Boat Heating on a Budget

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andythilo

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I know budget and boats dont really mix but there comes a time where prioritys have to be made and at the moment I can't justify buying a £450 Propex kit.

So, the car heater matrix/fan method, and yes I know it'll only work when the engine is running.

Who's done it and does anyone have any pics? I can get new kits of ebay cheapish, i.e <£50. My boat has an old gas heater fitted but it doesn't work, it's a Thermotron and I can't find any info on it what so ever.

So in the mean time it should be pretty easy to fit a matrix type. I've just fitted a new calorifier so pipe work is no problem and ducting is no problem although I will be replacing all the duct work that is there as it's a paper/wire coil type and very old and brittle.

So if anyone has some info to offer about this i'd greatly appreciate it.

Also if anyone has info about the Thermotron heater that'd be great too. I dont have a model no. but I may be able to find it, it's gas powered btw, i.e propane/butane.

Thanks

Andy
 
Car Heater

Think your problem will be volume .. A car is does not have a very large volume size compared to a boat .. It will take alot of heat to do anything .. The engine will possibly not produce as much heat as you require .. You can tell how efective it is by there not being any kits to add this kind of heating to a boat ..

If you are in a marina try an electric oil radiator, works much better than a fan heater .. We have tried both and the boat never really got that warm with a fan heater .. We have now fitted Makuni Heating and what a difference .. You could try an ex bt heater but depends on the size of the boat ..
 
Last edited:
I went through exactly the same thought process as you're going through now, 12 months ago. Here's what I learnt:-

I looked at loads of car heaters in scrapyards, or their modern equivalent where they had been removed and put onto shelves. Two main problems, they were all huge bulky assemblies because of all the housings etc, so not really suitable for fitting in a compact space. Certainly not what I had expected from my memories of car heaters years ago. I'd been looking for a good heater out of a Volvo, Saab or other large or scanidinavian car where they would have powerful heaters.

The second problem was the cost. Scrapyards were asking at least £50, with, of course no guarantees and still lots of adaptation work still to do, and other costs. I eventually decided against fitting a car heater, given that a brand new "hydronic" Webasto 8kw (water) heater matrix, with 3 speed fan, compact, designed for the job, and easier to fit, was just over £100 or so iirc. So that's what I went for in the end, although it was a toss up between that and the Kuranda 10.5kw version that in the illustrations at least looked the same. I believe Mikuni also make somethimg similar; they're all good makes so it'll be down to cost, size, delivery, shipping, etc in the end.

I've read on this forum that others have successfully fitted Transit van heaters, or Land Rover heaters, so they may be worth looking into as alternatives.

It does work OK, and heats to boat up to a very comfortable temperature after a while, but it doesn't seem to blow as hot as a car heater because the engine running temp is cooler than a car at 81C rather than around 85-88, see my other posts on this subject. It also has much more air volume to heat than in a car, so it takes longer to warm up the cabin - around 45 mins or so on our boat.

A word of caution on these heaters, the kw output rating seems to be at 100C, and of course the boat doesn't run at that - so it will be de-rated by quite a lot. You'll need to take this into account. I thought our 8kw heater would cook us, given that the diesel heater is only 3kw, but in fact it's nowhere near as powerful as I'd expected. So always go for the biggest kw you can get. Or fit a hotter engine thermostat (88C) as I'm contemplating at the moment.

The one thing I did fit to save a bit of cost, was the fan speed controller from a car; in fact, an old Mini Metro. Much cheaper than Webasto or Kuranda's "special" switch! And it illuminates at night, and looks the part of properly installed.

Hope the above helps you in your research. Good luck, it's definitely worth doing. Free heat, and very effective.
 
andythilo said:
I know budget and boats dont really mix but there comes a time where prioritys have to be made and at the moment I can't justify buying a £450 Propex kit.

So, the car heater matrix/fan method, and yes I know it'll only work when the engine is running.

Who's done it and does anyone have any pics? I can get new kits of ebay cheapish, i.e <£50. My boat has an old gas heater fitted but it doesn't work, it's a Thermotron and I can't find any info on it what so ever.

