Author Topic: Arctic Oven Tips & Advice?  (Read 3184 times)

Offline gorf37

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Arctic Oven Tips & Advice?
« on: Feb 05, 2018, 11:13 AM »
Heya Neighbours!

I'm over in Whitehorse, YT, and my fishing buddy just picked up a 12' Arctic Oven Extreme (w/o vestibule).

He's keen to get it out ice fishing, and I'm wondering if you have any tips or advice you could share with us about using it on the ice.

My specific questions:
- Is freezing to the ice a big concern?  I assume the more snow under the tent at first, the better, but I'm a little concerned about the faster melting beneath the heater than around the outside.  I assume that after 3 nights there will be a bowl of ice under the tend.
- When wall tenting I typically drill some sumps in the vicinity of the heater to let melt accumulate in.  Any reason that doesn't work here?
- Are wood stoves tough to manage?  He's got a little 8" diameter stove with 3" flue, and it seems just the ticket, but he's worried about over-heating the tent, and about sparks landing on the fly and igniting or burning holes in it.
- What heating source do you use?  It seems to me an oil stove is the best for these tents.  Wood is even better, if the issues with safely running it are less than I'm imaging.  I don't really want to mess around with propane b/c of tank troubles in cold temps.  He wanted to run a big-buddy in the tent, and I flatly refuse - too gun shy about not waking up.
- How do you dry your gear?  One of the best parts of over-nighting in a wall tent has been melting all the ice off my bibs and finding them dry and toasty each morning.  Will the pole structure tolerate multiple pairs of frozen bibs hanging from it?  Are oil/propane stoves effective to get that job done?
- Any trick to getting them back in the bag for the trip home?

Thanks for reading!

Gorf


Offline akdube

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Re: Arctic Oven Tips & Advice?
« Reply #1 on: Feb 05, 2018, 06:36 PM »
As far as wood vs oil vs propane. I’m with you nothing beats wood heat. What if you ran your flue out the wall and away from the tent a foot or two even if out the roof you could probably route the flue so it ain’t over the roof.


Offline RipLipp

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Re: Arctic Oven Tips & Advice?
« Reply #2 on: Feb 06, 2018, 12:05 PM »
I've stayed in AO on lakes many times while ice fishing. We use duraflame logs cut in half and supplement with dry wood. One night it was -23 degrees outside and inside the AO it was 85+. The AO I've used have that cloth membrane on the walls that wicks moisture like no other. Drying clothes was not a problem. On top of the floor cloth, we would also use foam puzzle pieces on the floor. Makes a huge difference in heat retention. If we are staying multiple days, we will move the AO on the third day due to the melting under the stove.

Offline CA1492

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Re: Arctic Oven Tips & Advice?
« Reply #3 on: Feb 06, 2018, 03:28 PM »
I've seen some commercially made stoves that have a spark arrestor at the end of the chimney.
The one I like best is the Gstove.  It has a perforated stove pipe that is capped at the end.

You could DIY a spark arrestor with some metal screen if your buddy's stove doesn't have one.
~CA1492

Build a man a fire and he is warm for a day.
Light a man on fire and he is warm for the rest of his life.

Offline gorf37

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Re: Arctic Oven Tips & Advice?
« Reply #4 on: Feb 06, 2018, 10:58 PM »
Thanks all

CA1492 - that spark arrestor is sweet!  I smell a homemade knock-off coming soon!

(Found it for $25CAD, no need for a knock-off..)

