Recommended Heater for the Interior of a 2016 Dodge Grand Caravan for Camping in the Van

Updated 04/25/2016 | Published 04/24/2016

Products Featured in This Question

Rampage Radiant Backseat Heater - 300 Watt - 12 Volt

(8)

$125.36

Kat's Heaters Vehicle Interior Heater - 900 Watt - 120V AC

(26)

$136.79

Orion Emergency Blanket

(4)

$4.42

Question:

I camp in my 2016 Dodge Caravan and would like e a small heat source, would this product work for that? I dont want to have to worry about draining the vehicle battery. What other type of power souce could I use with this? Or is there a different product I could use for heat?

asked by: Nancy H

Expert Reply:

Your best option is going to be an electric heater. The other options are heaters that use heated vehicle coolant which means you would have to have your 2016 Dodge Caravan running to maintain the heat.

To avoid draining the battery down as fast I recommend a heater that uses the least amount of wattage. That would be Kat's heater # KH37650 which is rated at 150 watts. If you are the only one camping out in the van then this heater would be enough. But if there are 2 or more people in the van I recommend a higher rated heater such as # RA3501 at 300 watts. But either way an electric heater will run the battery down overnight.

If you have access to AC power then you could use heater # KH37100 which plugs into an AC outlet and will not drain the vehicle battery. This isn't always an option when camping but some sites do have shore power (AC power) so it would work at those locations.

And for additional safety precautions you could always carry with you some emergency thermal blankets # RN464-01.

expert reply by: Michael H