My awesome neighbor and his family checked in on me during this awful Texas Winter, and returned 15 minutes later with a Mr Buddy Heater & 2 spare propane bottles! I used it very sparingly during the power outage and still have the 2 full bottles unused. I'm buying my own.
How exactly to you safely place the Buddy heater? Is it the center of a room only? What about a bathroom? Kitchen ? I see i these positive reviews but I'm just learning about propane heaters IN the house😬Makes me nervous. Thank you for help and understanding.
@@cynthiamartinez3192 I set it on the floor to take advantage of the rising heat, and use it in the smallest bedroom so that the room heats up faster & it retains heat longer. I used it on Low while I'm awake, and I make sure it is at least 2 feet away from the bed. The heater is suppose to have an Automatic Shut Off if gets tipped over, but I recommend to set it on Non-flammable surfaces or place Aluminum Foil under it as an extra step of Safety Precaution.
This heater saved me this past winter. We had a bad ice storm in VA and I did not have power for 5 days. It got down to 40 degrees in my home. Ever evening after work I would fire this up and it was a life saver. I definitely agree every home should have one. Mind you I had it for almost 10 years sitting in the box and never fired it up once. The ignition worked with no problem.
An adapter is available to refill the 1pound tanks from a 20 pound tank. You can save a lot of money that way. Currently paying 20 dollars to fill a 20 pound tank with 4.5 gallons of propane. At that cost you can refill a one pound tank 20 times and get your cost down to 1 dollar per tank. Currently those one pound tanks are running about 4 dollars a piece so being able to refill them for only one dollar is a significant cost savings.
Texas gulf coast here. I purchased one of these several years ago just in case we ever had a severe freeze. Recently, I had to pull it out for the first time ever! It worked wonderfully and flawlessly. I was so grateful for it since my power was out for three days. It was so doggone cold but my cat and I were toasty warm.
The 20lb tank runs continuously 4 days on low, 2 days on medium, and 24 hours on high. The Big Buddy allows you to connect two 20lb tanks at once to double the burn time for 8, 4, and 2 days, respectively. Think about that, 8 days of continuous heat without touching it. (And that stretches to 16 days if you attach two 40lb tanks!) When it gets very cold overpowering the house heating system, we use one in the unfinished basement, and it makes a noticeable difference throughout the house. Ours have been very useful and valuable to us.
Thanks for the info. If you need to keep the 20lb. tank outdoors, but the heater is in the house, and they're connected by a hose, how do you do that? Thanks
@@maryb2798 This might sound rude, but that is not the intention. I saw the choices as two: a long hose, or you just put the tank in the house. I grew up using propane from tanks, and we used them in the basement, in the garage, in the camper, inside the cabin, and inside the house. Yes, people say you can't put the tank inside, but (wink, wink) it still works. I've found it's really easy to make a hose port - just pick a spot and drill a hole from the outside to the inside large enough for a 2-inch pvc or metal pipe you can cap at both ends when not in use. Run the hose through the pipe. Use spray foam to seal around the hole where the pipe goes through the wall, and use what you like to seal around the hose as it runs through the pipe (even the spray foam). We never had the need to put a heater upstairs, because, lucky for us, heat rises, so the heater stayed downstairs.
@@maryb2798 have to run the hose out the door and leave the door cracked open or run the hose out of a window and window open. Not really any other options with the hose.
my family always had propane heaters. but i remember one year we had a Ga blizzard, 92 i think, our power was out for a week so we lived in our basement with an 1920's wood stove best cornbread my mom ever made, later on we kept a Coleman camp stove for power outages and my dad would often use it to fry catfish outside in summer.
I live in a camper in Michigan and I use this bad boy for my heat and it works super well. I hook mine up to a 100 pound tank, which I might have to refill maybe 3 times per Winter. Very effective
I snagged 2 Big Buddy heaters for $40 each at the local Walmart... back in 2015 or 2016. Thought I might need them this year, but our power stayed on throughout the recent cold weather (January 2024).
Had an ice storm knock out power for 5 days in MD a few years ago. We had a mid size Buddy Heater that kept our living room (which we camped out in) and kitchen warm the entire time. I now own two Buddy Heaters and a Lil Buddy for different uses. Love them.
@ChicGreekGeek I saw one similar to this one and the manual said not to use in enclosed space because of possible carbon monoxide poison. So some must be different than others.
We bought 2 of these in 2012, ready for emergency. We also got a ventless gas log set that helped us, we had power off for 3 days 1 winter. From ice storms on power lines. It saved us.