Offline kwackkillncrew

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Re: Arctic Oven Tips & Advice?
« Reply #5 on: Feb 07, 2018, 06:10 PM »
make sure you clean the spark arrestor every once in a while after using it.  It will build up soot and then it wont allow any air flow going up the chute. 
I will never be a "Prostaffer" because I dont pimp products fo free

Offline 56Supercub

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Re: Arctic Oven Tips & Advice?
« Reply #6 on: Feb 07, 2018, 06:20 PM »
Greetings,
The Arctic Oven tents are simply the best. I've been using them for more than 25 years. #1 do yourself a favor and do not camp directly on the ice. The ice/lake is frozen (Duh!) and will make your camp out feel like being in an ice box. The floor will always be cold and so will you be cold. It's nice to be on something flat but take the time to go shovel out a spot on the shore and pitch the tent there. If you must camp on the ice put down a tarp of some kind first and put the tent on top of that. Solves the freeze down problem. #2 condensation inside the tent is not as problem. The special fabric that makes the body of the tent transfers the vapors to the fly. The water will travel down the fly and freeze at the bottom. You can shake that off when you tear down camp.  #3 a good wood stove will drive you out but nothing feels like wood heat. They do require attention though.  #4 I've used a NU-WAY propane stove for years. They too will drive you out of the tent if you leave them on full blast. But you can regulate the heat much better and much less fuss. They use a 3 inch stove pipe to eliminate the chances of CO poisoning. But get a battery operated CO detector and then sleep well. #4 string a thin rope around the inside ceiling to hang clothes to dry. The tent poles are HD and it's not likely that you will load them enough to bend them. Have fun!

Offline J2theD

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Re: Arctic Oven Tips & Advice?
« Reply #7 on: Feb 12, 2018, 06:17 PM »
I've had mine (12x12 w/ vest) for about 4 years and spent over 100 nights in it I bet. We used a wood stove. 4 guys can sleep on cots in it comfortably, but 1 is near the door. Gear under the cots and in the vestibule.

Some things I have learned:

1. Clear the spark arrestor every couple days. Ours plugged in the middle of the night and smoke filled the tent. It was unpleasant :)

2. Duraflame logs are amazing for putting in at night so you can sleep 3-4 hours before stoking it again.

3. Be careful around the stove. This goes without saying, but we have melted a jacket and sleeping bag on the side of it.

4. We used 500 cord and bungees and ran it between the corner loops in the ceiling. This makes for easy gear drying.

5. The floor saver is definitely worth the money. Hot coals/sparks will inevitably hit the floor. That canvas floor saver doesn't even get a mark when they hit. It is heavy and bulky though.

6. After 2-3 days of camping on the ice you will have a giant puddle under the tent. It is best to get some heavy stuff out of the tent and just slide it over imo.

7. It is a pain to put up/take down in the wind. I would really avoid that if you can. Take two people to set it up. 3-4 is much easier/better.

We enjoy ours quite a bit. I made the stupid stupid mistake of stepping in it with my damn cleated winter boots and made a few tears in the floor, so i need to take it in and get it patched.

I always C & R Lakers and Rainbows

Offline gorf37

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Re: Arctic Oven Tips & Advice?
« Reply #8 on: Feb 14, 2018, 06:00 PM »
Thanks for the comprehensive feedback all.  I'll plan on writing a follow-up once we're back from our trip in late March.

Offline gorf37

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Re: Arctic Oven Tips & Advice?
« Reply #9 on: Oct 28, 2018, 12:31 AM »
Ultimately didn't get to do overnight ice fishing.  Did manage a nice Saturday, but no oven.

Did use it for moose hunting, it was great.  (-10C/14F overnight lows.) 
We used the wood stove, and it was hard not to overheat, but with a better lower & longer-burning stove I think it would be very comfortable.  Didn't run a spark arrester because both of us were quite taken-aback at how quickly it plugged up.  Probably the 3" pipe.  Sparks don't appear to have been a problem.
My buddy was sad to find his door all mildewy b/c he stored it rolled-up - keep your gear storage game on point folks.
I think sleeping 4 guys would be a push, maybe with a vestibule so more gear could be outside.
Speaking-of, I don't like that it rains in the tent when the door's open - the sans-vestibule model needs a small awning!
Drying gear hanging from the frame was no problem, though it does cramp the space a bit.  A couple icy pairs of bibs might be a little much, better put some effort into knocking all the ice off before hanging them.

That's my 2 cents, I hope to get some overnight trips in this winter.  Thank you all for your help.

 



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