14' Series Diesel Heaters

Aug 20, 2016
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Yackandandah
Anybody got any feedback on either of these brands?

Cheers

Craig
 

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Drover

Well-Known Member
Nov 7, 2013
12,723
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QLD
The PPAP one at $513, I had one for a little while it crapped out and the warranty was BS, wouldn't answer emails so got Ebay to refund money and went to Pinnacle Wholesalers who speak english and will answer phone................not sure about the other one but they are all copies of Airtronic or Webasco and I'm wary of the cheapies as once you buy it they don't want to know you.
 
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Coldspace

Member
Jan 21, 2018
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Shailer park
I agree,
Friend had ebay one, 2 winters later failed and no repair available . He ripped it out and fitted airtronic one.

Don't know anymore about the cheaper ones. Could be good and bad , hit and miss. I recon for something like this buy proper first time or try and buy from a dealer or shop more so than ebay, Then again some others prob had more luck than my mate.

I had one of the first airtronic ones fitted in Qld over 10 years ago, in our old van that we just sold ,it never missed a beat, ran like a charm every winter, only needed new service kit put in last winter, but that could of been me running some crap diesel through as I didn't flush the old stuff out from the previous winter like I did every year before. Otherwise it was great. The newer airtronic and webasco ones are prob better again than the older models, apparently the new webasco is a lot quieter in the pump as well. Told by a few installers lately .

I going to new truma eco heat gas system now, getting it fitted next Monday .

Cheers
 
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Incy

New Member
Apr 9, 2017
2
3
3
SA
I was looking at the PPAP one and could not find anything about it so I sent them a message asking if they had an electronic copy of the manual. It has been a little over a week now with no response. I am concerned if they do not respond when asked when someone is wanting to buy then if it goes bad there will defiantly be no service. Convinced my wife last night to spend $795.00 and get the one from PINNACLE-WHOLESALERS, does not come with the air filter but can get them less than $10 on ebay.
 

Drover

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Nov 7, 2013
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Mine came with intake filter even though it wasn't mentioned just get the set up with everything saves stuffing around.
 
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Incy

New Member
Apr 9, 2017
2
3
3
SA
Just finished spending the $, will be great if it does come with one but figure there is still a couple of weeks left before it gets cold enough to use so can get any extras required. I am hoping the hardest thing will be putting the holes in a van that is only 9 months old.
 
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Drover

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Nov 7, 2013
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Just measure 6 times before you cut.............................I put my fuel line in some clear 5mm plastic tubing to give it protection and insulate the pump pulse, don't have it hard up against the body or fittings or it will transmit the pulse......lay out all the bits and make sure the cables will all run the way you would like before chopping anything up especially the remote lead.
I have my heater under a seat, it draws it's air from the seat cavity which has a vent on the side, if you fit a tube to the intake to a vent it will sound like a snorkel breathing, drawing air from the cavity which draws from a vent is virtually silent....No sharp turns on your heater outlet pipe either.

To prime the system I found it saves hassle to get the fuel to flow, the old suck on tube way just before you hook it up to the heater, so long as it's past the pump then it will start for the first time so much easier.. you have to use the fuel line supplied as its part of the measured fuel supply, you can shorten it if need be just don't swap it for other stuff.

On my second heater I found it easier and more functional to just cut a big oval hole in the floor with the mounting plate covering it, easier to fit the bits underneath.
Take your time and try not to swear too much.
 
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iamme

New Member
Dec 30, 2015
2
17
3
70
sydney
Hi Craig and Leanne i have also been looking at diesel heaters and cant believe the price differences. They seem to range from $250 to $350 (how bad can the be if they come from the same factory) from China, around $500 to $600 if in Australia, around $1000 from Tassie and from Pinnacle $700 to $800 for Belief or $8000 to $9000 for Tuit or Planner????? yes i have written to them asking for clarification. You can also pay just under $2000 for a German/Chinese.
As all of these heaters are made in China, well its anyone's guess.
What am i going to do, well i'm going to pay about $300 and wait about 4 weeks for delivery. If its no good well its not so much and i'll just sell the private jet or get out the other quilt or maybe roll over for a cuddle.
 
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Tone

Well-Known Member
Nov 27, 2014
955
3,000
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Warrnambool
I put a 2kw in our 17.56 which works great. I just bought a 3kw full kit (fuel tank everything)for $250 for our camper trailer we just bought, I couldn’t justify spending a heap on it as we only got the camper to do a couple of trips. I bench tested it for a couple of hrs and works fine. Going to fit it today, if it fails so be it was only $250.
 
