Camper heating and electrics

[DanC]

Well, as I am picking up the wagon on Thursday I am thinking ahead to accessorising! What sort of heaters for space and water are folks using in their campers as I would like to include both... Also, I am thinking of installing an electric hook-up, I guess someone will have done this, just wondering what you need to make it work.

Dan

[RMS]

Patrick's, Steve's and mine all have Eberspacher hot air cab heaters which just sip Diesel.
On full bore (3.4Kw) they blow out loads of very hot air and use just 0.2l per hour!!
On a low setting it probably only fires up around 10 minutes per hour, so uses proportionally less Diesel.

We tend to use them for 10 minutes before going to bed as that is plenty to get the Carawagon really warm, then switch off until the morning (unless we're winter camping ). If the control/stat is within reach, it's nice to put your arm out of the sleeping bag to switch it on in the morning, then wait a few minutes until its warmed through.

They aren't cheap though - you're looking at around £1400 brand new

I've managed to get two on ebay, complete with pump, exhaust, wiring and stat/controller. The first for Patrick's Carawagon was £125, and the latest for mine was £160.
There are a lot on ebay who say "not tested as haven't got a car battery" or "worked when removed" or similar which I would avoid. If someone can't be bothered to connect one and fire it up for half an hour with temporary leads and pipe to a can of Diesel I wouldn't buy it as they can go wrong and are very expensive to fix!
I go for the ones who say "can be seen running" or who post a youtube video of it running, but of course, you pay proportionately more for those

The only thing you've got to watch, especially if leaving them on overnight, is they do take a fair bit of battery power to fire up and run, so you'll need a good leisure battery as well. Something like 8-10A on firing sequence and a couple of amps when running. They also have low voltage cutoff so won't fire up below about 11V, probably because they normally run off the lorry starter battery

Eberspacher and Webasto also produce hot water versions for pre-heating engines or for running 'central heating' in canal boats. You could plumb one of those in with a calorifier and have stored hot water, but again, you run into header tanks etc. for the hot water system then.

I did see a Carawagon with a small catalytic heater (the sort used in caravans) fixed to the front of a cabinet, and that would probably be the cheapest 'safe' way to provide heat.

Of course, the very cheapest way is to put the kettle on 10 minutes before bedtime to fill a hot water bottle. The cooker heats up the vehicle and the hot water bottle keeps you warm in the night
I was doing that early this year when it was cold before I fitted my heater, but I also have a carbon monoxide detector fitted

I think Mick (Jabbawocky) has a Webasto (very similar to the Eberspacher) ready to fit in to his Dormobile, so he might come along with advice on where to fit one in a Dormobile.

Rest assured, if you go to any of our 'winter' gatherings, you'll hear the Eberspachers firing up like jet engines at bedtime

Hope that helps,
Robin.

[RMS]

Oh, forgot to mention, all you need for electric hookup is a couple of 13A sockets, an RCD and MCB in a small consumer unit and a 15A surface mount socket outside somewhere with a 'site cable' to hook up on site.

Towsure/Go Outdoors etc. do a stand-alone unit with the sockets, MCB and RCD fitted and a cable, so you could use something like that and just find an elegant way to trail the cable out through the bottom of a door or hole somewhere. It's relatively cheap - I think around £30.
We have something similar mounted in a metal box which I made 30 years ago for camping, so we sometimes use that.

Someone on the forum (sorry, can't remember who ) had his surface mount socket behind the rear number plate which he hinged at the top

Cheers,
Robin.

[overlander]

That'll be Andy from Tyneside....

You guys are so nesh....when I was a lad if we were cold in bed we'd put on another jumper - and then some clever dick came up with - 'but any fool can be uncomfortable'.

cheers

J

[RMS]

Just another couple of thoughts on heating for us 'nesh' guys

Another option is an underfloor heater, usually used in old folding campers and trailer tents.
These fit into the floor, (yes, you do have to cut a rectangular hole in the floor!), and heat using propane or butane, whatever you are using for cooking.
They are sealed room units, with the flue inlet and outlet exiting below the floor, BUT, they are no longer fitted to new campers due to new EU rules as you can burn yourself if you stand on the grill for any length of time with it turned up high - perhaps not the best option if kids are involved.

Here's one just finished on ebay - it went for over £200, but that was a brand new one.

riviera.JPG (51 KiB) Viewed 7831 times

Ebay listing HERE
I've just bought one for £35 from a guy who was dismantling a camper
I'm not sure yet whether to fit it to my new Carawagon or my old Dandy folding camper!

A big advantage of the underfloor type is that most don't need any power - they just need gas


The other type is similar to the Propex unit, made by Whale, and again fits beneath the floor, but this time with just the vents showing.

whale.JPG (25.26 KiB) Viewed 7831 times

Ebay listing HERE

These can be powered from just 240V if you are plugged in on site, or just gas & 12V if 'wild' camping.

Here's hoping we all have warm winter camps

Cheers,
Robin.

[AlexB]

I have no other heating in the Dormobile. No room really. And i am 'ard, of course.

Willl probably but an auxiliary battery in the "new" Dormobile, but one of the essential mods is to drop the whhel arch under the wardrobe so a portaloo can be stored there. Not an issue for us blokes, but the ladies generally have an aversion to toileting outside

Mick (Jabbawock) showed me and it has been very useful.

[jerryd]

I have no other heating in the Dormobile. No room really. And i am 'ard, of course.

but one of the essential mods is to drop the whhel arch under the wardrobe so a portaloo can be stored there. Not an issue for us blokes, but the ladies generally have an aversion to toileting outside

Anybody fitted "Air Con" Must admit if it's cold and I'm camping I do put the gas ring on to warm up for ten minutes.

As for a portaloo.........you should get one of these

[RMS]

Alex, isn't the SW rear fill?
I would think the filler tube would be in the way of dropping the wheel arch there

I know Patrick's Carawagon (SW based) doesn't have a dropped floor on that side, but mine (2 door with tank under driver's seat) does.

Cheers,
Robin.

[RMS]

As for a portaloo.........you should get one of these

Which is what us men folk are happy with (most of the time).

As Alex says, it's most of the other sex who aren't happy with the wide open loo with a view

We took a pop-up toilet tent to Morocco which was nice and easy to put up (here on the right):

Not quite so easy to pack away though

Cheers,
Robin.

[AlexB]

Alex, isn't the SW rear fill?
I would think the filler tube would be in the way of dropping the wheel arch there
Cheers,
Robin.

It is rear fill but there is just enough room.

Need springs that keep the back end up though, else the box can rub on the tyre