I strongly recommend a carbon monoxide detector in your home when using these heaters and although it seems counterproductive keep a window cracked so carbon monoxide does not build up, especially if you're using these in small spaces.
I have the big buddy heater. It sat in my basement for a few years until I unboxed it just last week. It’s run 24/7 to keep my basement pipes from bursting during the bad weather. A 20 lb tank lasts 2 days on medium and kept 900 sq ft in the 60s while outside is teens.
@@jko0526 I said we use one in our sun room often and it will last us almost all winter. We turn it on and let it run for a half hour and turn it off enjoying the sun room for breakfast. Then turn it on for a half hour or hour when we are out there in the evenings for sun set and dinner. We get thru over a month like this. The run times are right on the box and easy to see. But I jave never ever had to run one non stop. In the house, camper, garage and everywhere we use it we use it intermittently. No reason to run one non stop (except a situation like the above guy as he was doing pipe protection. But nothing that runs on propane not even a single burner cooker could run a whole month non stop on one 20 pound tank.
Been running one ot these every winter , 30 degrees below outside, since 1978. Only on the second bottle of gas and still the original battery .amazing!
You sold me on it (the smaller one, actually) and I placed my order. Your enthusiasm *after* thorough experience, plus my own real need, is what did the trick. My brother and I will be camping on my mountain property early this spring, and the cold nights have been the biggest limitation. Now we won't have to wait until early summer.
We are borrowing a Mr. Buddy heater, we are able to run it about 18 hours straight for 3 days with a 5 gallon tank. We usually don't run it at night so we can have the fuel for the days. Would like to get several Big Buddy's.
This was a life saver. Last week when the storm came thru North Texas. Wish we could use the 20lb , the 1lb bottles were great. However propane bottles are now hard to find. Thank goodness it's warming up. Thanks for the great video .
If you have a chinese grocery store; they carry those 1lb tanks because they sell propane stoves as well. I get my propane 1lb tanks for $1.00 each!!! Hope that helps you!
Very Nice review. Just had my first encounter with these heaters this past November at my Hunting cabin (48x24). My cousin brought his Big Buddy to help supplement the heater because the Propane co. failed to fill our tank and we were low and border line on making a week long hunt with temps in the teens at night. It worked so good that I went out purchased one the day we got back home. As a matter of fact I just purchased a second Big Buddy yesterday. Someone had a great sale going so I figured having two can't hurt. Should be here in 4-5 days.
Literally the best heater ever ! I ment it when I said every house should have one! Glad yours save your hunt for you guys. Thanks for sharing that story. Merry Christmas!
Thanks, good to hear from someone who has put it thru the paces. I think i am gonna go that route being in wisconsin its not the worst idea, thanks again!
I've used the medium sized heater for 6 years in a 23 ft travel trailer. 20 lb tank outside, roof vent open 1/2 inch. Temperature above 35f I have to turn it off because it gets too warm on low. 4 days running on low. Below 15f I run on high- low back and forth.
I had one for years. Had brand new one that heater buddy replaced for me 3-4 years ago. Had to go to it during big ice storm last February. Had some wood and burned that all up. Borrowed my brothers 9500 watt generator, that didn’t do much for me running electric heater. Used heater buddy fo over 58 hours and kept us in house warm enough to not freeze. I will stock up on Coleman fuel from now on. That’s the only way to get decent heat. I have small buddy. May buy large one this year as small one runs out of fuel in 8-9 hours. You wake up cold until you change the tank.
This is a must have heater for power outages or when heater fails. Or just to cut heating bill. Saved me several times. Have 2 and 6 20 lbs tanks.went 14 days with no power I was warm my nabors froze. Don't try to get them when it's to late. They sell out all winter.
I use several kerosene heaters, they are super reliable. Big Buddy says they don't work above 7,000 feet, I live at 9,000 feet in the mountains, not sure it would work.. I just saw a video, 'My big buddy won't start', 145,000 views LOL. Lighting problems are common. I'd buy both, get a kerosene heater as a reliable backup.
Problem with kerosene is the amount of smoke and soot at start up stains walls ceilings furniture etc. And filling them are a dangerous mess and you have to have a bunch h of extra wicks etc on hand all the time. Been there.
@@SamkoTradBow The trick with Kerosene is to start it and stop it outside. It doesn't smell at all and there's zero smoke while it's running, it's only bad when you start it and put it out. I keep my kerosene heater just outside of my sliding door, I'll start it up for about five minutes then move it about six feet into the house. Then I'll carefully move it outside before I put it out.
I bought 2 of the smaller Mr Buddy, have the 1 lb canisters and just purchases the 20 gal tank....and....I bought an adapter that you can hook to the 20lb tank and FILL the one pound canisters.....over and over. Because I live upstairs....the refilling of the canisters is perfect.
