How My 4 SEASONS TRUCK CAMPER Handled the COLD (-15 Degrees) | Can You RV in the WINTER ?
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- Опубліковано 2 жов 2024
- How my 4 season ARCTIC FOX Truck Camper Handled (-15) Canadian Winters ! In this Video I talk about how I kept warm in the RV when it dipped below 0 and what modifications I would make to make it more comfortable. Here are some tips and tricks to Rv ing in the cold winter months !
Across Canada Trip Starts HERE : Ep. 1 • We Saw our FIRST MOOSE...
Hello ! My Names Taylor . As of right now me and my GirlFriend Live FULL-TIME in my 2017 Arctic fox 990 Truck Camper. Hope to share my journey with you and maybe even inspire you ! Welcome to the RV LIFESTYLE My Friends !!
PATREON VIDEO HERE: / taylordzaman
INSTAGRAM @taylordzaman www.instagram....
Rain sound only makes it better. Thanks for the video.
When making videos like this, NEVER apologize for the sounds of nature (wind, rain, hail, thunder.....whatever). Never. I can't speak for anyone else, but I'd rather hear THAT than some BS music track that a lot of posters like to put in their videos.
Agreed
dsn1964 agree! Love the sound, people pay money for machines that mimic that sound.
Absolutely!!
I wrapped all my exposed lines with heat tape and they never froze after that
Rain sound good, city bad....
Love the rain sound!! Beautiful way to put you to sleep!!!!
I also like the fact that you could use the RV during the Winter time and not have to start somewhere during the summertime and get more Bang for your buck out of it.
We are camping all winter in the plains states with plans to head to ski resorts at the close of pheasant season. I’m in a Host Mammoth 11.6 one ton truck camper, and I find one of my 30 lb propane tanks last about a week, running intermittently at night. There was one cold stretch that emptied one a couple days earlier, but I wasn’t watching carefully so can’t be sure. One thing to check for condensation when using propane heat off grid is under the mattress. Can get pretty damp or downright wet there leading to mold. We use a fan to dry it out with our cute Honda 1000 generator. We really enjoy your videos, keep them coming!
I love the rain sound drove truck 42 years its music to help you sleep
I hope you don't sleep while driving
@@alberteinstein3078 lol I dont sleep,I'm retired now when it rains I go lay down in my RV the rain is relaxing,but at the same time I liked driving in the rain and didnt mind the snow either,but hated the fog in the 70s California central valley fog would be zero visibly for months hated it.
@@dewaynemiguel3349 lol awesome little story thanks!
That rain sound is soothing.
Embrace the sound, i love it.
I bought my house in Oregon and it has central heat and all but first thing I did was installed a wood stove. My gas / electric bill after that was the same as it is during the summer. LOVE WOOD HEAT!
Any modern propane heater will end up using about the same amount of fuel. Portable heaters may look more efficient on paper since they aren't exhausting to the outside but you end up having to provide more ventilation to provide oxygen and combat the extra moisture they pump out. You're also not going to run an electric heater off of batteries, even lithium. You're looking at roughly 100a at 12v!
Love the rain sound
MAKE YOUR BED SON! Love your video's and I know making the bed in a truck camper is WORK but FIRST THING, make it. lol, great video, I knew running the heater would drain your batteries and I THINK also your TRUCK BATTERY. One winter, in 20 degree weather here I drained all batteries. I wonder if Arctic Fox is better than a Lance.
There is a guy in Finland or Denmark that lives on a sailboat and did a video about a pretty slick little diesel stove. Check that out, probably a lot more compact and clean than a wood stove
I think that the best way to cure your heating and condensation problems is to build your cabin on your favorite piece of property. Problem solved except of course for the financing/cost but then again nothings ever perfect. Once a person realize's this life gets less complicated and stressful.
diesel air heater1liter per night
"This is what I hear" guitar riff plays.
