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Old 12-03-2017, 09:50 AM   #1
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Question Newbie in Fl

Hi! Just retired and bought 2014 23 fun finder. Total newbies, we are trying to learn as much as possible.

Our first trip will be north and the nights will be cold. Unfortunately, where we
are going this time will be dry camping.

We did get a Champion propane inverter generator, but we are wondering how much propane the heater will use and if the small 20 lb bottles will last through the night.

Does anyone have any experience they can share with us on this?

We are looking forward to learning from all you and maybe meeting some of you on the road.
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Old 12-03-2017, 11:42 AM   #2
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So, just how far north are you going and for how long?

Your propane inverter generator should have some mfg rating on fuel consumption.

As for the furnace and water heater on propane, the consumption is quite low has been my experience, however, don't have any exact consumption rating and have never used a full 30# bottle of propane in a camping season.

Propane is measured in British Thermal Units, or BTUs. Propane appliances use a certain amount of BTU per hour. And one gallon of propane has 91,574 BTUs. This gives you a vague idea of how much energy your propane appliances are likely to consume: their performance is measured in BTUs, whereas you buy propane at a certain price per gallon.


BTW: my fun finder came with two 30# propane tanks & I belive 60# of propane is equalivant to 14 gallons of propane.
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Old 12-03-2017, 01:58 PM   #3
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Only as far as Savannah Ga this time for two days.

The Champion inverter generator folks say approximately 14 hours for a 20# cylinder @ 25% load. It shouldn't see much load at all since only will be running heat, no AC this trip. Expected temps in the upper 30's at night, so the heater fan, lights and maybe sporadic water pump operation expected. I guess we'll find out. I have a spare bottle if needed. We will be sure to pass on that info later.

Since the refrigerator primary is electrical, it may also be running some too, unless I lock it into manual gas mode.

Thanks
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Old 12-03-2017, 03:36 PM   #4
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Between the two bottles, you should have more than enough. If not, propane is available at some truck stops, and exchange at WalMarts and other locations as well.
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Old 12-03-2017, 07:55 PM   #5
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Thanks for responding.

Yeah, I went with the 20# cylinders because they will fit in the truck bed under the hard top bed cover. The camper has the 30# cylinders but they supply the trailer. I believe they have propane at the campground we are staying at so it shouldn't be a problem. Just a little apprehensive being the first time out with it. The generator is dual fuel and I chose to use propane. Wattage is 3400/3050 with gas/propane. I tried it at home and it powers up everything including the AC so I think it is a good size, plus it fits in the truck bed as well with the cover closed. We'll let everyone know how it turns out.
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Old 12-03-2017, 08:39 PM   #6
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Well wishing you a great camping trip and please, report back on the event.

BTW ~ just wondering what the BTU rating is for your A/C unit.

Curious as you stated the gen/inverter is 3400/3050 gas/propane and that is fine for a 13,500 BTU A/C unit but a little small for a 15,000 BTU A/C unit that requires 3500 start up watts per this chart: Wattage Chart

Living up here in the northern Great Plains ~ this is our forecast for tomorrow ~ up to 3" of snow and 50 MPH winds.

https://www.accuweather.com/en/weath...eason/70003444

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Old 12-04-2017, 09:30 AM   #7
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Chief, welcome to the club! Be sure to ask lots of questions if this is your first trailer -- us old-timers love to give advice -- it makes us feel useful.

Anyway, we do a lot of cold weather camping in the Sierras -- you will have plenty of propane, I am sure. Just a bit of dry camping advice -- we run the heater during shower time, and rarely at any other time. At night, we use a down comforter -- so even when the temp inside the trailer is in the low 30s, we are warm and comfortable.

