This is what THEY say about it:
Buddy Heater: Item #F232000 - Model # MH9BX
North America's Most Popular Portable Propane Heater! This patented radiant 4,000-9,000 BTU Liquid Propane heater connects directly to a
1 lb. cylinder and is the perfect solution for heating enclosed spaces like large tents up to 200 sq. ft. The expertly engineered size to
BTU ratio is augmented with a fold down handle to give this heater maximum output while retaining a minimalistic footprint. A swivel regulator
gives you the ability to adapt usage from a disposable cylinder to a remote gas supply with the purchase of a hose and filter. To light the
unit, simply rotate the knob to pilot and push. Then the integrated Piezo sparking mechanism will take care of the rest. With the Oxygen
Depletion Sensor (ODS) and accidental tip-over safety shut-off you can be sure that you will enjoy years of comfortable indoor safe heat.
- 4,000 or 9,000 BTU per hour - Hi-Low heat settings
- Heats up to 200 sq. ft.
- For use with propane gas - Runs off a 1 lb. cylinder
- Connects directly to a 20 lb. cylinder with optional hose and filter Fold down handle
- Includes Piezo igniter - Swivel regulator
- Single control start knob
- Fold down handle
- Accidental tip-over safety shut-off
Here Is What WE Say About It:
Decisions, decisions. There are so many different tent heaters out there from big to small, propane and butane. There are more of the smaller varieties and the
majority of them are propane. So, what do you do?
I just happened to have 6 popular models of tent heaters in my camp supply and having used them all, I'll let you know which one or ones are my favorites
Now Mr Heater claims their Buddy heater is the most popular heater sold in America. That could be, I know a few people that have them including me. It is the
4th tent heater that I've purchased. Why, because I wasn't totally satisfied with the 1st three. The Buddy heater takes up a bit more room in your Jeep and tent
than the three compact models but to me it seemed to be a "safer" choice. The three smaller ones (Little Buddy & a Coleman heaters) were easy to knock over and although they
both claimed to have safety features in the event they tipped over, I wasn't willing to bet my life on them.
I bought my Buddy heater on sale at Cabella's for around $75. Not a bad price to keep warm and about $30 less than its suggested price. At the same time I bought
its protective carry case a very nice and recommended option. The next thing is when was I going to try it out?
We just happened to have a trip planned in northern Arizona, the Flagstaff to Grand Canyon Stage Coach Route. Being it was April, it still got cold up north at
night and it would be the perfect chance to see how it would work.
I set up my Coleman 6 man Instant Tent, put my cot and some other gear inside and set up my new Buddy Heater per the instructions and prepared my dinner. By the time
everyone gathered around the campfire there was a definite chill in the air so I started the heater up and turned it on the low setting. My hopes that by bed time
my tent would be toasty warm.
Well my tent was toasty warm after the campfire and I hopped onto my cot and called it a night, until about two hours later when I woke up freezing. Did I run out
of propane already? I went over to the heater and the 1lb propane bottle had frost all over it so on with a new bottle. Went to start the heater up and nothing.
Kept on trying and it finally started up again. Went back to bed. Two hours later, I'm freezing again. Heater is off. Now what? It's happened again, the
bottle is frozen so I put a new one on it (I had 4 with me) and after the same trouble, it finally started again. Back to bed. It's 5am, and I'm freezing again!
It's happened a third time, I am not happy! Did the procedure again and again it was hard to start up. Did I happen to get a "lemon" or was this made on
a Monday?
Ok, so here's the deal. Getting back home the next day I started searching the internet and found a lot of users claiming that the heater had problems at higher
altidudes. That would explain my problems with it freezing up, but then again, I have had the 1lb propane bottles freeze up on a stove at 1200ft on a cold morning.
Could it be a combination of the 1lb bottles and the higher atmosphere? Would my heater work at lower altitudes like it should? Perhaps I should try a larger
propane cylinder. After all none of my 1lb bottles were empty when I used the heater, they just froze up. A larger bottle/clyinder would not be prone to freezing
up on me.
It's time for some backyard camping to experiment on a chilly night even if it was at a low altitude (1000+ ft). I set up the heater and started it at the
high setting (I wanted to see how long a 1lb bottle would last). Low and behold, my bottle froze up after a few hours. I tried it on a low setting with a new
bottle and it ran until the bottle was empty (about 4 hours). Ok, so I know now that a high setting might not be the best place to set it. The next night, I
hooked up a 4.5lb cylinder to the Buddy heater with the optional hose. Setting it on high again, it ran all night without freezing up. I'm happy with that.
I'll admit, my testing was NOT scientific but it was real world. You don't need a lab to see how and if things will work for you, if they work when you are camping
when they should work and work right then that's really all you need to know. The Buddy heater did not work for me with a 1lb cylinder at high altitude (6000ft+)
on the low setting but then again it didn't on the high setting at low altitude. A 4 hour run time isn't enough on one cylinder so unless you want to get out of your
warm cot on a cold night to screw a new cylinder on, get your self a 5lb cylinder. Again, seeing how the 1lb cylinders are more prone to freezing up, get the 5lb
cylinder as your second reason. All in all, if your heater works properly, this will warm your tent in 30 degree weather. It is much less prone to getting knocked
over than the smaller ones and it won't take up too much room in your Jeep. Keep it running it will keep you warm!
Let me just give you one bit of advice. If you buy the Buddy heater, make sure you purchase the optional hose that adapts it to a regular propane tank. Then buy
a 4.5 to 5 lb propane tank to use with it. Also, don't forget to buy the Buddy carry case to protect it and have a place to store your hose in. As long as
you buy the hose and bigger tank, I have no problem recommending this for part of your camp gear.
Bottom line, this one would be my third choice for a heater. Remember at high evevations it isn't reliable unless you use a 5 lb or better propane tank, in fact
if you buy this unit, you should invest in the extra $80 or so for the optional tank hose and a 5 lb tank for use all the time with it. It does the job and
is a quality unit.
