Diesel Heater Buying Guide - 2023 

40 minute, I thought I would be skipping a lot to make it shorter... Nope, I watched the entire video. You absolutely explained everything thoroughly.. THANK YOU. This helped in so many ways for a novice person to these machines to make an absolute informed decision. Awesome video and thank you for sharing the different types, application differences, and lessons you've learned. 👍

I really appreciate comprehensive guides like these from people who have actually used multiple makes/models of a device, as opposed to the abundance of reviews from people who have only owned one. I've gone back and referenced your power station buyers guide more than once, and I'm sure I'll end up doing the same with this one

Pro tip: When spraying paint above you wear a solid material, non net like hair covering like most restaurant workers use.

I purchased the second one the 5K. I have run this unit for the last three years to warm my greenhouse on cold nights around two to three months a year. The fuel pump that came with the unit failed after a few months. It is very easy to replace. On full hot; it will burn a tank in 12hrs about 1.5 gallons. The lower you run it, the less fuel it consumes, but it also is less dependable to stay running. Heats a 10x12x8 greenhouse when the temp is 25 degrees F to around 80 F. Nice and toasty.

I built my own and fabricated it up into a Harbor Frieght case. It works perfectly as well. I ran into some of the same issues you did with Bluetti but I found a amp controller that I can now plug into the Bluetti power and that actually works to power it up off the Bluetti. I even added extra fans in my case to combat overheating using 12 volt PC fans. Works like a champ. Let me know if your interested in learning more I have photos and such of my build. First time doing one and it turned out great.

Enormous thanks for your spotlight on our portable toolbox diesel heater. Hope it serves as a dependable companion in your warmth-seeking journey during colder climes! 🔥🔥🔥💪

I applaud your honest straight forward video. It certainly gives a accurate overview of what to expect from these heaters.

I just bought a vevor box style heater, and love it. I did put 2x4s on it to raise it up, does great.

In racing fuel tanks we put foam blocks made to live in fuel. This keeps down the sloshing from side to side driving. Foam baffles for fuel tanks may help with the sudden slosh for offroading.

We bought the Vevor (the short square one) from Home Depot last year (They were on sale at a crazy discount

You can also prevent fuel leaking by placing a piece of plastic over the tank neck and then screwing the cap on. Easily removed when you need to.

Great review!! Just ordered my vevor today off amazon for my new years run I’m doing in a few weeks. Pretty excited for a nice upgrade from my buddy heater we used last year 👍🏼

Thanks for another awesome video Matt! I bought the tool box style Hcalory 8kw diesel heater a month ago and have been testing it out before taking it out on an adventure. So far it has performed perfectly for hours at a time. Happy with the purchase but thanks for your advice on diesel heaters in your previous videos. Keep the videos coming 💪🏻

I like your tips, the first 8:23 it's continues "working" after turn off, then look after. And the other 9:53 the hose outputs and overheating issues. Thank you so much for sharing.

Great video I found useing a 4” hose has been better on air flow on the outlet and less chance for overheating thanks for sharing😊

From what Ive been told the intake filter is not a actually a filter, its a restrictor to balance the flow with the muffler if you run one without the other you are much more likely to get overheating errors. the same is true if you lengthen the exhaust hose.

The startup surge can be up to 160W. That can exceed the amperage of 12V 12A circuit. The power banks may have 10A or 12A limits on the 12V plug. The solution is to use a 120V to 12V converter. The power bank will handle the 160'ish Watts on 120V just fine.

Fantastic video. Way more than I expected in terms of info and details. Cheers and happy camping!

Matt, in regards to the leaking fuel from the vent on the lid. At first after seeing your tape fix, I thought of attaching a short, 3 to 4” , fuel line over the vent hole.. so sloshing f it el would only escape to essentially a smal tubular reservoir where it could drain back in. But then went searching on Amazon and found fuel caps that look to be more or less the same lid without a vent. About $8. My heater is supposed be delivered today. I will measure the diameter after receiving it. If the measurements are the same, I’ll order one for when traveling. I can’t add a photo on here. This could be a good discovery.

Can it be out in a rain if you have it sitting outside and have the power back inside? Does the rain hurt it?

