Keeping warm in the cold, some tips and information about furnaces

Here are a few tips, when the nights get cold. I have only travelled in the summer, but here in Sweden it can bite quite cold even then. :)
Use a isolating bed to sleep on. During some road trips I sometimes use an airmadress to sleep on. It takes minimal space.

wearing extra clothes to bed to stay warm. BUT, they
should NOT be cotton. Cotton holds water and makes you colder--synthetic only in
the cold. A got tips is heavy wool or synthetic boot socks for your feet (dry ones!). Fleece is for example a good material, and not so expensive. Microfleece is incredibly warm.

If your car is unisolated like mine is there is a tip for cold weather and sleeping, place the clothes you are going to wear the next day under your blankets so you can get them warm before you put them on.

Isolation: Cover your sides in the car / van by hanging ThermoReflex / Reflectix or a Space Blanket over the entire door or window. Tha can make a difference also (if you seal your place of, keep some air coming in somewhere so you can breath. Measure the oxygen level (instrument) to be shure. Use small magnets to hold the ThermoReflex in place, taping the magnes in place.

In my next car I will probably get a heater (solid fuel heater, marine) that I can use charcoal and wood for. Either I build my own from a propan gas bottle (P11) or end up getting something like this that I found on the Internet:



Picture from: http://www.go2marine.com/product/20010F/newport-solid-fuel-heater-00-newsf.html?utm_campaign=googleshopping&utm_medium=productfeed&utm_source=googlebase&WT.mc_id=gb1

Non-rust stainless steel construction

Heat output 3000-8000 BTU

However, I would have prefered the possibility to warm water, or do some food on the Stove, so probably have to build my own.

Probably use a straight pipe, 3 inch flue. no bends, so it is easy to keep clean (i know, missing som of the heat radiation. Probably harder with bends it you cant diassemble it..

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Another alternative is this furnace:




Boat furnace, Image from: http://www.gaiamarine.dk/ovn.htm

 Size: H: 370 x B: 240 x D: 240mm. Pris i about 4000 danish crones.
 It´s a danish guy who makes this, read more here: http://www.gaiamarine.dk


Another option I found is this wood stove:

Smålandsspisen in "child" size, fully functional. Its is a small copy of the real Smålandsspis (Småland Stove):

Width: 360 mm
Deepth: 300 mm
Height: 290 mm
Weight: 27 kg
Smokepipe diameter: 56 mm

The swedish price is about 5250 swedish crones. Aproximately 800 american dollars (in todays value)


Picture from: http://www.bastuspecialisten.se/art/zoom/sm%C3%A5landsspisen-barn/SSBM

This was originally called: "Husqvarna no 2" during  late1800, but it is remaid and now called "Smålandsspisen no 2".



This is the original from about year 1920. Husqvarna no 2
Picture from: https://www.stadsauktion.se/1110/107029-barnspis-husqvarna-no-2/
(Sold for 1200 swedish crone in an auction)

Other sites, 

Diesel Heater: Glembring, A swedish firm in Gothenburg: http://glembring.se/kaminer/

Installed on a boat by "Perra" from Oxelösund. This is pretty much a copy of the Danish Refleks stove.




Glembring Diesel Heater in a boat, picture from user "Perra" from Oxelösund http://forum.hamnen.se/attachments/seglar-snack/12201d1237821609-vedkamin-i-bat-2008-09-29-12-19-33_0001_resize.jpg

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Photos from Jesper H.

Looks like a painted Refleks..

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Refleks 66M, This is what I bought.
This furnace has an outer shell that protects so it wont get red and you can have it pretty close to other stuff. Just use a stainless steel sheet or whatever to protect.

Took a trip south of Norrtälje to buy this Refleks 66M. I haven´t tested it yet though.