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Drover

Well-Known Member
Nov 7, 2013
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The high price stuff $8K is just a figure they stick on the thing when out of stock, saves shutting down the add and rebuilding it later, easier to just change the price when in stock...
 
Aug 20, 2016
68
25
18
48
Yackandandah
Hi Craig and Leanne i have also been looking at diesel heaters and cant believe the price differences. They seem to range from $250 to $350 (how bad can the be if they come from the same factory) from China, around $500 to $600 if in Australia, around $1000 from Tassie and from Pinnacle $700 to $800 for Belief or $8000 to $9000 for Tuit or Planner????? yes i have written to them asking for clarification. You can also pay just under $2000 for a German/Chinese.
As all of these heaters are made in China, well its anyone's guess.
What am i going to do, well i'm going to pay about $300 and wait about 4 weeks for delivery. If its no good well its not so much and i'll just sell the private jet or get out the other quilt or maybe roll over for a cuddle.
Just paud $300so will wait and see how it goes... if i get a couple of years out of it great!
 

Barmacc

New Member
May 27, 2018
2
3
3
Victoria
Hi everyone, I am new to these forums so this is my first post on anything like this. I have a Jayco Expanda 20.64.1 OB and want to put in a diesel heater. I have had a previous caravan that had a slide out like this one where the duct work for the diesel heater.fed through the cupboards and it was nice and neat, but a completely different design. Has anyone (and is it possible) to run the ductwork under the caravan and then up through the floor - much like what you would see in a household situation? Does it need to travel through the cupboards? I was thinking about attaching the main unit under the caravan and then running the ducts along the bottom of the floor (under caravan) and then popping up with the outlet through the floor instead of through the cupboards. Does anyone see any issues with this? Thank you.

The heater I was looking at was an Eberspacher D4. I know the initial outlay is high, but I have been let down so many time with cheaper Chinese copies that has left me a little bitter. It has ended up costing me more in the long run and each time I take a risk, I end up regretting it so this time I'd like to go for something that I feel comfortable with and get a better known brand with backup service and warranty.

If someone has run ducting for a similar carvan model as this, can I ask about the architecture and how you went about installing it? Or, if anyone is an expert and knows, that's equally as good.

I appreciate any comments and thank you for taking the time reading this.
 
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Crusty181

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Feb 7, 2010
6,854
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Mentone, VIC
Hi everyone, I am new to these forums so this is my first post on anything like this. I have a Jayco Expanda 20.01.1 OB and want to put in a diesel heater. I have had a previous caravan that had a slide out like this one where the duct work for the diesel heater.fed through the cupboards and it was nice and neat, but a completely different design. Has anyone (and is it possible) to run the ductwork under the caravan and then up through the floor - much like what you would see in a household situation? Does it need to travel through the cupboards? I was thinking about attaching the main unit under the caravan and then running the ducts along the bottom of the floor (under caravan) and then popping up with the outlet through the floor instead of through the cupboards. Does anyone see any issues with this? Thank you.

The heater I was looking at was an Eberspacher D4. I know the initial outlay is high, but I have been let down so many time with cheaper Chinese copies that has left me a little bitter. It has ended up costing me more in the long run and each time I take a risk, I end up regretting it so this time I'd like to go for something that I feel comfortable with and get a better known brand with backup service and warranty.

If someone has run ducting for a similar carvan model as this, can I ask about the architecture and how you went about installing it? Or, if anyone is an expert and knows, that's equally as good.

I appreciate any comments and thank you for taking the time reading this.
Welcome to the forum @Barmacc. 20.63.1 ??. I have a 20.63.1OB, and I installed a diesel heater under the club lounge. But I deleted the slide out from the design when I ordered it.

I cant see anything wrong with running ducting under the van, but it would need to be rigid due the potential for damage ie pvc or metal; and it would possible need to be insulated particularly in a Vic winter where it was bleed off too much heat running outside.

My heater and all the ducting etc is on the off side. When I was designing my heater install, I did briefly contemplate running a duct to the awning side to heat the annex
 

Glen Bundesen

Active Member
Jan 12, 2014
336
212
43
Perth WA
I too have a 21.. OB and have a heater yet to be installed. I agree with Crusty and wouldn't have the pipework under the van as the supplied vent pipes are not insulated at all.

