Back about 2 months our 10 month old eBay heater decided not to finish starting.
There is fuel to the pump, had the lines apart.
12.6 volts of current at the joiner near the heater in the caravan, also down at the pump and on the LED controller.
Pressing start, it doing the right things, you can feel the warmth of the glow plug but the fuel dosing pump not clicking.
2 weeks ago I brought a new pump on line and fitted it, the heater ran for about 40 minutes and I shut it down and went and had a celebration drink but to my border it would not start again.
I keep.thinking it's the controller, what's is your thoughts before I buy another total new unit off eBay.
DeBe said
06:59 PM Jul 26, 2021
I purchased 2 units & fited one to the caravan & the other is stored for posible use as parts as they are so cheap.
TravellerBob said
07:11 PM Jul 26, 2021
Is the controller showing any error codes? My heater either would start and run for a few minutes then stop or not start at all. The controll was showing error 7, which I found was a power issue to the controler. I found a
replacement on Ebay for around $25 but b4 I bought that I opened up the conttroller and found that the red wire had separated from the control board. A quick resolder fixed the problem.
Radar said
07:20 PM Jul 26, 2021
TravellerBob wrote:
Is the controller showing any error codes? My heater either would start and run for a few minutes then stop or not start at all. The controll was showing error 7, which I found was a power issue to the controler. I found a
replacement on Ebay for around $25 but b4 I bought that I opened up the conttroller and found that the red wire had separated from the control board. A quick resolder fixed the problem.
Our error codes 4,8 &10. All fuel related.
kgarnett said
08:17 PM Jul 26, 2021
Is the 12.6V under starting current load or no load?
Radar said
08:32 PM Jul 26, 2021
kgarnett wrote:
Is the 12.6V under starting current load or no load?
Glow plug and fan.
We have seen it start with less, pretty sure that not a problem, 12.1 volts last year before we replaced the batteries.
nomadz said
11:04 PM Jul 26, 2021
Hi Radar,
Many years ago, I had a similar problem with a Webasto and was out on the goldfields and away from any parts etc.
I was able to contact a webasto technician, (by satellite phone!!) and he said to try the following;
Where the heater is cut into the floor, on the outside underside, remove both the inlet and outlet hoses.
Use a high pressure air compressor to blow air through the inlet side into the heater unit and then the outlet side and then inlet side again.
I had a compressor but mustnt have been strong enough as no change.
However, when I went in to Leonora to get fuel, I went to the tyre repair mechanic (not sure he is still there) and asked if I could use his industrial compressor. He was ok with that.
No idea if this is your problem but worked for us and then had unit serviced when back home some weeks later.
Fuel filter also needed replacing when serviced.
Regards,
Ian
Mike Harding said
04:00 AM Jul 27, 2021
I'll hazard a guess it's a wiring connection fault somewhere on the pump circuit or, just maybe, a fault with the heat sensor which determines when the glow plug has heated the unit sufficiently for the pump to start. I'd take the covers off and check the wiring in these two circuits and especially any connectors in circuit.
Also put a meter (oscilloscope if possible) across the fuel pump terminals with the heater set to maximum heat and observe if a voltage is measured during the start cycle - the meter will not read 12V but you'll probably see a fluctuating reading of around 4V or 5V. If the pump is being powered but not delivering fuel you have another dead pump.
PeterInSa said
04:50 AM Jul 27, 2021
Re ( when the glow plug has heated the unit sufficiently for the pump to start.)
Do you hear the Pump start clicking?
Radar said
08:11 AM Jul 27, 2021
PeterInSa wrote:
Re ( when the glow plug has heated the unit sufficiently for the pump to start.)
Do you hear the Pump start clicking?
No clicking sound and that is why I thought it was the pump and obtained a new one.
Radar said
08:13 AM Jul 27, 2021
nomadz wrote:
Hi Radar,
Many years ago, I had a similar problem with a Webasto and was out on the goldfields and away from any parts etc.
