diesel heater

scoobydiver

I have a self build and were looking for advice on diesel heaters as were getting old and nesh but would like to be wilding throughout the winter months without having the hassle of finding sites with hookups that are open throughout the year , question 1 do diesel heaters come in different capacities ? . 2 Are they fairly easy to fit ?. 3 what would you recommend - thanks guys n gals .
remember - live long and prosper cos camper vanners are all treckies at heart .
 

FULL TIMER

They do come in many different outputs from about 2kw onwards, the 2kw models would be ideal for smaller PVC, but probably better off with around 3.5 / 4 kw for larger coachbuilts etc. I like the Eberspacher D2 / D4 models as they are what I know, but there are also models from Webasto and MV Airo (formally Mikuni) I myself have a Mikuni MY30 which are now discontinued.

As for fitting they are all pretty easy and very similar to fit, hardest bit is tapping into the vehicle fuel supply as this will normally involve dropping the tank to fit a standpipe, unless you decide to fit a separate tank which are available. You will also need a good 12v supply as they all need to draw a decent current for a few minutes whilst starting up, once set and running they are pretty good on power use.

Also worth considering is the gas alternative such as the Heatsource models made by Propex / Whale some of which also have a mains electric heating facility.

for plenty of info on the diesel heaters its worth looking at the Butler Technik website , and / or these Eberspacher D2
also a link to MV Airo Vehicle Heating Kits - Heater kits : MV Heating and Propex Blown Air Heaters & Water Storage Heaters ? Propex Heating
 
n brown

n brown

Forum Member
wot he said basically !
i'll just add that propex are easier to fit,no messing with diesel tanks
 

Steve121

As FULL TIMER says, they do use quite a bit of 12V power during start-up, but this is not a problem if you have the vehicle engine running during this time. Can't see the point of having a separate tank for fuel - somewhat defeats any convenience advantage.
I've got an Eberspacher D5 and can't imagine life without it. Heats vehicle interior from around freezing to a comfortable 16 - 18° in a few minutes, and in our very well insulated van only comes on for a few minutes per hour, even when it's freezing outside. Thermostat is proportional which helps maintain a good comfort level.
The only slight disadvantage, apart from cost, is the noise, but that's not a big problem and is easily reduced if you fit a silencer to the intake - exhaust silencers are ineffective.
 

Grimola

I was thinking about the Eberspacher which is only a few hundred quid dearer than a Propex hs200 (on eBay), but in the end, I went for Propex as its quieter and requires less servicing. I believe they use less battery power that a diesel as there is no glow plug to heat up every time it turns itself on and off with the thermostat. Only fitted late September 2016 so only used for one weekend but it worked fine. I don't think its man enough to heat my LWB Peugeot boxer minibus on a cold winters day (but it does have big single glazed windows so there is a lot of heat loss). From what I read Eberspacher's kick out more heat, if I was planning on camping in the winter I probably would have gone with the Eberspacher but for my needs (just extending the spring-autumn camping season), a propex is fine
 
mistericeman

mistericeman

Forum Member
I've just replaced a faulty D2 eberspacher with a, brand new full 3 year UK warranty one from PF Jones £585 all in full the full kit including wiring loom/pump/exhaust pipe/inlet/801 controller with room stat in our Transit Jumbo....

Eberspacher Airtronic D2 Heater 801 12V Heater Kit - 36 Month Warranty | eBay
and I honestly couldn't be happier with it.... the kit is complete down to every last screw and jubilee clip etc... (not used most of as was replacing like for like.
It barely sips fuel... We've had it running all over Christmas and not noticed any impact on fuel (0.01 litres per hour on low)
Frankly if you even slightly handy then it's a doddle to fit and even IF we had gas on board I would still have gone eberspacher as it's cheaper to run.
the only thing I would advise is spend the money in inlet/exhaust silencers as they make a huge difference to the noise levels.
 

