FYI, there's a customization menu in the controller where you can change the altitude which will adjust the control for alternate altitudes. You can also change it to a temperature control mode rather than a frequency control mode. It will still honor the min / max frequency presets but will maintain temperature when it can between those frequency setpoints. I extended the controller wiring and put the controller inside my tent with me in temperature mode. Usually set for 20 degrees C or so.
@@isaiahestes8438 The thermostat is within the controller, but the controller is only sitting in a holster and is attached by 3 wires. I lengthened the cord on my controller so the thermostat could be placed where I want it. There is also a wireless remote, but that only changes the setting on the thermostat (controller) it doesn't act as the temp sensor.
You should do more videos man, you are very good at it. Your question about using this at height is quite legit. I hope it works at 15000-18000 feet heights where I am going to use this. Yet to receive.
Thanks for the kind words of encouragement. This all started as a COVID hobby but I’m enjoying it more than I thought I would. 15k - 18k feet eh? Wow! You’re up there. Hoping to do a trip to Colorado this fall which may give me a chance to test this thing at altitude, but I admit, I’m hoping for nice rather than cold weather :). I’ll report back on this thing again as I use it more. Until then, thanks for watching and have a good one!
@@TomtheDilettante got one of these last winter to use for camping here in CO, and yes you definitely have to change the settings for the higher altitude here. Just testing the thing out around 7k ft elevation at my house the thing would overheat itself and shut off. You're gonna wanna change the pump speed min to approx 1.2 max 3.5 and fan speed min 1750 max 4500 (assuming this is a 5kw heater). Those figures are approximate but is what I had the best luck with camping at altitudes between 7500 and 10k ft
I am a heating contractor. I would like to use this to heat my boat and also my hunting wall tent. This unit is meant to be inside the heated space so it is not always heating the outdoor air and is recycling/reheating warmed air from the space (more efficient) and uses less fuel and less power. Vent the exhaust out and supply a return air for combustion and you are golden.
Being safe, since it not UL or CSA approved, indoors to me would be risky I would have both air intake and heater tube running inside along with a carbon monoxide alarm
I have been using one on my sailboat going on 4 years. I have only had to replace the filter and glow plug once. In my 28' sailboat it is prefect. I foolishly didn't leave Beacon, NY until January and it had my boat 98 degrees inside while it was -15 outside. You can pay a couple grand for an Esbar to heat your boat or use this. I will purchase this unit when mine fails. PS I have mine exhausted into the engine compartment to keep everything warm. Only thing I learned the hard way is you need to run it on high before shutting it down if you have been running it for a long time on low or carbon and maybe fuel will build up in the burner and run rough like the oil burner on the furnace we had growing up and she will smoke like hell. They have a thru-hull exhaust fitting you can find on EBay or Amazon. I hope this unit still has a way to pull off an auxiliary tank as I pull off my main diesel tank.
@@Jhowemca yes, I never put it on a thru-hull. I just open my lazarette lid to vent it. There are two 3" vents that allow air to the bottom of the engine compartment. These burn really clean as long as you run it on high before shutting it off if you've been running it on low for a long period.
Before I bought mine. I watched so many videos and I must say your review is the best I've seen. In March I used it 2 times at 6700 ft and it did great kept my 15ft camper warm all night temperature was down in the single digits.
Thanks for watching and for the kind words! Great to hear this thing works well at altitude. Makes me feel more confident at taking it along next time I'm out west in the cold :)
How efficient was it, in your experience? Would love to know fuel usage, battery power used, and, if anyone out there has tried biodiesel, or black diesel in this rig.
Cheers my friend, just heard about this this heater tonight, and I'm looking at building a 12 ×12 wooden workshop in the UK, (not as cold). Your review has helped me decide to go for one. fyi, this is the first RU-vid video that I've liked and shared. Clear, to the point and informational, thanks
Hello Tom after a miserable few nights on the north Sea on my boat this winter I got my hands on a cheap diesel heater after all my friends recommended them and use them for their boats as well. Just wanted to say thanks for the video's as they have helped me with deciding positioning ,safety and the running after the confusion of reading the supplied instructions just wanted to say thanks a lot
Excellent info and exactly what I was looking for. I love that you are straightforward and concise - I had already purchased this unit for my van build but was panicking about how to connect it to the battery. Since watching both videos on this I am now waiting for my parts to arrive tomorrow from Amazon. The last guy had it right, keep doing this, you are good at it.
Loved both your video's on the diesel heaters. I have been researching these as i have purchased one and it's on the way. One thing i have learnt is apparently the exhaust needs to be angled down so that any condensation can drain out. The muffler even has a hole on one side (opposite side to the mounting hole) to allow drainage.
