suggestions: heat for winter car camping?

[litezzz]

I've done a bunch of tent camping out in the Bishop area during the winter months and have kept comfy with:

- A good sleeping bag. For winter, i'll purchase a bag rated for well below the temp's i'll be at. You can always unzip the bag to cool off, i'd rather have the extra insurance from a bag rated for colder temps.

- Quality layers. There's so many good thermal's, socks and mid layers that insulate and keep you warm while breathing.

- Wool beanie

 

[Decipher]

Why don’t you install a remote start on your Runner. You can start the Runner when it’s time to get up and allow it to safely warm up before you get out of your sleeping bag. That’s what I’ve done and it’s great.

This obviously doesn’t address warming your tent.


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[thennen]

yea.. that's kinda what came to mind.. we left our Camry Hybrid with a Vegas Hotel valet one night and the next morning the tank was lower than i remember and the battery charge wasn't where i remembered either.. so that means they didnt properly shut down the car and the vehicle was just cycling off and on to regenerate power all night long... piece of shit valets.. but anyways.. the gas needle barely moved but the battery level was what made me realize that it had been running all night..

anywho.. do they have "hybrid" generators? I know there was a product online that converted the prius's hybrid system into a generator system for scenarios like this.. it converted the 240ish voltage system to power applicances etc etc...

but yea that's my story to share

I don’t know about hybrid generators. But I do know about forgetful dads because I was one. Once I realized I did no damage, I just chuckled. Hats off to that carbureted little engine.

 

[jdm-v35]

seems the best option is starting the car when its time in the morning.

as for the other things peoople brought up:

We have good sleeping bags and it is very warm inside. It is getting out of the bag that is when it is freezing cold.

a mr heater would be no problem in a tent, and I probably will buy one anyway for early spring/late fall tent camping.

Problem is mainly how to keep the inside of the car warm all night in the winter. I would rather not set up/take down a tent in the snow if possible due to the mess.

hotels are not feasible when out hunting etc since we start walking around 3-4am, and we are over an hour of offroading into the trails. Plus I prefer the full camping experience. I also find it a fun challenge to make it as comfortable yet efficient as possible.


Also the weather is really not that bad once you start moving. we hiked this year while 6 inches of snow fell and it was not an issue to keep pushing on for hours as the snow fell.

 

[Decipher]

seems the best option is starting the car when its time in the morning.



as for the other things peoople brought up:



We have good sleeping bags and it is very warm inside. It is getting out of the bag that is when it is freezing cold.



a mr heater would be no problem in a tent, and I probably will buy one anyway for early spring/late fall tent camping.



Problem is mainly how to keep the inside of the car warm all night in the winter. I would rather not set up/take down a tent in the snow if possible due to the mess.



hotels are not feasible when out hunting etc since we start walking around 3-4am, and we are over an hour of offroading into the trails. Plus I prefer the full camping experience. I also find it a fun challenge to make it as comfortable yet efficient as possible.





Also the weather is really not that bad once you start moving. we hiked this year while 6 inches of snow fell and it was not an issue to keep pushing on for hours as the snow fell.

Agreed on starting the car in the morning. Some of the other suggestions just are not safe, and I’m a career firefighter so I know from experience and seeing things go wrong in homes.

Again, the remote start is perfect because you can stay in your sleeping bag and hit the button before you ever get out.


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[rmbertoldi]

As a hunter I'd have to agree that a good set of heated socks or hand warmers can go a LONG way with the right set of wool thermals, they wick sweat, dry quickly and are naturally anti-everything pretty much and always super warm.

With that, I would still consider the dual-battery set-up with one of those small desktop fan/heater combos if needed, they are almost fire-proof if knocked over because of the very small protected heating element and shouldn't pull TOO much amperage.

If you're going to go that route I'm personally getting my dual-battery set-up now in stages and C4 Fab is going to have a killer blackfriday deal on their second battery platform/mount (for passenger side high mount above the air intake box) and auxiliary panel mount for the electronics on the drivers side.
Toyota dealer also just offered $99 deal on all their batteries so I can pick up another factory matched battery at a great price, figured now was the time!