I was able to contact a webasto technician, (by satellite phone!!) and he said to try the following;
Where the heater is cut into the floor, on the outside underside, remove both the inlet and outlet hoses.
Use a high pressure air compressor to blow air through the inlet side into the heater unit and then the outlet side and then inlet side again.
I had a compressor but mustnt have been strong enough as no change.
However, when I went in to Leonora to get fuel, I went to the tyre repair mechanic (not sure he is still there) and asked if I could use his industrial compressor. He was ok with that.
No idea if this is your problem but worked for us and then had unit serviced when back home some weeks later.
Fuel filter also needed replacing when serviced.
Regards,
Ian
I will be home in a couple of weeks, will try that.
Radar said
08:17 AM Jul 27, 2021
Mike Harding wrote:
I'll hazard a guess it's a wiring connection fault somewhere on the pump circuit or, just maybe, a fault with the heat sensor which determines when the glow plug has heated the unit sufficiently for the pump to start. I'd take the covers off and check the wiring in these two circuits and especially any connectors in circuit.
Also put a meter (oscilloscope if possible) across the fuel pump terminals with the heater set to maximum heat and observe if a voltage is measured during the start cycle - the meter will not read 12V but you'll probably see a fluctuating reading of around 4V or 5V. If the pump is being powered but not delivering fuel you have another dead pump.
Hi Mike.
If I put wires from my battery to the small pump should the pump start to rattle because I had it in my hand and jerry rigged it to the car's battery and it was a no go.
Mike Harding said
09:32 AM Jul 27, 2021
Hi Radar
I didn't suggest this as I could not be certain the pump is 12V although it probably is.
The pump is fed with electrical pulses of (guessing) around 300mS duration so connecting it to a constant 12V will not cause it to operate. What you need to do is to disconnect one of the temporary wires between battery and pump and "flash" it against the terminal - hold it against the terminal for no longer than 0.5S and you should feel the pump do a cycle.
Good luck.
PeterInSa said
04:45 PM Jul 27, 2021
Re (Where the heater is cut into the floor, on the outside underside, remove both the inlet and outlet hoses)
I would also do the above and try another start as it could be a blocked inlet or exhaust... or the unit could be carboned up due to running on low for to long.
Radar said
07:53 PM Jul 27, 2021
Mike Harding wrote:
Hi Radar
I didn't suggest this as I could not be certain the pump is 12V although it probably is.
The pump is fed with electrical pulses of (guessing) around 300mS duration so connecting it to a constant 12V will not cause it to operate. What you need to do is to disconnect one of the temporary wires between battery and pump and "flash" it against the terminal - hold it against the terminal for no longer than 0.5S and you should feel the pump do a cycle.
Good luck.
I tried that today and no go with both pumps.
I have almost decided what have I to lose, buy another cheap ebay unit but this time I will fit it myself with some upgrades to the wiring and I will look into better joiners for the fuel line.
And I am going for a rotating switch also but I do realise its a lottery when you buy on ebay.
Thanks for the suggestion.
Bugger me its cold out here in Western Queensland with out our heater.
Mike Harding said
07:24 AM Jul 28, 2021
Radar wrote:
Bugger me its cold out here in Western Queensland with out our heater.
I'll bet :) It has been very cold and wet here in north central Vic for the past few weeks and my diesel heater has been running around 12 hours per day for that time.
I bought a complete second unit as spares, fortunately I've not required any spares so far but, no doubt, the time will come and having a full second unit means I can be up and running again in probably less than an hour and then fault find in comfort. Last time I looked they were selling for about $150 on e-bay so not too expensive.
Let us know how you go please.
valiant81 said
03:01 PM Jul 28, 2021
Hi all; Radar, how far away is the house battery in your caravan away from the heater !!!what is the terminal voltage of your house battery to start with and what is the voltage at the terminals at the heater. Did you use the 12 volt wiring that came with the heater. These heaters draw around 9 Amps on startup and when the glow plug is on at the start and shut down of the heater, when the voltage is low the diesel heaters glow plug struggles to generate enough heat to ignite the diesel. This causes all sort of problems with these Chinese diesel heater , failing to start and white smoke out of the exhaust are common problems with a diesel heater and a low voltage start.