Planar is a competitor for Pelican. Close quality, some differences. They have made fishing tackle boxes and copies of GI ammunition boxes for a long time.

We started out with a red horizontal tower 5K 3 years ago. We used it originally on our large Coleman Pop-up while off grid camping. Worked so well here on the East Coast mountains. I also believe that with the fuel tank on top of the heat exchange, it's less prone to have the diesel gel up in extreme cold without additives. Last season, it started blowing white smoke. So it was a great reason to buy the Hcalory 5K (Note: which the bluetooth app doesn't work on Android 😢). The Hcalory is much easier to travel with, plus I like the exhaust out the side. It does tend to want to fall over with the fuel tank on the side. We just put out a video today, which I touched on the slinky hose. I found that our hose actually had a horrible plastic smell that never went away. I believe it's very likly that the hose design with the ribs caused your air flow to be restricted. You can buy the traditional car heater hose now in 2 meters / 6.6 ft lenght 75mm (plus you can buy couplers to piece more hoses together). You may want to consider giving that a try. I believe it would solve your issue of the overheating error. But only a good old fashion real world test would tell us the truth. 😊 You may also notice a difference in the airflow being less restriction. The other thing to note is that some of the slinky hoses are not rated for the higher temperatures. Another great video. Thank you again for honest, real-world testing! We just finished up the 3 days in the Ozarks before this one. P.S. When you come up with a better travel mode or the ultimate non leak gas tank/cap, please sign me up! Have cash in hand...😂 ready to hand over. Contractor trash bags are getting old. Mark (& Teresa) Hampstead Maryland • Purpose Built Adventure Rig © • Ford Ranger FX4 - GFC Camper V2 #1919 • Kia Soulverlander •

PSA here. Hcalory has a design flaw within the product. The fuel pump need to be at an angle to release the air bubbles inside to pass. If not the pump will have excessive wear and pump will fail. I’ve seen people say as soon as 1 month. Multiple models of Hcalory have them with no angle as seen in the pictures provided on website. I have notified them and they say they are looking into it. Just wanted to pass on what I have found. Thanks

thanks for this, I picked up the vevor style on ebay myself last night for $66 shipped the 2-4 day shipping.

Thank you for this video! It is like you were reading our mind! We are looking to buy one, but we have never had one and we were lost! I was going to buy the VEVOR, but hubby said we don't know enough about them. We live in deep south Louisiana, so we will not need it all of the time, but it gets cold in North Louisiana and in Arkansas. We froze on our first trip to the Ozarks in the RTT, the Ikamper has that aluminum floor and I was so cold. Woke up the next morning and sat in my Bronco with the heat on high and heated seats on!

My friend have a Planar. His was heating comfortably a 66'' wide soft shell RTT and the annex at -15c at ''max'. My Vevor ''8 kw'' is doing the same thing almost at max. In my experience, both are almost a 5 kw. They are so much a game changer, that my wife is willing to give a try for one night!!

Hey man I appreciate the detailed review. I think lots of viewers could find it beneficial if you had chapters to a video this long though!

Very useful. Thank you!

Thank you for making this video, is is very helpful

I installed a Chinese Diesel heater in my 6x12 cargo trailer conversion... I spent all my effort making sure I properly exhausted the unit through my 1 inch insulated wall using a thru-hull stainless outlet as well as using high-temp RTV around my exhaust hose with high quality hose clamps, and thought everything was great.. I now know that I need to also properly setup a thru-hull port for the combustion intake (away from the exhaust). These devices are primitive.. don't trust that the exhaust flow will happen in one direction with 100% certainty... and don't expect your Home Depot CO detector to save you either.. I've smelled the funky smell, and let it go... and it made me pretty sick.. Don't ignore it... do it right. ...also, if you drop the diesel pump frequency, the exhaust-to-intake leak is even worse... Treat the combustion intake just as important as the exhaust itself.

I use a 2kw in a 15ft camper, down to -7 so far. Stays plenty warm, down to 32 I need a window open to keep from getting too hot. Below that, it's closing and starting to insulate windows. Haven't even had to use anything but the lowest setting yet.

