Where to mount a diesel heater.

iana · Guru

Where to mount a diesel heater.

Dickodownunder · Guru

I pondered for quite a while over where to fit mine.
Wherever I considered apart from under the bed was going to have the hot air blowing across the van rather than along its length.
I am glad now that I fitted it under the bed as the discharge would get quite hot if blowing against a cupboard on the opposite side.
I had two water tanks to contend with but managed to fit mine with the inlet and outlet between the two tanks.
It did take a bit of planning.
Some heaters are supplied with a mounting plate that has a large round piece of metal that protrudes through the floor and protects the floor from heat.
I was lucky that my heater came with just the flat plate without the round section welded to it because that large round section would not fit between the two tanks.
I made up a heat protector from 25mm angle which I fitted to the edge of the hole that I cut out of the floor.
Other options for me were under the dining seat or in a cupboard near the door but these areas posed their own problems with fitting apart from the discharge mentioned above.

Apart from the installation, the diesel heater is the best accessory that I have fitted on my van.

vince56 · Senior Member

Hi iana,
Just mounted mine under the bed, takes up a bit of room but blows straight down centre of the van. One thing that surprised me was how hot the air actually is coming out of the small vent, much hotter than I expected so worth keeping that in mind.
The exterior of the heater stays reasonably cool.
Cheers Vince

Dougwe · Chief one feather

How, Ian,

I had my gas heater put under a single bed (not mine) with the OUTLET about a third way down van from front with air vent the other end of bed close to the Truma heater itself, see pic. The reason I didn't want the outlet in the bed section was I didn't want to get too hot in bed (Temp) smile Works a treat. It got down to 3c earlier today so on with the heater and was warm as toast within 30mins.

Aus-Kiwi · Guru

In my case it's under the front satee motorhome..Intake is front of satee and blows under bed . It can be turned up, down in any direction . Blowing under bed then into on suite keeps things dry .. The length of inlet - outlet pipes seems to muffle the fan noise . Try the search ^^ feature.. Pics have been uploaded in past .

Treecrest14 · Senior Member

I installed our Planar diesel heater under the corner of our L shaped lounge. Easier enough to get to and good access to rear for tank and exhaust. Wasn't worried about the hot air directed across the van as it heats the whole van and the air intake I placed near the door. But I noticed the cupboard does get hot so have several air vents to allow the heat to escape. I'm considering putting a Y piece in the air intake pipe to allow it to also suck in the "heated air" from under the lounge.

I felt the 'under the bed' option would restrict what you were able to store there because of the heat off the unit!

macka17 · Guru

In somebody elses van.
Then trundle off up here to Queensland.
You don't need them up here.

Cold brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.. No thank's.

I live in shorts. Tee Shirt and sandals all yr here.
Perfect.

PeterD · Guru

any clear spot where you can run ducting so the internal air intake and delivery is at least 1 metre apart. Also you need a spot where there are no tanks or other things undernsath an close enough to the side or end of the van so your fresh air and exhaust don't have to be too long (and impede the heaters efficiency.)

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

Read the installation instructions that come with the heater.
We are about to install a Webasto. It can be installed under the floor.

Cheers,
Peter

iana · Guru

It looks to me that the heater needs to be installed so that the top of the casing is accessible so it can be removed for inspection. I have not read anything about servicing and inspection, but presume it has to be done.

Looks like under the bed is the way to go, I will continue the research.

Thankyou for the replies.

Aus-Kiwi · Guru

Inside can . Lol

Delta18 · Guru

In our last van i installed the diesel heater in the small cupboard under the fridge. Outlet was under one of the cafe seats. In our current van i put the heater under the front club lounge seat with the outlet blowing down the length of the van. Cheers Neil

iana · Guru

Thanks Delta18, we do have a useless cupboard under the fridge, outlet positioning is the problem. Peter n Margaret the Webasto is made in Germany, would be a quality unit. Looking into it.

grahamg · Senior Member

I Installed it under the dining chair. One important thing to consider is the position of the exhaust pipe. Don't have it anywhere near the door vents or windows which you might have to open. Also think about having on the annex side of the van so it most cases it will not be flowing onto your neighbour. ( but if you have enclosed annex then this will not work) Also keep it away from the air inlet pipe.

iana · Guru

An excellent web site on diesel heaters, lots of pictures of installs. www.dieselheat.com.au/

Hey Jim · Guru

Hi Ian,

If you buy your wife a planner heater you will have brownie points for the rest of your life.

We just got back from WA in out journey outback.

I fitted ours next to the house battery. for extra space I turned the battery box sideways to help with balance as well,

Ours blows straight along the floor.Two things to think about here. 1. by rotating the vent up, it acts like an electric blanket on your feet (Very Nice)

2. By mounting under the bed it keeps the mattress warm through the night on the lowest setting all night.(No electric blankets ever.)

3. We found with our door at the very rear, a cold up draft entered the van.

4. Wiring loom works nicely setting next to the battery. No extra wiring required.

5. The very best yet is that, after taking a shower or dressing on cold mornings you can stand in front of the Duct and keep very warm.