When i installed my diesel heater i replace the cable from the house battery fuse block to the diesel heater with heavy duty low voltage cable that was rated at around 25 Amps,and a distance of around 5 Meters, a overkill, no not really as voltage drop can cause a issue. I also disregarded the low voltage cable that came with the diesel heater, this went in the rubbish bin. Had mine for now going on 2.5 years and so far all good. Love it !!
Radar said
05:20 PM Jul 28, 2021
valiant81 wrote:
Hi all; Radar, how far away is the house battery in your caravan away from the heater !!!what is the terminal voltage of your house battery to start with and what is the voltage at the terminals at the heater. Did you use the 12 volt wiring that came with the heater. These heaters draw around 9 Amps on startup and when the glow plug is on at the start and shut down of the heater, when the voltage is low the diesel heaters glow plug struggles to generate enough heat to ignite the diesel. This causes all sort of problems with these Chinese diesel heater , failing to start and white smoke out of the exhaust are common problems with a diesel heater and a low voltage start.
When i installed my diesel heater i replace the cable from the house battery fuse block to the diesel heater with heavy duty low voltage cable that was rated at around 25 Amps,and a distance of around 5 Meters, a overkill, no not really as voltage drop can cause a issue. I also disregarded the low voltage cable that came with the diesel heater, this went in the rubbish bin. Had mine for now going on 2.5 years and so far all good. Love it !!
1200 from the battery to the heater. 12.6 volts of a early morning which I feel is more then enough but will ungrade the main wire when I get home in about 2 weeks.
The heater worked fine for 6 weeks last August, September every morning for roughly 30 minutes run time. The heater has a good run down time.
Did run the heater in October a couple of times.
March, April when cold enough not a problem.
Just before we left home in June along with the air condition, ran heater with no sign of a problem.
Thank you for your thoughts.
Aus-Kiwi said
08:28 PM Jul 29, 2021
Try it on kerosene?
Radar said
09:12 PM Jul 29, 2021
Aus-Kiwi wrote:
Try it on kerosene?
If the pump don't work on diesel how is kero going to help.
No. We will keep on persevering with diesel.
Today after rereading some comments and watching good old You tube, I jerry rig a bit of extra heavy cable (jumper leads) on to the cables ( tried to burn the caravan down) no fuses for protection and guess what.
We have "blast off" Huston but I am not skiting yet but it has started 4 times and it is still jerry rigged and I am a week or so from home before I can find some better wire and other fittings to make the work more permanent.
Ungrade of the main feed wire maybe the trick.
Thank you All and watch this space for more exciting news.
-- Edited by Radar on Thursday 29th of July 2021 09:21:21 PM
Aus-Kiwi said
10:07 AM Jul 30, 2021
I thought it was flooding ? Maybe the igniter is faulty ? Kerro burns a little cleaner , slightly easier to ignite .
Mike Harding said
12:40 PM Jul 30, 2021
Radar wrote:
Today after rereading some comments and watching good old You tube, I jerry rig a bit of extra heavy cable (jumper leads) on to the cables ( tried to burn the caravan down) no fuses for protection and guess what.
We have "blast off" Huston but I am not skiting yet but it has started 4 times and it is still jerry rigged
Very interesting.
Given that it ran well for some time in the early days something must have changed to cause this issue, I wonder what it is?
Good catch Radar.
Radar said
01:30 PM Jul 30, 2021
Mike Harding wrote:
Radar wrote:
Today after rereading some comments and watching good old You tube, I jerry rig a bit of extra heavy cable (jumper leads) on to the cables ( tried to burn the caravan down) no fuses for protection and guess what.
We have "blast off" Huston but I am not skiting yet but it has started 4 times and it is still jerry rigged
Very interesting.