Good luck, and let us know how it went!
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Old 12-12-2017, 08:09 AM   #8
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profdant139 Thanks,
It was miserable with all the cold temps and rain the first night, so I ran the furnace as much to help dry the RV out as try to keep it tolerable inside. We also had the puppy inside with us, Dobes don't have too much of a coat so had to keep her warm too. It worked out ok though.
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Old 12-12-2017, 09:39 AM   #9
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profdant139 Thanks,
It was miserable with all the cold temps and rain the first night, so I ran the furnace as much to help dry the RV out as try to keep it tolerable inside. We also had the puppy inside with us, Dobes don't have too much of a coat so had to keep her warm too. It worked out ok though.
One more thing you might have noticed. Heating an RV in chilly temperatures builds up a lot of condensation. Good to crack a window or two or open a vent a bit. Also microfiber cloths are great for wiping down the windows before they drip.
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Old 12-12-2017, 10:42 PM   #10
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profdant139 Thanks,
It was miserable with all the cold temps and rain the first night, so I ran the furnace as much to help dry the RV out as try to keep it tolerable inside. We also had the puppy inside with us, Dobes don't have too much of a coat so had to keep her warm too. It worked out ok though.
Welcome to the group. Great to hear you had a fine first night out of cold temp. Enjoy
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Old 12-13-2017, 05:53 AM   #11
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profdant139 Thanks,
It was miserable with all the cold temps and rain the first night, so I ran the furnace as much to help dry the RV out as try to keep it tolerable inside. We also had the puppy inside with us, Dobes don't have too much of a coat so had to keep her warm too. It worked out ok though.

On one of our anxious and exciting first outings after we purchased our Fun Finder, we ran the furnace from early evening, thru the night and into the morning. The temp dipped to near 32 degrees, quite breezy and dry outside. We were very comfortable although the floor was pretty cool since there is no floor insulation in the XT276 .. just the lino over the plywood flooring but OK with moccasins on. There was no window condensation evident.

Just curious, how cold is 'cold' where you were?
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Old 12-13-2017, 12:59 PM   #12
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First outing results;

Well we made with our first outing in the FF.

Went to Savannah Ga from Gainesville Fl on Friday Dec 8, in preparation for dog shows on Sat/Sun. Rain, rain, rain. The rig pulled fine even in the rain and wind.

Arrived at the campground and began setup. We were dry camping so had to set up generator and fill up the freshwater tank. While I was at it, I made sure all the other tanks were absolutely empty, we'll need this space! Slid the slideouts out, cranked down stabilizers and got ready for the rainy cold evening. More rain all night! Temps were in the low thirties, there was frost on everything the next morning.

We had purchased a new inverter generator for this trip and to use on any other subsequent outings in the future. This one made by Champion was a 3400/3060 watt generator, dual fuel and I chose propane to run. So the lower number was what I could expect running on propane. I had two 20# cylinders because they would fit under the tonneau cover of my pickup next to the generator. I left the tailgate down and the cover down, to protect everything from rain. Worked great. The gen performed great. Provided everything we needed. We didn't test running the 13500 btu AC since we didn't need it, maybe later. My closest neighbor had a small RV with two generators mounted on a rack in the back. A Honda 3000 and a larger 7000 watt one, can't remember the name. His Honda was a little quieter than my Champion but they were close. He talked to me getting the specs and name etc on my gen so he could follow up on a purchase of his own. He said his Honda had about a million and a half hours on it and several repairs but it was still going and still pretty quiet.

Two days in Savannah dry camping was an experience in itself, but we stopped at the Kings Bay Submarine Base in Kings Bay Ga, and stayed at a small campground on base. Nice but small, maybe 60 spaces. But we were able to get full hook up. Oh it is so much nicer than dry camping. The trailer was positioned on a concrete pad with white rock on both ends. A metal picnic table and fire ring completed the site accessories. Pull through made the exit easy and after being yelled at "hey, your TV antenna is still up" by one of the residents I realized that yep, I'm still a novice. I stopped moved the slide out so I could reach the antenna crank, lowered it and closed everything back up and headed on our way.