@steven miller Thank you for your advice. When I saw the videos on RU-vid regarding filling the 1 pound canisters they didn’t indicate that there was any one canister that should be used over the other. Only the device that was used to connect. But thank you for the heads up because I probably would not have given it any consideration
I bought a lil buddy right after the storm here in Texas, along with a coleman stove that also runs on propane. I had lots of wood for fireplace, which I quickly went through.
I bought this ALL ON MY OWN..... lol....... Because I was tired of being stuck home with no heat when my husband wasn’t around. Thankfully we have not lost power but my husband is in love with this thing to heat up his garage............& I’m SURE will will use it in our small camper too! GREAT IDEA abt screened in porch! We have one of those too!
Big buddy does too.it needs batteries for blower or you can't use it.and fucking liar.small buddy heaters don't need batteries.plus at 4.50 per can you get 4 hours heat time.
The reviews here are much better than on Amazon. They are saying the older units had fans and not the new ones. I'm wondering if the newer ones are made cheaper. Anyone here buy one in the last couple of weeks?
I use mine when working on a car or truck in the cold. As always be careful around flammables etc! Keep it near where you are working and it really takes the chill off even in my unheated vehicle shelter.
I’m in the UK and our similar indoor portable heaters seem to run on butane, not propane. Mine has a 13kg bottle and it lasts on the lower heat setting for about 120 hours.
These he just have been in the UK for at least fifty years. Grew up on them and we could use them inside stop very economical and very good instant Heat
Thank you for the information! I had decided to buy a portable heater and a generator during the Texas 2- day power outage during our unprecedented 12" snowfall recently. I was absolutely freezing, and there was nowhere close by to go to get warm.
For even more versatility, look up wood stove fans. These fans use the heat from a wood stove to generate electricity to run a fan to distribute the heat out into a room. I adapted one to sit on top of my Big Buddy and it works like a charm! I have the AC adaptor but didn’t want to buy batteries and worry about them going dead and then needing the fan in the middle of a power outage.
@@tomfreakingford does a great job in a 10x12 or smaller and did pretty good in my 12x14 wall tent with high peak height. It was 22 degrees outside and I bet it was 45 inside on medium in the 12x14 canvas wall tent.
A Big Buddy saved our butt after the Big Alaska earthquake of 2018. We had no power for hours, and the Big Buddy kept our 1000 sq.ft. house warm. I also use it now in my unheated shop/shed. Good bang for the buck.
Unfortunately, the one you recommended on Amazon to everyone does not have the built in fan.. You might want to specify that on your video. It’s not the exact Big Buddy heater that you are recommending to your peeps. Just a heads up. Yes, I’m in south Texas and it’s brutal right now. No power or water for 4 days now... COLD... Say a prayer for everyone suffering from this nightmare of a situation...🥶🥶🥶🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻
They don't come with a fan anymore. I have 3 of them now and they are all the same but no more fan. When I made the video they did have a fan. Now they don't. Still same great heater
I wish you and every Texan the best if TRUMP was in charge you can bet there would be plenty of help hang in there were all Americans and Texans 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
After watching a lot of videos it appears that the oxygen decrease in small areas like a trailer/motor home is riskier than CO-Carbon Monoxide. All sites recommend cracking a window or door for that reason. Putting the tanks out side is, I believe for safety reasons. Propane is heavier than air and can build up from the floor up if there is a leak. Before the propane encounters an ignition source. Natural gas (methane) is lighter than air and floats up and away much easier but is still dangerous. My suggestion would be a small gas detector that detects both Propane(LPG) and Natural Gas if you have it in your home. Add a combo CO / Fire detector. Consider an O2 level monitor. These tend to be industrial and expensive. Some things to think about.
@@TomDoesUtube So...lowered Oxygen levels are more likely to produce CO than CO2. That's probably why these Heaters have a low oxygen cutoff. Low O2 is bad for people. Add in CO, that binds tightly to Hemoglobin and displaces Oxygen is synergistically a very lethal problem.
@@msmeyersmd8 I'm trying to figure out the "gas tank outside" statement. If it's just because of a potential propane leak I'd consider it safe to keep 20# tank inside - with a cracked window of course. Wouldn't it suffice to check tank connections with some soapy water? Otherwise, a propane leak becomes obvious because of the smell. comments?