Given that it ran well for some time in the early days something must have changed to cause this issue, I wonder what it is?
Good catch Radar.
Thank you Mike.
This morning in Surat Qld with no 240volt power it was 4 deg cel (a bit cool) and the DAH kick in with out a fuss, jumper leads worked a treat but now I need to lift my feet so I don't trip over the excess wire laying on the floor next to myside of the bed until I get home.
All happy in this camp.
valiant81 said
02:08 PM Jul 30, 2021
Hi all; Radar, looks like you are on the right track The cable i only use for low voltage work, communication gear, diesel heaters, etc i get from the local Jaycar store. One high current cable i use is a general purpose - 2 core ( both a positive and negative cable ) P/n WH3087. This is rated at 25 Amps and would be more than adequate for your diesel heater, This is what i used on my diesel heater !!. Good connections and a fuse are also a must + crimp/solder the terminals. Cost $4.95 per meter.
The other cable i also use is a higher capacity cable and it is rated at 56 Amps, This i use as main feeds from batteries to fuse blocks etc. Cost $9.95 per meter P/n WH3063. Not cheap cables .
On another note Altronics have similar cable/ price , but it is double insulated !!
-- Edited by valiant81 on Friday 30th of July 2021 02:09:45 PM
Old Cliffy said
07:08 AM Jul 31, 2021
Bringing you all up to date on my diesel heater woes. Back a while I asked advice. The fan worked with cold air. The pump was clicking, but no hot air. Replaced the glow plug, but to no avail. Finally found that the pump, whilst clicking, was not pushing any fuel through.
A replacement pump for $30.00 has fixed the issue and prevented a suicide on my behalf. Anyone want a spare glow plug?
Old Cliffy
Radar said
08:25 PM Jul 31, 2021
valiant81 wrote:
Hi all; Radar, looks like you are on the right track The cable i only use for low voltage work, communication gear, diesel heaters, etc i get from the local Jaycar store. One high current cable i use is a general purpose - 2 core ( both a positive and negative cable ) P/n WH3087. This is rated at 25 Amps and would be more than adequate for your diesel heater, This is what i used on my diesel heater !!. Good connections and a fuse are also a must + crimp/solder the terminals. Cost $4.95 per meter.
The other cable i also use is a higher capacity cable and it is rated at 56 Amps, This i use as main feeds from batteries to fuse blocks etc. Cost $9.95 per meter P/n WH3063. Not cheap cables .
On another note Altronics have similar cable/ price , but it is double insulated !!
I have brought 2 metres of insulated double cable from a mechanical workshop near my last camp was out western Queensland. Now where we are at present is gorgeous daytime temps and I decided to have a look at the carpentry around our diesel heater with the view of just connecting the temporary wires better.
Well 2 hours later I have we rerouted the wires to the battery box, cut a heap of light wire out, connect direct to the battery and all I need to do when I get home is add a good fuse to it all.
Aint I a happy chappie with 1 diesel air heater working like a brought one.
Thank you Everyone for all the help, suggestions and encouragement.
If I was at home I would further investigate. Be good for a spare.
Thank you
PeterInSa said
10:37 PM Aug 4, 2021
I prefer a 2Kw or 2.2 Unit, reason, a 2.2 Kw heats our 21'6" van quite OK, My understanding is that every so often you need to run flat out to clear out the carbon build up, so my 2k unit running on low/medium will probably have less build up than a 5Kw unit running on low. Am not looking forward to a de coke. But it seems that the 5Kw units are cheaper than the 2kw units.... more popular?
peatop said
08:38 PM Aug 5, 2021
Hi everyone, I have a couple of questions about these units, the first being has anyone used them in a camper trailer or tent? if so how effective was it?
Back about 2 months our 10 month old eBay heater decided not to finish starting.
There is fuel to the pump, had the lines apart.
12.6 volts of current at the joiner near the heater in the caravan, also down at the pump and on the LED controller.
Pressing start, it doing the right things, you can feel the warmth of the glow plug but the fuel dosing pump not clicking.
