In a message dated 12/20/98 5:21:12 PM US Mountain Standard Time, Windsurphs@aol.com writes:

I have carpeted over my '63 SilverStreak's floor furnace. Just heat using a terracotta pot (make sure it has the drain hole in the bottom!) and 12 volt fan over stove. The original floor unit turned the insulated trailer into a sweat lodge.

In a word, don't. Your stove (mine anyway) has a prominently visible label saying IT IS UNSAFE TO USE COOKING APPLIANCES FOR COMFORT HEATING or words to that effect. Believe it. Terracotta pot or no, the flame uses up oxygen and all the combustion products (carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and a lot of water vapor) go into the interior of the coach. Highly dangerous, you could go to sleep and never wake up. Nor do you want all that moisture in the coach.

That is why (in my coach anyway) there is an exhaust fan directly over the range, which you are well advised to use while cooking, to avoid buildup of moisture and noxious gases inside the coach.

In a properly installed furnace the air for combustion is taken from, and the exhaust gases are discharged to, the outside. The air to be heated is recirculated inside the coach, and those two air streams are kept entirely separate.

The original (Suburban) furnace in my coach (1978) is controlled by a thermostat, which allows you to set whatever temperature is comfortable. One minor problem: the thermostat is directly above one of the bed lamps. If that lamp is left on for a long period, it gets hot, the thermostat gets warm and the rest of the coach is inadequately heated. Or you have to turn the thermostat up a bit, and remember to turn it down again when you turn the light off ...

John
Susi and John Burchard