Also..as some mentioned, ALWAYS have yourself a spare Nalgene marked PEE..very common backcountry/peak-climbing trick..pee in the bottle (or add boiling water) and keep in the bottom of your bag.

 

[presidentho]

seems like a pretty cool power pack. how long does it last with the blanket before needing a charge?

All night on low.


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[MasonCO]

Do they still make the Coleman Sportcat?? it uses a 1 lb. Propane bottle and lasts a long time. Will definitely heat up the interior of the 4Runner, but can burn/melt anything that it touches if you are not careful.

When I was active in scouting, I'd use one on the Winter campouts to take the edge off of the cold in a 8x8 tent. It would heat the tent to 30 or so degrees (compared to below 0 outside) while I got ready to hop into the bag. I always turned it off before going to sleep because, well, I had a sleeping bag to keep me warm. :der:

We did have a few scout parents that would run them all night long inside their tents, and they never died...

 

[jhguth]

With that, I would still consider the dual-battery set-up with one of those small desktop fan/heater combos if needed, they are almost fire-proof if knocked over because of the very small protected heating element and shouldn't pull TOO much amperage.

If you're going to go that route I'm personally getting my dual-battery set-up now in stages and C4 Fab is going to have a killer blackfriday deal on their second battery platform/mount (for passenger side high mount above the air intake box) and auxiliary panel mount for the electronics on the drivers side.
Toyota dealer also just offered $99 deal on all their batteries so I can pick up another factory matched battery at a great price, figured now was the time!

i'd assume any kind of small element heater is still hundreds of watts if not 1000W+. Let's assume it's 500W, that's 36A at 14V - you're going to need a few 110Ah house batteries for any kind of useful capacity to run the heater for a helpful amount of time.

For comparison's sake I looked up the smallest Mr. Heater, the Mr. Heater Little Buddy - it's 3,800 Btu/hr which is equivalent to 1114 Watts

 

[1jzgte]

Do they still make the Coleman Sportcat?? it uses a 1 lb. Propane bottle and lasts a long time. Will definitely heat up the interior of the 4Runner, but can burn/melt anything that it touches if you are not careful.

When I was active in scouting, I'd use one on the Winter campouts to take the edge off of the cold in a 8x8 tent. It would heat the tent to 30 or so degrees (compared to below 0 outside) while I got ready to hop into the bag. I always turned it off before going to sleep because, well, I had a sleeping bag to keep me warm. :der:

We did have a few scout parents that would run them all night long inside their tents, and they never died...

too risky in a 4runner... too tight of space and interior materials probably arent flame retardant.. even if they were.. they'll melt and scald the shit out of you before you make it out...

 

[jdm-v35]

I did a dry run and slept in it outside this past weekend during a snowstorm. it was actually a lot warmer than the wall tent, and did not require any extra heat.

I did order a mrheater on black friday, and I may get an ARB awning/room later if we go camping enough that we decide it would be useful. I would use the heater in there to warm it up for cooking and hanging out in cold weather.

I decided to invest in molle panels as well to help store some equipment more efficiently to free up sleeping space easily.

 

[rmbertoldi]

i'd assume any kind of small element heater is still hundreds of watts if not 1000W+. Let's assume it's 500W, that's 36A at 14V - you're going to need a few 110Ah house batteries for any kind of useful capacity to run the heater for a helpful amount of time.

For comparison's sake I looked up the smallest Mr. Heater, the Mr. Heater Little Buddy - it's 3,800 Btu/hr which is equivalent to 1114 Watts

How about 250W for $15? Not too shabby

https://www.target.com/p/honeywell-...S4wLtrMb1-L-CfMsvcxoCebYQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[KingTaco]

I did a dry run and slept in it outside this past weekend during a snowstorm. it was actually a lot warmer than the wall tent, and did not require any extra heat.

I did order a mrheater on black friday, and I may get an ARB awning/room later if we go camping enough that we decide it would be useful. I would use the heater in there to warm it up for cooking and hanging out in cold weather.

I decided to invest in molle panels as well to help store some equipment more efficiently to free up sleeping space easily.