Awesome, I'm 71 wish i was in ur shoes
Taylor: I stumbled onto your videos last night and cannot resist the urge to offer some advice. I am a couple of generations old so It comes from a good source. In the video on finances, I was struck by statement about sharing the fuel bill with your new mate, Rebecca. You have found a beautiful, low maintenance, easy going, non-drug user, no outstanding warrants, traveling companion who puts up with your crap and you make her pay half.!!!!!!!! If you were alone, you would still be racking up the same fuel bills because you are on the road a lot. You are blessed to have her company so man up and be thankful she likes your company.
Second, never, never buy an old used boat. Nothing but headaches....I don't care what the owner says. The only low maintenance old boat is a canoe or a kayak. Paddle power is reliable.
Third: Teach Rebecca how to drive your truck and let her practice. You never know when something happens to you and she has to drive. Very bad time to be teacher her how to drive a big rig. Be prepared for the unexpected emergency. Shit happens.
Good luck and keep enjoying life as much as you can while you can and be thankful you have such an easy going traveling companion.
HAHAGA...LOVE IT 🤣😍😊😘😀
You are a prince among men!
Amen, man up. My man gaslighted me into paying all the bills. Literally ran away from him. My RV was destroyed to boot when he ran it under a low Tressel. Happy now, hiding from him, living with our daughter.
That’s the most ridiculous advice I’ve ever read...except for the driving part. Going Dutch is the only way to cohabitate lest what you put up with be taken for granted.
you should get a radiant oil filled radiator for heat. Very safe.
Bro digging the rock background music!!!!!
Rain sound is better than any sleeping pills ! I love it .
January February is winter. October November is fall weather. Lol
I need to go back to Victoria. Cool city! 🇨🇦 🇺🇸
Yes you do !
Seems like you should invest in a small generator that would kill two birds with one stone you would keep your batteries topped off and you could run your electric heaters with no worries.
Great video. I camp in a older Lance 815 which is far from a 4 season camper. In temps down 0* F, I can go for a week on a single 20# tank and 3 days without hookups before I need to recharge and that is with a single 100 A/hr battery. Of course, after adding a 100W solar panel, it usually keeps the battery near full. At night, turn the furnace down as low as it will go, usually about 55*. To stay warm in bed, use a 0* oversized sleeping bag as a comforter, wear socks and a T-shirt. It really isn't that bad if you have to get up during the night. A furnace running for 10 hours constantly will only use about 35A/hrs so it isn't the furnace killing the battery but the combination all the other things you are running (do you have a battery monitor to really know you battery useage and which are the power hogs?). For the humidity, you also need to open a lower source of air so it creates a draft, just opening a roof vent won't move enough air. For my unit, I crack the pass-trhough window about a 1/4 inch and the roof vent about 1/4-1./2 turn. If you feel a draft, you actually have the roof vent open too much. You will need to open them more when you cook, but I try to limit my moisture generating foods when it's real cold. Instead of using the vent over the bed, fit a piece of 1/2" or 3/4" foam board into the space (put a piece of tape on the top with a hang down tag to make removal easy). Since you have thermal windows it helps, but I would still put foam board in the windows I don't care about seeing through (like bedroom). Since I have single pane windows, I use 1/8" acrylic sheets cut to fit the windows I want to see through which makes them almost as good as Thermals, definitely stops the draft. The best thing is at least you are out enjoying winter camping. I never let the temps or weather stop me from having a good trip since it's has it's unique beauty.
Ummm ... wow. So your furnace only draws a little over 3 amps and you only need to run 10 hours a day at an average LPG consumption of 0.12 lbs. (around 1/35 of a gallon) per hour to maintain a 55-degree differential while the pass-through and a vent are cracked open and heat circulation is such that the pipe compartments don't freeze. Not only is your Lance 4-season, but with that kind of physics-defying capability, you should be able to sell it at a good profit for arctic exploration off-grid.
Better than fan always on is insulate and have fan thermostat controlled for the access area. Save your batteries. As for the space heater, juice costs vary greatly by location. maybe you need a diesel heater. more btus per volume of fuel.
