Mr. Heater MH18B, Portable Propane Heater
- 4,000- to 18,000-BTU radiant heater for spaces up to 450 square feet. Approved for indoor/outdoor use; clean-burning; nearly 100-percent efficient
- When operating the heater at altitudes over 7,000 FT above sea level the heater may shut off.
- Auto shut-off if tipped over, if pilot light goes out, or if detects low oxygen levels
- Low, medium and high heat level control knob for steady temperatures; connects to propane tank (not included)
- THE USE OF UN-AUTHORIZED ACCESSORIES/ATTACHMENTS WITH THIS HEATER ARE EXPRESSLY PROHIBITED, MAY CAUSE SERIOUS INJURY, AND WILL VOID THE WARRANTY.
JamillahAl-aminFuller
Powerful little sucker...
I have had several heaters for tents and travel trailers and will say this is one powerful little heater. We enclosed our 14x22 patio this summer and wanted a heater that would heat the area quickly and this does the job with power to spare. Our enclosure is insulated with a vaulted ceiling, double pane windows, and a ceiling fan and this heater will take the temp from 40 degrees to near 60 in less than an hour. Granted, it is just heating the air at this point and not the furnishings or walls but since we only use the space on occasion in the winter we are more than satisfied. Based on the square footage of the patio I needed a heater capable of 15k BTU which is why I chose this size and the 18K rating seems to be spot on.
JulieAnnHadocTorio
Really works!
Owned one of these years ago living in Missouri, and it would heat up the garage to 80-85 degrees during the winter. I loaned it out, and it never came back before I moved away. Living in the Pacific Northwest the winters can get a little chilly as well. Doing some work on the house we added a Penguin 8x12 sun room onto the back deck. It's not insulated by any stretch of the imagination, so when it's 30 degrees outside, it's 30 degrees in the sun room. I put down some rubber carpet tiles, and picked up another one of these heaters. Test conditions: 32 degrees in the sun room at 6:10p.m. The sun wouldn't have any effect on the ability of the heater. The heater was set to high, and a separate tower fan was running on low speed. 1. At 6:20 the temperature was 48 in the sun room. 2. At 6:30 temperature was 56 degrees. 3. At 6:45 temperature was 66 degrees. 4. At 7:00 temperature in the sun room was 72 degrees. 5. At 7:20 temperature was leveling out, and settled at 75 degrees. Test complete. My wife is happy she can now go back out into the sun room during the winter.
AbdullaAlMamun
GOOD QUALITY WORKS BUY IT !
I'm not able to say enough good things about this heater. It is reliable it is steady it works fast efficiently clean heat after you run it when new for a few times till the oils and paint sorta evaporate from around where it heats up the most, after that you will not smell anything odd. This heater is the best thing I have ever bought that relates to heaters. I use it with the small tanks but you can also get a hose with a 20 lb tank. With the smaller 1lb tanks on each side you can also run it with only 1 tank on one side but will only be able to use the low medium and high will work but not as bright if you had the 2 tanks. It shuts off if bumped into or if it falls over. I use it in a mini camper and I can't say enough good things about it all the sides that are not the front do not get hot. the front of the heater seems to retain the heat as much as possible to the fire brick area. The spark pilot always works its just a beast I am just in amused from this product. If I had the money on hand I would buy another one immediately.
AmandaRose
Great heater if used responsibly
Used it for two nights in a very large ten man tent in about 40 degree weather. Functioned flawlessly. Wouldn't recommend for a small tent or tight quarters because the unit puts out a lot of heat and the front probably should not be closer than three feet to anything that could melt or catch fire. I set it on two paving stones just to be safe, but I think it might have been fine without them. I'll use 12" tile next time to reduce size and weight. On low it used up two small bottles in about 8 hours. On medium it used up two small bottles in about 6 hours or a little less. On high you better have a lot of bottles or gas grill sized source. The fan works very well and is relatively quiet. No noticeable fumes. Note that the bottle connections swivel to make attaching much easier, if you don't notice this feature it will be aggravating to get them threaded on in their upright position. It was exactly what I wanted for a large tent in cold weather. The unit itself is fairly large, don't miss that fact, 12"x19" and probably over a foot high too. It takes some space for packing and wherever you plan to use it. I wouldn't recommend using it around rambunctious children or animals because the grill on the front would leave a permanent mark if you touched it when hot.