When I got home, slid the slideout that I thought was leaking, and found the most likely spot. About a 1" tear in the slideout gasket. I guess an RV is like a small house, always something to do to it. This has been our first experience, I'm sure I am forgetting something but this is getting kind of long and probably boring so till next time...
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Old 12-13-2017, 01:06 PM   #13
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Hi Eagle,
On this FF we have some insulation under the floor covered by some sort of sheeting to hold it up and hopefully repel water. It seems to be in good shape but the uncarpeted floor still gets chilly on bare feet. I gotta get some of those moccasins.
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Old 12-13-2017, 04:52 PM   #14
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Thanks for the write up Chief.

Glad you have a good experience and fun time. I agree, full hookups are super nice too.

Only been in a submarine once, older WWII sub .. small and cramped so glad I was a ground pounder although two sons were in the Navy on aircraft carriers. One drove the boat & other fixed the jets but different carriers.

Happy Camping.
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Old 12-14-2017, 11:58 AM   #15
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Hi Eagle,
Only one ride on a submarine for me too. A dependents cruise out of Guam. Took the wife on a day excursion USS Danial Webster SSBN ??? Can't remember the number. Did a lot of work on them and support for them but only one ride.
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Old 03-05-2018, 08:10 PM   #16
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Hi Eagle,
Only one ride on a submarine for me too. A dependents cruise out of Guam. Took the wife on a day excursion USS Danial Webster SSBN ??? Can't remember the number. Did a lot of work on them and support for them but only one ride.
We did a stint on Guam at NSC in the late 60’s. Loved exploring that tropical island. We r in SC. Weather has been harsh for us in Jan. 8” of snow 😂. Look forward camping in new to us FF.
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Old 03-06-2018, 06:45 AM   #17
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For those in the 'southern states', it's going to be awhile before camping season opens here. It started snowing Sunday evening, all day yesterday and this AM continuing.
7" on the ground late yesterday and maybe another 3-4" overnight. Suppose I'll have to get out the snowblower to clear the driveway and sidewalk....but it's a heavy wet snow as temps in the mid 20' to low 30s. REgardless the moisture is more than welcome by all as been very dry this past year and in an official 'drought' area.

I-29 is closed and so is part of I-90 across the state.

By mid April the snow will be long gone and grass will be green.
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Old 03-06-2018, 08:24 AM   #18
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Yeah, I guess one of the benefits we in the South, get for putting up with all the insect critters year around, is year around RVing, LOL.
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Old 03-06-2018, 08:33 AM   #19
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We have been out on a couple outings lately. A four day trip to Ocala Fl, in January. We have a 9 month old Doberman pup, we have been showing. This was one of the trips for that. Just finished a trip to Lakeland Fl. Another dog show, but a test for me as well. My wife got a small 4 wheel buggy for handicapped folks. It broke down into three pieces and could be carried in the back of my truck under the topper. But we were looking for something different. I located a carrier that would fit into a receiver hitch, and one was mounted to the bumper on the FunFinder. Unfortunately the carrier + buggy might have been too much for the bumper. It buckled the back side of the bumper and the carrier tilted down close to the road. I beefed it up with another hitch (i'll include pictures hopefully) to show how I did this. Haven't been on the road yet, but hopefully this will support it a lot better.
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Old 03-06-2018, 09:27 AM   #20
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Chef glad you had a successful trip. Last year in September the wife and I camped in the Rockies Mountains and at night it would drop to -5 degrees Celsius (23 degrees Fahrenheit.) And like Eagle mentioned the floor can get cold. Next time I will throw a carpet down. Other than that the FunFinder performed well in the cold. On that trip I found the front cap of the trailer to be cool at night so after investigation when I got home found only a thin piece of fiberglass insulation on the front. I took out the wood panelling and insulated the front with foil insulation and found it even helps with the heat in the Summer. For outside I found if I draped 3 picnic table covers over the picnic table and get them closer to the ground and run my propane buddy heater underneath it we could sit out side and play cards quite comfortably. People walking by thought we were nuts or tough as nails. Lol
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