Vlog 18: Propex HS2000 campervan heater installation (part 1) 

Coming soon!

Thank you

I wouldn't have used the term myself but I got it from Propex themselves :-) I'm not even sure it actually fits the definition but it works as a nice word!

Glad it was useful. Yes, in hindsight having now run the thing and experienced just how steaming hot that pipe gets, I'm not entirely convinced I was wise to locate it as I did even with the heat shielding wrap. Then again, even an inch or so away from the pipe is substantially cooler. I think I'm going to get some further heat wrap like I have round my boat engine's exhaust and add that as well, plus add a reflective heat shield between the heater exhaust and the gas filler pipe. Agreed also about Propex, very responsive.

I (half)seriously considered running the exhaust through a water jacket and using it to generate hot water as a by product! Your video was especially helpful as I actually read too many forums (and, in fact, comments on your videos) - it amazes me how many folk don't grasp the concept that the air coming in from outside (for combustion) and the air being heated (taken from inside the van) are totally separate! I read so many comments where folk got themselves wrapped around the axle about that.

Haha yes I noticed that too! I like your water idea, bit like the system on my boat which uses the engine heat for that purpose.

Thank you, as ever :-)

Bargain!

Yeah they've responded quickly on a couple of occasions.

Thank you

Yes, I've heard about that - will look it up. Cheers!

Neat idea. Too late now, it's been fitted! I wouldn't want the cable trailing though, bit ugly.

Yes, I was rather surprised too although since then I have seen a similar installation using the marine version on a small narrowboat. I can't say I'm hugely comfortable with it, I'd rather have mounted it conventionally but there just wasn't a sensible place to put it due to the spare tyre underneath at the back, and the two huge chassis members running along the length of the van on either side underneath the units. I'm still somewhat paranoid about the heat off the exhaust despite my later addition (see other videos) and will continue to ponder even further insulation on it.

Not for winter I doubt but chilly nights in Spring and Autumn perhaps. With the control in the far corner - and the bed longer than I am tall - I shouldn't hit it by accident. As for drilling up, the problem still arises of finding a suitable place for the holes to go that will also accommodate the heater above it. At this point it wasn't so much not hitting anything as coinciding the drilling with a suitable location. It should all be clear in the next video or two!

They do sell a digital thermostat version for slightly more money

I'm not a surfer, I think! Besides, the solar panels will be on the roof :-)

Yeah, ta, I did a lot of reading. The one I wanted had a detachable compressor but these things are so damned expensive so I've had to compromise, as you'll see in a future vlog.

Unfortunately, it has to go there. It only bends a couple of times, should be OK.

Vandemonium it will be fine in my Luna caravan the hot air runs outside under the van..also the full length of the van..so it gets a blast of cold sir before the "hot" air emerges..

The whole system is already towards the back of the van, at the wheel arch, and where the pipe exits is right in the corner of the back of the van. The exhaust pipe therefore exits out to the corner. Cheers

The by-product of propane combustion is carbon dioxide and water. Many propane heaters exhaust these by-products directly into the cabin air you breathe. Unlike diesel, gasoline (petrol?) or kerosene (spirits?) the chance of carbon monoxide poisoning is extremely low. Un-vented heaters DO however carry the chance of oxygen starvation which is the real culprit. Some un-vented propane heaters, if not most, are designed to extinguish before the oxygen levels get dangerously low. This has saved many lives. In Davids set-up all concerns of CO are a non-concern. Besides it appears he vented into a wheel well. No problem.

No. You would need a heat exchanger to accomplish any heat transfer. Why not just install the heater as recommended by the manufacturer?

Thanks. Clothes will go in the underbed storage. Pans / kettle either under the hob/sink or on a yet-to-be-built shelving unit.

Glad it was helpful!

Tempting! Whether anyone would buy my work is another matter entirely :-)

