Pod #1 was shipped assembled! Help, too much ventilation!

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Re: Pod #1 was shipped assembled! Help, too much ventilation

Postby PKCSPT » Wed Nov 20, 2013 5:53 pm

my thought was something like they use on charcoal grills to close the vents, little circle things so they could close the holes as much or as little as they want? Leave some that can't be closed for safety.
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Re: Pod #1 was shipped assembled! Help, too much ventilation

Postby mikeschn » Wed Nov 20, 2013 6:01 pm

I drilled out the holes with a 3/4" forstner bit. That happens to be a perfect fit for corks from your wine bottles.

So I recommended that Rev Floyd pass out 2 corks per pod. (There's 3 holes per pod).

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Re: Pod #1 was shipped assembled! Help, too much ventilation

Postby RAYVILLIAN » Wed Nov 20, 2013 10:51 pm

Trudy and I had the same problem as Bobhenry in the little guy that had first. Closed it up tight and woke up feeling like he did about 1 am. Cracked open the windows and no problem the rest of the night.. I would think that putting the holes over the door would help with the cooling problem that you are having since the air flow wouldn't go across the mens bodies. Both of our WW had no problem with lack air because they had plenty of air leaks at the opposite end from where we sleep but stayed warm at the end where we were sleeping.

Mike since I turned 60 I'm having memory problems and I've read and thought about so many heaters in my lifetime I'm having problem remembering which one your thinking of. I would think that the candle box heater that you have in the thread you posted would be ideal in this situation. the candles would be cheap and I think they have them that last 4 hrs. The only other heater I can think of the might work would be the copper coil in a carcoal lighter water heater but that would have to have the fire outside unattended with think could be a prblem. If electricity is available than the light bulb in a can would be best.

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Re: Pod #1 was shipped assembled! Help, too much ventilation

Postby Miriam C. » Wed Nov 20, 2013 11:28 pm

3 holes on either end sound good to me. I strongly urge you to not include a flame of anykind. Better to include some sleeping bags....That of course might cover the opening under the door anyway. A small electric car type heater might be a good idea.
http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/item/12V-Heater-Fan-with-Swingout-Handle/56980/&?&affiliateid=3274&cvsfa=2734&cvsfe=2&cvsfhu=3536393830&gclid=CNycgdeE9boCFShk7Aod9DsAGw

Mike and I slept in the GL at 40 degrees with the fan on and both windows open an inch. Didn't turn the heater on until we got up and opened the door. A good sleeping bag!
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Re: Pod #1 was shipped assembled! Help, too much ventilation

Postby GPW » Thu Nov 21, 2013 7:56 am

JMHO... just thinking you need some small ventilation that cannot be blocked ... You can probably mathematically calculate how much flow you need for a safe air exchange... :thinking:
I’m totally with Miriam !!! Flames a BAD idea !!! (No smoking either) :thumbdown: Lots of blankets a Good idea... Turns out those Cheap polyester blankets are Very Warm !!! :thumbsup:
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Re: Pod #1 was shipped assembled! Help, too much ventilation

Postby Westcliffe01 » Sat Nov 23, 2013 10:11 pm

I was out hunting today in my 4x8x7 (high) blind and in the kind of winters we have in Mi any structure like that will need heat to avoid a buildup of condensation (at the very least). I have a vented heater in mine. I bought a commercially available marine one, it would be easy to build your own, if only there was a place that sold the burner with pilot and flame detector/shutoff device. One only needs a few thousand BTU to keep a space of that size comfortable. One could even contrive a device that only uses multiple pilots since the burners themselves tend to be too powerful. OTOH, for heating water for making tea or oatmeal, one does need a good shot of heat.

The venting serves not only to discharge the combustion products, but the draft also ensures that you pull plenty of dry air into the structure from outside.

I see that tomorrow is predicted to be 16F at dawn with wind chill down to 1F.... I will be glad to be in my "shelter" for sure...
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Re: Pod #1 was shipped assembled! Help, too much ventilation

Postby S. Heisley » Sun Nov 24, 2013 7:26 pm

That gap at the bottom of the door could make a sleeping pod really drafty and downright cold, especially if it is windy, and is most likely your biggest problem. Cold sinks to the bottom, right where the person is sleeping. I would add a bit of weather stripping on the bottom of the door instead of or as well as passing out those corks. Attaching a small 1x2 or 1/2x2 piece of wood across the length of the outside bottom of the door, hanging down to cover the gap area might work as weather stripping and be low maintenance yet still allow a very small air flow. You don't need much of a gap to accomplish your airflow goal.
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Re: Pod #1 was shipped assembled! Help, too much ventilation

Postby Socal Tom » Mon Nov 25, 2013 4:23 pm

I would also consider a modified version of the cookie tin heater. Given that they are in a parking lot, a lightbulb in the cookie tin could be a cheap way to add some warmth. My fear would be that if you don't provide a version of electric heat, someone will eventually bring a flame of some sort inside, then you risk fire or CO poisoning.
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edit
So I found a BTU calculator on line.... Assuming you need to raise the temp 50F, then you need about 1500 watts of heating ( assuming no insulation). Depending on which website you look at a person provides around 300 BTU. So a 100W lightbulb isn't the answer.
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Re: Pod #1 was shipped assembled! Help, too much ventilation

Postby mikeschn » Mon Nov 25, 2013 4:46 pm

There is no electric available. :cry:

I saw this today... looks nice. Problem is, the pod is too small.

