Mr Heater @ high alt. question?
Contributors to this thread:Equipment
From: Buffalo
26-Feb-08
Has anyone used one of Mr heater, Buddy heaters, at high elevation. Some say the low oxygen shut-off will trigger at 9000' and some at 10,000'. I was woundering if anyone actually used one at 9000' or 10,000'. Thanks, Paul
From: BigRed
26-Feb-08
We use one at 11K ft. and the only problems we've had is with the little one pound bottles freezing up. The o2 sensor has never presented a problem.
If your camped by the road and can take a 20lb bottle with you, buy the tree and run your heater, lamps and stove off of it and you wont have any troubles.
Good luck.
From: Play Fair
26-Feb-08
Yes I have and you are exactly right. I tried at 10,500, it would run for a short period of time and shut off. I didn't mind though, it was rather comical to keep hearing my buddy get up during the night and try to reset it. I was 'warm as a bug' in a 0' bag. Before we left he was bragging about how the cold would not bother him and 'he had a good bag'. That brings back a good memory and chuckle. We still laugh about it. No they will not work.
From: jordanatwork
26-Feb-08
Might have trouble lighting with the piezo ignition.....just make sure you have matches or a lighter that works at high altitude in case......
From: Buffalo
26-Feb-08
BigRed, The 20lbs bottle was exactly what I was thinking about to run most of the stuff at base camp. We wouldn't be running it all night but just to take the edge off in the mornings.
From: No Guts No Story
26-Feb-08
At 10,800 had some trouble keeping it lit on high. On low it ran all night. Once I raised it up off the ground, every setting worked fine.
From: fishski1
26-Feb-08
I have used it quite a bit, and if you have matches,, it lights fine.. Make sure your tent is ventilated VERY WELL!! And,, remember, Propane is a damp heat.. Will not dry out clothes.
From: Ziek
26-Feb-08
Our camp is at about 10,000'. We tried the Mr. Heater Buddy one year. It would not stay lit when used on our bulk propane tanks, but worked fine on the small bottles.
From: razor
26-Feb-08
same thing, we used one at a little over 10,000 and it kept shutting off.
From: kellyharris
26-Feb-08
I know this is a lower level but mine worked at 7800ft
From: hunting1
26-Feb-08
Use mine every year at 9-11000 feet with no issues! Love mine!
From: Elk400
27-Feb-08
use mine all the time 9000 to 10000 it turns off but not unitl it has heated the tent well. I love it.
From: Rob
27-Feb-08
I use mine at 10,500 and have never had any problems with it.
Rob
From: moleshaver
28-Feb-08
I use them at around 9500 feet. No problems with the heater. I loaned one to some people that went out with me one year and they were sleeping in another tent. I told them to turn it off before bedtime and open a vent at the top and bottom of the tent. They did none of that. I had to give the lady cpr and have her med-flighted out. The other two spent the night in the emergency room. She couldn't remember her kids names for a week. Be very careful with them. Their low oxygen shut-off eventually shut off. They all woke up and started trying to relight it. For some reason, duh, they couldn't get a match to strike. Then, the lady went into convulsions and quit breathing. That was my least fun elk hunting trip. Luckily, I was a freshly trained EMT and knew what to do. All Ok today thank God.
From: BigRed
28-Feb-08
Moleshaver - That happened using a Mr. Heater? So much for claiming it can be used in a closed environment.
We always leave windows and doors cracked in the tent when using one. And never use it for long periods of time. Turn it on for a few minutes before climbing out of the bag, get dressed, shut it off. Time to hunt...
From: moleshaver
28-Feb-08
Sure did. Here is my theory. Mr. heater shut off when the oxygen got too low as it was supposed to. After it went out, they woke up and started trying to re-light it. Meanwhile spewing raw gas out in the tent. After several minutes of that is when she went into convulsions. The Mr. heater sit about 20 inches or so in the air. They were sleeping on a air matress at around 10 inches. When the air got too thin to burn at 20 inches, everything below that was carbon monoxide as it is heavier than air. She was the smallest, and it got to her much worse than the guys. The ER doctor said she had the highest levels of carbon monoxide he had ever seen in a living person. She spent nearly a week in a decompression chamber in Denver. Please be careful!It would suck to wake up dead right in the middle of the elk rut.