JamieTracy
The most amazing portable propane heater you will ever need!!! / An RVers best friend!!! / Portable.battery.operated.forced air
This is by far my favorite propane heater. None other compares to the Buddy Heater! To say it rocks is putting it mildly. I am a vintage RVer and I am currently on my 18th motorhome and in the past I have had a few coaches who's furnace was inoperable. As a furnace repair for a motorhome can be quite costly and me being in the hurry I was in then and in desperate need for a heater that ran off of propane instead of electricity (since I wouldn't be plugged in), and was battery operated with a fan (mandatory in a 33ft motorhome) I looked high and low and finally chose this Heater. This heater is the last propane heater you'll ever use, need or want! I promise you that. I purchased my first one some 6 years ago or so and have since had 3 of them. Not because they broke or didn't work, but to have extras. This Mr. Heater (the large one that takes two 1lb cylinders) will heat up a 33ft motorhome with outside temps at well below 15degrees to interior temps, in a motorhome with 1.5" walls, to roughly 70 degrees in about 20 minutes, on high, with the fan on. No joke! And......because it's propane and battery operated, it can be used anywhere you chose to use it. It's utterly fabulous!!! Now, all that being said, you have to make sure to have spare propane tanks if you are going to be using it for any length of time. Running it on full blast will empty the two propane tanks in about 3 hours. Running it on 'medium' or the middle setting will last roughly 4 or 5 hours, and on low or the first setting it will run for about 6 hours or so. I also strongly suggest the Mr. Heater 6 volt Power Adapter, again, especially if your using it for long periods of time as it can run the batteries down with the fan running for long periods of time. It takes 8 D batteries btw. I feel like I could write a book on this heater as over the years I've used them, I've always been pleased.
PMARodriguez
What you should know.
With the now hundreds of reviews for this item, what can I say that has not already been published about this heater? I have few things. First, I also own the Portable Buddy and while it is a good heater, it has its draw backs. The first thing I like better in comparison is the control knob of the Big Buddy, it's very smooth and ignites readily, it's also responsive and seems like it is better quality than the Portable Buddy unit. The handle is solid and does not fold down. The legs of the unit are soft rubber and non-adjustable. For a heater this size (I actually did gasp when I first got it, compared to the Little buddy) I think it would have been a plus. Having spoke about the legs, they are very soft and should play nice on wood floors. The unit is not very heavy and is easily carried with its sturdy handle. I'll say the fan is more gimmick than functional, but it does help throw out the heat to a degree. Do not expect blower style air out of the fan, it can run off of D cell batteries or an adapter that is sold separately (I wish I had sprung for the adaptor). I did spring for the quick connect propane hose by Mr. Heater for hooking up 20-40lb propane cylinders. If you buy the regulated quick connect hose you DO NOT have to buy the filters for running bulk propane. This is a money saver in the long run and worth it. The regulator inlet for the quick connect is located next to one of the inlets (opposite side of the control knob) for 1lb bottles and is easily accessible. This heater can be hooked up to (2) bulk propane tanks at the same time using connection hoses for bulk propane 20lb cylinders adapted to the 1lb connector or (1) 20lb bulk tank using the quick connect hose (to clarify for absolute clarity it only has (1) quick connect inlet and has an additional (2) propane inlets that are fitted for 1lb bottles. You may also run (1) or (2) 1lb propane bottles at the same time. The heater does well on the LOW settings and MEDIUM settings, the second element does not light until you turn it to HIGH setting. It does not matter what side you hook up propane to or in what manner you hook it up, the heater will run normally and work on all of its temperature settings (yes this was brought up in other reviews and is a source of confusion). The heater puts out a lot of heat on the HIGH settings and other reviews of the 1lb bottles freezing up on HIGH settings are more than likely accurate. This is no fault to the heater, it's just that on HIGH this thing eats up a good bit of propane and over a period of time empties those 1lb bottles more quickly, thus the moving gas freezes up the bottle. In a warm room this phenomenon may not occur and I'm not saying it always will, just don't be surprised if they do freeze under certain conditions. The Heater will NOT freeze a bulk tank 20lb or higher, I know this for a fact, I've tried. Durability wise the heater is a well built unit that has been running every night of the week in my garage for the last 5 weeks, and there's not been a single hiccup. my Portable Buddy has been put through hell and still runs like a champ, this one should be no different. The safety shut off Is very sensitive and at the first sign of tipping it shuts the heater down, I think this is an excellent feature. There is no smell with this heater, it puts off pure heat with no weird odors. The connections seem machined well and I have never had a problem using my Mr. heater hoses. The instruction manual is well layed out and tells it like it is, if you cannot understand this manual then you should not be using the heater, it's that easy. For the price range, features, durability, safety features and portability it is a no brainer purchase. The heater feels well made and puts out a good bit of heat. I use mine consistently for long stretches at a time and it works without issue. In an emergency situation I would trust it. If it were stolen, I would be sad and then buy another one. I hope this helps in your decision. Cheers!