People buy motorhomes and stuff like that all the time. And from the manufacturer or a specialised company, the profit margin they pull in is massive. An example is the place where my mate works... Won't mention no names but they buy brand new Mercedes Sprinter vans and then they pimp them out. Don't get me wrong, they're actual coach builders so its super quality work but they buy a van brand new from Mercedes for somewhere between 15 and 20 grand and once it's been through the works, it comes out the other side for 75 grand. Being that they have council contracts to supply said vans, the work doesn't dry up. Same with VW though. Brand new, you can get a Transporter Shuttle for about £27 grand. By the Transporter California though which is VW's dedicated camper van with creature comforts like a bed and a sink and that same van is now selling brand new for £46 grand on the road. And it doesn't have one of those nifty gas powered heaters you've installed in yours. (Boom, thats a key selling point). But VW vans going from 27 grand for the 7 seater van to 46 grand for the camper... That's a hell of a mark up for a bed and a sink and a few storage cupboards... Well, by rights, it has a tilt up roof too but that's high end. Naturally you don't go for that market. You go for the younger market and generally, they can't afford super expensive vans anyways. That and at the moment, there's a bit of a craze going on with the 20-somethings traveling around in camper vans. Its actually fashionable for the younger generation these days. Back in my day, the younger generation would have to be dragged into a van to get in one. Obviously you know how much your van cost and how much you've put into it so far so it shouldn't be too hard to work out some prices to find some wiggle room where you can get a tidy profit by coming up with a cheapish van, kitting it out and undercutting the cost that the manufacturer would charge for the same thing. Hell, you do it to a couple of vans and buy the vans for the same place, you'll probably be able to wrangle some deal with the dealer for discounts on the vans... More profit right there. Something to think about if nothing else... Pull out the tablet, get on google and work out how cheap you can get a new van for and how cheap you can source the materials for. At the very least, it'll give you something to think about on the rainy days where you can't do work on the van. Plus, you have actual videos on RU-vid showing how you do it and showing your workmanship. Better than paid advertising is that. :)

The Enterprise just needs the right name - Vanderminium Conversions ??

No, the intake and outlet pipes are both stainless as supplied by Propex. I'm fully aware the exhaust is hot hence my insulating it, exactly as Propex advised. I am following the manufacturer's recommendation, as I explained in the video. I also made it clear that usually it would be installed into the floor with the exhaust and inlet poking directly outside.

Good to know. I asked them about that ages ago, since I was wondering whether it would burn the ply floor of the van through the hole (this was before I moved it) but they said as long as the correct sized holes were used (I forget what this is, maybe 50+mm??) then it would have sufficient clearance. I shall be very careful to watch it and check it when it first runs.

Yes

Both pipes coming off the spigots are metal. Neither are black.

No issues other than my own general paranoia about the exhaust pipe being too hot inside and burning something despite all the insulation I wrapped it in. I would have liked better distance between the exhaust and the gas tank inlet pipe too but I don't know what I can do about that.

@@Vandemonium well, I guess if it's lasted this long and you haven't got hotter than intended (!), must be working ok!

Too late!

Vandemonium Oh well never mind I am sure you will get used to it. Biggest problem tends to arise from a blocked drain which then means ‘stuff’ at the bottom can get damaged. I used to out a layer of cans at the bottom to prevent more susceptible food getting damp in the event of a blockage.

Vandemonium I bought a Waeco CFX35 Top loading chest Fridge this year. My 3 way Fridge, also a Waeco started playing up in gas mode. All rather annoying as it was only 20 years old! The new fridge is 12v only & is absolutely fantastic. Very efficient, quiet & very convenient. I can control it via an App using WiFi. I have 210 watts of solar & it hardly touches the power. Will be interesting to see how it does in the winter. Temperatures cooler but much less solar. I would never return to a conventional front opener now. Cost is high £639.95 but it has a 3 year guarantee. Easy to clean etc & automatically switches from 12v to 240v when you plug in to shore power.

I couldn't stretch to the bigger versions or the latest model! Originally I wanted a Waeco or Dometic model that gets installed into the furniture but at £595 each, it's just too much! Hence why I ended up looking at the self-contained models like the CDF26 that I bought. Got it for £375 which is a relative bargain (on at £440 or so the next "cheapest" price I could find) so I was pleased with that. I've only tested it briefly but it very, very quickly took the temp down from 19C to 4C and was very quiet, so I'm happy so far. It'll be interesting to see how much power it uses when on the battery / solar (200W solar, yet to be installed and a 160Ah AGM battery)

I did no calculation; the van is quite small so if the heater failed to do the job it would be a total failure as a heater. As this unit is fairly standard on a lot of compact campervans, I took it as read that it would be up to the job. No idea about using it on the move; I doubt I would because I would tend to turn the gas off at the bottle when moving.

There will be 2 CO alarms, a smoke alarm and an LPG alarm. Cheers

Vandemonium . Glad to hear. I didn't hear it mentioned that's why I asked. I also like your cruising the cut channel. Awesome stuff. Thank you.

It won't happen; 90% of the fresh water will be drunk as tea :-)

Vandemonium Ha ha yes.... most British answer of all time!

