How cold can I sleep onboard?

[rslifkin]

12v electric blankets are an option. Or a 120v one off an inverter, which gives you more size choices, etc. to fit your bunk.

[Mike OReilly]

Thanks Joe et. al for the info on the 12v blankets. I only recently became aware of these things (a gap in my education, no doubt). As I said, we don't have a real heater on our boat. I only use an Origo alcohol burner. This has always been adequate for our needs, but I have pondered getting more serious with some sort of furnace.

But instead of trying to heat the entire space, why not heat the person directly? This is where I think these electric heater pads make a lot of sense. Plus they use a renewable resource on my boat: electricity. At ~6amp its a significant draw, but you'd only need to run it for a short time.

Hmmm...

[Scorpius]

As cold as you like! Whatever turns you on!


I've slept in tents and igloos in the arctic at 55 below with no indoor heat - so anything is possible. Just ask Capt. Shackleton!

[Heathenly Twins]

Since you are, presumably, in climate controlled environments most of the time, you won't have time to get used to living in cold temperatures. Personally, I find it takes me several days for my body to warm up if I'm out camping for multiple days in cold temps. I'd recommend not closing up your boat as the condensation from the dropping air temperature will be hard to remove and likely lead to mold. You need better sleeping bags to do this and even then you may be uncomfortable. When I am unaccustomed to being out in cold temperatures I bring those chemical heat packages and activate several and leave them in my sleeping bag while I sleep; makes a big difference. You can also boil water and seal it in a leak proof bottle but that only lasts maybe 4 hours. Be prepared for getting dressed fast in the morning by laying out your clothes in order of need and being ready to heat up hot water bottles is a big help. You can also use more chemical heat packages. I don't have a heater on my boat yet either so I've been aboard in sub zero temps on occasion and done multi month canoe trips in winter using these techniques.

You can get forced-air diesel heaters off Amazon for under $200 though so why not just get one? It's much better than freezing and it'll keep your boat drier inside

[DanielI]

Thanks everyone for some great information, and I’m sorry I dropped out. In the end, we decided that we’re willing to deal with the morning chill. We do enough camping that to be prepared. Unfortunately, due to the quickly dropping water level in the lake, we needed to pull our boat out before getting the chance. Apparently, the water level was quickly reaching the bottom of the boat ramp.

Just to follow up on some of the comments: there are no slips with shore power here currently, so electric heat is not an option. I don’t feel safe sleeping with the Force 10 open flame heater currently on the boat, which I plan to remove. Some of the forced air diesel heaters look like a good option, but given the short window when we would actually use it, I can’t justify the price at the moment. I really appreciate the warnings about humidity; I was thinking the best thing would be to close everything up, but I see how that would have been a serious error- I’d prefer to be slightly cold than soggy.

Hopefully we can get back in the water early enough in the spring for some of this to still be helpful. Thanks.

[PirateFoxy]

Originally Posted by Heathenly Twins

Since you are, presumably, in climate controlled environments most of the time, you won't have time to get used to living in cold temperatures. Personally, I find it takes me several days for my body to warm up if I'm out camping for multiple days in cold temps. I'd recommend not closing up your boat as the condensation from the dropping air temperature will be hard to remove and likely lead to mold. You need better sleeping bags to do this and even then you may be uncomfortable. When I am unaccustomed to being out in cold temperatures I bring those chemical heat packages and activate several and leave them in my sleeping bag while I sleep; makes a big difference. You can also boil water and seal it in a leak proof bottle but that only lasts maybe 4 hours. Be prepared for getting dressed fast in the morning by laying out your clothes in order of need and being ready to heat up hot water bottles is a big help. You can also use more chemical heat packages. I don't have a heater on my boat yet either so I've been aboard in sub zero temps on occasion and done multi month canoe trips in winter using these techniques.

You can get forced-air diesel heaters off Amazon for under $200 though so why not just get one? It's much better than freezing and it'll keep your boat drier inside

Fashy brand hot water bottles somehow stay warm for longer than other types, ime, and I’ve never had any leaking. https://www.fashy.de/en/warmth-and-w...-water-bottle/