12v, Propane Convection Oven?

[marant]

We are not satisfied with the small size of the ovens offered with our 21C (ordered) and are contemplating just getting the standard 2 burner top and installing a separate 12 volt propane oven. I have found some propane convection ovens, but they are very large commercial ovens that cost thousands. Is there such a thing as an rv convection propane oven? Or even a decent sized 12v propane oven for an rv? We boondock a lot and do not want to have an oven that is restricted to a 120v supply.

[alanerickson]

I don't have much experience, but typically propane and natural gas are interchangeable if the proper regulators and orifices are used. Not sure if looking at natural gas models gives you more options or if you were already doing that.

[marant]

Thanks, will check it out.

[John in Santa Cruz]

never *heard* of a 12V electric oven. most wall ovens are 240VAC as they are 1000s of watts.. like looking at a basic home 24" oven (thats the smallest of the 3 common sizes for wall ovens) and its 2000 watts baking, 3600 watts broiling. 3600 watts is 300 amps at 12VDC, eeeeek. the particular model I looked up requires 40 amp 240V service.

and to clarify what alan said about propane vs natural gas, you MUST change the orifices and regulator in the appliance to switch between the two, and this is only possible if the natgas appliance offers propane as an option.

the RV propane oven in my Escape works great with 'quarter sheets', which are plenty big enough for us, we're not roasting a whole turkey when we're on the road.

smallest 24" home gas wall oven I found in a quick search is about 24 x 24 x 24 inches... the atwood in my 21C is 19" deep, 21" wide, 14" high (not counting the stovetop), and I'm pretty sure the wheel wells are behind/under it, so getting larger isn't an option in the depth or height.

[marant]

John


I think we would need 12v electricity for the convection fan.


Will check to see if there is room for a deeper oven. The offered ones only have 4-6" of interior space, not enough to bake bread.

[alanerickson]

Do you have an inverter? 110v convection fan opens up a much bigger choice of ovens. Fan should only need 40w so not a lot of powered required. If no inverter a small 100w unit is pretty cheap (<$100).

[splitting_lanes]

Originally Posted by marant

John


I think we would need 12v electricity for the convection fan.


Will check to see if there is room for a deeper oven. The offered ones only have 4-6" of interior space, not enough to bake bread.

My wife was lamenting about the small oven size yesterday. I pointed out to her that everything she cooks except large roasts will fit in the escape provided oven.

I would suggest you look for a bread maker. My parents have one they just put ingredients in and a few hours later… fresh bread!

[John in Santa Cruz]

Originally Posted by splitting_lanes

My wife was lamenting about the small oven size yesterday. I pointed out to her that everything she cooks except large roasts will fit in the escape provided oven.

I would suggest you look for a bread maker. My parents have one they just put ingredients in and a few hours later… fresh bread!

just looked it up, typical automatic bread maker is a 500 to 1500 watt appliance. not practical off grid if that has got to run for several hours, even the smaller one would use 1KWH or so to bake a loaf in 2 hours. dual golf cart batts are 12V 220AH with 110AH usable if you stay above 50% max discharge, so thats 1.2 KWH total power capacity.

[Vermilye]

If you can't live with the small RV oven, you are probably going to need to do a major rebuild of the cabinetry. An apartment 24" propane stove/oven would be a possibility, but with the additional width & depth, something is going to have to give. I do wish I had a larger oven, but have lived with my stock Escape one. Of course, I bake pies, not bread. How about French Baguettes?

[marant]

Guess I will just have to make my excellent cast iron pan mix and bake cornbread. Minimal cleanup.

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by marant

Will check to see if there is room for a deeper oven. The offered ones only have 4-6" of interior space, not enough to bake bread.