I have the MR Buddy heater and the ARB 2500 awning & enclosure and it's so nice that I feel guilty camping in it. I am 6'-6" and my son is 6'-2" and we can comfortably fit in there on two extra large cots with a comfortably wide aisle in between. I used the heater about a month ago in the Sierras when temps were in the 20s at night. Intentionally used a propane tank that was close to empty because I knew we wouldn't even need it to run all night. I expect you will be happy with this setup. Enjoy!

 

[ToyoT4R]

A good multilayer sleeping bag system is all you need. The ones I used were three layers with the outer layer being a gortex shell. I have gone through cold weather training in Alaska and slept on the ground with only a sleeping bag in -20F and I was very warm with sleeping bag setup. Trick is to get undressed inside the bag and keep your next mornings clothes inside the bag with you. Then you get dressed inside the bag in the morning. My boots were another story though having sat overnight in the cold.

 

[WildSockets]

A Planar Portable Diesel Air Heater.

Be prepared to dust off your wallet though.

 

[fourrunnerbill]

For sleeping in the back of the 4runner I have a 20Deg sleeping bag, and a rumpl puffy blanket. If that's not warm enough I add an addition wool blanket and it that's still not enough I turn on a 12V electric blanket powered by a 12 10Ah lithium battery. Battery would only last one night on low setting. I have a wooden platform and it also helps to put a cheap blanket (uhaul packing blanket) on first below the sleeping bag.

 

[Ascole]

A Planar Portable Diesel Air Heater.

Be prepared to dust off your wallet though.

I just picked up a barely used Planar 44d for $80 on Offer up.


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[Lexington]

I’ve done my fair share of car camping in the winter. I sleep with no heat and then just turn on the engine and crawled back into the bag until it gets warm.

But having a warm night sleep depends on several things.

Have a well insulated sleeping pad. I’ve had my Thermarest sleeping pad for 20 years. It’s provides warm and cushioning.

A good quality sleeping bag is worth it’s weight in gold. Make sure it’s rated lower than your temperature condition. If you expect 0 degrees get a -20 bag.

A wool blanket on top provides additional warmth.

What you wear to bed is even more important. The most important rule is you want to be DRY!!! I can’t stress this enough. What ever your going sleep in make sure it’s dry. If there is an moisture from say sweat in your clothes you will feel it at night.

I found that light weight jackets and pants filled with synthetic insulation make wonderful pajamas or something to wear over your pajamas/thermal underwear and so on. If you want to go the poor man route the old green nylon military winter jacket and pant liners make excellent sleeping bag pajamas. They allow you to slide around in your bag very nicely when you turn over at night and keep you warm. You will need to add some buttons or zippers though.

I also sleep with a military fleece cap and gloves. At night you turn over and a hand will flop out in the cold. After dangling out in the cold it wake you up so you will pull it back in your bag. If you have long warm fleece gloves it will improve your quality of sleep.

I also put my clothes I will wear the next day inside the foot of my bag as long as they are clean. This way they are not freezing when you put them on.

I love camping in the snow. It’s a lot of fun but only if you have the right gear. If you don’t life sucks and you’ll be miserable. Always have extra dry clothes, underwear, socks and gloves. Gore-Tex is your best friend. Also all of your outer clothing should have synthetic insulation and not down feathers. Down is very warm but if it gets wet it takes a very long time to dry out. Synthetic down with dry out fairly quickly. Moisture can kill in a cold environment.

 

[Jensen735]

As a road tripper i'm using a windshield sunshade. It's a reflective, insulating material that's sold to fit your windows. Not only does it block the sun, it also insulates from the cold. You can buy sheets and cut them to the size of your windows.

 

[jdm-v35]

This is an old thread but since people keep adding to it i figure I would reply with what i have been doing.

If it is just me, I remove the seat bottoms for more space and sleep in the back in a -20 bag. It seems to be fine and I have slept in the car down to -25 with no issue. No running the car needed etc.

If the wife comes I now have a smittybilt XL and heat it with a diesel heater. I have not ever had to run it at a high setting yet. If we run it all night at the lowest setting it maintains 50's inside the tent even when its around 10 outside.