Im on a winner, and my wife is very happy. PS: Check my post on my fitting of same.

HAPPY WIFE, HAPPY LIFE.

Jim

-- Edited by Hey Jim on Saturday 1st of October 2016 11:27:14 PM

Hey Jim · Guru

iana wrote:
Thanks Delta18, we do have a useless cupboard under the fridge, outlet positioning is the problem. Peter n Margaret the Webasto is made in Germany, would be a quality unit. Looking into it.

Ian Don't do under the Fridge. It will turn your fridge into a micro wave oven.

Jim

iana · Guru

Our van has so many cupboards (doors), and no free wall space for the vents. We also have no seats, i.e. bench seats. Only really have the one option and that's under the bed.
The battery installation two batteries is a mess, and will have to be rearranged, tidied up. Maybe relocate the safe to another area. Then maybe the heater can be installed and we can still have some useful storage space under the bed.
The fuel tank is also becoming a problem, as the instructions say to mount the tank in the vertical position. I don't realy want a tank sitting up on the drawbar like a sail, so may have to get one custom made to fit under the body.
The other thing to consider is gas, as the gas tank and line is already there.
I'm going to have to end, as my Windows10, Edge search engine spell checker has gone berserk.

Hey Jim · Guru

Hi Ian,

You may have not found my blog on the installation of our Planner heater. Search for ( I implanted out diesel heater ) by Hey Jim All your troubles will be over. smile

Jim

iana · Guru

Thanks "Hey Jim" had a good read. It was certainly a good install you did. Were you completely happy with the heater and kit, the instructions sound a bit Chinese, I think the Planner is quite a bit cheaper than the others.
What I wanted to mention to you is, when I was looking at the under bed space, I noticed the bed frame is supported only at the outer longitudinal (that was hard with out a spell checker) RHS frames, the centre of the bed is unsupported, If one sits on the bed (to put ones socks on), the bed frame could easily bend. I am going to look at a central support for ours (its already bending).

Diesel tank in the locker Hmm looked at that, smell of diesel fumes, spillages (noted the spill tray) other stuff packed in about and in front of it. Still its an option still being considered.

iana · Guru

Peter n Margaret, I noted the Webasto can be mounted in its own box under the floor, and also at different angles. I like to do a lot of research B4 doing a project like this. Thanks for the info.

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

www.webasto.com/au/markets-products/recreational-vehicles/heating-solutions/coolant-water-heaters/thermo-top-c-motorcaravan/
This is the type I am installing.
It heats glycol that can then be used to heat the hot water system, the interior of the van or pre heat the engine. The engine can also heat the hot water.
It draws its fuel directly from the vehicle fuel tank.

Cheers,
Peter

Hey Jim · Guru

Hi Ian,

We completed 14609km return to WA. The tank is mounted 60mm from the bottom of the boots floor, to a accommodate the cat litter / spill tray (removed after each top up). I top up the heater tank from a 5lt container. the litter tray catches total any spill into it. I carry a nofrills roll of paper towel just in case in the boot. No smell what so ever. The tank has a rubber seal and I still lock it after each top up. In the front boot I carry 2 x 5lt Gerry cans ( the red ones from Bunnings) used for diesel,never had an issue. they are boxed in with all the extra's plus a 5lt can with unleaded fuel for our genie if needed. Again no fumes what so ever. I did cover the two drain outlets with fly screen an zip ties under neigh to stop wasps/ ants from getting into the boot.

We travelled up the Mullewa - Carnarvon road some 500km on gravel and out to Qubba Station, all gravel roads. never ever had any issues total with any leaks or smells. Getting ready to do it all again ASPS. The tanks install is better then any of Jayco's fit outs as you would know.

Follow our trip on the new travellers blog to see what we had to fix as we went.

PS: AS for the instructions on the install of the Planner, you can down load them before committing to buy and have a good read. sum 58 pages, You can remove 50 pages of garble. it comes with the instructions. By laying it out first, you can recognise all the parts. Some are Not applicable to the install into your van, as they are designed for the trucking industry. Eg, A long wiring loom that is not required for a start. Plus you will end up with many metres of extra fuel line as spares. Its like putting a meccano set together. If you did your water tanks, this is a walk in the park.

jim

-- Edited by Hey Jim on Sunday 2nd of October 2016 11:25:36 PM

-- Edited by Hey Jim on Sunday 2nd of October 2016 11:27:17 PM

-- Edited by Hey Jim on Sunday 2nd of October 2016 11:28:04 PM

-- Edited by Hey Jim on Sunday 2nd of October 2016 11:45:02 PM

-- Edited by Hey Jim on Sunday 2nd of October 2016 11:46:12 PM

iana · Guru

"Hey Jim" studied the install instructions for several types of heater, yes seems a straight forward operation. Further research required on the fuel tank installation though. Probably need to re-do my battery installation under the bed so there is more order, before I install the heater. Missus is not happy with the heater under the bed. Is there a regulation specifying a distance from the gas bottles to the heater?