gas /diesel heating
- Thread starter brotys
- Start date
I also thought about doing it also, a mate has the gas fitted to his new van works a treat, he had the diesel in his previous van.
Diesel has a slight noise to it because it runs a pump
.
I personally think gas is the way to go for a van as you already have gas on tap, why add the weight of extra fuel, in saying that I asked one bloke why he ran diesel when he had gas already there, answer was because diesel he could fit himself, gas required gas fitter, the other was diesel is usually readily available, can't always get gas in outback.
Diesel would be the way to go with motorhome/campervan as it drawers from main tank.... probably cost and personal choice come into it as well.
I know there's a few members that have them fitted so I'm sure they'll add there thoughts
Diesel has a slight noise to it because it runs a pump
.
I personally think gas is the way to go for a van as you already have gas on tap, why add the weight of extra fuel, in saying that I asked one bloke why he ran diesel when he had gas already there, answer was because diesel he could fit himself, gas required gas fitter, the other was diesel is usually readily available, can't always get gas in outback.
Diesel would be the way to go with motorhome/campervan as it drawers from main tank.... probably cost and personal choice come into it as well.
I know there's a few members that have them fitted so I'm sure they'll add there thoughts
G'Day @brotys
I fitted a diesel heater in my old Hawk. Worked a treat!
So when I bought the new expanda, I knew it would be a no brainer to put one in. It arrived yesterday in the post. I'll be fitting it over Anzac day long weekend. I'll take some photos fro you (all) on the installation process, it's fairly straightforward.
I fitted a diesel heater in my old Hawk. Worked a treat!
So when I bought the new expanda, I knew it would be a no brainer to put one in. It arrived yesterday in the post. I'll be fitting it over Anzac day long weekend. I'll take some photos fro you (all) on the installation process, it's fairly straightforward.
Gas is what I was thinking to you can fit most of it just have to get it finished off buy a gas fitted any idea what they are $
$$ will come in at less than $1100 installed.
Consumption of less than 0.2l/hr diesel on medium, and also about 23Ah of battery in a 12hr period, this was on the old one (need to power the fan to blow the air).
Consumption of less than 0.2l/hr diesel on medium, and also about 23Ah of battery in a 12hr period, this was on the old one (need to power the fan to blow the air).
on the last one I wired it directly to the battery, although I did have a spare outlet on the ctek unit. I can't remember exactly why I did it this way, but there was a reason and it did take a lot of research....
Cool lets no how you go fitting unit are you going straight to battery this time ?
We fitted the diesel one and haven't looked back. As others have said fitted myself, carries 10 litres diesel approx 100hrs run time, and you can buy a litre of diesel but not gas. That was my main reason for diesel.
As for noise when the unit is up to temp you hardly know its working. The fuel pump can be heard but if mounted correctly it only a very slight ticking noise.
As for noise when the unit is up to temp you hardly know its working. The fuel pump can be heard but if mounted correctly it only a very slight ticking noise.
We have one of the Truma ones. Had it in our flamingo then pulled it out to put in our 17.56-2. We love it and would not own another van without one. As we do a lot of unpowered camping, it is really beneficial over winter.
We went for the gas over the diesel as gas is the commodity already on the van. Space for the diesel tank was also an issue for us. With 18kg of gas on the front essentially doing nothing as I have a compressor fridge, it was a no brainer for me. If I use 18kg of gas and don't pass some where to get a refill, then I must be traveling to the moon and back!
Price wise for the units, I think they were very similar. Additional to the unit, your either have to pay for a diesel tank or get a gas fitter in for about the same value as a tank.
Either way, you won't be disappointed. Personal preference is where it's at really.
I can't speak from experience but I have herd that the diesels can be slightly quieter on the 12v fan side if things but it all depends on the length of the heater hot air out pipe, as the longer it is, the more like a muffler it becomes.
Hope that helps!
We went for the gas over the diesel as gas is the commodity already on the van. Space for the diesel tank was also an issue for us. With 18kg of gas on the front essentially doing nothing as I have a compressor fridge, it was a no brainer for me. If I use 18kg of gas and don't pass some where to get a refill, then I must be traveling to the moon and back!
Price wise for the units, I think they were very similar. Additional to the unit, your either have to pay for a diesel tank or get a gas fitter in for about the same value as a tank.
Either way, you won't be disappointed. Personal preference is where it's at really.
I can't speak from experience but I have herd that the diesels can be slightly quieter on the 12v fan side if things but it all depends on the length of the heater hot air out pipe, as the longer it is, the more like a muffler it becomes.
Hope that helps!
Were you get unit was it a major to fit did you fit most of it your self or gas fitter do it all
The unit is under the front table seat. It was really the only option for me as I have 3 batteries under the other seat. That would have been the better location as the out put vents would be more central and not under the table.
I installed the whole lot myself and had a gas fitter just tap into the main gas line which ran directly under the floor where the unit sits.
Technically the window above the table needs to be pop riveted shut due to the flue location. It was but we removed it as we don't run the heater if the window is open any way, kind of defeats the purpose! But we do know to get a gas certificate if we ever sell, the window needs to be riveted agaIn.
I installed the whole lot myself and had a gas fitter just tap into the main gas line which ran directly under the floor where the unit sits.
Technically the window above the table needs to be pop riveted shut due to the flue location. It was but we removed it as we don't run the heater if the window is open any way, kind of defeats the purpose! But we do know to get a gas certificate if we ever sell, the window needs to be riveted agaIn.
I installed diesel since we didn't want any risk of running out of gas and having no fridge (we do a LOT of free camping). Also, I could install the diesel one myself. It's the second one we've used and love it. The first was dometic ($2000+), the second a Planar (Russian/eBay/~$600). The units look identical and Dometic parts fit the Planar. The Dometic seems a more refined unit through - the Dometic would cool itself quietly when temperature reached while the Planar would go to turbo fan mode to cool itself. But with the price difference, we're very happy. It's been used a LOT without any trouble. We have 110W solar, and the battery drain has never been an issue even with many weeks in the one spot.
Why Don't you just fit a window switch kit, then it is legal.
Page 16 http://www.waeco.com.au/forms/CatalogueBrochures/Truma_RV_Catalogue_Australia_2014_01_web.pdf
Another tip for all "combustion" heater users would be the purchase of a decent Carbon Monoxide detector (just in case) for both gas and diesel heaters. They are pretty cheap, even Bunnings sell them.
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Yeah got the detector and thought of the switch but there is no real pretty or easy way to get a cable to the window. I could pull the internal joiner strip out and glue it back in after but don't want to bust anything in the process. It got put in the too hard basket.