Image

http://clancysoutdoors.com/nu-way-fish- ... nd-stoves/

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Re: Pod #1 was shipped assembled! Help, too much ventilation

Postby Socal Tom » Mon Nov 25, 2013 6:12 pm

I'm a very risk averse person, so I often see risks that other people don't and while I'm sure you are trying to help these people, its important to remember that simple mistakes can result in serious injuries. I know the last thing you want is for someone to be injured/burned because of the pods.

So far, what you've provided is safe, and a big improvement over what was likely the prior sleeping arrangements for these folks.

I had a thought in regard to the question of how big the air holes should be. As much as I search on the internet, the only helpful information I found was that the average person uses 388 Cuft of air per day. So an 8x4x4 space should have about 8 hours of air if air tight.

But a thought occured to me. I assume there will be a next pod. Why not temporarily equip it with a CO sensor, then set up a few candles... enough that will set off the CO sensor after an hour or two. Then drill 3/4 inch holes and see how many it takes to keep the alarm from going off?
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Re: Pod #1 was shipped assembled! Help, too much ventilation

Postby mikeschn » Mon Nov 25, 2013 7:53 pm

Hey Tom,

Those are good ideas. I'd love to do testing like that once we find a way to actually keep these pod thingies warm.

See my other thread. So far I am able to get the temp from 37 to 68 using a Blackcat. But that not a ventilated system. viewtopic.php?f=2&t=18902&p=1050878#p1050878

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Re: Pod #1 was shipped assembled! Help, too much ventilation

Postby Westcliffe01 » Mon Nov 25, 2013 8:20 pm

Mike, so you realize that Nu-way is a Michigan company ?

http://www.nuwaystove.com/

Perhaps you could work together on a smaller capacity stove. It would need a pilot, a circular burner good for say 1500 btu max, inside a cylindrical tube of about 3" diameter with a 4" heat shield that blocks the radiation over a bit more than 200 degrees of the circumference (opening opposite the corner) then an expanded metal type shield on the front to prevent direct contact burns. The whole thing needs to go in the corner of the pod as low as feasible (heat rises) and 1" will be more than sufficient for the chimney. The "cozy cabin" heater I have in my blind uses a 1" tube for the chimney and it is good for at least 6000 btu.

Even just the pilot by itself will prevent anything inside from freezing, but thats hardly a comfortable temperature for sleeping.

Right now an ordinary person can't get access to the needed valve/interlocks needed to shut off the gas if for some reason the flame blows out, but Nuway has access to all of that stuff given the line of product they produce. The kind of burner used in a propane camping stove is all that is needed. Some of these stoves sell for less than $20 so that has to be a really cheap part, its just the "extras" that you or I generally can't buy ourselves.

The cylindrical can will heat by radiation as well as convection and it will be dry vented heat, the best kind. To allow water to be heated in such a confined space is a big question, (boiling water can produce a prety bad burn) but if needed that requires a surface of at least 5-6" in diameter so a lot bigger scale. The only container I can fit on my Cosy Cabin heater is a military canteen (the type that goes over the water bottle) and thats after I cut off the "rail" that was fitted to it. Not even a tin cup fitted...

mikeschn wrote:There is no electric available. :cry:

I saw this today... looks nice. Problem is, the pod is too small.

Image

http://clancysoutdoors.com/nu-way-fish- ... nd-stoves/

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Re: Pod #1 was shipped assembled! Help, too much ventilation

Postby Miriam C. » Mon Nov 25, 2013 9:58 pm

Image

One: tape the insulation! It only takes a small leak in a small space to cool it off.
Two: Consider a sealed bag of the foil bubble type insulation. It really made a difference when I put it on the hatch back...

If you get it warm it should stay that way for a while. Flame of any kind around the bubble foil is a no no though. Definitely needs a small exterior burner of some sort.
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Re: Pod #1 was shipped assembled! Help, too much ventilation

Postby Miriam C. » Mon Nov 25, 2013 10:01 pm

Miriam C. wrote:Image

One: tape the insulation! It only takes a small leak in a small space to cool it off.
Two: Consider a sealed bag of the foil bubble type insulation. It really made a difference when I put it on the hatch back...

If you get it warm it should stay that way for a while. Flame of any kind around the bubble foil is a no no though. Definitely needs a small exterior burner of some sort.


Something like a rocket stove / radiator type thing would work. You could heat hot water and pipe it in along the corners and hopefully never leak.
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Re: Pod #1 was shipped assembled! Help, too much ventilation

Postby Miriam C. » Mon Nov 25, 2013 10:04 pm

I wonder if one of the insulation places could donate spray on foam. That would keep someone from having to insulate when put together too. :D :twisted:
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