ChetanAnandSingh
Great product -- I've used them for years
I don't know why people are having so much trouble with this heater. This is a great product which has made living in my off-the-grid cabin bearable even in winter. PERFORMANCE IN COLD WEATHER For the past 5 years, I've used the Big Buddy heaters to heat two small cabins, 200 sq feet each, with vaulted ceilings. Without the Big Buddy, my primary cabin averages 37 F in the winter, and my studio averages 35 F. With the Big Buddy, I can keep either cabin at a toasty 65 to 70 F. In the past, I used the smaller Mr. Buddy for years to heat a tent in winter for 2 weeks at a time while working in the mountains. How long to heat a space? Cabin: From full cold (37 to 45 F indoors), it feels like it takes forever to heat 200 sq feet on low. On high, my cabin is toasty warm in about 10 to 12 minutes. The heater then keeps the space too warm, so I have to turn it down to low, or start cycling it on and off every hour. Tent: It never heats the tent; too much loss through the tent walls. It just provides a radiant heat source for the side of your body that faces it. I could never decide if that made things better (to have some heat), or worse -- one side warm and the other freezing my hiney off. BOTTLE VS TANK + FUEL FILTER I have used both the Mr. Buddy and the Big Buddy with 1-lb bottles and 20-lb tanks, with and without fuel filters. Over the past 10 years, I have had only one failure -- one heater clogged with a 20 lb tank (no fuel filter). All my other heaters have performed flawlessly, and I've had 2 Mr Buddies and now have 5 Big Buddies (I gave away the Mr Buddies and went solely to the Big Buddies). I started using fuel filters only in the last 8 months. It's a preventative measure for my older equipment, since the heaters worked fine for years without the filters. YIELD: - 1-lb bottle: 5 hours on high -- maybe. If you're refilling your 1-lb bottles, remember that they're never as full as new ones (sometimes only 75% full), and you're going to eat up the refills very fast. - 20-lb tank: Seems to last forever. The heater will run 1+ week in snow/ice weather if I'm careful and willing to layer up a bit indoors. MEDIUM SETTING -- DON'T DO IT Use either low (single burner) or high (both burners). The medium setting burns on both burners, but does not burn cleanly -- I can smell the propane. This seems to be an overall design flaw, not a defect of any given heater. Also, the medium setting is not much faster in heating the space than the low setting -- and, it doesn't seem to add that much more heat. Feels like the worst of all worlds: wasteful, unclean burning, and not very efficient. CONTINUOUS USE -- WASTEFUL The heater will work just fine if you leave it on for an hour or more (I've certainly done that indulgence), but you'll waste a lot of propane. Better to turn it on, heat your space, then turn it off for a while. If you throw down some carpeting, you'll be fine for an hour before you need to fire it up again. Remember, this is essentially a camp heater. You're not trying to achieve a tropical setting; you're trying to keep the space comfortably bearable. INDOORS AT NIGHT -- DON'T DO IT Although it is safe to use indoors, and after years of experience with these heaters, I'm confident in that claim, I still do not recommend running it at night or while you're sleeping. I've had the CO alarms go off three times this last year -- once dangerously -- from other things. I just don't think it's a good idea to run any propane appliance indoors in a small space when you're not conscious. SAFETY FEATURES Bump it -- even slightly -- and it will shut off. While I appreciate the safety feature, personally, I find this annoying. I live and work in a tiny space, bumping things -- eg, stepping over it in hiking boots -- is almost inevitable. The wire cage that protects you from the ceramic elements is well designed -- far enough from the elements to protect against accidental touch, without adding too much bulk. This is especially important when you're wearing bulky layers and unknowingly dangling coat sleeves, lanyards, and jacket corners. I have yet to find another propane heater I'd be comfortable having in a tight space. ACCESSORY: CARRY BAG -- DON'T DO IT What a waste. A soft-sided bag that doesn't really protect the heater. With 2 huge pockets on either end for the two extra 1-lb bottles. Makes the entire package bulky, susceptible to damage, annoyingly shaped, and hard to store around other objects. Just keep your original box or get a suitable tub for the heater + a couple 1-lb bottles. You'll be able to pack it more efficiently, travel without worrying about moisture, and move it wherever you want without risking so much damage. PRICE I've gotten much better prices locally than I've ever seen on amazon. I suggest you shop around. BOTTOM LINE This is a great product, well designed, portable, lightweight, compact, and safe. Without the Big Buddy, I would not endure the cold very well in my cabins. This product has allowed me to work anywhere, in any weather, for the minimal price of a tank of propane. Really, that's pretty darn useful.
