Another Eberspacher dilemma. Old D5

LittleSister said:
If only the sellers (or even manufacturers) of the Chinese ones would say what the brand was, or even what dimensions and power output they had! (There have been reports of people buying a 2kw heater and being supplied with a 5kw model, etc. , etc.)

I agree with the general points of your post, though.
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On the Chinese front it seems (so far) that 8kw ones are 5kw. 2kw ones are either 5kw ones or 5kw ones 'down tuned' a bit.. So 5kw seems to be the sweet spot..
From a few reviews from a guy who fits them in camper vans etc, Triclicks branded ones seem to come out favourably.

Now how a 5kw Triclicks would compare to a physically bigger Eberspacher D5LC which is also rated at 5kw is the curious bit for me...
 
Fire99 said:
On the Chinese front it seems (so far) that 8kw ones are 5kw. 2kw ones are either 5kw ones or 5kw ones 'down tuned' a bit.. So 5kw seems to be the sweet spot..
From a few reviews from a guy who fits them in camper vans etc, Triclicks branded ones seem to come out favourably.

Now how a 5kw Triclicks would compare to a physically bigger Eberspacher D5LC which is also rated at 5kw is the curious bit for me...
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Thanks.

My Eber is, IIRC, a D3L, which is plenty powerful for my boat. When I pondered a possible replacement (2kW?) a while back, I was unable to establish what size Chinese unit I would actually receive; whether it would fit the same bracket, exhaust and air induction hoses; what diameter heat outlet it had; and whether it would be happy handling the length/diameter and branches etc. of my existing heat ducting. It also looked unlikely (but who could really tell?) I would be able to use my existing control switch or 'room' thermostat.

It seemed to me then that it would probably be worth paying the extra for a Russian Autoterm/Planar unit to have the benefit/certainty of such information, and to have an established after-sales and spares supply network (and a CE mark). That was some time ago, so it may be that better information is now available for the Chinese ones.
 
Our webasto (27 yrs old) went south, gaskets, glow plug, flame sensor 150 quid and off she goes, next year has the sulks again, flame sensor dead again, sensor plus gaskets cost more than the chinese heater that replaced the webasto.

Chinese heaters seem to come in two flavours, 2/5 kw and 5/8 kw, both a bit of poetic licence on the ratings, but essentially smaller machine is 2kw and larger one is 5kw.
5kw cost me 82 gbp for the whole kit, plus another 70 odd in adaptors/trunking/exhaust pipe etc.
Bought another full kit as a spare for 75gbp.

5 button controller means you can also adjust the flow rate of the fuel pump so can make the machine burn hotter or cooler.
They even come with a remote fob as well, not tried it as do not need it.

Unsure of make but will post ebay link.
Well that has risen in price!
12V 2-8KW Diesel Air Heater For Truck SUV Truck Caravan Motorhome LCD Display | eBay
 
lynallbel said:
Our webasto (27 yrs old) went south, gaskets, glow plug, flame sensor 150 quid and off she goes, next year has the sulks again, flame sensor dead again, sensor plus gaskets cost more than the chinese heater that replaced the webasto.

Chinese heaters seem to come in two flavours, 2/5 kw and 5/8 kw, both a bit of poetic licence on the ratings, but essentially smaller machine is 2kw and larger one is 5kw.
5kw cost me 82 gbp for the whole kit, plus another 70 odd in adaptors/trunking/exhaust pipe etc.
Bought another full kit as a spare for 75gbp.

5 button controller means you can also adjust the flow rate of the fuel pump so can make the machine burn hotter or cooler.
They even come with a remote fob as well, not tried it as do not need it.

Unsure of make but will post ebay link.
Well that has risen in price!
12V 2-8KW Diesel Air Heater For Truck SUV Truck Caravan Motorhome LCD Display | eBay
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They don't look awful, these things.. And having the spares is handy...

The jury is still out on the chosen route....

These Chinese ones must be very similar inside. I see slightly different bodies etc but the controllers and ratings etc all seem identical...
 
Fire99 said:
They don't look awful, these things.. And having the spares is handy...

The jury is still out on the chosen route....

These Chinese ones must be very similar inside. I see slightly different bodies etc but the controllers and ratings etc all seem identical...
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I am not sure of the difference, but have read the controller is matched to the heater ecu, so if one dies you have to replace both bits, again parts far from dear.

The webasto I replaced, the flame sensor was 75 quid, and I got a whole new heater for the same money, yes I except it might not live for many years, but for 75 gbp who cares, as I explained to my good lady, I could literally fit a new chinese heater every 2nd year and still be quids in.
They are built down to a price that there is no denying, the jub clips are not much cop, the fuel pipe is vpoor, the exhaust pipe is not good enough for a boat, dont use the silencer and you will be fine.
 
lynallbel said:
I am not sure of the difference, but have read the controller is matched to the heater ecu, so if one dies you have to replace both bits, again parts far from dear.