I live in an area in the mountains where in the winter the electricity is prone to go off quite frequently dish here it was off several times for two and three days at a time does this heater require electricity
@@glbaker5595 it runs off 12 volts. So the best would be a marine battery/deep cycle battery. And get your self a 100 watt solar panel. Now the 100 watt solar panel will not keep up 24/7 butt if you use the heater at night and allow the battery to charge all day it will run all night
There are controllers with a "plateau" function that automatically adjust air/fuel ratio depending on altitude. They have a built in barometric altimeter and work up to 16,400'. Most of the black LCD controllers can be adjusted for altitude manually by reading CO output from the exhaust then setting min and max fuel pump Hz and fan RPM. This works fine if the heater is always used near the same altitude.
thanks for the info! Good to know. I hadn't been expecting something in this price range to be very feature-rich, but it seems to get the job done just fine so far. The real test will be how well it heats my garage / shop this winter. I got this in early spring so didn't really get a chance to put it thru its paces. I'm looking forward to testing it out but not really looking forward to winter. I like being able to play comfortably outside ;) Thanks for watching and chiming in!
Very cool! I dig the tent. It's a bit on the bulky side, but the ease of setup is hard to beat. Hope you get as much issue-free use out of your diesel heater as I have!
@@TomtheDilettante Thank you. I bought a bottle of Howes Diesel Treat with hopes of making it last longer. They claim that it will remove water, prevents fuel from gelling during subzero temperatures, prevents deposits and lubricates the unit. Has anyone tried this stuff yet?
Haven't seen your videos before these two about the heater. Just have to say I love your videoskill, and storytelling. Thanks! Looking forward to see more of your stuff
I really enjoyed this video, It was self explainable and easy to understand ? Sometimes, just having someone to share the facts makes things more easier to figure out ? Thanks 👌 I really enjoyed your video
Mine is on the way and I will be using it at elevations between sea level and say 6000 ft. It’s going to be awhile but I will get back to you. And thanks for an excellent review! I like that you ran it for 60 hrs ...... great info
Really good video - explained in total layman's terms even when going through technical stuff. You explained things really well and was scripted perfectly and pace of speech was spot on! Well wishes to you and yours from the UK
I tried that kind of ducting also and it actually started to melt for the first couple inches where it was attached to the unit. I use an adapter that goes from 3" to 4" and use an aluminum dryer ducting. Alot of these units have a lean setting or as some call it the "Alpine" setting for high altitudes so it won't run too rich.
haha! Thanks man! I appreciate that. It would be awesome to dedicate more time to stuff like this but I currently lack the confidence to make such a bold move. With more practice and content that folks actually dig, maybe that will come :) Thanks for watching!
I do not have one of these but if I did I would install an inline fuel filter between the tank and the fuel pump to ensure the fuel delivery system remains very clean and a manual fuel shutoff valve for safety in case any of the lines develop a leak while the unit is being stored for the summer. Good day and happy heating.
Hey man! Thanks! I had to know how much juice this thing sucked and I'm happy to report it's not too much. My fridge draws more power than that :) I was definitely curious about fuel consumption. And, as far as I can tell, the fuel pump output is fixed (not metered electronically) so the only variable is really just pump rate. Calculating run time is a simple matter after that. I was happy to see that the math matched reality with the 10.5 hr observation. Sorry, yeah, I'm a nerd...but I'm guessing you're catching on to that by now :)
thanks for watching and chiming in! As for putting it inside, I'd need to find a good way to vent the exhaust out otherwise I just might not wake up LOL.
121521/1512h PST 🇺🇸. Thank you for the demonstration on Diesel space heater; function and results.(Episode 1 & 2) The narration was very eloquent with a lil bit of mirth here n there, totally enjoyable. In all, the lecture had professorial gravity, that makes the audience listen and understand, what’s being spoken. Stay safe, stay Blessed. 73s…
I am looking to buy one. I've been watching a lot of videos and you definitely have the information that I'm looking for as far as battery life fuel usage and temperatures. Also looking to use for a tent in the winter time so thanks for the great video.
Tip if this is diesel heater. if you run it on low all the time carbon will build up to clean either run kerosene through it or run it on high if you can get it to start to clean it out. Will produce lots of smoke.
About to install mine. I pick up tips from my friend who now has two. One for house, one for camper. Choice!!! Tip- buy exhaust tape to wrap hot C/monoxide hose so it is easier to handle n not burn surrounding areas. - don't 'extend' C/monoxide outlet hose to far as pressure may not push it out resulting in 'error codes' -face intake /fresh air hose away from outflow hose or U end up choking urself to death.
At my terminal there is also an option to set it up to use the integrated air temperature sensor for a temperature depending guided fuel injection. use this with a second inlet duct for an air circulation between room and heater.
Tom I have been looking at these for a while mainly for my box trailer as you stated to keep condensation down. I will pull the trigger one of theses days and figure a way to plumb the heat inside. Great review!
Thanks for watching! I gotta find a good way to mount this to pipe heat into my detached garage for the coming winter. I hope it does the trick when we get to sub-zero temps :)
i have been looking for a heater to heat my workshop which is a single car garage, i have considered this type of heater and after watching this and your other video i think ill go for it
Tom- great review, straight forward and to the point. Covered all my questions except brand and place to order. Like quite a few others, I subbed... (and liked) You're good at this- better than the majority. Keep it up!