DebbieHill
Hallelujah- Simple, Fast Unboxing and Setup. Flawless Design!
This is the “Apple” of portable heaters. Very solid product design, with seamless unboxing and setup. This is clearly a company that has a mature manufacturing and quality assurance process. It shows! I bought 2 of the smaller units on day one (at HDepot) after reading MANY reviews and then the larger unit on Amazon a few weeks later. All are working flawlessly. Product companies (producing heaters or whatever) could/should learn a thing or two from Mr Heater. Solid. Oh, and the heat they all produce is great, but know that using them outside with a breeze will affect performance.
PeterPatino
The perfect portable heater!
I just received the heater and couldn't be more pleased! I also purchased the 12' hose with the quick disconnect fitting to connect a 20 lb bulk propane bottle to the the heater. I placed the heater in my motor home (a 34' c!ass A style) which was 36 degrees inside, started the heater, and was truly amazed! With the heater set to the high position and the fan on, I was able to heat the interior to 68 degrees within less than 30 minutes. This is much like the results that others have experienced! The one thing I found when starting the heater the first time is that it took a while for the gas to get from the tank to the pilot light. As the instruction book says, it at take 1 to 5 minutes holding the knob down in the pilot position to bleed the air from the hose. For me, it was 2-3 minutes. After waiting, the pilot lit immediately and the heater functioned perfectly. I also purchased the 6 volt power supply to power the fan rather than relying on the 4 - D size batteries, since I plan to use the heater for extended periods of time. However, the fan works very well on the batteries as well. The nice thing is that it is not too noisy. If I am dry camping, not connected to any "shore power:, I can run the fan on the batteries or use a small inverter to power the fan. It just seems to circulate the heat better. Once the interior was warmed up, I was able to turn the knob to a lower setting. Other reviews have mentioned how long a tank will last, but I am sure that with a bit of attention, a 20 lb tank should last at least a weekend of fun. I might note that I do have a built in furnace in the motor home, but the fan is someone noisy and it draws down the house batteries. This heater seems much more efficient and much, much quieter. I will be using it in a boat for auxiliary heat as well. I also own the Little Buddy heater with which I am also quite pleased! I first used the Little Buddy for auxiliary heat in a cab-over camper when I was duck hunting. In the smaller space, it worked quite well! With either heater, very little noticeable odor. They are easy to carry and set up, light easily, and perform as advertised. They are both excellent products! Over all, the heater, the hose and the power supply make a nice package! I highly recommend it!
NicoleDFriedley
Great heater
Great product saved us during a power outage ,produces lots of heat and the built in fan blows the heat around nicely ,the fan works off 4 d batteries or ac .so perfect emergency product and is safe for indoor use if used properly our local fire dept taught us how to use it right. first of all you don't put it in a bedroom and close the door and go to bed or you will be asking for trouble .how to properly use it is where ever you place it make sure you open a window in the room 1 inch to provide a draft and you will be safe .it does have a built in carbon detector which is suppose to shut it self off if it reachs a dangerous level but you should still have carbon detectors in the house and never close a room off by shutting like a bed room or living door