That’s not cold it gets down to -45c in Manitoba
Hahha. Right....
Same in Northern Alberta and Northern Ontario.
It got down to 57*F in Miami yesterday!!!
Great videos! Wow, camping on Vancouver Island...can't wait to try this! As well, to stay warm, how about a heat bed? or electric bedcover? Glad you are doing these videos :-) Remi from Montréal
Dude! You’re doing it. I’m so proud of you. Keep living the dream.
I did the RV thing for a few across the water from you. During the winter My Honda EU2200 was a savior. My Motorhome had a large Gen Set that gobbled gas.I bought the two Hondas to supply power for building a home and never looked back. Power the job site all day and keep the Motorhome dry and charged during the evening night. They are quiet and sip gas. Got rid of the damn motorhome but still have and love the generators. One of my biggest problems was keeping The Jumping mice at bay. I lived on the Hoh river and them things were everywhere. Them things will fight back when you corner one in a cabinet.
if you put a switch on the basement fan, use a thermostat, set it at 45F or so, that way it only runs when it needs too. If you run all the time you are just drawing more battery and heat out of the camper to heat the basement more than it needs to be heated.
Just go buy some insulating foam to wrap those pipes in the compartment.
Insulation only keeps the heat in thats already ambient, buys you a few hours only. Needs to be heat traced.
I believe the choice to get a gasser over a diesel was a huge mistake. Especially when it comes to replace the truck.
To avoid rain sound think of covering the roof by fixing up another soft roof on top of the camper original roof. Its like putting umbrella over the vehicle.
My favorite is also fire.
look at you go with the new camera angles and fancy editing. nice man!
Couple of options(?) for winter camping (of various efficiencies) not mentioned are buying/installing a tank warming pad for one or two of your tanks so the circulating fan wouldn't be quite as necessary and to keep your tanks (or at least your fresh water) as full as possible because larger quantities of water freeze slower. The second is more for when experiencing below freezing temperatures is more occasional than consistent.
So cool perfect info love it very detail
Love the rain on the roof, it must be warmer having the love of your life sleeping next to you...it’s great to see you grow from the rookie rv’er to the seasoned one
Love that provincial park
I have a Northern Lite which is also a 4 season camper. (Love it BTW) They run an actual heating duct to the dump compartment so the heat is pushed directly to this area. The coldest I have camped is 28 degrees F (-2 C) for extended time. I have a remote temp gauge in the compartment you showed (walmart - cheap buy) so I know what the temp is there as well as inside the camper. It usually stayed at about 8 degrees colder than the cabin. So I set my temp inside at 55 F to get me through the nights. I would run the temp up to 75 right before going to bed and did this while I was charging the batts on generator which I ran for two hrs...this means that the blower was working off the gen not the batteries as it was heating up. In the morning I would run the heat up again to about 65 which felt much warmer to be honest and believe it or not cooking would bring up the temperature even more. Solar during the day would bring up the batts which I constantly watched to make sure they stayed above 50%. I run two 6 volt T-105's by the way...excellent for boondocking. As Taylor pointed out, the biggest problem or at least my biggest worry was the drain on the batt but the way I was doing it I stopped worrying about it once I figured out the consumption rate. I went through propane but not as quick as Taylor but it wasn't as cold either. A standard exchange propane tank lasted about 8 days. Key things to keep down moisture is run your vent fans when cooking or taking a shower. Good vid Taylor....glad you stopped that silly job thing for the winter and are back to making Truck Camper Vids again.
Nice rig.... I highly recomend the Dickenson Newport propane heaters... The way they vent will resolve lots of your Condinsation issues... Sips propane... And little 12 volt power for fan.. There pricey. .. But well worth it... I full time all winter
You are heating the entire camper. I used shower curtain rods and blankets to reduce the area I was heating each night - this saved a lot of fuel
Can you not do solar to charge battery’s? Also check out electric heated mattress pads, they have some realy nice dual zone ones that work awesome and really help in the cold.
come to manitoba in late January or February when its typically -30, sometimes as low as -50 with the windchill and report back lol would love to know if these things are suitable for winter in my climate...
sounds like at minimum I'd need to add a mini wood stove to run instead of using so much propane..
