J V R Posted November 29, 2018 Share Posted November 29, 2018 PeterF Yes you are right, my eberspacher I picked up was very cheep and it has worked well for quite a few years but is beginning to show a few faults but it has run in excess of 1400 hours so far... Time to have a back up plan so will look into getting one, just incase Edited By J V R on 29/11/2018 22:17:28 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETER BRUCE - Eastchurch Gap Posted November 29, 2018 Author Share Posted November 29, 2018 Hi all. Just as a follow up - if you look at both Banggood and AliExpress and search for diesel air heater parts you will find most available at a very reasonable price - OK it’s not the shop round the corner and your order will take time to come but the parts are there. There are unknown factors in buying this heater - how long will it last of course but that I can’t answer except to say I looked at what parts were available before I bought the unit to cover my back as far as I could. The technology has been around for ages and works so I jumped and so it seems have many others now but beware there is a shortage which is why I ordered from Amazon in the end as I had no luck on eBay. Hope this info answers some questions you may have had. Regards Peter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETER BRUCE - Eastchurch Gap Posted November 29, 2018 Author Share Posted November 29, 2018 WOW THATS 583 DAYS OF CONTINUOUS USE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piers Bowlan Posted November 29, 2018 Share Posted November 29, 2018 I can see many modellers investing in one of these, especially when trying to heat a large shed or double garage. Five Kw is a lot of heat and I would also invest in a good fire extinguisher or fire blanket in case it went AWOL. Useful things to have in ones modelling den in any event. Thanks for sharing Peter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J V R Posted November 29, 2018 Share Posted November 29, 2018 PB Thats spread over around 6/7 years of winter shed time I like to work in tee shirts and shorts... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETER BRUCE - Eastchurch Gap Posted November 29, 2018 Author Share Posted November 29, 2018 Hi Piers. They are sealed combustion chamber units so no chance for escaping flames. I have invested in a carbon monoxide unit just in case but it shows zero in the shed. The exhaust pipe is stainless steel and I have taken a reading on the exhaust and it maxed out on my meter at 280c which is the highest it will record... As it’s basically a heat exchanger unit there are no flames to worry about to set our planes alight. You need to fit a silencer onto the unit which makes it sound just like a faint jet turbine engine... Regards Peter Edited By PETER BRUCE - Eastchurch Gap on 29/11/2018 22:33:30 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETER BRUCE - Eastchurch Gap Posted November 29, 2018 Author Share Posted November 29, 2018 JVR - Sounds great to me... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josip Vrandecic -Mes Posted November 30, 2018 Share Posted November 30, 2018 Hello Peter ,you are a worthy and expert man, whom I especially respect ... I want all of your upcoming Winters to be warm and comfortable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piers Bowlan Posted November 30, 2018 Share Posted November 30, 2018 Posted by PETER BRUCE - Eastchurch Gap on 29/11/2018 22:32:13: Hi Piers. They are sealed combustion chamber units so no chance for escaping flames. I have invested in a carbon monoxide unit just in case but it shows zero in the shed. The exhaust pipe is stainless steel and I have taken a reading on the exhaust and it maxed out on my meter at 280c which is the highest it will record... As it’s basically a heat exchanger unit there are no flames to worry about to set our planes alight. You need to fit a silencer onto the unit which makes it sound just like a faint jet turbine engine... Regards Peter Edited By PETER BRUCE - Eastchurch Gap on 29/11/2018 22:33:30 My only slight reservation and concern is what might happen if the fan should fail, the fan sounds like it is working quite hard from this video although I stress it is not your specific unit although the mechanics of it look similar. Perhaps it has a thermal cut out to switch off the fuel pump should it over temp. Without the fan I would guess that the combustion chamber gets rather hot (incandescent). Alternatively perhaps the burner flame would extinguish if it didn't have the forced air supply from the fan? It looks like a first class unit but it is not the type of thing I would be tempted to leave running while I popped into the house to make a brew. