17' Series Diesel heaters
- Thread starter 23chris
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I have the Eberspacher Airtronic D2 which is 2.2kW and that does my 20ft Expander very well
If the Snugger 2300 is 2.3kW it will be ample in size
If the Snugger 2300 is 2.3kW it will be ample in size
Hi Crusty
I've just bought the D2 and planning the install -- with the positioning of the hot air outlet,do you have to take in account that the air is hot enough to be a problem? I am thinking of putting the D2 under a seat with the hot air vent coming out under the table but am thinking that it will be too hot near a leg. I'm a bit restricted in choice of install spots in the small 14.44.5 OB. Any other install tips would be appreciated.
thanks Alex
@alexvk2 I put a d2 in our 14.44-4 I wouldn't want the outlet directly at a leg as it pumps out pretty hot air when needed. If you were to make note of where you sit and have it slightly away it should be fine. Ours being the bunk model I put it next to the drawer on the lower bunk and it works well as it is directed up the guts of the van. Another place I was thinking was under the dinette seat but the ducting going into the front tunnel boot and straight out in between the bench seat and the door (wood panel under main bed) so I would consider that too. Should be easy enough and you wouldn't lose much room in the tunnel area.
I also would like to hear from 17.56 or 18.58 owners that have a Diesel heater, with all the canvas and vinyl pop top there is a hell of a lot of heat loss that full style vans don't.
I have held off placing an order as I am undecided on 2.2Kw or the 4Kw unit. ( if to big turn it down / if to small WIFE not happy )
I have held off placing an order as I am undecided on 2.2Kw or the 4Kw unit. ( if to big turn it down / if to small WIFE not happy )
We have one in our 17.56-2 and works great. A few weeks ago free camping near Yalara got to -4 The bed ends got a little cool but fine. You do loose a fair amount of heat out the pop top. We slept one night with the roof down then we got hot. Ours is a Planar 2kw I think and it's big enough.
I recently installed a 2kw Webasto into a 14.44.4 and agree they pump out VERY hot air and heat quickly. If you look on this forum, i will try and do a search later, you can get a full brand name kit for 1K so if you plan on keeping the van for a while it might be worth looking at this as an option.
I just ordered this with the current eBay 20% off deal. They are now out of stock, but if lucky, they may come back in before the sale ends, brings it down to $622 with code "PRESENT". 4kW will definitely be too hot and down side is they use the most power when starting up, so if too big, they heat the van too quick then shut off and then re-fire again and that continual process drains a heap more battery power than a smaller one just plodding along on low. I tossed up 2kW vs 3kW for ages, and am slightly concerned 3kW I ordered may even be too much, however we have the 18.58, so largest pop top meaning most space to heat with the full heat loss of 2 bed ends and pop top. As opposed to the smaller pop tops with less volume to heat and larger hard walled ones, we have the worst of both sides of the scale, so hoping I haven't overdone it.
Baah haaa haaa ... probably not such a bad idea! Might have to do that if it does cause a problem.
Thanks for all the reply's guy's it's helped.
I just rang the Tassie retailer and it turns out he has a 18.58-2 himself and so he put a 4kw unit in for the reasons that I am concerned about size.
His response was NO WAY to Big.
He said he was on the central lakes at -2 to -4 and the heater was on its lowest power setting 1 form 1 to 7 ( these units have thermostat and power output) it held 22 degrees inside the van in his opinion it will foul up very fast and stop as its not running hard enough ( OK for him as he can service and fix it with his eyes closed )
He recommended no more than the 2kw to 2.2kw units and run them harder as its better for the units to be going flat out rather than just idling along.
I tend to think the info is genuine as he did himself out of a few hundred dollars for the bigger unit.
Again thanks
I just rang the Tassie retailer and it turns out he has a 18.58-2 himself and so he put a 4kw unit in for the reasons that I am concerned about size.
His response was NO WAY to Big.
He said he was on the central lakes at -2 to -4 and the heater was on its lowest power setting 1 form 1 to 7 ( these units have thermostat and power output) it held 22 degrees inside the van in his opinion it will foul up very fast and stop as its not running hard enough ( OK for him as he can service and fix it with his eyes closed )
He recommended no more than the 2kw to 2.2kw units and run them harder as its better for the units to be going flat out rather than just idling along.
I tend to think the info is genuine as he did himself out of a few hundred dollars for the bigger unit.
Again thanks
Ive mounted the heater under the club lounge and have 2 outlets, either side of the rear lounge wing pointing forward and to the rear. The rear facing fixed open domed vent blows out low past the fridge and the forward facing flatter closable vaned vent in the corner of the club lounge basically next to where my legs usually dangle (that's my allocated daytime seat, the other end of the lounge is my allocated night time seat. Seat allocation in our van is a complex matrix that only I can fully interpret correctly. Sometime the bed is included in the matrix, but not always. There are penalties for those who get it wrong .... )
The heat that pumps out of the vents, particularly the rear facing at full tilt is pretty bloody hot, but that concentrated heat rapidly tappers off within inches of the vent. The reason more air exits the rear vent was intentional because the vents are forward of the middle of the van and the bathroom is at the rear. I achieved a slightly higher rear air flow just through the ducting "Y" junction. The junction I used isnt a true "Y" its a straight through with an angled side joint. Experimenting with, being careful with ducting length and bends placed enough back pressure from the straight through vent duct to push exactly the amount of air I wanted out the front facing vent. Either that or more likely it was dumb luck.
I routinely sit over that forward facing vent, and that vent is a closable vane type which is angled 45deg down and 45 deg out and I havent once felt the air blowing on my leg, and it doesnt get airlocked extra hot under the table either. Even if my leg was deformed enough to end up over the vent it would only be noticeable, not a burning heat. My only poo poo was I should have used a permanently open angle vent the same as the one behind the couch. I was originally concern about the kids standing on it climbing about on the couch it so I went with the flat vane style. The flat vane I used is a bigger hole than the fixed, so I cant remove it and retro fit a fixed open dome type vent. Gluing up the vanes on forward facing vent at it current angle is on my "to do list"
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Where do you source the ducting bits?
And what fuel tank did you use and location? My unit came from the UK with basic installation kit (no mounting plate i found) so I guess it's best to source bits n pieces here.
Thanks
agree 100% have not heard anyone say any different, makes sense the way the heater works.
I bought my heater, as a complete kit, locally through Northern RV in Campbellfield on the northern side of Melb. They supply brand named heater kits, and parts such as ducts and vents etc.
I mounted a slim 10ltr bolt-through tank to the side of the drawbar toolbox and made a checkplate cover to blend it with the tool box. The heater tank is on the same side as my cars filler so I can fill them at the same time.
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I got my complete kit on line from the UK and have purchased some extra bits of ducting etc since then from heatso.com
Completely agree. Our 2kW barley ticks over heating our 21, so even with it we would struggle to run it flat out