So, I guess class-B vans with 400A lithium modules, 400 watt solar panels, under-hood generators and auto start self-regenerating power win again, 30 Amp always present on board... What Taylor is describing basically very outdated system with old weak batteries, loud generator etc... It's so 20th century... Nowadays those class-B vans beat every other existing vehicle in terms of boondocking, there is no alternative to them. And now they're looking into fuel-cell systems, capable of producing 500 watt continuously, using only 1/3 lbs of propane per hour, in addition to solar and under hood generator power, you can never run out of power there! Which means you can run your electrical heater and dehumidifier 24/7 without problem and use water it produces for your fresh water needs.
Samuel, which class B Van's are those?
There are anti-fogging car products; some people use them on their car windshields in the winter, you can try that.
SALT
I love this kid his videos break down the lifestyle all the way down to draining your tanks step by step...and he ain't afraid to talk finances with real numbers😎
That rain puts me asleep.,I'm shopping for a 1 ton truck an camper
For a camper like this one you need a Dually 3500 regular cab. If you get a crew cab you will not have the weight carrying capability and you will be over your G vwr
@@redwood6737 nah crew cab dually is fine too. I have the little brother on a mega cab dually
I commute from Duncan to Langford for work and pass your rig a lot.
My Northern lite years ago at -35*C hunting used the 20 lber in a day and a half. Burrrrr. Wabassco and a few other diesel heater work well for space heating. Where you don't get the condensation problem. Yes less fuel and have more heat. They are not as flammable either which is nice as well. One of the 4x4 mags years ago 20? took out the propane heater and put a diesel heater into the there camper and said this so have been aware of it since then . Funny that the manufactures have not gone to diesel as a lot to trucks are now diesels.
Great INFORMATION..thank you
I’m surprised at how loud the rain is considering how well insulated this camper is supposed to be.
Obliviously it is not.....sounds like there is minimal insulation in the roof...
Parked under the trees I think the drops are bigger, I know they are when they hit me on the head!
One last suggestion anybody who has a boat the use something like a diesel heater and you could tap off the tank of the pick up truck. People in the sailing and boating world use a diesel heater.
Might be wrong but think his truck his gas, not diesel.
Good day, yes after seeing your video, I have to tell you this, I have built a lot of campers myself, and have not used gas for years, too many problems, I normally maintain everything that sails and especially electricity on board of ships, and my brand what I use is victron, and they have the whisper gen.
5kwh heating, 750 watt electricity for charging the batt,
just go looking for info.
Greetings from Latvia
I love Arctic Fox.
The Olympic 3 or 5 are great for small RVs. Before I got mine I went through at least 3 of those Mr Heater Buddies. They are all POS heaters.
Been watching this channel for the last yr,leaned a bunch more on what I do not want.
I'm close to retirement from OTR driving,O/O pulling a refer,lower 48,I just don't see me doing the house deal sitting in one spot and due to putting so much time into being a professional driver pretty much made the transportation industry my career decided on a class c or super c,being my transition will go from steering wheel to desk and will be at a large trucking company I have parking right were I work,weekends can just go dissappear or what not,truck stops for the rv dump and water,depending on time of year and location water is free.
Class c becuse it's full time,the C offers not only the room but generator,solo panel room and space for a battery bank.
I can tow with a class C if I want to add an ATV or UTV plus supplys.
As far as off grid just need the clearance and a front mount hitch winch if I get stuck.
Really appreciate the work you did on this channel,helped me decide on what would be best for me,doing the cost of a truck camper plus the truck and vids like this lead me to decide on C or super C,super C is more on price,if I find a lightly used camp ground queen super C that's my 1st option and there around just have to look.
Again great work keep it up and thank you,not to bad for a Canadian!