To get true thermostat control you can get a Bureck CD Thermostat that replaces the stock remote control. A guy in Idaho makes them. $50 - $70 depends on wired or wireless model.

Might try running th 5k and 8k heaters with a set amount of feul and compare run times at full power to verify that they are the same output. the 8k should burn significly more if it is actually 8k

The 8kw heat from the exchanger to air is totally false but it would be interesting to know what the true combined heat output of the whole unit is if the exhaust output is also included......there is a lot of heat goes out via the burner exhaust. My guess is that the total output from exhaust and heat exchanger combined may well be in the 5kw ball park.

Get the gas can vent caps. Stainless with orings

ON YOUR HCALARY TRY HOLDING THE LIGHT AND OK BUTTONS FOR 3 SEC FOR ALPINE WORKED ON MINE STILL TRING TO FIND BLUETOOTH THOUGH

You should try running it with Kerosene. That is how I run mine and you get more heat at 1-1.5kw. Diesel is also not as clean burning. Give it a try you will appreciate it.

I really appreciate your videos. One thing is lacking, dimensions! Am I the only one who has limited space in and on my vehicle? And I don’t trust the sizes listed on Amazon, especially when you can’t return the item.

I have the toolbox style Hcalory. It says in the specs that it auto adjusts for altitude. I have not tested that feature yet though.

Great video! very helpful info before I pick one up. Thank you Sir!

What kind/size of power station would Be needed to run the hcalory one for weekend camping trips?

Thanks for the reviews 👍

Thank you for the info and another great video !! Your channel rocks !!!

Thanks for the video. Have you or anyone had the experience of the diesel heater air in your tent leaving a weird taste in your mouth or throat? I’ve used mine about 5 different times and it has happed every single time.

Good video but I would like to add a couple of things. The one I bought which is the middle one sivel, or something like that. It's difficult to take apart because it has so many screws. I ended up changing every single hose and adding hose clamps. I did not trust the cheap Chinese hoses so I went out and bought real fuel lines and hose clamps. I do a lot of off-roading and I don't need one of these hoses to vibrate off. Other than that the thing works great And like you said when you shut it off make sure it does its thing before you unplug it. I have battery power going to mine constantly so I just shut it off and leave it be.

Hiiii I have the smell of burning rubber, plastic, or smelly air outside the room, even though the machine is on the balcony... Your guidance much appreciated

Would it be safe to spray paint in ashed with it ? Obviously exhausted outside ?

You mentioned some do not like some12V power supplies. Is this simply a matter of sufficient voltage and current?

Did you measure the CFM output of the 5kW vs the 8kW? That's probably the difference between the two. They'll likely discharge the same temperature but if the 8kW discharges more CFM, that's where the additional heat capacity is coming from...

12 volt power consumption and burn times on high and low settings would have been super useful.

My biggest con is the ticking. I have two in my conqueror 490. And that ticking takes a while to get used to or ignore.

what is the different air volume and speed from the 5kw and 8 kw at the same temp??

It’s better to buy two 2 kw ones than one 5/8 one, as diesel heaters work better if burning at a higher temperature, it the 5/8 kw heaters are set on a low setting, they soot up, then have problems starting, this is not ideal on a frosty morning.

Really informative video 👌

Can you recommend a good video on this topic?

Can you have it in the camper and have the exhaust going outside and run it inside with your power pack.

Very helpful. Thanks!

Which one would be best for heating my EV ?

Where is the best to install airfilter? Inside the room or outside? Is the machine have sensor to measure air temp to adjust heat coming out.

nice info...your right...there is really only a 5kw....packaging is different...ive taken apart many many units...I swear there is only one company in china making the core unit that everyone else uses.

I’d like your recommendation …..like to have a heater that can be adjusted // programmed to operate at or above 10000’ Say between. 5000’. & 10500’. Thank you . Bill, western slope, of Colorado

Thanks for explaining in detail. Do you happen to have a link for the 4x3 adapters and what type of collapsable hose you all use ?

Great video learned a lot

LOL, I already bought mine!

Will it be safe with exhaust outside through the wall without having any leaks inside?