The webasto I replaced, the flame sensor was 75 quid, and I got a whole new heater for the same money, yes I except it might not live for many years, but for 75 gbp who cares, as I explained to my good lady, I could literally fit a new chinese heater every 2nd year and still be quids in.
They are built down to a price that there is no denying, the jub clips are not much cop, the fuel pipe is vpoor, the exhaust pipe is not good enough for a boat, dont use the silencer and you will be fine.
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Many thanks mate..

Well I've taken the plunge on a pretty cheap Triclicks one which including express delivery was just over 80 quid and it comes with a remote control. Even if I don't like it I'm pretty sure I can get most of my money back and hey I'm sure a spares/repair Eberspacher D5LC with a fully functional 701 controller will fetch a few quid to balance even this cost....

Will be interesting to see how this works out in the end.. Hopefully some heat for winter..
 
Fire99 said:
Many thanks mate..

Well I've taken the plunge on a pretty cheap Triclicks one which including express delivery was just over 80 quid and it comes with a remote control. Even if I don't like it I'm pretty sure I can get most of my money back and hey I'm sure a spares/repair Eberspacher D5LC with a fully functional 701 controller will fetch a few quid to balance even this cost....

Will be interesting to see how this works out in the end.. Hopefully some heat for winter..
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Each one I received I test ran on the bench in the garage, was expecting issues as I am a suspicious bar steward! but after bleeding both ran perfectly.
 
I bought a Chinese one For about £80 On eBay. Works perfectly and an easy swop. . Why mess about trying to fix something that is unreliable, over priced and has poor service back up.
 
Dutch01527 said:
I bought a Chinese one For about £80 On eBay. Works perfectly and an easy swop. . Why mess about trying to fix something that is unreliable, over priced and has poor service back up.
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Dont forget they are only unreliable as they are old bits of kit, the main issue is the spares prices.

Does kind of make you wonder what the mark up is on the german kit?
 
Dutch01527 said:
I bought a Chinese one For about £80 On eBay. Works perfectly and an easy swop. . Why mess about trying to fix something that is unreliable, over priced and has poor service back up.
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For the money it does seem to be no-brainer. It'll keep you posted how it works out....
 
Morning folks. I thought I'd give a little update on the diesel heater scenario. Well the Eberspacher is out and Triclicks 5KW is in (mostly). I still need to to a little adjustment on the air feed and hot air exit hose connections, since the diameters were quite different. And I've not permanently wired up the controller yet..

So initial impressions:

- It's not a paragon of build quality. The controller is pretty cheap ol plastic that marks easily and the unit itself has a few rough edges.
- It works. It does what it says on the tin. It turns on, it does it's pre-heat cycles and is happily whirring away kicking out heat.
- It's not noisy. Ok mine is in the engine room which is pretty well insulated but other than the sound of hot air coming out of the vents, I can't hear a thing..
- The little remote control works fine. That itself isn't exactly what you would call classy in design but it operates the heater without issue..
- I think with the physical size of the heater being a fair bit smaller than the old Eber D5, it will struggle getting a decent flow to the forward cabin, since there are no less than four outlets on the system, so it may not be the final solution for the boat.

I guess it depends if you want the classiest looking heater (and controls) or just something that does what it is intended to do. Heat. And so far the total cost of the job has been 81 quid including delivery plus I had a couple of decent stainless jubilee clips kicking around. It's reused the combustion air inlet and exhaust hose from the Eberspacher install along with the metal fuel line from the Port tank, so the fuel tank, plastic hose, and inlet/exhaust pipes haven't been utilised.

Whether my own personal snobbery will eventually have me buying something more expensive is hard to tell but so far, for 80 quid... You really can't go wrong in my opinion.

I'll do another update once the heater has been used for a few weeks on and off, to see how it survives......
 
I have had mine for 2.5 years with no problems,if buying a 2kw make sure its the smaller unit by reading the dimensions in the advert and make sure it has the better controller as some have limited functions.
 
peteK said:
I have had mine for 2.5 years with no problems,if buying a 2kw make sure its the smaller unit by reading the dimensions in the advert and make sure it has the better controller as some have limited functions.
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I've got the larger 5kw model which is physically bigger than the 2kw but still a fair chunk smaller than the huuuuge Eberspacher D5LC...

Now I know a 'Spares or Repair' D5LC going for sale shortly if anyone is interested. haha.
 
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