2 weeks ago I brought a new pump on line and fitted it, the heater ran for about 40 minutes and I shut it down and went and had a celebration drink but to my border it would not start again.
I keep.thinking it's the controller, what's is your thoughts before I buy another total new unit off eBay.
replacement on Ebay for around $25 but b4 I bought that I opened up the conttroller and found that the red wire had separated from the control board. A quick resolder fixed the problem.
Our error codes 4,8 &10. All fuel related.
Glow plug and fan.
We have seen it start with less, pretty sure that not a problem, 12.1 volts last year before we replaced the batteries.
Hi Radar,
Many years ago, I had a similar problem with a Webasto and was out on the goldfields and away from any parts etc.
I was able to contact a webasto technician, (by satellite phone!!) and he said to try the following;
Where the heater is cut into the floor, on the outside underside, remove both the inlet and outlet hoses.
Use a high pressure air compressor to blow air through the inlet side into the heater unit and then the outlet side and then inlet side again.
I had a compressor but mustnt have been strong enough as no change.
However, when I went in to Leonora to get fuel, I went to the tyre repair mechanic (not sure he is still there) and asked if I could use his industrial compressor. He was ok with that.
No idea if this is your problem but worked for us and then had unit serviced when back home some weeks later.
Fuel filter also needed replacing when serviced.
Regards,
Ian
I'll hazard a guess it's a wiring connection fault somewhere on the pump circuit or, just maybe, a fault with the heat sensor which determines when the glow plug has heated the unit sufficiently for the pump to start. I'd take the covers off and check the wiring in these two circuits and especially any connectors in circuit.
Also put a meter (oscilloscope if possible) across the fuel pump terminals with the heater set to maximum heat and observe if a voltage is measured during the start cycle - the meter will not read 12V but you'll probably see a fluctuating reading of around 4V or 5V. If the pump is being powered but not delivering fuel you have another dead pump.
Do you hear the Pump start clicking?
No clicking sound and that is why I thought it was the pump and obtained a new one.
I will be home in a couple of weeks, will try that.
Hi Mike.
If I put wires from my battery to the small pump should the pump start to rattle because I had it in my hand and jerry rigged it to the car's battery and it was a no go.
Hi Radar
I didn't suggest this as I could not be certain the pump is 12V although it probably is.
The pump is fed with electrical pulses of (guessing) around 300mS duration so connecting it to a constant 12V will not cause it to operate. What you need to do is to disconnect one of the temporary wires between battery and pump and "flash" it against the terminal - hold it against the terminal for no longer than 0.5S and you should feel the pump do a cycle.
Good luck.
I would also do the above and try another start as it could be a blocked inlet or exhaust... or the unit could be carboned up due to running on low for to long.
I tried that today and no go with both pumps.
I have almost decided what have I to lose, buy another cheap ebay unit but this time I will fit it myself with some upgrades to the wiring and I will look into better joiners for the fuel line.
And I am going for a rotating switch also but I do realise its a lottery when you buy on ebay.
Thanks for the suggestion.
Bugger me its cold out here in Western Queensland with out our heater.
I'll bet :) It has been very cold and wet here in north central Vic for the past few weeks and my diesel heater has been running around 12 hours per day for that time.
I bought a complete second unit as spares, fortunately I've not required any spares so far but, no doubt, the time will come and having a full second unit means I can be up and running again in probably less than an hour and then fault find in comfort. Last time I looked they were selling for about $150 on e-bay so not too expensive.
Let us know how you go please.
Hi all; Radar, how far away is the house battery in your caravan away from the heater !!!what is the terminal voltage of your house battery to start with and what is the voltage at the terminals at the heater. Did you use the 12 volt wiring that came with the heater. These heaters draw around 9 Amps on startup and when the glow plug is on at the start and shut down of the heater, when the voltage is low the diesel heaters glow plug struggles to generate enough heat to ignite the diesel. This causes all sort of problems with these Chinese diesel heater , failing to start and white smoke out of the exhaust are common problems with a diesel heater and a low voltage start.