Perhaps i missed it, does anyone make a weather resistant unit that is not in a high dollar plastic box?

I have a question that could also be a video content idea. What are the top 5 winter time WARM weather overland trails. Is that possible?

I will be very interested to read your review of the Planar heater, especially to see if you think it is worth the hefty price tag. I have owned the self contained Planar 4KW unit for about 2 years and when I bought it I could not find lower cost options like what are available now. My heater works great but I have had some issues with various power sources not being compatible, using other output tubes (did not try a larger diameter one though, I like that idea), fuel cap leaked (I got a second cap and plugged it with JBWeld), but it definitely makes cold weather camping a lot more comfortable and dry.

Did you check the cfm of air being moved between the 5k and 8k? That could be your difference, might not….

Great video!

Thank you for the info. That is a lot of good data. I may have missed it but what was the name of the app? Thank you .

Good video! Do any of these heaters have a thermostat to control temperature or do they just run constantly till you shut it off?

Im wondering if these heaters can run on used veg/ or motor oil? I think id personally only use used veg if it were possible or with a mix of diesel?

I stopped using my rv propane heater in my fifth wheel. It was burning through 7 gallons in 3 days and it propane is a pain in the ass to remove the tanks... Bring them to only a few places that take forever to fill. I csnnget diesel antwhere 24/7 and its cheaper per btu. Its quiter. My rv propane fan uses 200w to run, the diesel heater uses 30w on average amd it's quiet.

Curious how much aftermarket support you will be receiving from the now defunct expensive unit?

There is a new company Velit Camping that has this style of heater that runs on gasoline!

On the little electric Vevor heater is yours the 2kw, 5kw or 8kw?

I like to run mine on Kerosene it doesn't stink as bad !

What is that on your head?

Thanks!

Haha, that hair gets it for me!

Hey, did you build any kind of weather protection for your diesel heater located outside? From what I read, the screen/the heater itself can get damaged easily if exposed to rain or snow

Well, maybe the 588 has a different fan and how much air they can push now the next question is how much is that in BTUs 58 in all like house races measured in BTUs is the camper and most other things, so how old is that?

buy the original double walled exhaust pipe from Webasto and wrap itin Exhaust Tape that will help against burn marks....

Just a question here I was wondering if you can take the control off the vevor with the high altitude and just install the control on your other one and would that work

anything about the noise level on these? i find them too loud and annoying in general.

please tell us what brand and models you are displaying .perhaps labels would work or at least turn the units so we can see the brand.

Do you think a Jackery Explorer 500 would be able to power the Vevor 8kw? I really don't want to get another solar generator. Thanks

Great info, wonder if people have used these to heat the cabin of a cuddly cabin boat? Was thinking this would extend the boating season, would be awesome to camp via boat w the Mrs for a weekend and float around, eat on the boat, chill watching some TV and enjoying great time w the Mrs in a nice warm boat cabin by using a heater like these!!

Hey Matt, thanks for the great review. I was wondering what power stations you were having trouble with. I have a Jackery 500 that I use on most of my trips. Do you think that would be sufficient to run any of the Vevor 5-8 watt? We have been using the buddy heaters up to this point. We are definitely looking forward to the upgrade.

great video alot of good stuff to know by the way great hair cut nice colors but thank you very much did not know about eveything you talk about but great to know

Will the 2 work on a Teardrop? The inside is basically the size of a queen size bed.

The small 2Kw heater - can it be mounted vertically (90 degrees from how you have it on the table)?

Will a 2kw heat a big truck camper?

Question. Does anyone make a portable watt meter for 12 volts DC instead of 120 volts AC? It would be great if we could see total 12 volts DC watts used over time. Thank you in advance.

Nice

Wish you mentioned the smallest battery you can use in this one just a little. I’m going to sleep now lol lol 😮

Thanks for the breakdown. This has helped me in what to look for in a diesel heater.

Video 10:36 ur front cap is 3ich with 4 iches pipe?

Wonder how these will do with just a regular ole ground tent that has mesh openings, etc.? 🤔 mine has a big mesh top but a rain fly can go over it to maybe help hold in heat a little? Hopefully someone has tried it 😂 or I may be the one to test that out soon