The Kimberly Woodstove is good looking!
"A Mini Wood Stove Engineered For Smaller & Bigger Spaces When Close Clearances Are Required…"

Screenshot from there homepage:
https://www.unforgettablefirellc.com/kimberly-wood-stove/?fbclid=IwAR0pRqjPd2_1Vh1Q4h6JCcPHP2LgDt9MnlIsh8DOgandQVkdAm8YdkjPstc

Stoves made out of rolled plate steel are tough, highly resistant to damage and is weldable, so if you wish to add some featers Steel is the way to go. However, often the steel stove looks ugglier.
Wood stove from vedkaminer aktiebolag (A swedish company): http://www.vedkaminer.nu/kaminernew.htm

Kamin UGGLAN

Kamin LAXEN I
Lenght: 47cm
Width: 30cm
Height: 41cm (legs 22cm)
Weight: About 15 kilo
Smokepipe diamenter: 10cm

Price for this: 1681 kr
Picture from: http://www.vedkaminer.nu/kaminernew.htm

Laxen without cooking plate, unfortunatly no separate air intake.

Stove Öringen:
Solid Cast iron instead of steal, looks better, more thermal mass
Lenght: 40 cm.
Height: 41 cm, (legs 20 cm. )
Width: 31 cm.
Weight: ca 23 kg




Stove Öringen, price 2588 kr:
Solid Cast iron instead of steal, looks better, more thermal mass

Tiny Tot: http://www.fatscostoves.com/

Nice mini stove in this van. I think it's a Cubic Cub Wood stove.

 Cubic Cub wood stove, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x3bBPCvoaf4

Cubic Mini Wood Stove

Isolerande väv som dom isolerar fönster och taklucka med. Verkar bra!

Winter in a van - Vanlife Finland

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJ25SqBKZYM
Ser ut att vara samma friskvattentank som Jula säljer. 10 Liter med tappkran


It was 1,4 metre wide fabric and it costed 14 euros per metre. :) 7 layers total.

Photo from Chris A

Photo from Izzy F.
Nice build!

Cubic Mini Wood Stove

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A pretty big stove.

Photo from Josefine E.

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It’s Cubic Mini Stove from Canada
Less than 2 kW tror Vantastic, 1,6-1,8 kW.

Tiny wood stove install to campervan

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f2yzkCgORDw&lc=z22dwxw41sqmifuuvacdp435lrh5io4nswytotvkh2hw03c010c.1518623754112290

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Some smaller furnaces
Trolla
Norrahammar nr299 tex


Norrahammar 48



---- Liten kamin för värmeljus ----------
https://www.netauktion.se/auktion/produkt/liten-kamin-for-varmeljus

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Wood stove in Tarifa:


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Volkswagen T4 -2000
Vedkamin (woodstove), 100 cm bed..

Small little woodstove in a Volkswagen T4.

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Photo from Jeremy

"My van is parked for the winter & not moving with the stove in it ever." - Jeremy
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Emergency setup. Dangerous.. Cant recommend this!!
 clay pot. And clay tray
Dont splash water on it.. "the stress from rapid cooling will cause it to severely crack and sometimes shatter!!"

Isolation in your van / car

Keeping warm in your car is something that I feel is important, this is usually no big problem in the summer, but in the Swedish Winter, it gets cold...

Laren Corie (http://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/VanDwellers/conversations/messages/170761):

"Never.... Never have two vapor barriers
(the plastic and the metal of the body) with
a gap between. What that will do, is to trap
moisture between (there is no such thing as
a vapor barrier that does not leak. So, when
you have a vapor barrier on one side (the
metal of the body) the other side needs to
be able to breathe moisture. In this case it
needs to be able to dry to the interior. A
vapor barrier would stop that from happening
and your foam rubber (very expensive insulation)
would become a wonderful medium for mold
spores to grow on/in.

So, you should make you walls air tight, but
not totally impermeable to moisture diffusion,
If you drive your van regularly, then drying is
not difficult. Vehicles are very leaky while
moving, and the dash heater takes the dry
Winter air, and heats it further to make it
even drier. Just blast the heater when you
drive (this is all during the heating season)
and everything, including the walls should
dry out, if you allow that to happen, by not
putting in a vapor barrier. We used to think
vapor barriers were a good idea for houses
too. But, time and building science has shown
us the folly in our earlier thoughts."

