Furnace and floor

[darren paget]

Arch. These bolts that come up through the floor. Do the come up or go down
through? The two small bolts that come up in the centre between the propane
and genset compartments hold your 3" waste line to the underside of the coach.
There are two bolts which are in a line at the leading edges of the same two
compartments along the seam in the floor. These two go down from the inside.
They hold the two brackets that hold up your waste tank. The other two bolts
at the other end of the brackets are in a line about equal to the leading edge
of the bathroom module and closet module.There are also various pairs, about
six inches apart, that go through the floor from the inside out. These bolts
hold the coach body to the frame. These are not your main hold downs but are
supplemental.There are also a bunch of torx headed bolts which hold the floor
plywood to the aluminum sub frame.
As far as the furnace is concerned I can't help you there. I went a little
radical on my replacement. I placed my new hot water heater in the old furnace
location and put my new Hydroflame furnace under my Cook top. This is just
forward of the utility compartment at the same height. This configuration does
not let me have a conventional oven but that is taken care of by having a
convection microwave.
I didn't want to go with the 110 volt water heater because we do camp
without power a lot and I don't like running the genset all the time. This
also gives me whatever time I choose to buy a new genset because the old one
was toast any ways. I am a fan of propane fired appliances. The less dependent
I am on the 110 power the freer I am to stop where I want. Darren

> GMCers
>
> I have some questions for you. Today I took out my furnace. I really
> freaked out at what I found. Now on my LeSharo the two tubes that
> are the air intake and the exhaust are metal and extend through the
> fiberglass. Is the GMC supposed to be the same way? Are the flat
> metal plates on the tubes supposed to be on the outside of the
> unit? The flat metal plates on the end of the tubes were on the inside
> of my coach. They were not even up against the sidewall. The aluminum
> bracket is still bolted to the floor but the sheet metal brackets on the
> furnace had rusted out. On the out side of the coach the vent louvers
> were only held on by sheet metal screws in to the fiberglass. There
> was a good 1/8 th inch gap between exhaust tube and the fiberglass.
> The fiberglass is somewhat melted around the hole. Glassed in the old
> holes and will be looking for a new furnace!
>
> Speaking of a new furnace----what have some of you done? Jim tells me
> the Surbaban SF 30 fits well. I think I saw that the 35,000 BTU one is the
> same size. Would I be better off with it? My local RV shop is having a
> sale on Atwood furnaces------any body gone that route? Does any one
> know if there is still any furnace out there that uses an air return duct?
>
> Now for the floor portion of this message. I want to put down 1/4 inch
> luan plywood before I put down the tile in my coach. No, I am not going
> to carpet the darn thing. I will carpet the cockpit and the step but not
> the rest. I see several bolts coming through the floor. Are these bolts
> I will need to get to at some time? What do they hold to what? Yeah I
> still need to drop my fuel tanks------any of them do that?
>
> OK I am going back to work. Any help will sure be welcome.
>
> Take Care
> Arch 76 GB IL River only came up about 6 inches today----looking
> good. Did not put in drivers seat.

 

[mr.c]

I have a sol-aire furnace in mine, and I am also interested in understanding
what will replace my furnace in the future. I just took mine out and cleaned
it all up, and hope it will work a long time. I also know that no parts
exist so when it goes, it goes.
Al Chernoff
77 Eleganza II

> GMCers
>
> I have some questions for you. Today I took out my furnace. I really
> freaked out at what I found. Now on my LeSharo the two tubes that
> are the air intake and the exhaust are metal and extend through the
> fiberglass. Is the GMC supposed to be the same way? Are the flat
> metal plates on the tubes supposed to be on the outside of the
> unit? The flat metal plates on the end of the tubes were on the inside
> of my coach. They were not even up against the sidewall. The aluminum
> bracket is still bolted to the floor but the sheet metal brackets on the
> furnace had rusted out. On the out side of the coach the vent louvers
> were only held on by sheet metal screws in to the fiberglass. There
> was a good 1/8 th inch gap between exhaust tube and the fiberglass.
> The fiberglass is somewhat melted around the hole. Glassed in the old
> holes and will be looking for a new furnace!
>
> Speaking of a new furnace----what have some of you done? Jim tells me
> the Surbaban SF 30 fits well. I think I saw that the 35,000 BTU one is the
> same size. Would I be better off with it? My local RV shop is having a
> sale on Atwood furnaces------any body gone that route? Does any one
> know if there is still any furnace out there that uses an air return duct?
>
> Now for the floor portion of this message. I want to put down 1/4 inch
> luan plywood before I put down the tile in my coach. No, I am not going
> to carpet the darn thing. I will carpet the cockpit and the step but not
> the rest. I see several bolts coming through the floor. Are these bolts
> I will need to get to at some time? What do they hold to what? Yeah I
> still need to drop my fuel tanks------any of them do that?
>
> OK I am going back to work. Any help will sure be welcome.
>
> Take Care
> Arch 76 GB IL River only came up about 6 inches today----looking
> good. Did not put in drivers seat.