Use a 4" steel duct piece with an outer 6" of the same wrapped in duct insulation to go into the tent, along with a 4" insulated flex duct from the tent to the air intake on the unit. Recirculate the air. Cold air return set on the floor with supply about one foot above the floor. This should make the unit more efficient. Use kerosene rather than diesel, and put a filter on the line from the tank to the fuel pump. Makes for the cleanest burning fuel.
You usually have to add just a wee bit of lubrication to the kerosene, or you can screw up the injection pump. I tend to use a quart of two of 2-stroke oil per 20 gallons of kerosene.
It's really easy to service and the parts you can buy the parts on Amazon you just have to install it properly if you're buying the type that is not in a case There's really nothing to break on this thing
Really glad I found your channel! Keep up the good work! I am a ham radio operator so I love those videos but like your others as well! Very informative on the Chinese heater! Keep them coming!
ha! thanks! I have too many hobbies that I find interesting so my whole RU-vid "experiment" is just about sharing things I find interesting LOL. Glad some folks enjoy it. Thanks for watching and have a good one!
Triple plus plus plus thumbs up. Your videos are high quality, brief and right to the point without a lot of blabber. You produce the videos I wish all would and I want to do as well. I have lots of content and ideas but not time to produce videos. 73 de K6TJO!
Thanks! I appreciate that. I have been wanting to do some videos on video production actually, and your comments are inspiring me to put that higher on my priority list :) If you would like to know anything in particular, let me know and I'll be happy to share. 73!
Excellent review and 100% perfect video production! Thanks for answering even altitude questions I didn't know that I should ask. My use would be at 10,500' so that is good to know. !:- )
With the open mesh top I wouldnt be afraid to put the unit itself inside the tent and reap the benefits of the exaust heat as well. There should be way more than enough ventilation for that and you can always have a carbon monoxide detector nearby just in case. I have a Coleman Elite Weathermaster tent I want to try this with. I still need to get a heater yet. I am wanting a 8KW one for backup heat for our home with these crazy times.
No I wouldn't do that, you don't know about other types of nox gasses entering the space that will even with the best ventilation make their way into your lungs. I would certainly have the unit inside (for recirculation benefit) but for sure, the exhaust vented outside.
@The Watchman News - There are no true 8kw ones from all the research I’ve seen done on these, I do own 2 of the 5kw ones and will tell you with proper maintenance they work well. The 8kw is just a marketing gimmick but doesn’t actually produce 8kw only 5.
Those heaters work best when there inside where your trying to heat you have to run the exhaust outside but you will notice a substantial difference in the heat output when you set it inside the area your heating
Having them operating inside for long periods is dangerous because of monoxide fumes which can kill people in their sleep, ideally you want this unit outside in a ventilated area.
I'm interested in this topic as the cost of energy in the UK soars ever higher. I just took delivery of 500 litres of heating oil costing a whopping £426, about $503 US. I'm not planning to get a diesel heater, but it's good to know they exist and seem fairly easy to get working. The UK National Grid is already warning that there may have to be rolling 3-hour managed blackouts this winter if it gets very cold. They're talking about electricity blackouts, but I can't run my oil boiler (what you guys across the pond call a furnace) without electricity to drive the pump and power the ignition.
After 2 seasons of heating a car and a half garage for kittys to ride out winter averaging 65-70 in utah winters.. The deposit issue You've heard about is not all that bad... Heaters should be run on full for 10 minutes every few days... once the heater hits the set temp it will drop into a lower maintain mode.. and that is where soot begins. Good video and thanks.
Thank you posting this video, I will buy one of these for our summerhouse. I have not heard the term Dilettante Used here in England since the 1970's. Very well presented and thank you again.
Thanks for watching! Working on another update actually where i have it semi-permanently installed in my garage if you're interested :). Should be dropping within the week.
I have the 4 vent version and my experiences so far has been good I wish I had gotten the single vent instead, but I have roughly 200L of fuel through mine , mixed at half and gull power runs life mostly around half after tweaking the HZ settings and I heat a non insulates 7x10ish porch with just a storm door and windows on 3 sides and once the chills out on highlights kick it to medium most time depends on weather. It heats that room on our coldest days during the evenings and weekends and we hit -40c at times, to date no pump or glow plug issues and iis been sitting sine about April 2022 nd bout to hook it back up again in next couple weeks and see what happens for startup and doing a review again at that point
If people are not trusting of some heating system, there are plenty of CO detectors which monitor and remember peak ppm readings. Sooo, you could turn on the heater, throw the detector in the shelter and sleep ELSWHERE. The next morning, retrieve the detector and see if any interesting peak readings were detected. Instead of possibly waking up dead. That's just me, though.
Tom , i got my heater today. so if to push settings and up arrow at the same time it will switch to temperature mode . so how mine works is once the room hits the temperature you set it at the heater throttles right back and continues running like that till the room temperature drops then she picks back up .
Interesting. Thanks for the info! I'm assuming the thermometer is integrated into the display module somewhere? Meaning the unit would need to be in the area you're heating with the exhaust vented outside somehow...is that correct?
@@TomtheDilettante yes its in the display. so ya using it the way you are in this video would be totally useless but wanted to share my knowledge with you. thanks