This is what Laren Corie recommends as insulation:
Isocyanurate
However I don´t know where I can get a handle on it here in Sweden
He says:

"Only XPS (extruded polystrene) squeaks. Use isocyanurate, the yellowish stuff with the foil face. EPS (expanded polystrene) does not usually squeak, but it falls apart." -Laren Corie

I did some searching (on the net) and found more on the name: Polyisocyanurate (Polyiso). Polyisocyanurat (PIR) isolering in Swedish

EPS and XPS foams are called and are thermoplastic foams, while Polyisocyanurate is a thermoset foam.

EPS and XPS will melt at a certain temperature while Polyisocyanurate can take heat better. The Polyisocyanurate foams are also generally more resistant to solvents and chemicals.


In general, EPS foam has the lowest R-value with XPS being slightly more efficient, and with Polyisocyanurate having the best R-value per cm.

Another simple solution to quickly isolate is using Thermoreflex (sweden name). I think it is callad Reflectix in america. (Reflekterande isolering, med bubbelplast)

This is a good guide to read more:
http://www.buildingscience.com/documents/guides-and-manuals/gm-guide-insulating-sheathing

Or if you prefer swedish, a report from Skanska:
http://www.sbuf.se/ProjectArea/Documents/ProjectDocuments/711DBF18-F83A-4F42-95DC-7C0BD0ADFE96%5CFinalReport%5CSBUF%2012315%20Slutrapport%20Inventerning%20och%20utv%E4rdering%20av%20h%F6gpresterande%20isolering.pdf

Here are some other tips I found on some forums:

"Bubble wrap is a good insulator.  Use with small bubbles = layer it 6 times.  Attach with duct tape.  It worked fantastic for me."

Than another tip came from "Big Blue":

"Ive been to several stores and read tons of info on insulation.  From all that I gathered:

1.       Spray foam is toxic and gives off gasses regularly

2. Anything with aluminum of any kind on steel with an electrical current induced with causes rust.  (your battery is grounded through the chasses)
3. Have a vapor barrier."

Using the sun to warm your water, simple solution

It is always nice to have warm water, for example for a shower when you are out camping. Or just use to keep you warm in the when the temperature goes down. Put the warm water in a bottle and put some socks on the outside of the bottle and it will keep you warn for a couple of hours. For example put it in your sleepingbag if it gets cold in the night.

I found an interesting article that I will share with you.  
"Build a Solar Water Heater: An Intregal Passive Solar Water Heater"
by David Bainbridge


This is a simple solution that I like. I will try it out some time, when I am on the road and the weather is nice.
IPSWH stands for Intregal Passive Solar Water Heater. Here is an excerpt from the article:

"A low-cost IPSWH, which can be built for just a couple of bucks, was developed a few years ago by the Minimum Cost Housing Group at McGill University in Canada. This unit offers more Btu per dollar than any solar water heater designed to date, and should be useful to summer campers and owners of weekend homes with no conventional water-heating facilities. This budget water warmer can be built with a minimum of time, effort and cash by anyone in need of a little hot water for washing purposes, and requires only a plastic garbage bag, some PVC pipe and fittings, a few hand tools and a lighted cigarette for "welding" the plastic joints.

The heart of this heater is the common plastic garbage bag of 1.6-mil-thick, dark green polyethylene in a 26" X 35" size. The drain outlet is made of PVC pipe, washers and nuts, and is fastened to the bag mechanically (that is, by tightening the fittings over a hole punched in the plastic). Tests at McGill University demonstrated that a plastic bag of this type and size is strong enough to hold water to a depth of three inches, thus offering a capacity of about a dozen gallons. Temperatures of about 104°F were reached by just setting the bag of water out in the sun, and when the bag was placed inside an insulated box with a glass cover, the water temperature rose to a respectable 132°F!"