 

[mr.c]

Can you tell us more abut cat heaters. Brands, how installed, how about
CO2, and how did you run propane etc.
Thanks
Al Chernoff
77 Eleganza II

> Arch,
> I too installed vinyl flooring in the living part of my Transmode when I
> ripped up the old mildewed second layer of carpeting. The vinyl is
> great for spills the whole area can be swept out in less than minute. We
> use a few washable throw rugs to add more color and comfort.
>
> Before putting down the vinyl I glued and spapled in a 1/4" plywood
> underlayment. Because the underlayment went over those carriage bolt
> heads to the body / frame straps underneath, I remove each one and
> replaced them with new stainless steel bolts and nuts. I also epoxyed
> to the 3/4 inch subfloor each head and its eccentric turn-preventing
> washer of the bolts so that if in the future the body and frame need to
> be separated I won't have to pull up the flooring to grab a the bolt
> head to keep it from turning. I suggest you consider this before you
> cover up any carriage bolts heds.
>
> I also found similar installation problems to yours with the Sol-Aire
> Furnace orignally installed on my coach. I replaced it with 6000 BTU
> and 3000 BTU Cat LP catalyltic heaters. One in the front and the other
> in the rear of the coach. Together these units have kept me and the
> wife warm in some pretty cold weather (10 degrees F.) And we like the
> "campfire" effect of the radiant heat while watching the TV on cold
> nights. They have small powered vents that force the combustion
> by-products outside. Their disadvantage is that they do take more time
> to warm an ice cold interior than the forced air furnaces usually
> installed in the GMCs.
>
> Phil Stewart
> '76 Transmode, TN

 

[philip l. stewart]

Arch,
I too installed vinyl flooring in the living part of my Transmode when I
ripped up the old mildewed second layer of carpeting. The vinyl is
great for spills the whole area can be swept out in less than minute. We
use a few washable throw rugs to add more color and comfort.

Before putting down the vinyl I glued and spapled in a 1/4" plywood
underlayment. Because the underlayment went over those carriage bolt
heads to the body / frame straps underneath, I remove each one and
replaced them with new stainless steel bolts and nuts. I also epoxyed
to the 3/4 inch subfloor each head and its eccentric turn-preventing
washer of the bolts so that if in the future the body and frame need to
be separated I won't have to pull up the flooring to grab a the bolt
head to keep it from turning. I suggest you consider this before you
cover up any carriage bolts heds.

I also found similar installation problems to yours with the Sol-Aire
Furnace orignally installed on my coach. I replaced it with 6000 BTU
and 3000 BTU Cat LP catalyltic heaters. One in the front and the other
in the rear of the coach. Together these units have kept me and the
wife warm in some pretty cold weather (10 degrees F.) And we like the
"campfire" effect of the radiant heat while watching the TV on cold
nights. They have small powered vents that force the combustion
by-products outside. Their disadvantage is that they do take more time
to warm an ice cold interior than the forced air furnaces usually
installed in the GMCs.

Phil Stewart
'76 Transmode, TN

 

[philip l. stewart]

>
> Can you tell us more abut cat heaters. Brands, how installed, how about
> CO2, and how did you run propane etc.
> Thanks
> Al Chernoff
> 77 Eleganza II
>

> > I also found similar installation problems to yours with the Sol-Aire
> > Furnace orignally installed on my coach. I replaced it with 6000 BTU
> > and 3000 BTU Cat LP catalyltic heaters. One in the front and the other
> > in the rear of the coach. Together these units have kept me and the
> > wife warm in some pretty cold weather (10 degrees F.) And we like the
> > "campfire" effect of the radiant heat while watching the TV on cold
> > nights. They have small powered vents that force the combustion
> > by-products outside. Their disadvantage is that they do take more time
> > to warm an ice cold interior than the forced air furnaces usually
> > installed in the GMCs.

Al,

The heaters I bought are the Platinum CAT brand units made by Thermal
Systems, Inc. of Tumwater, WA. (360) 532-0539. These are the same ones
Wes C. wrote about in the March 1995 and June 1995 issues of GMC
Motorhome News. Their cost direct from the factory in September 1996
was $325 for either model, i.e., 3000 BTU (3P12A) or 6000 BTU
(6P12A).models.

I would guess that my installation would not be typical for any other
GMC since my Transmode has pretty much been re-modeled with custom
cabinets and floorplan. However, the instructions that came with the
heaters were very clear and easy to follow for a safe installation. You
can mount them about anywhere on a verticle surface that allows for
clearances from combustible materials of 18" in front, 1" from the
floor, 6" from the sides and 2" from the ceiling. They can be angled
up or down 15 degrees from vertcle if necessary.