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETER BRUCE - Eastchurch Gap Posted November 30, 2018 Author Share Posted November 30, 2018 Hi Josip. Always a pleasure to hear from you and how about that heater for you as you get a lot colder there... Regards Peter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETER BRUCE - Eastchurch Gap Posted November 30, 2018 Author Share Posted November 30, 2018 Hi Piers. The unit is fully protected and it takes a few minutes to start because of the checks the processor makes before the fuel is pumped and only after all is confirmed working does the gloplug come on. Even if the battery can’t supply the Amps required for the gloplug it will shut down. As I said before these units are used legally in boats trucks, vans, campers all over the world and truckers go to sleep with them on and with some the ticking of the fuel pump sends them to sleep while others it almost drives them insane in the quite cab. Failure of the fan while under combustion would put the flame out straight away as it’s the fan that provides the air flow for the flame - also the fan speed controls the pump speed so no fan = no pump and the flame is immediately extinguished. The resident heat in the unit is the only issue in the case of a breakdown however if it’s been installed correctly the heat contained can’t exceed what the unit operates at anyway. The controller gives a lot of error codes when a fault is detected which also give an insight into what component to look at. I hope my explanation helps answer your question. Regards Peter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Harris - Moderator Posted November 30, 2018 Share Posted November 30, 2018 As it runs on external air so not really any loss of efficiency due to recirculation, could the main unit be located outside the workshop (in a suitable enclosure to keep the weather/inquisitive fingers off) and vent the hot air in via a short duct? Might add a layer of safety... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piers Bowlan Posted November 30, 2018 Share Posted November 30, 2018 Yes it does Peter, very comprehensive and reassuring. I am considering getting a small cruising sailing boat for the occasional overnight stop but it can be pretty miserable waking up in a cold damp boat. I recently read a review in PBO magazine about installing one of these diesel units in a small boat but that one cost £700! Here is a link to a video, I guess the guts of your unit are pretty similar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETER BRUCE - Eastchurch Gap Posted November 30, 2018 Author Share Posted November 30, 2018 Hi Piers. The video you refer to is the same as the unit I have in the case but I wanted a “plug an play” version which is almost what mine is however for space saving the separate units can be pugged up anywhere and do the job. I think for boat installation you have to use copper pipe to suppl the fuel and perhaps a steel container for the diesel to conform to the insurance company standards but that’s it as far as I know. Good luck and stay warm - Peter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETER BRUCE - Eastchurch Gap Posted November 30, 2018 Author Share Posted November 30, 2018 Hi Martin. If you wish you can install it outside in an enclosure which would also reduce the noise. A chap in in the Scottish highlands I read uses three diesel heaters to heat his home and they are powered by batteries which are charged by solar panels which still charge the batteries enough on the dullest shortest day’s. He took this action as he was fed up with the power cuts and boiler breakdown where no one could get to him quickly so by using 3 heaters if one packs up he still has heat from the other two. He installed the units externally as you are suggesting and seem it works for him but I think it was to reduce the noise level not because of any fire risk. There should be no reason for you not to do it as well. Another advantage of having it outside is that there is less chance to spill the diesel because it’s one thing I take my time over - re-filling the fuel tank as I don’t like the smell... Regards Peter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Cheal Posted November 30, 2018 Share Posted November 30, 2018 Hi Peter My "shed" is a "detached' double garage (no cars of course) and it is freezing in the winter months. I have tried fan heaters etc and like you found them pretty useless (unless you are in the direct hot air path). Thus, I am very grateful that you have posted the information here, and its an ideal time to by one for Santa to deliver. You mention silencers, but I haven't found one on the internet yet, do you have a link to where one might get a silencer for the unit. Best wishes Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETER BRUCE - Eastchurch Gap Posted November 30, 2018 Author Share Posted November 30, 2018 Hi Tim. Tried to do a link but it didn’t work - go to Banggood.com and type in “diesel heater silencer” and you will find it comes together with a better air filter and tubes. Regards Peter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted November 30, 2018 Share Posted November 30, 2018 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Fry Posted November 30, 2018 Share Posted November 30, 2018 Supertigrefan has a point. Fuel use of .2 litre an hour has no reference, to heat a rabbit hutch by y degrees above ambient, or the Albert hall. Or is it the maximum burn rate of the burner. Edited By Don Fry on 30/11/2018 19:16:21 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin McIntosh Posted November 30, 2018 Share Posted November 30, 2018 Just looking at this thread. I built my wooden shed about 17 years ago. It is from tongue and groove then a dpm and with 1" foam insulation and white faced hardboard. 