Why not a proper user-friendly diesel heater?

waterboy

New member
Joined
9 Oct 2003
Messages
313
Location
Hampshire
Visit site
All too often, I read in this forum of diesel heaters coking up. Eberspacher suggest using Fuel Set, which I do. Nevertheless I see it only as a matter of time before I will have to ask Kruger to come and decoke the heater again. Is this really nescessary?

As most boats are moored up to pontoons with shore power available, surely it would be possible to incorporate a 220 volt heater element into the hot air ducting. The heater already has a blower and a thermostat so other than the heater element, all that would be required would be a change-over switch to enable the unit to run off shore power instead of the diesel heater. Then we should have much less coking and less of that noisy exhaust rasp. BTW, if any heater manufacurer is reading this and likes the idea, could he please come up with a fitting for existing units as well as new ones?

Is it that easy or am I missing something?
 

steve28

Active member
Joined
19 May 2003
Messages
1,480
Location
Cornwall
www.falmouthgypsy.com
Just to address the coking up side of your question, i use the bio fuel for the heater, its more expensive but has no carbon output at all and smells nice like doughnuts.


steve
 

paulrossall

New member
Joined
22 Oct 2001
Messages
1,058
Visit site
Eberspachers are brilliant IMHO

I cannot understand why so many people have problems with Eberspachers. I fitted a second hand D3LC (or is it D3CL?) 3 years ago and it has worked perfectly ever since. It does not soot-up/coke-up. Is yours properly installed? It is important to balance the exhaust/air intake and a good flow of air for combustion is vital. I do not use any addatives and as I have a saily-boat the diesel can be a year old. Paul
 

Talbot

Active member
Joined
23 Aug 2003
Messages
13,610
Location
Brighton, UK
Visit site
I understand that Eberspacher are introducing a new device which may answer your needs. It uses a calorifier which can be heated by normal eberspacher diesel to provide hot water, and you use that for heating and hot water. When on shore power, instead of running the diesel heating, there is an immersion style heating element that heats the water instead.
 

steverow

New member
Joined
13 Dec 2002
Messages
1,362
Location
Warwick. Boat in Swansea
Visit site
Been done in the caravan and motorhome industry for donkeys years, mainly from gas.
Three way heaters have been manufactured by carver and trumatic amongst others, who are now the same company.
Never understood why boat heating is so backward.

Steve
 

TigaWave

New member
Joined
17 Dec 2004
Messages
2,147
Location
Buckland Monachorum
www.H4marine.com
My 12 year old Eberspach heater was silent and never coked up....and was used lots as we were living aboard in Oct Nov in the UK...I think they're great?? why do others have so many problems? Hardly used any fuel, just lots of warm air and a cosy boat.
 

alex_rogers

New member
Joined
30 Aug 2002
Messages
230
Location
Lymington
Visit site
Re: Eberspachers are brilliant IMHO

I agree - maybe us happy Eberspacher users should sing their praises more often.

I fitted a secondhand D1LC and it has worked faultlessly for the past year and a half. By far the greatest cost of the heater is the time spent fitting it and all the specific boat bits (e.g. the ducting, exhaust and skin fittings). It comforts me to know that if it ever fails, I can buy another one on Ebay for £100 and swap them over in half an hour.
 

VicMallows

New member
Joined
25 Nov 2003
Messages
3,794
Location
Emsworth, Chichester Hbr, UK
Visit site
Re: Eberspachers are brilliant IMHO

OK, OK. As a major critic on cost/reliability I must admit havn't explored E-Bay, even though I buy the computer RAM there. Hopefully I'll find 1m of 50mm ducting for less than £22.

I do expect long life for c.£1000 mind you. Mine is 20 years old, and still going with LOTS of work from me. My house boiler is 35yrs and I have spent about 3 hrs on it in total.

Well done for installing it somewhere you can get at it easily! .. I've learned that lesson!.

Vic
 

VicMallows

New member
Joined
25 Nov 2003
Messages
3,794
Location
Emsworth, Chichester Hbr, UK
Visit site
Assume you are refering to the bio-fuel post? How could it possibly be a C&E issue? We don't (yet) pay duty on the red diesel, only VAT. Even if duty is levied on boat engine fuel, it is most unlikely to apply to heating fuel (in a separate tank).

Anyway, keep lobying to stop duty on Red!!

Vic
 

cliff

Active member
Joined
15 Apr 2004
Messages
9,468
Location
various
Visit site
Re: Eberspachers are brilliant IMHO

[ QUOTE ]
OK, OK. As a major critic on cost/reliability I must admit havn't explored E-Bay, even though I buy the computer RAM there. Hopefully I'll find 1m of 50mm ducting for less than £22.

Vic

[/ QUOTE ]

2X2.5m metres for £28 or 2.5m for £14 sound within your budget or do you only need a 1 metre length?
----------
hammer.thumb.gif
 

starboard

Active member
Joined
22 Dec 2003
Messages
3,016
Location
N5533 W00441
Visit site
Eberspacher recommend paraffin as the best fuel to burn...also a good way of cleaning out burner. I must admit although expensive unit to buy and spares likewise,paid £68 for a new glowpin I would not be without it. I find if you run at full whack all the time carbon should not be a problem, I dont think they like just ticking over. Nothing more comforting on a dreech Scothish day to hear the roar coming from the heater exhaust......roll on summer!!

warm toes

Paul.
 
Top