Mr Heater MH18B Portable "Big Buddy" Heater
by Mr. Heater
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List Price: Our Price: $99.99 You Save: $84.89 (40%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $98.99 (click here) Category: Home See more product details |
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Tools and Hardware Reviews of Mr Heater MH18B Portable "Big Buddy" Heater
Customer Review: A champion provider of cheap, reliable, and portable heat
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought my first Big Buddy after my central heater failed just before a snowfall and hard freeze. I rushed out to Northern Tool and grabbed the last one I could find on their shelves, a package of D batteries, and 8- 1 pound propane tanks. Those tanks and the first set of batteries lasted the weekend, but I went back and bought a pair of 20lb tanks for $39 each, 2 filters for $10 each, a power adapter for $7, and a 12' bulk tank hose kit for $25. (I got mine from Northern Tool, but I could have easily ordered everything but the tanks with 2-day shipping using Amazon Prime.) And that's all we've needed ever since. When we awaken or arrive home in the evening, I put it on high and within 20 minutes at the most, the house will be back to 70 F. Then I drop it to medium and in another 20-30 minutes it'll be up to 73-74. And when it reaches that temp, I just set it to the low setting and it will maintain that temperature except during the coldest weather, during which it takes the medium setting to maintain a pleasant temperature.
The internal fan's bearings are noisy, but after a year, mine have quietened quite a bit. And for those who have complained that on the High setting the floor beneath the heater gets too warm, I will simply point out that there are two conveniently-placed nail/ screw wall-mounting holes on the back of the heater to make make hanging it on the wall (as I've done) as easy as placing two nails or screws to hang the heater upon. This heater saves me at least $200/ month during the coldest months compared to electric heat costs where I live. Getting one of my 20lb tanks refilled runs $12-$15 here and one tank last me generally 4-7 days, even in my drafty, uninsulated 'project' home.
We have enjoyed it so much that I bought another for our RV and camp. They're very efficient heaters, and having used the filters since the first time I used a bulk tank, I've had not a lick
of trouble, even though I've almost never remembered to turn off the gas flow at the tank 1st to
burn off the fuel in the pressure line. I intend to change that practice, but... I'm just saying the fuel filters are a good investment and mine have apparently helped me avoid having to pay for my repeated sins.
These, undoubtedly, were never designed to provide main heating for a home over even a single season. But my first unit is halfway through season 2 and runs like a champ. Honestly, I think it's the best purchase I've made in years. It pays for itself again every month in electrical bill savings. It gives me another opportunity to tell my wife "I told ya so" every time we sit to pay the bills. And that's almost as warm a feeling as the heater puts out itself, even if it sometimes leads to getting the 'cold shoulder'! Buy one, read the manual, and enjoy. You'll be glad you did!
Customer Review: READ THIS!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
If you read reviews...you will learn......
This unit works AWSOME...when used correctly. Pay attention.
I hate long wordy reviews so this is to the point.
Don't use the 1lb disposable propane tanks, for many reasons: they don't last long, enviorment, they freeze up (on high), they freeze the internal regulators.
So, you need a 20# tank. Got a gas grill? That is a 20# tank......go get it filled.
Hose: Do NOT get the plain hose and filter...again, many reasons: no pressure regulation creates oil, clogs unit, unsafe....
So, get the hose with regulator...safe, no filter needed, unit wont clog.
Yes, it is an added expense so plan on it. You need the unit, a 20# tank and the hose WITH regulator.
PLUS: hose with regulator has the quick release....nice!
C'mon, you have never hooked up a gas grill to a propane tank without a regulator. This is no different.
Once you have these three correct items...this thing is great!
Fan/blower: kind of crappy. I'm glad it has it and I'm glad I can use batteries in a jam. But you either need the A/C adapter for $20 OR any other fan....Just something to move the heat around. This unit produces a LOT of heat. It rises straight up. The blower moves it around and heats areas more quickly. For $20 and free shipping, I just bought it. I'm not bringing a fan everywhere I use this.
If you follow these simple things you will be very pleased.
Personally: I use this primarily to heat my basement (approx 800sq.ft). Bought a pellet stove to heat house a few years back and since the FHW heating isn't running the basement stays cool as no hot water running through pipes. I used to get "free" heat in basement.
Right now it is 11 degrees outside and 65 down here (man town, my office, kids game area).
Unit is on high, no shut off, no freezing, no problem. Running for 2 hours straight now....on high.
You can use the 1 lb tanks and this can go camping and everywhere else. But if you plan on using at home or someplace constant, you need the 20# tank, or larger, and the Hose WITH regulator.
If nothing else, this unit could keep your pipes from freezing in an outage during winter. HUGE savings there alone. Then use it all over until/if that happens.
For under $200 I bought the Big Buddy, the correct hose with regulator and the A/C adapter. Free shipping and here in 2 days.
You can't get this kind of heat for indoor use from another heater this safely (low o2 sensor and tipover sensor).
Customer Review: Best thing I've ever bought!
Summary: 5 Stars
My heavily retro-insulated 1920 NH colonial is heated with base-board heat supplied by an oil fired water boiler. Living alone now, and seeing oil prices exceeding $4.25/gallon this summer, I decided to get creative with space heaters. After a lot of research, I bought a Big Buddy for my downstairs 12x24 office and a Delonghi TRD0715T oil-filled radiator for my upstairs, 12x12 bedroom. Both have proven to be excellent choices.