These are the videos I like, everything about arctic fox camper living and maintenance! Keep up the good work!
enjoying from Dhaka, BANGLADESH
Great job at living life to the fullest. Very interesting and informative.
what?? and your complaining??? This is the sound we want to hear...
I use a good down sleeping bag over two sheep skins while I sleep.
Sounded like you were making popcorn.
I put a woodstove in my RV. It was a fun little project. Ran the pipe out the window. That dry heat really takes the moisture out. Be prepared for a bit of smoke upon startup but otherwise it's very worth it.
Oh OK I thought you were making popcorn. Bye the way, - 15 c is not extreme winter weather, come to Manitoba in Jan /Feb then review your 4 season Artic Fox. Be well. 👍😎
I know this is an old vid... but do you ever put an angled tarp up above to keep the rain from beating on it?
I love the sound of rain!
THAT RAIN NOISE IS SO DAMM RELAXING! I'M A NEW SUBSCRIBER CHEERS FROM VANCOUVER BC
Man I can't even explain sitting in the rain smoking some gas and just listening to the rain and thunder. Nice
They make moisture traps that work pretty well to help with the condensation
I love the sound of the rain on the roof. I installed one of those diesel 12v heaters in my 32ft trailer and it works great, uses very little current and just sips the diesel fuel.
Awesome units!
I've got a 2006 Lance 1181. It has heater ducts going to all the engineering spaces. If I used an electric heater, it wouldn't keep them from freezing. But it would keep me from draining the batteries. The other problem I've run into is the water heater when pugged into friends power. Most home owners don't have 30 or 50 amp plugs so you're going to melt the extension cord plug if you try to heat the water using electricity. My water heater is dual power. I just use propane for water heating and the furnace and charge batteries and use the ac for the heater blower and the fridge ((it switches to shore power automatically)..
Dude, bring a girl with you and share some heat! ;-)
Taylor, Thank you for your insight. It's given me plenty to consider that I wouldn't have thought of till I saw the need. One thing I have wondered is how well it would survive winter conditions in Idaho. Only a few days out of the year does it get as cold as you have most of the time during the winter it might hit the teens but that only last about a month usually. I am going full time RV sorta. What I mean by that is that I am a Professional Truck driver and live in my truck year round already and am only home 4 to 6 days a month. For that reason I decided to go Full RV when I am back at my home terminal for those 4 to 6 days. No more renting rooms or paying for an apartment for which I am not home to use but yet pay for someone's mortgage. Now it will be my mortgage and the home(camper) will be mine. Already searching around for a Mr Buddy to have as a backup and already have a airfilter/heater by dyson to use when on shore power that is temp controlled. Thanks to the down payment on my credit card, yes, I said credit card, I am using the points it gave me for a sporting good store to get me some -10 or -20 sleeping bags to lay over the bedding. I use them in the big truck already and have kept me warm when the temp in the truck was like in the 10s and 20s. if I still have points left, I get me a Mr Buddy as an emergency backup heat source. Provided that I have sunny days, my camper comes with the 170watt solar panel so that should help with battery recharge. I am used to that too as my 18 wheeler is equipped with the controller for it and some of our 53ft trailers have solar panels on them to recharge battery's on the truck. So as you can see I am a little used to living this way, just never did it this way where I have so many more options. Looking forward to living the dream....lol.
Supplement heating with Buddy Heater, saves batteries. Don't forget to keep a window/vent cracked and ensure your CO detector is operating correctly. Cheers!
People in RV's are suppose to drive south and avoid winter. Though I lived in a 5th wheel in Port Angles for 2 years and that was the most winter camping I plan to ever do. That winter it got down to almost 0 at night for a couple weeks and even with an electric heater I went through 2 big tanks of propane a week. I am going to try a catalytic heater in my motor home when I head south to AZ next month. The forced air furnaces eat power and propane.
Moisture traps might be worth a try. My dad used them when he stores his Caravan over winter.
