Installing diesel heater in Autotrail Chieftain

[Jaws]

Just a few pics
I put the heater under the bench seat on the off side,

the separate diesel tank went in the tall offside locker, using 2" spacers to ensure it cleared all the pipework and was easily accessible to fill

and all the exhaust and inlet pipes down in to ( and out ) of the ramp locker on the off side'directly below the seat cupboard
The ally plate I made so I could make the hole for the exhaust large, and the plate keeps it central to the exit hole..
That exhaust gets HOT and I did not want it near the material ( some kind of plastic ) that the locker box is made of.

No picture of the silencer but it is hanging off a standard Halfrauds 135mm exhaust strap and well clear of everything !

The control panel went out of the way on the divider wall between cab and hab. I also installed an isolator switch ( just a small 10 amp toggle ) to turn the whole thing off when the van is going to be parked up and not used for a few weeks
The control panel only uses milliamps when in standby mode, but every little helps as a few milliamps turns in to several amps as the day go by

The heater outlet is directly in front of the heater, underneath the bench seat cupboard door

Update.............

In the picture below the diesel pump is bolted directly to the locker wall, but the 'donk donk donk' noise it made could be very clearly heard, so I ended up hanging it from a piece of tow strap webbing..
You can still hear it if you listen but it is no longer intrusive

 

[Two on Tour]

Nice one, but does it work ?

 

[Jaws]

In case folk are wondering why I opted for the separate diesel tank...
Diesel is not cheap !
By using a separate tank I can use red or heating oil

 

[Jaws]

Nice one, but does it work ?

Yes.. very well indeed It is primarily for use on long cold journeys abroad..
The heater can be fired up an hour before we intend to stop for lunch or the night and warm the hab area up
Once plotted up we will just use gas heating as usual

 

[Jev88]

Which supplier did you use?

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[Jaws]

Which supplier did you use?

Just went for the cheapest supplier in the UK ( ( It was £97.99 for the kit )
Still a Chinese supplier but it arrived as promised in two days

 

[Jaws]

Here is a link

Vehicle Diesel Air Heater 5-8KW LCD REMOTE CONTROL Silencer 12V For Truck Boats | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Vehicle Diesel Air Heater 5-8KW LCD REMOTE CONTROL Silencer 12V For Truck Boats at the best online prices at eBay! Free delivery for many products!

rover.ebay.com

 

[Jaws]

Just noticed the price has gone up to £102

 

[icantremember]

Just noticed the price has gone up to £102

I just looked at your link John and it's showing 10% discount available until tomorrow.

 

[Jaws]

I just looked at your link John and it's showing 10% discount available until tomorrow.

Seems like now would be a good time to but then !
The control interface allows you to set a timed on and off, the temperature, even the fuel flow rate.. and comes with a remote control too

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[Ivory55]

I often look at the ones in the cab at work but they are 24v . Still tempting. Haha

 

[PeteH]

I fitted one, 10yrs ago, under the hood of the R-V. It was primarily to supplement the Miserable De-Misting, of the OE. Mine was S/H Eberspacher , Taken from a Scrapped B-T van!.

 

[Diabalo]

What amperage is it pulling when running please?

 

[PeteH]

Out of interest. Any one else have the Diesel "defrost boost" heater on a Mercedes Sprinter Base.?

Have wondered if it would be capable of being used as a separate entity? not just as a booster?.

 

[footscray188c]

Brilliant gadget we use one in our garage at home to dry the washing on wet days.

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[mitzimad]

In case folk are wondering why I opted for the separate diesel tank...
Diesel is not cheap !
By using a separate tank I can use red or heating oil

For the amount they use is it worth having to carry another container of fuel?

 

[Jaws]

What amperage is it pulling when running please?

Flicks between .4 and .5 amps, so very little indeed.. Draws 8 amps of start up, but I do that while the engine is running so it is compensated for

 

[Jaws]

For the amount they use is it worth having to carry another container of fuel?

I will be carrying a 7.5 litre container ( just happened to be what I had sitting spare ) though I do not envisage using more than 2 or 3 litres on the trip down to spain ), and if I do use a lot I can just fill up with normal diesel

 

[DBK]

Neat installation. Our Webasto consumes over a litre a day when it's very cold but that's running it 24 hours a day. Used how you plan the little tank should last ages.

Does it need any adjustment to run on central heating oil?

 

[gus-lopez]

Does it need any adjustment to run on central heating oil?

No,or red or kerosene.

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[Jaws]

Neat installation. Our Webasto consumes over a litre a day when it's very cold but that's running it 24 hours a day. Used how you plan the little tank should last ages.

Does it need any adjustment to run on central heating oil?

As Gus said..just stick what you have to hand in and go I would have used cooking oil but in cold weather it gets too thick..

 

[Jaws]

I would say that apart from a bit of crawling about, and a bit of fiddling around, the actual install was pretty easy and well withing the ability of any DIY'er
If you could do something like an oil change or fit a solar panel then you could certainly fit a diesel heater

 

[MisterB]

looks useful. it says it also works as an air con unit? have you tried it? or does it just introduce air from the outside and not actually cool it?

 

[Nixdorfer]

If you have gas heating why do people fit them. Are they a lot cheaper to run or something?

 

[Ivory55]

If you have gas heating why do people fit them. Are they a lot cheaper to run or something?

I guess that you can get diesel anywhere and do not have to worry that your bottle is not changeable, as for refilling bottles the pumps have slowly been taken out around here.

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[PeteH]

I guess that you can get diesel anywhere and do not have to worry that your bottle is not changeable, as for refilling bottles the pumps have slowly been taken out around here.

And Here, The "Autogas" Pump at Flogas in Beverley was removed a couple of years ago. In the early days, I could get it filled AND only pay 5p Tax, not "road fuel" rate, as it was for "Domestic" in the R-V!. Win win !.. After I fitted the One Eberspacher for the Front end, I did look at putting another in the rear engine space to warm the rear end. There was a guy on the net who was knocking them out cheap having removed them from old B-T vans. No cheap Chinese ones back then

 

[Ninjabob]

I guess that you can get diesel anywhere and do not have to worry that your bottle is not changeable, as for refilling bottles the pumps have slowly been taken out around here.

Spill it in the van and you'll have trouble getting rid of the smell!

Greta here!

"Does it have a DPF and Adblue? Cos' these Chinese don't care you know!

 

[jockaneezer]

Check out Dave McLuckie on YouTube, he's done lots of experiments on running them on various different fuels and is currently running tests on adapting them to water heating.

 

[Jaws]

looks useful. it says it also works as an air con unit? have you tried it? or does it just introduce air from the outside and not actually cool it?

No.. In all honesty that is a bit of bull in my opinion..
It does not draw air from outside the van at all.. About the only air con effect it might have is to blow air out ! ( Air that is in the van anyway ! )

 

[Jaws]

If you have gas heating why do people fit them. Are they a lot cheaper to run or something?

There are various reasons I chose to do it.. and as mentioned in the OP we will be using the gas heating when plotted up ( mind you, it performs so well that may change ! )
Yes, it IS cheap to run and no worrying about having to find an LPG fill while travelling.. Every where has diesel of some sort, while maybe 1 in 30 garages has LPG

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