For everything sacred & living, please use a carbon monoxide detector, fire alarm, & fire extinguisher inside your camper.
Highly recommend a combination fire detector, carbon monoxide detector, and temperature display for your home or camping vehicle. Many all-in-one devices (like First Alert) include a lithium battery inside, advertised to last ten years!
I bought one for my Cascade camper van in November 2020. I used velcro & magnetic hooks to secure it to my van’s interior, metal exposed side wall.
Here is a YouTube link showing my First Alert combination alarm at the 24 second mark in this video: https://youtu.be/a6MrmiOkvUA – inside “Myrtle the Sea Turtle”.
Anyone using a Mr. Heater Little Buddy…please be extra cautious! It uses an active flame 🔥 that stays on all the time, producing 3800 BTUs of heat! Little Buddy has a safety shut-off feature if tipped or knocked over. However, Little Buddy is a top heavy, portable heater that uses a one pound, propane canister that threads into it. There are no lower, safe areas inside Cascade camper vans…except on the floor behind the passenger seat…when the bed is made into a sofa! Some people have placed their heater’s on the sink counter or on-top the refrigerator’s plastic lid for short durations to warm up the van; keeping a watchful eye on rising temperatures. Anything that falls on top or in front of the Little Buddy heater will most likely catch on fire with its active flame that has carbon monoxide safety protection & tip over, shut-off features. Please remember… the Little Buddy heater has no side & front sensors for fire detection!
Look closely at the two photos above. See how limited the counter space is in the Cascade camper van? There is very little room to safely place a Little Buddy heater inside this van!
Little Buddy heater melts plastic vent ring
In 2021, a couple rented a Cascade camper van from owner Justin – who operates a fantastic camper van rental business called https://www.vanderoutdoors.com/ in the Washington DC area. Unbeknownst to Justin, the couple brought along their Little Buddy heater and placed it on top of the Dometic, plastic refrigerator lid. They had no idea how incredibly hot Little Buddy heaters become with 3800 BTUs cranking out heat, with one setting only.
Little Buddy heater melted the plastic ring around a Cascade vent fan that had to be replaced by the owner. Even sitting on top of a sink counter, the Little Buddy points upward and can heat the paneling and dry out the clear, polyurethane coating on the ceiling panels.
Side Table provides safer eating, cooking & work areas
The Cascade camper conversion is built inside a small cargo van. Therefore, people are limited to where they can place the single burner stove, heater & other items. At the 2021 East Coast Camp Out, an add-on table solution was discussed. Cascade builder & co-owner Zach Yeager was there to have fun & respond to customer feedback. I was surprised to hear that his initial, interior design included a side table!
As shown in the photo above, the side table provides another flat surface to hold a plate of food, cup of coffee, laptop, etc. Seeing the side table next to a folded down sofa is important to observe how close it is to blankets & bedding. I would not recommend placing a Little Buddy heater on the side table unless fully awake! When the bed is folded back into a sofa, the side table can be used as a desk or work space.
Kudos to Zach Yeager who designed the little table. It can easily fold against the side of the camper’s main cabinet, hence its name. Side Table has two hinges that allow it to be folded open or closed. Cascade does not offer the side table as a standard option. Zach said the side table could rattle inside the van while driving. This caused him not to include it as part of the camper’s conversion package.
Like other Cascade Camper owners, I am willing to tolerate a possible rattling noise for a much needed table. I emailed Cascade and ordered the side table which cost $200 in 2021. The price could increase in future months due to inflation. It’s more convenient to have the Cascade builders drill the holes and attach the side table during the one day installation of your van’s interior package. But you must order the table option ahead of time, as it takes several hours to manufacture in Nevada City, CA.
There is hope if you already own a Cascade camper and want to add it. The side table (9.5” wide by 14” long) is small enough to fit inside checked luggage. Perhaps Cascade can send it to you at an additional cost to cover the shipping. Either way, having a side table will give you an extra area inside your Cascade Camper van to eat, work, relax, and keep hot items within safe reach!
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