So in the mean time it should be pretty easy to fit a matrix type. I've just fitted a new calorifier so pipe work is no problem and ducting is no problem although I will be replacing all the duct work that is there as it's a paper/wire coil type and very old and brittle.

So if anyone has some info to offer about this i'd greatly appreciate it.

Also if anyone has info about the Thermotron heater that'd be great too. I dont have a model no. but I may be able to find it, it's gas powered btw, i.e propane/butane.

Thanks

Andy
Click to expand...

There are many purpose built units...Cabin heaters for the lorry and bus type vehicles. Here is one to set you going. http://www.s-v-c.co.uk/prod/xenos1_heater.html

They come in 12 volts and 24 and all different sizes and will provide heat for an average size boat.

Tom
 
The most economical solution

The most economical solution is the following. You go to Beaulieu Boat Jumble and buy an ex ambulance Ebersbacher, seen working. You then fit it taking several good digital photographs at each stage. You then submit an article to PBO including the pictures on how you did it and they send you a cheque for the article. You get a free heater! (See PBO Nov 2004) P.S. there are also other mags.
 
Trundlebug said:
I went through exactly the same thought process as you're going through now, 12 months ago. Here's what I learnt:-

I looked at loads of car heaters in scrapyards, or their modern equivalent where they had been removed and put onto shelves. Two main problems, they were all huge bulky assemblies because of all the housings etc, so not really suitable for fitting in a compact space. Certainly not what I had expected from my memories of car heaters years ago. I'd been looking for a good heater out of a Volvo, Saab or other large or scanidinavian car where they would have powerful heaters.

The second problem was the cost. Scrapyards were asking at least £50, with, of course no guarantees and still lots of adaptation work still to do, and other costs. I eventually decided against fitting a car heater, given that a brand new "hydronic" Webasto 8kw (water) heater matrix, with 3 speed fan, compact, designed for the job, and easier to fit, was just over £100 or so iirc. So that's what I went for in the end, although it was a toss up between that and the Kuranda 10.5kw version that in the illustrations at least looked the same. I believe Mikuni also make somethimg similar; they're all good makes so it'll be down to cost, size, delivery, shipping, etc in the end.

I've read on this forum that others have successfully fitted Transit van heaters, or Land Rover heaters, so they may be worth looking into as alternatives.

It does work OK, and heats to boat up to a very comfortable temperature after a while, but it doesn't seem to blow as hot as a car heater because the engine running temp is cooler than a car at 81C rather than around 85-88, see my other posts on this subject. It also has much more air volume to heat than in a car, so it takes longer to warm up the cabin - around 45 mins or so on our boat.

A word of caution on these heaters, the kw output rating seems to be at 100C, and of course the boat doesn't run at that - so it will be de-rated by quite a lot. You'll need to take this into account. I thought our 8kw heater would cook us, given that the diesel heater is only 3kw, but in fact it's nowhere near as powerful as I'd expected. So always go for the biggest kw you can get. Or fit a hotter engine thermostat (88C) as I'm contemplating at the moment.

The one thing I did fit to save a bit of cost, was the fan speed controller from a car; in fact, an old Mini Metro. Much cheaper than Webasto or Kuranda's "special" switch! And it illuminates at night, and looks the part of properly installed.

Hope the above helps you in your research. Good luck, it's definitely worth doing. Free heat, and very effective.
Click to expand...


Hi

Thanks for your indepth reply. I will look into the models you mentioned. If I can get a purpose made unit for that sort of money then i'll do that. Would you be able to show me any pics of the installation or it installed?

Thanks

Andy
 
Heat from martix

Hi Andy,

I did it with a matrix from a Transit, and it has been excellent. Matrix cost me £10 from a breaker, (off the shelf).
I wrote an article, published in last November's PBO about it. Go for it.
 
Tried to edit, to correct spelling of MATRIX, but you can edit the message but not the title, it seems.
 
