Glad to help. Rick

There are so many opinions about what is best. I recommend people do what I do and test different heat sources from wood stoves, propane stoves, diesel heaters, and kerosene heaters. This is a big discussion and it's great to hear your thoughts on this. Rick

I recommend that people use the type of hose that Mr Heater recommends. See the link below for that hose. Mr Heater Hose: amzn.to/3Vt3SMz Let me know if you have any other questions. Rick

If you have watched my videos you will see that I tell people to vent their tent or RV, plus have an O2 / CO2 detector. You're absolutely correct, that you need to be careful when you use these heaters. Rick

I like these heaters a lot but I have also learned to take a backup heater and hose with me. Rick

@mikenrickoutdoors I camp in moderate to extreme heat. Occasionally, I get caught in the cold, and the Buddy is fine. You just have to plan for where you want to go. If I was in Alaska for instance I would have at least three different sources for heat just in case.

Great points. Every trip and every location requires a different plan. Rick

Glad to help. Rick

I think I agree with you. I will be testing different wood stoves in the future and showing people how to control the heat, plus also how to cook on them. Rick

@mikenrickoutdoors honestly heaters are a godsend but its reliability of burning wood that appeals to me.

Great point. I have had several heaters have issues or the hose, or propane tank, but thankfully I have had backups. Rick

Here's a link to it on Amazon. Coleman Gas Lantern Northstar 1: amzn.to/418GQhI Global Trade ID: 00076501234121 UPC #: 076501234121 Let me know if you have any other questions. Rick

Great information. Thanks for letting us know. Rick

That's good to know. I'll check it out. Rick

It's an REI Kingdom Cot 3. Let me know if you have any other questions. Rick

Thank you. I'll add them to my notes and practice both of them. Rick

Thank you for the heads up. I'm looking at making that change and will include it in an upcoming video. Rick

Absolutely. Glad to help. You need the quick connect hose with the regulator. It's the one that Mr. Heater recommends. amzn.to/3Vbnox5 Let me know if you have any other questions. Rick

Let us know how you like it and if you have a successful hunt. Rick

@mikenrickoutdoors I got it because I needed something more compact and could carry with me in the field I'll let you know how it works out

Thanks for the comment. Rick

I agree. These tents are really nice. Rick

We have several videos on these heaters and I have let people know in several of them that a 1 pound cannister will last about 2 to 3 hours on high and 5 to 6 hours on low. I have never been able to get all the way through one night on one cannister. I always have to switch to a new cannister around 4 am. Rick

I think you would be better off with a 1 lb canister set on low, if the temperatures aren't too low. Most everyone I know that has a van or truck camper don't need the Big Buddy in the smaller area. My only caution is testing out what temperature setting you would need if you used the Portable Buddy as it will only last 2 or 3 hours on high, and up to 6 hours on medium. You would need to carry more cannisters with you, depending on your need. I would also consider carrying a Small Buddy with you as a backup in case your primary heat source stopped working. I had this happen to me on my last camping trip. If you're going to be out for an extended period of time with extreme cold temperatures, then you may want the Big Buddy with a 20 lb tank, but I doubt it. Big Buddy: amzn.to/4hZTFRe Portable Buddy: amzn.to/3ZgIwEo Little Buddy: amzn.to/3YZePGt Let me know if you have any other questions. Rick

great, thank you! I'm eventually going full lithium battery, heat etc.. before the build is finished I'm taking trips to MN and CO... I have the Mr buddy portable and it heats the van very nicely. I just wasn't sure if it was safe to use a 20 lb tank in can or not.

I've heard many people talking about the potential safety issues but Mike and I have never had any issues. Let us know how it goes. Rick

We back truck close to where we want to put it in the water and then carry it a short distance. Of course it's better with two people, but even then we don't carry it very far. Dragging the bag also works, but it's only for a short distance. Sometimes we'll leave the bag on the trailer and pull everything out individually. Tell us what your experience has been. Rick

Thanks for the thumbs up. Several people have told me to connect the bottom two sections of pipe, then put the top section through the opening, and then I don't think you would need a ladder. I may change how I have the sections connected so I also don't need a ladder. It's more STUFF to pack. Rick

