Can anyone tell me if a 2kw fan heater is too powerful to use in a caravan /awning. We are going away in the next few days and the weather doesn't really look too good.
fan heater
- Thread starter thehoods
- Start date
Damian
Moderator
Phil, it depends what rate the hookup is at, 10 or 16 amps, and what else you have running from the mains at the same time.
Hello Phil,
A large proportion of new caravans are fitted with electric heaters, and many have a 2kW setting, so it is quite likely that you will be able to use a 2kW fan heater. A 2kW heater will use 8.6A of current. Most heaters have a lower power setting, which will use less current.
You must however be aware that the mains hook is limited in the amount of current that you can use. Whilst your caravan will be wired to accept 16A, the sites wiring may be rated to a lower figure. In the UK it is usually between 10 and 16A, but elsewhere it can be as low as 6 or even only 3A. Your site operator will be able to tell you of the available current.
You must also allow for the current that other mains appliances will use in the caravan, a fridge will typically use about 0.5A, a water heater about 4A, a television up to 0.5A. It may be the occasional items that might trip the supply such as a kettle, or a microwave, when they are used at the same time as your heater.
With a little forethought and care it is possible keep the current consumption under control, and no problems, but if you try to use more current than the site allows you will probably trip the sites circuit breaker.
A large proportion of new caravans are fitted with electric heaters, and many have a 2kW setting, so it is quite likely that you will be able to use a 2kW fan heater. A 2kW heater will use 8.6A of current. Most heaters have a lower power setting, which will use less current.
You must however be aware that the mains hook is limited in the amount of current that you can use. Whilst your caravan will be wired to accept 16A, the sites wiring may be rated to a lower figure. In the UK it is usually between 10 and 16A, but elsewhere it can be as low as 6 or even only 3A. Your site operator will be able to tell you of the available current.
You must also allow for the current that other mains appliances will use in the caravan, a fridge will typically use about 0.5A, a water heater about 4A, a television up to 0.5A. It may be the occasional items that might trip the supply such as a kettle, or a microwave, when they are used at the same time as your heater.
With a little forethought and care it is possible keep the current consumption under control, and no problems, but if you try to use more current than the site allows you will probably trip the sites circuit breaker.
Hi Damien and John.
Thanks for your replies. I'm quite sure the site we're staying on is 16amps, but will have to check to be certain, will also have to watch what else we use.
Thanks again,
Phil.
Thanks for your replies. I'm quite sure the site we're staying on is 16amps, but will have to check to be certain, will also have to watch what else we use.
Thanks again,
Phil.
When the Truma Ultraheat failed in sub-zero temperatures (doesn't it always) I bought a fan heater from Argos with a 1kw and 2kw setting, as well as a thermostat. It worked fine and we now keep it as a backup for our rectified Ultraheat.
Given that the Ultraheat itself has 500w, 1kw and 2kw settings on mains electricity it shouldn't give a problem using an equivalent fan heater.
The only time we've had to manange appliance usage, one at a time, was at Scourie where we opted for a 5A hookup on the shoreline rather than 10A further back.
Given that the Ultraheat itself has 500w, 1kw and 2kw settings on mains electricity it shouldn't give a problem using an equivalent fan heater.
The only time we've had to manange appliance usage, one at a time, was at Scourie where we opted for a 5A hookup on the shoreline rather than 10A further back.
I use one of these regularly to provide instant heat as it heats the van quicker than the Truma Ultraheat as we have a 16 month old daughter.
Have used the versions suggested from Argos, however on the 2kw setting they are noisy and the dry heat becomes too intense. A few years back we bought a ceramic version more expensive at around
Have used the versions suggested from Argos, however on the 2kw setting they are noisy and the dry heat becomes too intense. A few years back we bought a ceramic version more expensive at around
Hi all.
Thanks for the replies. We will be using it to warm up the awning so that the dog doesn't get cold, even though he has got a fur coat!
Thanks for the replies. We will be using it to warm up the awning so that the dog doesn't get cold, even though he has got a fur coat!
The dog's a big wimp then is it?
Working dogs sleep in unheated outdoor kennels all year round.
As we're not in the depths of winter I see no justification for pampering a house dog like this.
To contribute to carbon reduction we're all encouraged to use low energy bulbs instead of filament type, just to save a few watts each - you're going to be burning thousands of watts!
Hi Phil
If the weather is a bit chilly, I use a halogen heater in the awning for the dogs as if it gets knocked, it will switch itself off.
I do prefer fan heaters in terms of distribution of heat but I feel the halogen heaters are slightly safer.
I don't know what breed your dog is but mine are both very short coated and feel the cold sometimes. They have been brought up in the house. (A good indicator to tell if your dog is cold is to feel its ears when it is relaxing, if its ears are cold, then that normally means the dog is cold in its body).
Lisa
If the weather is a bit chilly, I use a halogen heater in the awning for the dogs as if it gets knocked, it will switch itself off.
I do prefer fan heaters in terms of distribution of heat but I feel the halogen heaters are slightly safer.
I don't know what breed your dog is but mine are both very short coated and feel the cold sometimes. They have been brought up in the house. (A good indicator to tell if your dog is cold is to feel its ears when it is relaxing, if its ears are cold, then that normally means the dog is cold in its body).
Lisa
Hi Lisa.
Thanks for the reply. He's a Chocolate Labrador, fortunatly the weather turned out better than we expected at Ferry Meadows, so we didn't need the heater.
Thanks again,
Phil
Thanks for the reply. He's a Chocolate Labrador, fortunatly the weather turned out better than we expected at Ferry Meadows, so we didn't need the heater.
Thanks again,
Phil
Facebook
Twitter