Tman33_99 Posted January 10, 2005 Share Posted January 10, 2005 Our club is considering what it would take to make our range more match friendly for the winter months. With our range facing south with a 12,000 ft mountain as our backstop, the range is in shadows for most of the winter months. We can spread sand, and lay out carpet to reduce slippage, but it is still dang cold in the shadows @ 8000 feet. We asked if we could build fires in steel drums for heat, but the Range BOD had visions of news headlines title "Gun Club Responsible for Raging Forest Fire", so that idea has been canned. What have any other clubs done for their cold weather matches? We are thinking of two or three propane heaters set between the berms for small groups to warm themselves at. Is 80,000 BTU/Hr big enough? We have limited electrical capacity and no outlets right at the berms. Thanks for input Travis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TDean Posted January 10, 2005 Share Posted January 10, 2005 Maybe a big wood-burning stove? Low fire danger compared to open fires and they radiate some pretty good heat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loves2Shoot Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 The little portable propane heaters work pretty good, you can just carry them with the squad(s). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chews Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 Some of the outdoor dining places use these heaters from Coleman. They work pretty well but are kind of expensive. I think there are others on the market, but don't know names. http://www.coleman.com/coleman/colemancom/...categoryid=3000 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Heiter Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 To cover the most shooters in an outdoor environment, nothing is going to be as good as a forced air heater like the ones you see used on the sidelines during NFL games. Northern Tool has "Mr. Heaters" on sale right now. You may want to check them out if you can work out an electric power source. Other than that, I'd look at a heavy duty radiant model like this one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ErikW Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 I thought "Outdoor Heaters" was going to be about carry guns. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kimel Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 The only thing about propane heaters is that at some temperature which isn't as low as you might think the propane stops vaporizing (it is a liquid under pressure) quickly enough to keep the heater going continuously. I have a propane version of the old "Herman Nelson" type heater and at around 0 F it will consume the propane faster than it vaporizes from a standard BBQ tank. This leads one to needing to keep the propane tank within the heat envelope which makes people nervous. I have found you don't have to have the tank all that close to the heater...just close enough to raise the ambient temp to reasonable levels. Another problem with providing a localized heat source at a match is that very quickly the RO and the shooter are the only people not clustered around the heat source. The RO stays warm by screaming at the others to come patch targets and set steel. Something that spreads the heat out a bit and moved easily might be real helpful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dajarrel Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 Some, if not all, of the radiant heaters tend to loose effectiveness as wind speed increases. Not only does the wind cause the chill factor to increase (decrease) but it blows away the heat from the heater. Some sort of shelter from the wind would be needed. FWIW dj Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skywalker Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 Outdoor heaters? Not outdoor hooters? That would surely heat up the range... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tman33_99 Posted January 11, 2005 Author Share Posted January 11, 2005 Outdoor heaters? Nor outdoor hooters? That would surely heat up the range... Please send over your recommendation and I'll try them out and let you know how well they work here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redmist10 Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 Add more running stages. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Round_Gun_Shooter Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 We are thinking of two or three propane heaters set between the berms for small groups to warm themselves at. Is 80,000 BTU/Hr big enough? We have limited electrical capacity and no outlets right at the berms.Thanks for input Travis You are thinking a little too small. http://www.reddyheat.com/products/rh170t.html Or bigger will do the trick. These are Kero. Work great. Or Propane http://www.reddyheat.com/products/blp375at.html Regards, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flexmoney Posted January 15, 2005 Share Posted January 15, 2005 I like the shelter idea that somebody posted...in addition to the heat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Round_Gun_Shooter Posted January 15, 2005 Share Posted January 15, 2005 I like the shelter idea that somebody posted...in addition to the heat. I agree, a three sided poly shelter off the line with one of the above heaters blowing into it will have a warming effect you would not believe. The blue poly tarps sold at home centers for cheap money work great as long as the heater isn't too close Regards, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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