Looking to crowd source some opinions on best ways to plumb an external diesel heater (all in one unit sitting outside of the truck) into the bed of the truck for winter camping. We end up in bad weather and being able to hangout and cook in the bed of the truck during cold weather and also have heat while sleeping is the end goal.
I know this topic has been discussed extensively on here before and have seen some good ideas. I remember someone who had a false tailgate which is my front runner idea short of cutting a hole somewhere in the GFC or underneath the truck. 2008 Tundra.
Would love to see/hear about other peoples setups that have this configuration as opposed to venting directly into the tent.
This vent has been one of the most useful mods I’ve made. Vent in summer, heat in winter and way less dust when driving. In a pinch it makes a good window to see what’s happening beside if you’re in the back.
Not the greatest pictures, but basically a fake tailgate made from wood. Then inside I have a splitter valve. Not shown here, I run a 3” hose inside to the top through a fake bed section I made from wood. If it’s really cold I keep the bottom 25% on when I go to sleep cause I’ve found my battery turns off when it gets below -10°f.
I installed an Autoterm/Planar gasoline heater last October just ahead of ski season. It has been pretty amazing, and I’ve used it up to 9k feet. After doing a lot of thinking about how to deal with an external diesel heater, and between the problems of ducting it in, extra setup time, and figuring out how to deal with diesel, tapping into my gas tank, and cutting a hole in my truck bed seemed way easier.
In case anyone else was interested in this – I ended up going the vent route and purchased the vent recommended by @Chuck.D. I just prototyped a 3D printed adapter for the vent and it turned out well – just need to print it in a material that can withstand the heat! (PETG). Will post pictures when everything is installed and running on the camper.
@Graeme_g since using mine it almost works too good. I would recommend testing both a full coverage adapter and one that only covers 2/3 of the vent to draw some fresh air in at the same time.
I would love to buy one from ya to help cover some of your costs. This looks to be the solution I need! Which vent? I couldn’t see the link above. thanks!!