5m x 3m x 2.5m at the apex. I originally heated it with a Calor gas fire but this only worked whist it was on of course and did not protect my glues and paints etc. The cost of the gas is now eye watering so I got an oil filled radiator instead and this can be left on all the time at a frost free setting for little cost overnight. I bought another smaller one as well and the shed can now be heated to a working temperature in about 10 mins. Compared with the cost of building models and heating the house this is minimal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETER BRUCE - Eastchurch Gap Posted November 30, 2018 Author Share Posted November 30, 2018 Hi all. Diesel heater Comes on at first and kicks out a whopping 5kW of fast moving hot air and as soon as the inside temperature at the heater inlet reaches your set temperature you put into the controller it reduces in fan speed and fuel consumption right down to a miser rate. That’s what I wanted - to be able to work in the shed in comfort for a few hours - with electric it just didn’t happen and it was too long in the cold and by the time it warmed up it was time to pack up. Electric never worked for me and now the wife has seen what it does I have had to order one for her craft cabin because she had exactly the same issue - but being a woman she turned the heater on about an hour before she went up there so that was about 46p down the pan before she even got in there. This diesel heater heats up your space very quick by hitting it hard with heat - no condensation just a nice warm environment to work. I just wish I had found out sooner. Regards Peter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETER BRUCE - Eastchurch Gap Posted November 30, 2018 Author Share Posted November 30, 2018 Hi Martin - I tried a Calor portable fire in the shed but used it only twice because after finding my bench vice dripping with water I realised that one of the combustion products is water - and loads of it. I now have it for sale with an almost full gas bottle for £45 but don’t use it in your shed as your models will get mildew! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Manuel Posted November 30, 2018 Share Posted November 30, 2018 Posted by supertigrefan on 30/11/2018 19:08:08: This looks like a good option if you only want the workspace heated whilst you're in it, the technology has been around for years in fact Saab used the same sort of thing to pre heat the cabin in the 9-5. If you need the space heated full time then it doesn't appear to work out that cheap; the heater consumes 0.2 litre per hour, red diesel costs 99p per litre, surely over 24hrs it's cheaper to run an electric, oil filled radiator? Edited By supertigrefan on 30/11/2018 19:09:05 If diesel costs 99p / litre and consumption is 0.2 litres per hour, the cost for 24 hours will be 0.99 x 0.2 x 24 = £4.75. Electricity cost about 15p per kWh. To compare eggs with eggs, you need to assume that you are using a 5KW heater. 5kW for 24 hours would be 5 x 24 x 0.15 = £18. Even a more typical 2KW electric heater would cost 2 x 24 x 0.15 = £7.20. I have assumed that both types of heater would be running at full 5kW output for the full 24 hours. In practice, both heaters would be thermostatically controlled, so the cost of both types would be much lower. The diesel heater looks to be the cheapest option to me - by a factor of about 4. P.S. Specs of the diesel heater linked at the top of page 2 of this thread say 0.1 litres / hour - not sure where your 0.2 litres / hour is from. It doesn't state what average output power this is delivering though, so I'd take all the figures with a pinch of salt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETER BRUCE - Eastchurch Gap Posted November 30, 2018 Author Share Posted November 30, 2018 Hi Gary. I was not too worried about the running costs myself as I just wanted something that would hit my shed hard with a lot of heat initially so I could work up there and the diesel heater fits that bill. I ordered up one for my friend Dave who now has his running and is also over the moon with his as he had the same problem that the electric just took too long. Wife came into my shed and demanded she should have one as well and I can assure you all the little lady is only concerned about results not running costs. And just to cap it all I can’t run a 5kW fan heater in my shed as the cables might be heating up as much as the fan heater... regards Peter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted November 30, 2018 Share Posted November 30, 2018 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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