Obanboy666

Out of curiosity why diesel ?
My Truma combi costs bugger all to run, is relevantly quiet, heats the water as well as blown air habitation heating and is convenient as I also use gas for cooking. If diesel heaters were the dogs ba--olks as far as heating is concerned how come very few main stream manufacturers fit diesel heaters and use gas Truma or Aldi systems which I believe cost considerably more than diesel heaters and can use ehu if required.
 

molly 2

I have a Truma 2400 more expensive to run to run than eber , that is offset by gasit refillable . To me the big advantage of eber is having a big tank of fuel and not worrying about running out of gas.if on hook up I use £20 fan heater .
 
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Luckheart

Can't see the point of having a separate tank for fuel - somewhat defeats any convenience advantage.

Steve, You are right but it grates to pay sooo much tax for road diesel against red.
 

wildman

separate tank for fuel means you can use red or central heating oil.
 
mistericeman

mistericeman

Forum Member
wildman said:
separate tank for fuel means you can use red or central heating oil.
Click to expand...

For the amount a D2 consumes.... I really couldn't be bothered with the pfaff...
you'd need to be running it on full tilt 24/7 with the windows open to be even vaguely bothered.
 

john1974

hi all.. a slight hijack..

I bought some old eber's recently and will try and bench test them- one is air / one water.. but today I acquired an LPG tank to fit underneath.. its bigger than I thought.. (not massive but probably 70L or so) - this has made me rethink heating.. with only a 2 ring hob, and a possible gas fridge, I cant see this tank running out easily for general 3 season camping.. is it worth looking at gas powered water and air heating now?
any thoughts welcome..
John
 

molly 2

john1974 said:
hi all.. a slight hijack..

I bought some old eber's recently and will try and bench test them- one is air / one water.. but today I acquired an LPG tank to fit underneath.. its bigger than I thought.. (not massive but probably 70L or so) - this has made me rethink heating.. with only a 2 ring hob, and a possible gas fridge, I cant see this tank running out easily for general 3 season camping.. is it worth looking at gas powered water and air heating now?
any thoughts welcome..
John
Click to expand...
can't see the point of fitting a large gas tank unless you use gas heating .eber or gas both good ,heads or tales ?
 

john1974

thanks Molly.. forgot I wrote this ! started another thread elsewhere...
 

Roger

I went the all diesel route when providing heat for my camper - water/air heater and stove both from Webasto.

Main reason was the increased space available without having to have a gas locker, and maybe carrying a spare bottle, plus (in Australia) the costs of having the gas setup certified actually outweighed the increased costs of the diesel cooktop. Obviously gas is a more volatile fuel than diesel so plumbing has to be of a higher standard - with diesel its just a plastic tube that can easily be routed under the vehicle, whereas copper or steel pipe is a right royal pain in the xxxx to get right and keep out of the way of road damage.

The diesel fuel pickup is easy and usually only requires a T piece into the engine return line as this will pickup from close to the bottom of the tank and the fuel pumps on the appliances will easily pickup.

Leisure battery sizing and condition is important as the appliances will just go into error mode if there is low voltage, especially if you have a compressor fridge running at the same time.
 

chrismilo

Steve121 said:
As FULL TIMER says, they do use quite a bit of 12V power during start-up, but this is not a problem if you have the vehicle engine running during this time. Can't see the point of having a separate tank for fuel - somewhat defeats any convenience advantage.
I've got an Eberspacher D5 and can't imagine life without it. Heats vehicle interior from around freezing to a comfortable 16 - 18° in a few minutes, and in our very well insulated van only comes on for a few minutes per hour, even when it's freezing outside. Thermostat is proportional which helps maintain a good comfort level.
The only slight disadvantage, apart from cost, is the noise, but that's not a big problem and is easily reduced if you fit a silencer to the intake - exhaust silencers are ineffective.
Click to expand...

I fit the car / vehicle sound proofing to the walls of the cupboard comes in different thickness 20mm if find is enough used it for my eberspacher in previous van's now for propex hs2000 which is my preference as no messing around connecting into fuel this sound proofing only of course deadens the sound of the fan not the exhaust on my eberspacher I used a marine silencer very quiet
 
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