Car heater on a boat?

[Trundlebug]

I have been thinking for some time now that it seems very wasteful not to utilise the waste heat from the engine other than for the calorifier. To have to burn even more diesel to get some heat for the cabin seems extraordinarily wasteful when there is spare heat spitting out of the stern!

Has anyone else thought of, or actual experience of, fitting a car heater?

Because the interior volume of a boat is rather bigger than inside a car I was thinking of fitting a substantial heater from a Scandinavian car such as a Volvo or Saab, (space permitting), and was thinking of trolling around a few local sprapyards to see what is available.

I have identified a suitable location for the heater (I think, though I haven't rummaged around to any extent yet) under a drawer plinth in the galley and I really think it could work. The only problem areas I foresee are where to put the temperature controls and matching the outlet sizes & shapes available in the boat to the outlets of the heater unit.

Does anyone have any opinions or experience on this?

 

[colinroybarrett]

I fitted the heater out of a Mini-Van many years ago to blow warm air at the helmsman’s feet, simply diverted the engine cooling outflow through the matrix. If the fan wasn’t running it didn’t heat us up in the summer, very simple.

Early Volvo heaters actually had thermostatic water valves which might make it easier to control. Otherwise a standard domestic room ‘stat would control the fan. You could adapt any of the aluminium ridged pipe sold for cooker hood or shower ventilators to pipe it where you need it, providing you keep pipe runs short, the blower should cope and; as above, you may only need to turn off the blower to shut it down in the summer (leaving the water flowing through).

Probably the older the unit the better as the matrix will likely be corrosion proof metal and the controls simpler to adapt.

Good luck and let us know how you get on.

CRB

 

[Pye_End]

There are some matrix heaters which you find at the shows. Forget the name just now. They make all sorts of units. Went down the same thought process as you and nearly put one in, but in the end bought a diesesl heater simply because the matrix heater didn't solve the problem of being cold when the engine is not running.

 

[MoodySabre]

From another forum

I have fitted a 4.5kW car-type heater in the engine cooling circuit, in series with the calorifier. This was cheap (£100) and is great underway when motor-sailing but no use when stopped. It blows into the heads (at the foot of the companionway) which also keeps the saloon warm as the air flow is considerable.

 

[Trundlebug]

Thanks for the replies. MoodySabre, do you know what make your 4.5kW heater is? What car did it come from? That's exactly what I had in mind.

I already have a diesel heater for when the boat is moored up, I just wanted to have an alternative, giving "free" heat, for when going along in the autumn & winter.

I'm aware that you can buy specialist items, of course anything is possible with unlimited funds, but until I win the lottery I'll continue trying to achieve a luxury lifestyle with minimum funds - and that means doing it on the cheap. That challenge is half the fun of it!

 

[Aja]

[ QUOTE ]
...from a Scandinavian car such as a Volvo or Saab, (space permitting), and was thinking of trolling around a few local sprapyards to see what is available.


[/ QUOTE ]

Very good!!!

There was a very clear article some time ago (maybe 10 years or so) of fitting a matrix and fan from a Ford Fiesta into a boat, think it was under a tenner.

Donald

 

[Gordonmc]

Look out for a series 2 or 3 Landrover in the scrappy. The heater matrix was built into a bulkhead box complete with fan. Just undo two hoses, unscrew from the bulkhead and off you go.
I should imagine any matrix would do... the problem would be in blowing air through it into the cabin, which takes power. A bank of computer fans?

 

[steve_cronin]

Try this

Posted on a Us site but available here by mail order Boat Heaters

Steve cronin

 

[pcatterall]

I was going to plumb in two mini(car) heaters but also an eberspacher D5W for when the engine was not running in this way you have free heating and hot water when running and inexpensive heating plus hot water plus engine prewarm when engine not running.
It all got a bit complicated for my plumbing skills/inclination at the time but I am reconsidering it again!!
Battery power (eber+two fans) and fan noise was another drawback when the engine was off.
Good luck.

 

[Pye_End]

Matrix heaters for boats

 

[yotter]

I donated a car heater matrix many years ago to a friend building a boat. It worked very well for many years (and it was a Lancia heater, rest of the car (Beta) didn't last as long). Thinking about doing the same myself now, to suplement the diesel heater. Is it possible to get it to vent down the same exsisting eberspacher ducting, or will some sort of one-way flap valve be needed?

 

[chrisc]

In scandiavia ,in the winter it is common practice to put an electric fan heater in the footwell usualy with a socket fitted under the front bumper .so you just plug in at night (or the more sophisticated have a timer or remote)and start of in a nice warm car in the morning.We have used one of these heaters on our boat for the last few years keeps the boat very warm as long as you have electric available trouble is most sewdish harbours think summer ends in beginning of september and switch everything off.
A very cheap and effective heater though.

 

[Roach1948]

Dickinson also do an all stainless one for around $100

 

[oldaljones]

Have you considered what I think is called a KICK SPACE HEATER as fitted into the plinth or underneath a kitchen unit, these are available with 12v fan for fitting in bathrooms under the bath approx 4in high x 10in wide x 10in deep

 

[roly_voya]

If you want the posh new boaty version look here

https://www.kuranda.co.uk/dickinson-heat...matrix1-19.html

 

[pampas]

Try and get an OLD SKODA heater (Pre VW days) as they are robust and copper and brass, not like most modern types, and they tend to be cheaper. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[pcatterall]

Yotter, if you can get a'Y' junction into the system with the eber going into one arm and the car heater into the other you shouldnt need a flap. I guess you mean to use one or the other at any time and not both together!!?

 

[MoodySabre]

Sorry - it wasn't me but someone else's comment posted to show that it can be done.

 

[lw395]

I've played with this a little.
My observations:
1 Yanmar 3GM generates remarkably little hot water when idling/battery charging.
2 Car blower fans use a great deal of current. A VW polo blower I have is 13Amps!
3 Car Heater matrices have a lot of air pressure across them with any reasonable airflow.
4 To move the heat from the water to the air requires quite a lot of airflow and quite a lot of matrix area. Compare with a heatsink for electronics, these are quantified in degrees per watt. We need kilowatts.
A car heater would be good on say a motor sailer, or boat with generator, to get everthing warm and dry while the engine works for an hour. No so good on my boat, where I do the minimum of motoring and am grateful for it heating the washing up water.
I could post some sums, but I'm afraid I'm going for a beer now!
Cheers,
Chris.

 

[roger]

I saw a number of these in a chandlery in Norway some years ago. I fancy they were mainly intended for smallish commuting type motor boats where they should work very well indeed.
An alternative for a sail boat is the finned tube I saw fitted to a Vindo 30 which went through the lockers more or less round the boat.
If you avoided the food compartments you would have a reasonable amount of background heat which would reduce condensation and some of the heat would be stored for a short while by the locker contents to provide some more heat after the engine stopped.
In the absence of finned tubing, it would be a cheap experiment to fit a loop of 15 mm. copper pipe in the fresh water recirc system. Some flexibility at the joints would be advisable.