Heating my Winter Tent

[Northern Dancer]

At one time I didn't have the luxury of heating a winter tent. Actually? I didn't even have a winter tent. At best, the few times I camped out in the winter it was under a Lean-to made from a tarp with an open reflector fire.

But today? Today is a lot different and this is what I use.

BEFORE I GO ANY FURTHER YOU MUST READ AND FOLLOW ALL THE MANUFACTURER'S INSTRUCTIONS
THAT PERTAINS TO THE UNIT OR DEVICE YOU DECIDE TO USE FOR HEATING YOUR TENT.
Read all the instructions because your life could depend on it.
​

There are several woodstoves available for "hot" tenting. You need to do your research and read carefully what the manufacturer has to say about their product as well as what the consumer is saying. I use the one illustrated because it is the best for me at the moment. I use this for a 10 by 10 outfitters tent and it works just fine. Wood is the fuel source.

Caution. Whatever one you select check around to make sure you are getting the best buy. Unless you have lots of bucks of course then it doesn't make any difference what you pay for it.
> I recommend that you do not use the manufactured burning log as a fuel - they tend to cause a build-up of creosote on the stove pipe and can be hazardous.



I use the Buddy Heater for short camps like a weekender. It keeps me warm enough until I get into my sleep system at night and in the morning I reach over and turn it on to get dressed. Sometimes I have trouble with it in really cold temperatures. Propane is the fuel source.

I use a kerosene outdoor stove. It generates a lot of heat and lasts longer than the wood stove or the Buddy Heater. Kerosene is the fuel source.

All the tents I use in the Winter are 10 by 10.

I never go to sleep with a heat source on accept the wood stove because it tends to burn down and out.
[Using an electrical outlet at an organized camp with a heater has different safety issues.]
You can purchase carbon alarm systems to warn you if there is too much carbon monoxide in the air. ​

> NOTE: I do not recommend any product or service. As clearly stated, Do Your Research and if possible always buy on sale.

​

 

[ppine]

Hi ND.
I bought a sheet metal stove for my wall tent back in 1980. We used it for hunting trips every fall all over the West. Dad and my two brothers and me. We always had a warm place to go at night and dry out. We camped in plenty of snow and blizzards. One trip in Colorado was over 10,000 feet. Later I bought a little heavier wood stove which I still use mostly in the back yard in the same wall tent. I have taken it to Yosemite. I lived in it once for a month running a tree planting crew.

I have used a Little Buddy heater in a tent, and in a trailer. In milder conditions it works great. In cold conditions like say 10 deg F or below it just does not throw enough heat. A wood stove is far superior and works much faster.

I bought a small canvas Kodiak tent and plan to use a Little Buddy in that for fall camping.
Some of my best trips have been winter x-c skiing with a Whelan lean to and a fire. It does not get any simpler than that.

No more sitting in a little mountaineering tent for 14 hours waiting for the sun to come up.

 

[Northern Dancer]

I remember the teeth-chattering days of yesterday, just waiting for the sun to rise. I count down to jump out of bed and get the stove going and put the coffee pot on.

I tend to lean towards the wood stove too if I'm staying longer than a weekend. I try once a year to rough it and only use my sleep system to manage the frigid air. It seems to me I do that less now. "I ain't have to prove notin to no one anymore."

 

[ppine]

I never tried to prove anything. But when I was younger I had much better resistance to the cold and no heart problems.