Since they have 12 volt fans (.5 amp draw) to exhaust the combustion
by-products (mainly water vapor, carbon dioxide and hopefully not much
carbon monoxide) to the outside, they should be mounted so that the
exhaust pipe (1 1/2" plastic plumbing pipe) does not need run more than
10' and the elbows are kept to two or less. A neat white ABS plastic
vent cap is supplied for the outside trim. The vents can be run to the
roof or thru the sides of the body. In my case I ran the exhausts out
the side and below the rub rail. They stand out only an inch and are not
objectional in appearance.

The heaters are controlled by separate wall mounted thermostats that
allows for zone heating in my coach. I can run both or either one
depending how cold it is outside. So wiring of appropriate size must be
provided for the twelve volt supply to each heater with smaller wiring
to their respective thermostats.

These units use 1/4 lb or 1/8 lb. of propane per hour and teeing into
the copper LP gas line which supplies the cooktop, water heater, and
refrig was a simple job for me. The heaters' additional load on the LP
tank regualtor and supply line has not been a problem for me.

Even though these heaters have powered exhaust vents, I installed a
carbon monoxide detector which has never gone off because of the
heaters.

All in all, I'm satisfied with the CAT heaters, finding them well made,
easy to install and operate. As I said before, I like the radiant heat
given off by the heaters. Your experience and satisfaction could be
substantially different from mine.

Good luck,

Phil Stewart
'76 Transmode, TN

 

[mr.c]

Thanks so much for the information. I will look into these myself.
Have a nice day.
Al Chernoff
77 Eleganza II

> >
> > Can you tell us more abut cat heaters. Brands, how installed, how about
> > CO2, and how did you run propane etc.
> > Thanks
> > Al Chernoff
> > 77 Eleganza II
> >

>
> > > I also found similar installation problems to yours with the Sol-Aire
> > > Furnace orignally installed on my coach. I replaced it with 6000 BTU
> > > and 3000 BTU Cat LP catalyltic heaters. One in the front and the other
> > > in the rear of the coach. Together these units have kept me and the
> > > wife warm in some pretty cold weather (10 degrees F.) And we like the
> > > "campfire" effect of the radiant heat while watching the TV on cold
> > > nights. They have small powered vents that force the combustion
> > > by-products outside. Their disadvantage is that they do take more time
> > > to warm an ice cold interior than the forced air furnaces usually
> > > installed in the GMCs.
>
> Al,
>
> The heaters I bought are the Platinum CAT brand units made by Thermal
> Systems, Inc. of Tumwater, WA. (360) 532-0539. These are the same ones
> Wes C. wrote about in the March 1995 and June 1995 issues of GMC
> Motorhome News. Their cost direct from the factory in September 1996
> was $325 for either model, i.e., 3000 BTU (3P12A) or 6000 BTU
> (6P12A).models.
>
> I would guess that my installation would not be typical for any other
> GMC since my Transmode has pretty much been re-modeled with custom
> cabinets and floorplan. However, the instructions that came with the
> heaters were very clear and easy to follow for a safe installation. You
> can mount them about anywhere on a verticle surface that allows for
> clearances from combustible materials of 18" in front, 1" from the
> floor, 6" from the sides and 2" from the ceiling. They can be angled
> up or down 15 degrees from vertcle if necessary.
>
> Since they have 12 volt fans (.5 amp draw) to exhaust the combustion
> by-products (mainly water vapor, carbon dioxide and hopefully not much
> carbon monoxide) to the outside, they should be mounted so that the
> exhaust pipe (1 1/2" plastic plumbing pipe) does not need run more than
> 10' and the elbows are kept to two or less. A neat white ABS plastic
> vent cap is supplied for the outside trim. The vents can be run to the
> roof or thru the sides of the body. In my case I ran the exhausts out
> the side and below the rub rail. They stand out only an inch and are not
> objectional in appearance.
>
> The heaters are controlled by separate wall mounted thermostats that
> allows for zone heating in my coach. I can run both or either one
> depending how cold it is outside. So wiring of appropriate size must be
> provided for the twelve volt supply to each heater with smaller wiring
> to their respective thermostats.
>
> These units use 1/4 lb or 1/8 lb. of propane per hour and teeing into
> the copper LP gas line which supplies the cooktop, water heater, and
> refrig was a simple job for me. The heaters' additional load on the LP
> tank regualtor and supply line has not been a problem for me.
>
> Even though these heaters have powered exhaust vents, I installed a
> carbon monoxide detector which has never gone off because of the
> heaters.
>
> All in all, I'm satisfied with the CAT heaters, finding them well made,
> easy to install and operate. As I said before, I like the radiant heat
> given off by the heaters. Your experience and satisfaction could be
> substantially different from mine.
>
> Good luck,
>
> Phil Stewart
> '76 Transmode, TN