Glad to help. Let me know what you think when you get it setup. Rick

I am learning my lessons. I'm losing weight, plus I am more conscious of how I breath on camera. Check out my latest video putting the 10x10 tent up on my new channel CAMPING WITH RICK. Kodiak Canvas 10x10 Tent Setup (with less breathing): kzbin.info/www/bejne/fobQoXlugJ6Yg8U If you have time, let me know if I did any better. Rick

Thanks for the thumbs up. Now you can see how they say it's a 6 person tent, but I disagree. It's a 1 person tent. Rick

Glad to help. Rick

It's called the ALL MIGHTY GUARANTEE. Here's more information about it in the description below. www.osprey.com/customer-support/all-mighty-guarantee?srsltid=AfmBOorxXEzLNpeHiMmMPJUhkpFf6v4msH-B9TynH_2B9pCZ0lVTy6oa Thanks for bringing this up. Rick

No. I was testing it to see how warm it would get in cold weather. I tested it again this week on my camping trip to SW Colorado and we had temperatures down to 14 degrees to 25 degrees at night all week and my tent stayed between 55 and 65 degrees. I'm testing more heat sources including wood stoves, diesel heaters and kerosene heaters. Let me know what you like to use when camping. Rick

@mikenrickoutdoors I prefer to sleep in my truck with a camper shell with a bed platform. I heat it up with a buddy heater before crawling in for the night, then light it up in the morning. Sometimes leaving just the pilot on as they throw off a fair bit of heat. I tend to sleep hot anyway. A mattress with a high R value and good bag, also using a liner bag, sometimes in conjunction with a wool Army blanket. No mummy bag for me, they drive me nuts and I'll have weird dreams.😵‍💫 Fresh, dry, loose fitting socks before bed. I have tent camped in mid 20's temps and found myself using the heater on and off through the night, but it wasn't a 4 season tent.

Thank you. I'm debating myself about continuing on with tents or moving to a camper shell or a truck camper. Thank you for sharing how you sleep. I'm always looking to keep things simple, but effective. Rick

I found it on Epidemic Sound. It's called Baptized and Buried by Will Harrison. Rick

@mikenrickoutdoors 10 4 thank ya sir!

Glad to help. Let me know if you have any questions. Rick

I have been testing the Big Buddy again down to 14 degree weather here in SW Colorado and it's doing well, but may be reaching it's limit. I'm also testing out diesel and kerosene heaters now to see if I can find a better heat source. Rick

Good point. I have the Big Buddy, Portable Buddy, and the Little Buddy, plus I bought a backup Big Buddy. Now I also need a backup hose. It's always good to have backup heat sources when camping or if you lose power at home. Thanks for the thumbs up. Rick

Thank you for sharing this. I have the Big Buddy, Portable Buddy, and Little Buddy and have never had any issues, but I do watch them closely as anything could happen. Rick

I'll be testing these more next week and I'll have more videos up in November. Will you give me a little more information as to exactly what you would like tested? I'll have my Big Buddy, Portable Buddy, and Little Buddy with me, plus a wood stove, and a diesel heater. Rick

Glad to help and thanks for the thumbs up. Rick

No, the floor is permanent, that's why I use two heat shields. good point on the pipe sections through the roof. Rick

Biggest problem I have with this stove is overfiring it , occasionally it will jump to 1000° degrees and then I got to knock it back a bit with the dampers ,still can't find the sweet spot

I had the same problem and I believe it's due to too much air coming through the edges around the door so I bought some heat resistant tape to put around the door to see if that helps me control the air flow, and in turn helps me keep the temperature down. I wanted to test it on this weeks camping trip to SW Colorado but I had too much gear with me. I will be testing it out in the coming weeks in November to see if this is a solution. If not, I'll switch to another wood stove. Rick

Good points. Thanks for the comment. Rick

Always glad to help. Rick

Thank you for letting us know. It's hard to keep all the different types of trout straight in our heads some times. Rick

Nice! I love to hear about what others are doing, even permanent setups. Thanks. Rick

