CLOSE CALL TODAY...

Van Living Forum

Help Support Van Living Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

maritimecamper

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 29, 2011
Messages
94
Reaction score
0
I went for my usual early morning walk with my best friend Dakota.( he's a dog). When I came back to my home on wheels..Surprise...a burning smell, opened the door, grey smoke comes out..WHAT THE FU.. My sleeping bag had touched the catalytic heater..I forgot to turn off! a hole had melted into the sleeping bag...whew lucky for me I didn't lose my home..I think today a learnt lesson #1206..
 
WOW.!!! you timed that right, Hope it's not to bad..yes; that was a huge lesson learned.<BR>Take care<BR>sparky1.<BR>27 degrees in s.va.
 
Oh man! Wow, good, cheap lesson...glad you are ok...<br><br>I had a friend in Kodiak whose sleeping bag caught fire the same way with him it and it melted to his leg....he was all f'd up for a really long time...<br>Bri
 
The moho going up in smoke is every RVers nightmare. Thank goodness you, Dakota, your home and your belongings are ok!
 
YIKES!!!!!!!!!!&nbsp; So glad you came back when you did before more damage happened!
 
Thanks, It could have been REALLY BAD...I am parked between 2 big trucks..they are at home for the weekend. .no one around, I have a 20 lb propane tank inside...BOOOOM. Lucky these catalytic heaters have no flame.
 
Wow...I love hard lessons with happy endings.&nbsp; Do it again though&nbsp;and Dakota will put&nbsp;YOU in the dog house!&nbsp; Woof!!!&nbsp; <br><br>Rae
 
&nbsp;Don't be fooled; no flame doesn't mean 'no fire'. Electric heating elements (on a stove) have no flame but, sure as shootin', can start a fire. Heat is heat. ..Willy.
 
farenheit 451 is ignition point of paper. many materials have lower ignition points where they burst into flames. just have to heat something to its ignition point then fire.&nbsp;
 
offroad said:
farenheit 451 is ignition point of paper. many materials have lower ignition points where they burst into flames. just have to heat something to its ignition point then fire.&nbsp;
<br><br>&nbsp;Also, especially noted with wood and wood products, prolonged exposure to heat causes pyrolysis. This can be bad news in, for example, older RV's that have those incandescent light fixtures.
 
<p>Yikes!<br>That could have gone very bad in a hurry. Glad everything turned out ok.&nbsp;<br><br>Slightly off topic but I noticed you mentioned sleeping bag. Do you mind reporting back to us what the tags on the sleeping bag say?<br><br>I know I've seen some "fire rated or fire retardant" or something like that, sleeping bags and I kinda wanted to know if that has played a roll in your experience.&nbsp;<br><br>Do us all a favor.... please re-evaluate your propane situation and maybe there is a way you can get that tank outside the&nbsp;vehicle. &nbsp;<img src="/images/boards/smilies/smile.gif" border="0" align="absmiddle"> <img src="/images/boards/smilies/smile.gif" border="0" align="absmiddle">&nbsp;<br><br>Fire is no joke and we all need to take that risk seriously.&nbsp;<br><br>Thanks for sharing. Take care.&nbsp;</p>
 
I checked the tags on the sleeping bag. Unfortunately I had cut off the tag...It is a COLEMAN MUMMY bag.I know...it was a stupid thing I did..(sob). Also the grey smoke could have maybe killed my four legged friend if things were a little different.(I had gone shopping), or a fire.I had moved one end of the mattress to get something out of storage. ..not thinking about the other end.
 
Hi Niall, yes most of the melted sleeping bag smell came out, l left the windows open bit more then usual. I bought some incense and burnt that. l burnt 4 sticks of the stuff, and left the van for a couple of hours, while they burnt. I will look forward to reading your adventures, l am gay also, so l know some of the problems you have encountered..l have been kicked out of apartments, once the landlord realized l was gay.(thirty years ago). Things ARE getting better! So hang in their, keep us up to date ok.
 

Latest posts

Top