To fire my Big Buddy, I drilled a small hole in the wall to the outside, just large enough to sneak the 12' regulated propane hose (accessory) outside and into a barbeque grill size propane tank. I built a little, enclosed stand for the propane tank so I could reach out a window to turn it off and on rather than have to go outside to do it. I've been keeping the rest of the downstairs at 50 degrees as I don't use the other rooms except to walk through to get to my office. In the morning, I fire my Big Buddy up to the max 18,000 btu and in 20 minutes the room is at 60 degrees. Then I turn the heater down to 9,000 btu for a half hour or so until the room is up to 65 degrees, then down to 4,000 btu until the room is at 70 degrees, and for the rest of the day I vary between 4,000 btu and just a pilot light. At a local propane dealer, I can get a 20 lb. barbeque tank filled for $10. I keep two barbeque tanks, so when one runs out of propane, I have another ready to go. So far I go through a tank about every 10 days. No mess, no fumes, no headaches, no problems. Between this heater and the excellent Delonghi heater in my bedroom, I have so far used 1/8 tank of heating oil since August, where I would otherwise by now have used more near 3/4 of my 275 gallon oil tank. Even as heating oil has dropped considerably in price since August, that's still a huge savings.
One downside of my Big Buddy is the installed fan is not only noisy but pretty useless. To compensate for this, I have a six inch fan propped up behind and toward the top of the heater to blow the rising heat around the room. My Big Buddy isn't thermostat controlled, but who cares? When the room is up to the temperature I want, I get up out of my chair once every couple hours or so and turn the heat control up or down, and for that minor inconvenience I save a small fortune on heating oil.
If you buy the Big Buddy, be sure to turn off your propane source and let your Big Buddy pilot light go out before you turn off the unit. Otherwise, enjoy the relatively inexpensive heat from this excellent powerhouse.
Customer Review: Performs as advertised...but...
Summary: 2 Stars
Here's what you should know BEFORE you buy this thing. If you are planning to use disposable cylinders this heater will suck them down in no time flat. It's expensive, inefficient, and environmentally lousy with disposables. If you are planning to use (2) 20lb cylinders you will need a 'fuel filter' for each regulator (there are 2). Mr. Heater sells them for 9.95 each postpaid. You will also need hoses. Amazon seems to have the best price for these. There is a built in fan in this unit. It doesn't do much except make noise. The unit does not come with the AC adapter to run the fan. If you feel the fan is a requirement, Radio Shack sells the adapter for 18-20$. The part #'s are 2731761 (adapter) & 2731708 (plug). You can also use the 4 D cells but you will run through a bunch. I spent about $150 over the purchase price to get it up and running (Tanks, Hoses, Fuel Filters, AC Adapter). You can download the owners manual on the Mr. Heater web site, consider doing so before you buy.
You should also know about the recall on the heater. There was a problem with some of the regulator/control valve assemblies. The units affected were sold prior to January 10, 2005. I had one of these units and went through the recall process. Mr. Heater sent me a postpaid return tag and I had my replacement heater in a week. It works just fine. The process was frustrating and inconvenient but Mr. Heater has ultimately made it right.
Some comments about Amazon Customer Service: Amazon completely abandoned its customers when the product recall occurred. They made no effort to contact people who had purchased the item and refused to accept returns. I had owned my heater about 2 weeks, had used it once, and was writing a product review when I found out about the recall. I was stuck with it. (A friend was able to return his to a local hardware store for a full refund.) Amazon even took down product reviews alerting people to the safety recall. My letter to the President of Amazon about this remains ignored. Amazon gets a failing grade for conduct regarding this problem.
Before you buy this item, consider getting a Little Buddy heater (or 2). The Big Buddy is basically 2 Little Buddy's in one package. (2 regulators, 2 tank connections, 2 heating tiles)
I like the heater. Knowing what I know now, I would buy it again. The folks at Mr. Heater have done their best in the face of a bad situation. I wish the same could be said for Amazon.
Customer Review: Excellent portable heater!
Summary: 5 Stars
I purchased this heater for an Arizona camping trip in mid-February. I knew it was going to get below 40F and it did. The ground outside my tent froze, but I was warm within. Now I must say that staying warm had it's caveats. I have an elevated air mattress, so I had to position the heater atop a chair and it sat there firmly (I did not feel that it would fall as this unit is solid if not exactly heavy). I then had to place the chair within a few inches of my bed in order to feel the heat. This is due to the fan within the unit being somewhat weak. Now if you are simply heating the space itself, anywhere would be fine, but I needed the heat specifically on me.
Pros: There are two ceramic plates that heat up in the unit. They glow a bright orange when lit (are silver when unlit). This allows you to go full bore on the heat using both plates, or be more economical, depending on what best suits your needs. The pilot light is a small flame which stays lit near the bottom/center of the device. If you nudge the heater or bump it, the security safeguards will cut off the flow of gas to the pilot light requiring you to relight it. I had to do this a few time, but I didn't mind. It's all for safety. It's also fairly lightweight (at least to me) and the handle at the top was very strong. I felt very comfortable moving the unit even when the pilot light was lit. The unit was also VERY quiet, even with the fan on!
Cons: I really didn't have any, but if you have sensitive or weak hands, you may find it difficult to pry open the sides where the containers go. The clips are pretty tight.
I would definitely use two cannisters instead of one. Using one cannister will result in the unit drawing so much fuel that the can will freeze and the flow will stop. Using two cannisters, I was able to keep the unit lit all night at the highest temperature-VERY comfortable! You do have the option by using a specific hose adapter (NOT included) of attaching a 20lb tank. This would extend the heating time tremendously.
All in all, this unit performed EXACTLY as I wished and was perfect for me. I've also used it twice in my living room about a foot or two away from my feet and it feels great. If you need something with more fan power, I'd suggest lining up a stronger fan behind it blowing through it. I thoroughly recommend this unit.