Was considering placing the tank in the front boot and the heater unit in the small area under the fridge, but am concerned about the extra heat in that area. The van has the drawer near the stairwell from under the front club lounge, so may have to put the unit under the club lounge - again not ideal location because of the heat on items stored in the drawer. Final idea was to remove the drawer, put a baffel wall behind where the drawer was and place the heater there. I'd use the drawer front as a drop down door on the area. Another issue with all of these ideas is having the diesel exhaust on the annex side of the van - but then it would only be being used when it is too cold to be outside under the awning/annex!
 

Crusty181

Well-Known Member
Feb 7, 2010
6,854
13,971
113
Mentone, VIC
I too have a 21.. OB and have a heater yet to be installed. I agree with Crusty and wouldn't have the pipework under the van as the supplied vent pipes are not insulated at all.

Was considering placing the tank in the front boot and the heater unit in the small area under the fridge, but am concerned about the extra heat in that area. The van has the drawer near the stairwell from under the front club lounge, so may have to put the unit under the club lounge - again not ideal location because of the heat on items stored in the drawer. Final idea was to remove the drawer, put a baffel wall behind where the drawer was and place the heater there. I'd use the drawer front as a drop down door on the area. Another issue with all of these ideas is having the diesel exhaust on the annex side of the van - but then it would only be being used when it is too cold to be outside under the awning/annex!
The inlet low pressure fuel line to the pump has a limited max length, check but I think ours was 2mtrs. The high pressure line from the pump to the heater has a max around 5 mtrs, again check to be sure. The dose pump "ticking" can drive some people nuts, the Princess included. My preference was to have the pump at the rear of the van away from our bed, the tank at the front and the heater in the middle. The max fuel line lengths ultimately made the decision for me, tank at the front, pump at the front under our bed, and the heater in the middle.

The heater mount plate gets bloody hot from the exhaust but the heater itself doesnt get too warm, nor does it warm its under seat locale too much. It doesnt warm its environment enough for me to be concerned about what the other stuff we have stored in the vicinity of it.
 

Bellbirdweb

Well-Known Member
Jan 24, 2014
1,921
2,746
113
Sydney
Hi everyone, I am new to these forums so this is my first post on anything like this. I have a Jayco Expanda 20.64.1 OB and want to put in a diesel heater. I have had a previous caravan that had a slide out like this one where the duct work for the diesel heater.fed through the cupboards and it was nice and neat, but a completely different design. Has anyone (and is it possible) to run the ductwork under the caravan and then up through the floor - much like what you would see in a household situation? Does it need to travel through the cupboards? I was thinking about attaching the main unit under the caravan and then running the ducts along the bottom of the floor (under caravan) and then popping up with the outlet through the floor instead of through the cupboards. Does anyone see any issues with this? Thank you.

The heater I was looking at was an Eberspacher D4. I know the initial outlay is high, but I have been let down so many time with cheaper Chinese copies that has left me a little bitter. It has ended up costing me more in the long run and each time I take a risk, I end up regretting it so this time I'd like to go for something that I feel comfortable with and get a better known brand with backup service and warranty.

If someone has run ducting for a similar carvan model as this, can I ask about the architecture and how you went about installing it? Or, if anyone is an expert and knows, that's equally as good.

I appreciate any comments and thank you for taking the time reading this.
I also have a 21, and I installed the heater underneath the fridge, with 1 duct under the pantry and the other opposite the bunks (I can have the concertina door closed and have warm air on each side).

I would also think about the D2 instead of the D4. I have the Eberspacher D2 and it is more than adequate to keep the van toasty warm.
 

Glen Bundesen

Active Member
Jan 12, 2014
336
212
43
Perth WA
I also have a 21, and I installed the heater underneath the fridge, with 1 duct under the pantry and the other opposite the bunks (I can have the concertina door closed and have warm air on each side).

I would also think about the D2 instead of the D4. I have the Eberspacher D2 and it is more than adequate to keep the van toasty warm.

Where did you locate your tank? I'm thinking of the front boot, rather than on the drawbar! I installed the tank on the rear bumper of the Coromal, but don't have the room with the spare and Generator box on the back on the Sterling.
 

Bellbirdweb

Well-Known Member
Jan 24, 2014
1,921
2,746
113
Sydney
Where did you locate your tank? I'm thinking of the front boot, rather than on the drawbar! I installed the tank on the rear bumper of the Coromal, but don't have the room with the spare and Generator box on the back on the Sterling.
I use an outboard tank that I only take in winter
 

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