From: xt deerslayer
28-Feb-08
if use with 20lb make sure u use a filter on the heater u get the oil from the stuff that makes the gas smell in the heater and it will not work. make sure you shut the gas off at the tank not the heater that way all the gas burns out. we have a mr. heater have had nothing but trouble with it. this is from thier web site.
From: Bawana
04-Mar-08
The owners manual says it shouldn't be used above 7000 ft. What part of that don't you understand.
From: Wapiti Hunter
05-Mar-08
I have a retail business and sell Mr. Heater Buddy heaters. Our store is at 7500'. Most of them work fine up to about 10,000 feet. Then, as mentioned many times above, at higher altitudes, they will sometimes work and sometimes go out. I use one regularly and mine will work up to about 10,500 feet before giving trouble. The instructions also say to make sure and have proper ventalation. I always leave a tent flap open when using my Buddy heater or any other LP device for that matter.
Mike
From: JT
16-Dec-21
I am at 4500 FT elevation and I cannot get my ventless Mr Heater portable Buddy Heater to stay lit I also got a dyna glow 18,000 BTU propane heater and that won't stay lit either seems to be a combination of the cold and the elevation ??
From: Joey Ward
16-Dec-21
One thing you can do to keep the bottles from icing up and allow you to use all the propane is, take a length of copper wire and make a few tight loops around the bottle and run an end into the pilot light. Once lit, it will keep the bottle warm and keep it from icing and keep a good fuel supply to stay lit.
From: midwest
16-Dec-21
wow...13 year old thread.
From: Shuteye
16-Dec-21
I have four Little Buddy heaters and have used some for many years with no problems at all but then I am at sea level.
From: Jaquomo
16-Dec-21
I use my Buddy at 10K all the time with no issues. Sometimes an individual bottle won't produce enough pressure (I refill all my one pound bottles) but if I switch the bottle out it works fine.
Joey, that's a great tip. Going to try it!
From: Marc W.
16-Dec-21
Mine turned into a flame thrower at 10,000 with a 20# tank hooked up. Never used it again. Wood stove cane be a pain but most likely won’t kill you while you sleep.
From: tradi-doerr
16-Dec-21
Stix- Co2 is heaver than O2, sinks to the floor but will eventually fill an area. Just get a CO2 sensor, and the O2 limiter on the Mr. Buddy will work fine. Never had problems with altitude affecting my Big Mr. Buddy heater, and I keep it about a foot off the ground in my wall tent or the Kodiak, but I never run it all night.
From: midwest
17-Dec-21
I've used my Big Buddy at 10K plus with no problem many time. I usually run mine off the 20 lb. propane tank. If you run it off a separate tank, be sure you have it running through the Mr. Heater filter. I only run mine when eating before bed and in the morning before heading out.
From: Jethro
17-Dec-21
Both of those heaters have low O2 shut offs, which is most likely why they are shutting off. What are you running them in? The only time my Little Buddy shuts off is when the sensor shuts it down or the propane is empty. Like many others here have used mine way higher than 4500 feet.
From: DanaC
17-Dec-21
So, is there a 'safe' mod, maybe an oxygen sensor calibrated for the higher altitudes?
From: Brotsky
17-Dec-21
No matter what you are doing with them spend the $20 to get a battery powered CO detector. Good peace of mind to have. I run mine all night on low in my Kodiak if it's very, very cold out. No altitude issues. I have the filter Midwest mentioned above.
From: Helgermite
17-Dec-21
CO is neither lighter or heavier than "air", so when using a detector, place at the same height as you are when sleeping. I have been using a Mr. Buddy heater for over 20 years in tents and now a pop up camper without any problems. I always open the window flaps on both ends to assure a fresh air supply with one of the openings within a couple feet of my head.