Glad to help. Let us know what you end up cooking. Rick

The manual says a lot of things, plus Mr Heater will never tell you to bleed the 20 lb line to make it easier to light, but I'm sure that's for liability concerns, but these are things I have found over time that make using the Big Buddy Heaters work better for me. Another thing is when I look online and at Cabela's, they are selling the hoses right next to the Big Buddy heaters, so I guess they need to figure out they're also wrong. I put my propane tank outside the tent so that adds a little safety. I'm heading back out at the end of October and will probably be testing a diesel heater. Several people have been giving me advice to try that so I believe I will. Thanks for leaving the comment. Rick

Good point. I'll be putting it up again at the end of October so I'll make that change and try it out. I'll upload a new video with the changes. I'll mention your KZbin name in the video if you would like me to. Rick

Absolutely! Rick

You're absolutely right. I own the correct hose now, as does Mike, and it works much better. Thank you for the comment. Rick

@@mikenrickoutdoors Please tell me what is the ‘correct’ hose that does not require a filter? I’ve been running two Buddy heaters and one Big Buddy heater with Mr. Heater hoses that are connected to 20-pound propane tanks. I was planning on buying the Mr. Heater filters at $11.99 each, at the local Tractor Supply. Are y’all suggesting that I don’t need the Mr. Heater filters if I am using the Mr. Heater connecting hoses? (That would be great because I’ll save about $40.00. Blessings 😊

I use this hose you can get off Amazon. amzn.to/3ZEPGma Mike and I have used several other hoses with filters, but have had all kinds of trouble with them. The hose with the regulator and quick connect has been much better for both of us. Let me know if you have any other questions. Rick

@@mikenrickoutdoorswhy would it work much better without a filter? I don’t understand. I do understand if you use the correct hose you don’t need the filter… but why would it work “much better” without a filter? Just doesn’t make sense to me

If you want expert advice, I would call Mr. Heater and talk to them directly. The filter is not needed if you have the regulator. I believe it's because it lowers the pressure entering into the heater. Don't take that as a professional answer. Also, Mike and I have both owned many of these hoses with filters and with the regulators. The hose with the regulators have worked much better. We have both had more issues with the hose that needs the filter. Let me know if you have any other questions. Rick

Yes. I haven't had smoke leaking from mine. Is the damper on the pipe open? You may need to contact Camp Chef directly if you keep having an issue. Let me know if I can help more. Rick

No. That way would allow moisture and creosote to leak out onto the stove top. You want the pipe in the stove so anything leaks back into the stove.

@mikecamrcplus3057 do you think the fact that I had to reduce the size of the chimney down to 3 inches, to get through my tent's stove jack is the biggest issue? Or if I keep the fire fairly small, would I still be able to get a proper draft, and keep the smoke from coming out?

@@Dmac6969 A 3" hole has area of 7 sq/in. A 5" hole has an area of 19.6 sq/in. That's 280% more. (check math) The stove firebox and fresh air intake were all designed for a 5" pipe outflow. Basically you are trying to start a fire with your damper permanently closed and seeing smoke in your tent. So only option I see if keeping that tent is stretching the stove jack if possible. The alpine stove pipe starts at 5" and works to 6" at the end of 10 feet. So install the pipe from outside sliding the 5" end down thru the jack. Will it spread the jack out enough to reach the stove without damage? If not then look at de-stitching the jack and sewing in a 5" one. Do it yourself or find a canvas tent repair place. Keep the old 3" jack to slide over a 3" pipe and close the gap for the 5" jack. Hope that makes sense. Good luck.

@mikecamrcplus3057 ya the only places that the smoke leaks from is the joints of each pipe. So I thought maybe the pipe just needed to be sealed better and that maybe the pipe that came with the stove were poor quality.

Both of them were on high. Let me know if you have any other questions. Rick

There are several videos and I'll list them below. The first time I tried securing the stove I used paracord but that almost burned off. That's why I switched to metal. Camp Chef Stove Out of the Box: kzbin.info/www/bejne/fpOskIRnoJ2JhbM How to Secure a Tent Stove Pipe: kzbin.info/www/bejne/pp61ZXadYpJ1oJI Rain Cap Spark Arrestor: kzbin.info/www/bejne/sH6saIqva6iZbZY Here's an example of the quick link clips I used to attach the chain to the spark arrestor: amzn.to/3N5gu7Z Here's what I used to attach the chain to the tent poles: amzn.to/4gLQAnu That's all I used. Let me know if you have other questions. Rick