Please put a carbon monoxide detector along with these just in case I know it has a sensor but you can never be to safe especially if you have a family
@@davidandkellyinancsi8341 Quote: Big Buddy Manual - "WARNING: CARBON MONOXIDE POISONING MAY CAUSE DEATH OR INJURY When used without adequate combustion and ventilation air, heater may give off excessive CARBON MONOXIDE, an odorless, poisonous gas. ... This is an unvented gas fired heater. The heater uses air (oxygen) from the area in which the heater is used. Adequate combustion and ventilation air must be provided." Pages 2-4 of the manual cover warnings and safety instructions. Prevention of carbon monoxide poisoning is the subject of the majority of that information.
I used mine this last winter in Michigan, in a 25 ft camper, for 3 months. Wouldn't be without one. The green cylinders were way too expensive for what I needed, so I bought an adaptor for a 20# propane tank (same as people use for their grills outside) to my Mr. Buddy. If you look, you can find propane dealers that will sell a fill-up for around $10, unlike many who sell for twice that. I think the 20# tanks hold 4 and a half gallons of propane. Mr Buddy kept me warm in my camper all night.
I bought 3 of them 1 dewalt and 2 and one was a one panel one and the other was a 2 panel one . I used them during the epic ice storm and love them . Funny paid 25 each for the mr heater and 20 for the dewalt one and they were like brand new . MY WIN WIN AND YES I HAVE CARBON DETECTORS IN MY HOUSE ALSO SAFETY IS BETTER THAN NO SAFETY
Im definitely considering getting one...not in texas but we were out of power 2 days recently and others for 4 days. However its important to tell people to crack their windows...I looked at the instructions and it says to have a 9"sq opening at the top of one side of the room and at the bottom of the other side of the room to ensure sufficient oxygen flow so it burns clean without emitting carbon monoxide.
I've used this my RV going into my second winter. I love this unit. The hose attachment is a must. Don't waste your money on those little tanks and they don't last enough for any good use. The Wave 3 or bigger is also another fabulous choice. From what I've seen the Wave 3 is better but more expensive.
If you buy this heater invest in the _low pressure_ hose- that way you don't need to buy the 'Buddy' $14.95 fuel filters. Also works with the little green tanks- great convenience.
Man this would be perfect for my garage. Have been trying to decide what type of heater to install and I believe this will do the trick. Glad I found this video.
I use a similar type (old school they used years ago) in my garage for several years now. It is 30' x 30' . This last storm (2021) outside temp was -11, wind chill -27 I heated the garage to 90 before I realized it. The heater size is similar to a "Mr Heater Big Buddy". Since the heater is probably over 70 years old I use a box fan behind it for circulation. You won't go wrong with a "Big Buddy"!! I have my heater hooked directly to Natural gas with a hose off of hot water tank gas line "Tee".
After the snowpoocalypse I got this very heater and just had two 100# propane tanks delivered. These suckers are huge and only going up in price. So buy now. I found the best deal at Menards online and got the tanks for around $200 each after tax and shipping. Actually, this heater and tanks are for an off-grid cabin I'm going to build in the near future. It appears to me that the heater has a built in regulator so none needed at the tank. If I am wrong about this please let me know.
I discovered this last year and bought one just in case. I also am going to buy an adaptor to transfer propane from the large tanks to the small canisters. Will be cheaper than continually buying the little canisters.
@@dorothymartin8557 I actually have the common size tanks, like the ones you use on your grill. I still need to get the adapter, but they make one for just that type of transfer.
I bought a Mr Buddy tray to heat water or food. I also bought a wood stove fan to sit on top so the heat moved around, no electric power needed for stove fans.🔥📛
Just Ordered the Big Buddy and It is Supposed to Arrive Today. I Know that I Could Look Online, but Wonder if you Already Know This . . . If They Have One, that is NOT Propane, but the Plug-In Type, For the House Inside ? Appreciate it if you Could Let me Know as SOON as Possible. GREAT Video and Explanation ! ! ! 👍
@@Kiki-wi7px I don't have or use any plug in electric heaters personally. For our situations when we need heaters it's because we don't have electricity. Sorry could not help more.
Sounds like a winner, although I'm seeing this about a minute too late to help us through the winter storm that roared through Texas week before last. It would have been a tremendous help, believe me. My question now is, is there a similar unit for summer to give sufficient cooling, just for reference?