You sure it was last novembers? I had a look at a digital copy but could find no sign of it?? Do you know what page or have a copy of the article mate?
 
NormanS said:
Hi Andy,

I did it with a matrix from a Transit, and it has been excellent. Matrix cost me £10 from a breaker, (off the shelf).
I wrote an article, published in last November's PBO about it. Go for it.
Click to expand...

November 2009 PBO, page 56

Hi Norman,
I remember reading your article and just checked it again. An additional idea came to me as a follow-up to another project. Apparently some Mercedes cars have an electric circulation pump in the heater circuit so that water heated by the engine can continue to warm the interior even when the engine has stopped. My son tells me that warm air will still blow for half an hour or so. The pump is a Merc part number or the small Johnson pump used for raw water engine calorifiers would be an alternative.
Vyv
 
I have done it too. Specs are : Westerly Konsort, Beta BD722 (20hp), Heater matix and fan assembly from an old Mini - results excellent and my calorifier is fed first on the circuit.

The reason I went for the Mini one was that it was a compact self contained unit ripe for adaption.
You need a suitable box or space in a locker (my method) where you can cut a hole and fit a suitable grill about 8x5 inches. I used a disk cutter to carefully cut the front (and controls) off leaving a unit with the matrix at the front (recessed about half an inch) and the fan assembly behind. Hang the unit behind the grill and fit a switch and a relay so the fan stops when the engine is stopped. Heater was £35 on EBay, but I did have to replace the matrix itself as it had a leak - another £35 on EBay for a brand new matrix. Just unlucky.

I wish I had took a picture, but if you find one on EBay, you can visualise the adaption.
 
andythilo said:
Hi

Thanks for your indepth reply. I will look into the models you mentioned. If I can get a purpose made unit for that sort of money then i'll do that. Would you be able to show me any pics of the installation or it installed?

Thanks

Andy
Click to expand...

Unfortunately no photos, wish I had now. I fitted it immediately behind the plinth under the galley cupboards, so it blows nice warm air on SWMBO's feet!

It also avoids all the expensive, and difficult installation of ducting because it blows out through the 4 ducts of the heater straight into the boat. Depends on your boat layout of course, our galley is just forward of the engine bay which helps! Heater pipe runs are therefore nice and short, although longer runs aren't a problem once the system is fully bled.
 
Boat heating

I have seen car type boat heaters for sale in a Chandlers in Norway so presumably it can be done. However it would be easier for a motor boat with a largish engine.
I have also seen an elderly Vindo sail boat with a finned tube heater extending round the boat , running through most of the lockers. This would certainly give background heat and tend to dry the boat out a bit.
We use a small fan heater with 1 and 2 Kw outputs. This is perfectly satisfactory for our small bodied 30 ft. boat. I would suggest you have the 1 Kw setting as many marina power systems limit you to 5 amps.
 
Some years ago we installed a model 500-H series heater from Heatercraft.
http://www.heatercraft.com/images/catalog/index.html
Comments on the install are in this very similar thread on the Ericson owners' site. I realize that we are quite a ways away from a vendor source standpoint, but often one can fine the same or very similar products sold closer to home with some searching.
We run it on the "low" fan setting and this is plenty of warmth while motoring, in our 34 footer.
http://www.ericsonyachts.org/infoexchange/showthread.php?t=5715&referrerid=28

Regards,
LB

ps: I like Foxy's idea, but even better is when my wife bakes cinnamon rolls to warm the boat on a cold morning... :)
 
Well i'm fitting one on my raw water cooled engine. The only thing that it may need is an inline pump to help it, but i'm sure it'll be fine. My calorifier gets nice and hot, so no reason for the matrix heater not to work. I'll probably get some insulated air duct for the runs though to cut down on heat loss.
 
I spoke to Espar about the Zenith, and the guy questioned it's suitability as it is a high power unit and apparantly quite noisy!. I think i'm gonna get the Kalori as it's much cheaper and smaller. I'll join two of the outlets into one to run into the main cabin, then one outlet to the rear bedroom and one to the cockpit.
 
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