Coleman Black Cat heaters

[SMT376Richmond KY 10]

Does anyone use these in tents?

[Bob White 20]

DANGER DANGER WILL ROBINSON!!!!

 

You absolutely can not use a heater in a tent. In the scouting program any flame whether open or enclosed cannot be in any tent during a scouting activity. How we choose to endager our lives outside of scouting is up to us, BUT you cannot use any flame in a tent in scouting.

 

READ THE GUIDE TO SAFE SCOUTING and the instructions to your tent.

 

Bob White

[SR540Beaver 116]

It is a catalytic heater, there is no flame. However, if placed too close to a combustable material long enough for it to reach it's flashpoint, the material could catch fire. Not from an actual flame, but from the heat. I am not advocating their use, just saying that it does not use a flame to heat.

 

Here is an excellent review of the heater worth reading: http://www.gearreview.com/blackcat.asp

 

Having said all that, I'm sure that G2SS would still prohibit their use and it is best to err on the side of caution anyway.

[OldGreyEagle 5]

Not being a combustion expert, I have a question, does a catalyltic heater procduce carbon monoxide/dioxide?

 

There may not be a flame, but if the flames dont get you, the gases might, especially in a nice tent all zipped up to keep that heat in

[Bob White 20]

Mia Culpa,

The version I grabbed a look at on the internet looked like it had a flame. OGE raises a good point agout the gas exhaust.

 

BW

[SR540Beaver 116]

If you'll go to www.coleman.com or the review I listed above, it will answer your questions. The Coleman Black Cat comes in two varieties. One is match lit and the other is electric ignition. They tell you to light it outside the tent. I believe there is an iniatial flame that goes out and then it provides heat thru a catalytic process. Coleman says you need to leave a six inch sqaure amount of ventilation for fresh air. The review discusses air volumes and carbon monoxide. It was designed for tent use with ventilation. I got one for Christmas. Still in the box as I have not been camping since then.

[Scoutmaster Ron 12]

Heaters are Heaters better safe then warm, grab an extra blanket

[scoutldr 726]

Any source of combustion will produce carbon MONoxide...a silent killer. I would not gamble my own or my Scouts' lives on whether we have "adequate ventilation" or not. You won't know for sure until the next morning and you count how many wake up. Most young scouts will button up a tent so tight that NOTHING will get in or out, not even monsters, bears, or AIR. It's just not worth the gamble, in my opinion. And for those of you familiar with the old white gas/Coleman fuel catalytic heaters, the "catalyst" was a layer of asbestos cloth. Not sure what the new ones are made of.

[sctmom 11]

A few years ago at a Cub Scout campout near here, a man and his son died from having a heater in the tent because of the lack of oxygen.

 

[SMT376Richmond KY 10]

Good responses. I have read G2SS and it mentioned as doe the ten tags no flames in tents. Since these heater are no flame producers I thought I'd get some experienced information. From the G2SS and the overwelming response I can quelch this request for equipment for our new troop thanks all.

[SMT376Richmond KY 10]

Good responses. I have read G2SS and it mentioned as doe the ten tags no flames in tents. Since these heater are no flame producers I thought I'd get some experienced information. From the G2SS and the overwelming response I can quelch this request for equipment for our new troop thanks all.

[SR540Beaver 116]

The folks I know who use one turns it on 5 or 10 minutes before turning in at night to heat the inside of the tent. They get in and dress for bed, crawl in their bags and turn it off. When they wake up in the morning, they turn it on for another 5 or 10 minutes before they crawl out and get dressed. They do not run it all night long while they are asleep.

 

PS I believe the catalyst is platinum based in the Black Cat.

[scoutldr 726]

Not to beat a dead horse, but here is the specific language from the G2SS:

 

"Never fuel a stove, heater, or lantern inside a cabin; always do this outdoors. Do not operate a stove, lantern, or charcoal grill in an unventilated structure. Provide at least two ventilation openings, one high and one low, to provide oxygen and exhaust for lethal gases. Never fuel (example: all liquid fuels, charcoal. etc.), ignite, or operate a stove, heater, or lantern in a tent."

[asm238 10]

In 1996 while deer hunting in Colorado three men at a campsite 1/2 mile from us died while using a catalytic heater. It's better to be cold for a night than forever.

[KoreaScouter 13]

I've looked at those things for family camping, in my cabin tent, and only to warm the inside a little for my daughter before bed, and after wakeup for a short time. I haven't gotten one only because I haven't figured out how to tip-proof it or keep it from scorching any of the material it may come in contact with. Also, I don't know anyone who has them, since most of my outdoorsman "buds" are Scouters who don't use 'em.

 

In a Scouting environment, if your Scouts are in smaller troop tents, those things are unthinkable in my view. First, even if they don't have a flame, they do give off heat. Scouts flopping around in the night, a sleeping bag gets too close to one of those, and there you have it. Second, it's a big confidence builder to show a Scout how to stay warm without artificial heat sources. It can be done, has been done, and teaches them more in the long run than firing up a heater does.

 

KS