for the input
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Old 11-18-2011, 09:44 PM   #7
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Name: Gordon
Trailer: Trillium
British Columbia
Posts: 178
Leave it installed. Doesn't take up much room, not often needed but great to have. And quiet. Like a previous post said, there is a line up of people looking for them.
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