@@avagates2039 I had 2 options , I have fans that run on 8 D Cell batteries , or a 12 volt power source tied into a Car Battery or a Mower Battery as both are12 Volts etc. Or you can use a power inverter that turns 12 Volts into 110 household current , I used the Battery powered camping fan and rigged it also to run off of my boat battery , car battery at low speed , during the daytime I charged batteries with my car using battery cables connected for 2 hours , just to top either one off !! Never ran down one bit , the fan I ran on medium speed to circulate the air & it worked perfectly !! I used 5 buck solar lights from Walmart to provide light at night etc. & charged them daily with a LED lightbulb in my regular house lamp powered by the inverter that also ran off of either battery , or both of them wired together in a parallel if needed : negative to negative - positive to positive !! There are ways to make things happen , just got to settle down a bit , relax & think outside the box & read everything you can relating to self reliance !! Have a good one !! 😉👍
I actually use a wood stove fan and it spins by the heat. no need for batteries and you can set it right on top of the my buddy heater. fans are about 30 bucks and work great.
Mine cost $77 at WalMart, purchased September 2021, only holds one propane tank (not two) and it lasts 4 hours on low setting with a small 1 pound tank. I use it in my travel trailer regularly. Currently it is attached to a 20 pound BBQ grill tank which lasts 5 days, continuous use on low setting. Mine has no fan and no oxygen sensor. I plan to purchase a second and think the fan is a good option. Thanks for posting; all good information.
@@SamkoTradBow, yesterday (10/27/2021) my local Cal Ranch store has a display of the two tank/two burner model and their posted price is $149. We have no fireplace or wood stove so providing heat during a loss of electricity period would be tough. I'm considering the option of putting that money toward a generator that could handle my natural gas house heater, instead of this propane one-room space heater with a long hose. . . or install a wood stove with a cooking surface. The options quickly keep getting more expensive. Tough call when the weather is mild and the funds are tight.
@@richardrobertson1331 yep tough choices but all good ones. I'm thinking about putting in a wood stove jack and the pipe stick thru the attic and chimney. Then when power is out I can put down a fire board and put my wall tent wood stove in the house and just connect the pipe from stove to ceiling. So I dont have to have the wood stove there all the time.
@@SamkoTradBow, your wood stove jack idea sounds practical and valuable. Please, if you do it, consider making a video of your efforts from planning thru completion.
We have a large, large, propane heater a friend gave us. It’s in the living room. He regrets it sometimes. It’s all we need, our house is small. It doesn’t have a fan, works just fine. We have it attached to a twenty pound tank.
@@SkinnySkinch depends on usage. We turn it off when we are out of the house for work or other things. On the heater about ten days. On the stove about two to three weeks. If we use it just for cooking.
I have one of these as well for my small garage, it's been very handy and has worked reliably. I sorta wish the internal fan had not been eliminated in the current version, or at the very least they offered a stand-alone kit to add it. I'm sure it's not a powerful fan since it just runs on flashlight batteries, but a little air circulation would be nice.
Crack a window close to it is a good ideal. Owners manual gives good info on window to heater distance. It's a good idea to remove the canisters when not in use so they don't leak. The green 1 pound canisters can be stored indoors the 20 pound tanks foe a grill have to be kept outside or in a shed etc.
Even remove the 1lb canisters? I just got one and tried it out. It’s completely cool and I just removed it and smelled a little propane smell when I did. The canister is pretty much full since I only ran it for 10 minutes or so.
People are saying to crack windows if your house is newer or sealed up etc. my house was built in 1946. We have like five windows per room with no sealant pretty much lol. So would I have to crack open the window? I’m pretty sure air is going out as I speak lol. And I live in central Texas and yes through the freeze we had in 2021. I just bought three propane tanks for the hell of it. I have one of those heater elements you attach and mount to a tank. I was gonna try to use it inside if I had to but I found this big buddy video and now I’m interested in this. I didn’t even attempt to use the heating element during the freeze because it was unsafe and my family didn’t want me to bring that thing in here. I only had one tank that I had no idea how much was left. Now I got three tanks and I’m ready for round two of power outages if we get cold again like in February. Why do the tanks have to be outside? They seem safe to me. Heavy and sturdy I don’t think they will blow up. Is it because of the risk of leakage? Can’t we just have a carbon monoxide thing near the tanks to tell us it’s leaking? I’m just not sure I can run a hose to the outside of the house and if I could I need like a 25-50 foot hose then.
I just bought 2. Never used propane a day in my life, is it safe to store propane canisters in my shed if I want to stock up? I ordered the refillable 1lb canisters and the kit.
Sure can! I store about 20 of the 1 pound tanks in my garage. They are also on shelves in stores by the hundreds. Those green 1 pounders are easy to store anywhere. You will love this heater! Best portable heater ever made.
@@SamkoTradBow ok, thanks so much! I have been nervous about purchasing a 20lb tank and a large number of the 1lb cannisters because I wasn't sure if the heat or cold weather would affect their storage. I definitely will be stocking my shed now.