I don’t have an RV however if I did, I would put into action this clever little “hack” to stay warm in the winter, which I will happily share with you..... drive south!! 😂. Love your content!!
It always feels good on bed hearing the sound of the rain.
Hey man hope you post soon!
On board yachts a nice little wood burning stove will take most all of the condensation out of the air and provide free heat. Propane is the worst. Everthing will get damp with propane. "Clothes, sheets and blankets."
Plenty of small wood burning stoves for boats might help?
Look into the Dickinson Newport Propane Heater P9000 or P1200 , I don't have one , But I was researching them for my truck camper we are getting this spring , They have wood , diesel and propane heaters , There made for boats and take very little space , But like you said , the slide can be a issue for the stove pipe
Miss you man😕
First time seeing your channel. I've wanted to do the same thing full time for years now. Anyway, great video. You're well spoken and knowledgeable. Thanks.
I'm actually surprised you haven't invested in lithium batteries yet. You'll gain so much more capacity and the life cycle of lithium batteries is 10 times higher. You can charge your average acid battery 400-500 times before it starts degrading and lithium batteries can be charged 4000-5000 times. Add to that, lithium batteries don't lose 50% capacity right out of the gate like acid batteries do. They have an optimal range of 20-80% but still work fine below 20% charge and won't be permanently damaged if fully drained. Add to that, despite the higher cost per battery, the cost per kWh can be as low as 2 cents less than an acid battery solely because of its increased lifespan.
It's really beyond me why people still rely on technology invented almost 100 years ago for temporary power storage to run starter motors as a semi-permanent/permanent power source for a home. It makes no sense.
I agree with the previous comment, the rain sounds amazing. I’m sure it can get frustrating though, if it carries on for days. Your photography and editing was amazing this time around. It always is, but you threw in some different editing tricks, worked great. This will sound ridiculous, but I worry about you in the extreme cold, with the carbon monoxide, has that been an issue? Keep up the great work brother. My son and I get excited every time you post a video, can’t wait to see the next one
Hard to believe you suffered with social anxiety! Well done...go get'm tiger!
Taylor love your videos.....i have an idea for your heating problem. You can make a portable woodboiler. You would light a camp fire and run water through a steel pipe into the fire and into a water to air heat exchanger. Vary efficient!!! i once made one for my buddy's hunting cabin. You can buy these heat exchangers from princess auto here in canada! It would heat up the fox nicely. Let me know what you think.
P.s i am using my kid youtube channel my name is Jp! Keep up the videos!
Hey Taylor, believe it or not there is a hidden overhead light just inside the dump compartment door. When it gets cold in my AF990, I turn that light on to provide some extra heat near those lines. Good video, keep up the good work!
They're LED lights so you're wasting energy more than anything. Negligible heat from them
Mine is also incandescent back there. Works great
@@chipstrips interesting. I have a 2018 AF 811 was under the impression it was LED. Guess mines incandescent as well probably then
Chip Reinhardt
Add foam insulation board to the tail light and electric outlet box from the inside. Check the AF TC Facebook group to see some pictures of the mod
Chip Reinhardt ,,I have a 992, are you freaking kidding me is there really a light up there?
If your keeping that skylight open, thats where all your heat is escaping. Windows suck heat right out.
Hey Taylor, Not sure if you have one already but a Fan -tastic vent cover over your fantastic fan in cabover fits perfect when using it in inclement weather.
Thanks for the video, live the dream.
The rain sound soothes me. Nothing I love more than the sound of rain dripping on the roof.
Nothing helps me sleep better than heaing rain on the roof...i would LOVE that!
Always like the sound of rain on the roof
I love the rain sounds honestly lol
Vancouver Island warmest winter, I live on furthest point east NS near Canso, is the best mean average temp year round mild winter and no heat waves. This would work in my area, just run a dehumidifier and line heaters
That was pretty much my experience in my '93 4-seaason Lance. Those aluminum windows are the problem. They are sooooooo blasted cold. I hope to build my own RV someday and I'll definitely fix that problem when I do.