Read more: http://www.motherearthnews.com/Do-It-Yourself/1984-01-01/Solar-Water-Heater.aspx

Next stop: Byxelkrok, Öland

A friend of my suggested that I should visit Byxelkrok if I was going to Öland this summer. So the next stop had to be Byxelkrok (because I am still in Öland).

This was a nice little town.


The harbour of Byxelkrok

This is where I slept. I had some germans to the right. Here I have removed my Miyata MTB and are ready to go explorering.



I found a nice trail north of Byxelkrok. The weather was fantastic and I was really enjoying my time.

This is the beacharea south of Byxelkrok.

After som cycling I took a bath. Quite warm in the water thanks to the klappersten (the sort of mountain here).



A nice old Miyata STP steel triple butted, love this bike on the vacation. Takes me to places I never been before.



Enjoying life, nude bathing. Yes it was a bit could at first, I admitt it :-)



This is my inverter, powering my computer and charging my phone. It didnt work perfect, for example it didnt work when the engine was running..



I took the bicycle to this place, a lighthouse. Långe Erik is at the most north you can come. (In the island of Öland that is)

Borgholm castle and a trip to my biological father

After a good night in Hagapark it was time to move on. I had decided to go north, and try to find a good spot. On the way to the city of Borgholm I stooped to look at the Castle. I took of my mountainbike and also bicycle to the swedish king summerplace, called Solliden, that is just a couple of hundred meters away from the castle.

Borgholms Castle Ruins

Also on the way, I decided to take a trip to my biological father registered address. His place had a couple of cars in the garden and they all looked broken down. You can hardly se the house! It has been buried by the wild.. I took some pictures and then I were on my way again.



An old Bmw, A Volvo 240 and a Mercedes. This I think is My biogical fathers place on Öland. I have only meet him a couple of times.. Not for about 23 years now. Only time I remember talking to him was when he came by when my mother had died. I was 15 years old then.

Next stop at the island Öland, Hagapark (surfspot)

Ok, I forgot about writing about the trip to a island called Öland (july 2012). This is i a place that many Swedes goes to in the summer, mostly in July when the Swedish summer probably shows its best sides.

As a former windsurfer I had to check out a place very wellknown for Surfers and kitesurfers:

Hagapark is located between Färjestaden and Mörbylånga. If you come from the big bridge (that you drove over to get to the island, Öland) then you drive by a camping called Eriksöre, then a couple of kilometers you turn right to get to Hagapark.

Hagapark. Here are som pictures:


Hagapark windsurfers waiting for some more winds :-)

There was quite a lot of kitesurfer out on the sea also. This picture is just outside of the surfer shop.

A female kitesurfer, not so often seen.

I sleept in my the ordinary place, at the bird sanctuary. However camping is not allowed here. Not the best place to sleep in but there is a toilet nereby. Bird lovers and other come quite early with the cars in the morning. And also in the middle of the night there was to females that came and put there Bmws light right at me.  They woke me up.. No worries tho. Nice to also take a morning walk into the bird santuary and se som small frogs and a bird now and then :-)



This is at the surfparking by the beach. Here you can stand on the days for free. However it is not allowed to park here in the night. This is a nice Type2 (i think?) Volkswagen Surfbus :-)



I also took a walk to the south from Hagapark and found some sort of art in the forrest. There must have been a festival of some sort, cause there was still some tents in the woods. Looked like som "hippie" people :-)



This was a nice stairway, Of course I had to try it out. Looked like it could fall, and i said it was on your own risk to climb the stairs.

Hagapark Surfcenter. This was earlier driven by a family who had a good looking daughter (also a windsurfer). They lived i a caravan at the camping site during summer and opening time. They had this shop open during summer and I think they otherwise worked in Kalmar or something (dont remember). I alwasy thougt they seemed to live a good life! However I dont know if it is the same owner now.