I am not knowledgeable on the exact particulars you may need to bake bread but as far as space the design of the Dickinson Caribbean (2 burner) and Mediterranean (3 burner) stoves seem to maximize space. Seems like quite a bit of room with the rack at lowest position. I know a couple of owners have done custom galley cabinetry to fit one. I'm not sure if anyone has taken the time to evaluate what it would entail to remove one of the Escape options and install the Dickinson or asked Escape if they would customize to accommodate one.
Caribbean Two Burner Gas Stove | Dickinson Marine
Mediterranean Three Burner Gas Stove | Dickinson Marine

[rjreeves]

Originally Posted by marant

The offered ones only have 4-6" of interior space, not enough to bake bread.

I successfully bake bread in the Escape supplied optional Dometic oven almost every time I go camping.

While I understand the propensity for endless modifications sates an unfilled need in some personality types, my experience suggests that you may in fact have a recipe problem rather than an oven problem.
Halving your recipe or splitting it into 2 loaf pans might be easier than taking a Sawzall to your cabinetry. Just saying.
This clear and simple solution provided by H.L. Menckin.

[marant]

Or put it in some of my mini pans. Perfect for canapes

[Centex]

On the Dickinson webpages I note the following for both the 2-burner Caribbean and the 3-burner Mediterranean:

"The usable oven space is 17” W x 12.5” D x 8” from the bottom rack and 5” from the top rack. (only one rack included)"

Gee, it sure would be nice if other (RV) oven manufacturers would present a similarly clear statement of "usable oven space", but alas that info seems elusive

[marant]

A Dickinson would sure be nice, but not at $2000+!

[CharlesinGA]

The old Atwood/Wedgewood cooktop/oven models came in two heights, 17 inch and 21 inch high (they are all 21 inches wide) I think most of the stoves provided by the RV manufacturers are the shorter models.

Measure from the counter top surface to the bottom of the cutout that the stove fits into. If it measures about 16 inches, then you have the shorter model. If you were to rework the cabinet to accommodate the taller models, you gain a 4 inch taller oven in the process as the cooktop is the same height, and the area below the oven where the burner is, is also the same. The actual oven cooking area will be 4 inches taller.

Something else that seems to help with the oven cooking is to put the rack all the way down, and then put a square oven stone on top of the metal below the rack. Just be sure and do not block the holes around the perimeter. I use this one with good success at cooking sweet rolls and other similar items without burning them. The stone evens out the heat greatly.

Waykea 12”x12” Black Ceramic Pizza Stone Baking Grilling Stone for BBQ Grill Oven RV Oven

RecPro RV Stove | Gas Range 21" Tall | Optional Vented Range Hood | Black or Silver Color Options (Silver, No Vented Range Hood)

Greystone, 12 Volt RV Gas Range and Cooktop, Stove and Oven Combo, 21 Inch, LP Gas, Black

Suburban 3215A 22″ RV Gas Range with Black Textured Steel Door

Charles

[DanandDaphne]

I had one of these camp ovens https://smile.amazon.com/Coleman-200...8735787&sr=8-2

It worked surprisingly well, I was living full time in a converted school bus and used it indoors and out. This one is aluminum and it looks like it hasn't changed from the one I had 30 some years ago. Here's a stainless steel one for a bit more but still pretty affordable.

https://smile.amazon.com/Winnerwell-...8735787&sr=8-3

[marant]

What a great idea, I have never heard of it. Seems to be very well regarded by reviewers also. May just solve several issues, allowing us to just go with the standard 2 burner cooktop, which we prefer, and gain the storage beneath. Saves some money, too.

Will definitely investigate further.

Thanks.

[gbaglo]

Originally Posted by DanandDaphne

I had one of these camp ovens https://smile.amazon.com/Coleman-200...8735787&sr=8-2

I had one of those too. Gave it away. I used it to reheat pulled pork, outside, with BBQ as a heat source.

I would never use it inside on a propane burner. Read the instructions for your range, particularly the size of pans allowed.

[CharlesinGA]

With no oven, a lot of Class B campers are using the Omnia oven

Amazon - Omnia Oven

People either rave about them or bad mouth them. The YouTube Channel From She to Me travels in a Pleasure Way van and uses one in almost every episode, just to show different things that can be done with it.

https://youtu.be/4vMGsgrCvakt=1073

Easy clean up with the silicone inserts.

Charles