When i installed my diesel heater i replace the cable from the house battery fuse block to the diesel heater with heavy duty low voltage cable that was rated at around 25 Amps,and a distance of around 5 Meters, a overkill, no not really as voltage drop can cause a issue. I also disregarded the low voltage cable that came with the diesel heater, this went in the rubbish bin. Had mine for now going on 2.5 years and so far all good. Love it !!
1200 from the battery to the heater. 12.6 volts of a early morning which I feel is more then enough but will ungrade the main wire when I get home in about 2 weeks.
The heater worked fine for 6 weeks last August, September every morning for roughly 30 minutes run time. The heater has a good run down time.
Did run the heater in October a couple of times.
March, April when cold enough not a problem.
Just before we left home in June along with the air condition, ran heater with no sign of a problem.
Thank you for your thoughts.
If the pump don't work on diesel how is kero going to help.
No. We will keep on persevering with diesel.
Today after rereading some comments and watching good old You tube, I jerry rig a bit of extra heavy cable (jumper leads) on to the cables ( tried to burn the caravan down) no fuses for protection and guess what.
We have "blast off" Huston but I am not skiting yet but it has started 4 times and it is still jerry rigged and I am a week or so from home before I can find some better wire and other fittings to make the work more permanent.
Ungrade of the main feed wire maybe the trick.
Thank you All and watch this space for more exciting news.
-- Edited by Radar on Thursday 29th of July 2021 09:21:21 PM
Very interesting.
Given that it ran well for some time in the early days something must have changed to cause this issue, I wonder what it is?
Good catch Radar.
Thank you Mike.
This morning in Surat Qld with no 240volt power it was 4 deg cel (a bit cool) and the DAH kick in with out a fuss, jumper leads worked a treat but now I need to lift my feet so I don't trip over the excess wire laying on the floor next to myside of the bed until I get home.
All happy in this camp.
Hi all; Radar, looks like you are on the right track The cable i only use for low voltage work, communication gear, diesel heaters, etc i get from the local Jaycar store. One high current cable i use is a general purpose - 2 core ( both a positive and negative cable ) P/n WH3087. This is rated at 25 Amps and would be more than adequate for your diesel heater, This is what i used on my diesel heater !!. Good connections and a fuse are also a must + crimp/solder the terminals. Cost $4.95 per meter.
The other cable i also use is a higher capacity cable and it is rated at 56 Amps, This i use as main feeds from batteries to fuse blocks etc. Cost $9.95 per meter P/n WH3063. Not cheap cables .
On another note Altronics have similar cable/ price , but it is double insulated !!
-- Edited by valiant81 on Friday 30th of July 2021 02:09:45 PM
A replacement pump for $30.00 has fixed the issue and prevented a suicide on my behalf. Anyone want a spare glow plug?
Old Cliffy
I have brought 2 metres of insulated double cable from a mechanical workshop near my last camp was out western Queensland. Now where we are at present is gorgeous daytime temps and I decided to have a look at the carpentry around our diesel heater with the view of just connecting the temporary wires better.
Well 2 hours later I have we rerouted the wires to the battery box, cut a heap of light wire out, connect direct to the battery and all I need to do when I get home is add a good fuse to it all.
Aint I a happy chappie with 1 diesel air heater working like a brought one.
Thank you Everyone for all the help, suggestions and encouragement.
Popped up on Kogan today.
Cheap Diesel Heater
https://www.kogan.com/au/buy/8kw-12v-rv-diesel-air-heater-kit-portable-vehicle-heater-w-lcd-intelligent-voice-remote-control-black-red/?utm_content=hero&utm_content=hours_since_22&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=personalised_price_drop_related_viewed&utm_source=kogan
If I was at home I would further investigate. Be good for a spare.
Thank you
Hi everyone, I have a couple of questions about these units, the first being has anyone used them in a camper trailer or tent? if so how effective was it?
secondly has anyone made a water heater from one?