See my recent video where I tried to reduce the noise - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-Co3U4e8MfEc.html but I've never had it running while I sleep nor have I compared it directly to a diesel heater so I can't reliably give a comparison, unfortunately.

From Propex. You will also see in a later video I added additional exhaust wrap, from Amazon. It's very hot as it exits the unit itself but much less so by the time it goes out the end of the pipe. That said, I am not offering any advice, fit at your own risk and take care etc etc! The instructions on fitting (if the pipe exits directly through the floor) just mention making a specific diameter hole, nothing else regarding heat proofing.

I'm sure I read somewhere that you can mount them on their side, yes.

Hmm, it's not exactly quiet though I suppose it depends where you mount it. Yes, the fan runs continuously.

I don't think so, the gap to the hob is sufficient, no oil should leak through.

No idea!

Not sure yet!

That won't happen; 90% of the freshwater will end up being drunk as tea!

I assure you I have not. The exhaust hose is indeed metal of some kind.

Two CO detectors, one smoke alarm and an LPG alarm.

Vandemonium Excellent David, should do the trick, I knew you'd have thought of it 👍

I've the vent above and a side window slides

I assure you that cabinet is not made with "tight tolerances", gosh if only you could see it up close!!

Vandemonium, just concerned for your safety. I did see that there were many advise comments. Maybe too many, I trust you know best how things stand in your new adventure vehicle. Best of luck and safe travels. 💖

I do appreciate the concern but given the gaps between the panels on the kitchen unit and the three holes I drilled in them to enable pulling them off the magnetic mounts, there should be sufficient airflow. Cheers

I wanted a Waeco BI41 (if I recall correctly) but they're fantastically expensive like all 12V fridges - around £600. I just can't justify that. So I've ordered a portable Dometic model, half the capacity (21l) but it only needs to keep milk and tomatoes cool etc. That was still £375!

Vandemonium cool. Ive seen alot of those used. From what i have researched any of the decent chest fridges use hardly any power so paying a little more so your battery doesn't drain quickly is worth it in my book . And if you consider that the compressor doesn't have to run as much should mean you'll get longer life out of it versus a side door . Looking forward to seeing how you set it up. As you say over there cheers :)

Chilling tomatoes below 12 deg C destroys their flavour. commercial toms are chilled in transit, and at the store so have already lost a great deal of flavour. SO grow your own (almost impossible in the UK without a greenhouse) or buy at farmers' markets. Not easy on a narrow boat. SO you have to use Italian canned to get flavour. Not too good in salads though.

What's the model number ??

Oops

Hi. Ta. The whole unit is at the back and the exhaust exits there. Cheers

There will be two CO alarms, a smoke alarm and an LPG alarm. The gas bottle is in a sealed locker, vented through the floor, as you'll see.

Vandemonium You should be safe with that lot then! 😀

Please see the blog post, link in video description.

Google > Propex North America > Find a dealer. Was this a trick question?

It is, though curiously it seems to have no air inlet vent anywhere on the body.

I guess they are "electronic" thermostats. These thermostats need a hole as small as pin hole to work efficiently. PS:- I suggest to place somewhere a bit higher because thermostat might give wrong values of temperature if it gets covered with a bedspread or blanket.

Too late, I've installed it now! I'll have to see how it goes...

I have!

You'd best email Propex, they have really good technical support by email. I think 50 may be too high but check with Propex themselves.

@@Vandemonium Thank you for your quick response!

At the time, I was keeping my boat name private.

I got it from either Kiravans or Clearcut Conversions or somewhere like that, I forget the exact one

Thanks - Yes Kiravans - not cheap - but a great solution. www.kiravans.co.uk/campervan-cookers-sinks/water-containers/13-litre-water-container-hinged-handle-bung-top

I won't be able to operate it with my toe then ;-)

Yes, it works very well

Because back when this was filmed, I wasn't showing the boat name

Shouldn't do, the stat is just to one side. But I may have cocked it up, we'll see :-)

Got it from Propex

thank you

Hi, best to contact Propex for these queries.

If you insulate well enough it could get much hotter than that. The dimensions you mention are tardus--esque and you may not need much insulation with even the smallest propex heater.

I don’t recall the draw offhand but it’s not huge. The Propex website has all the documentation which give the figures.

Stay clear if I was you. They never work.

It worked fine for me

It's a good word.

Can't recall offhand but it's available on the manufacturer' s website

It's stuff from Propex themselves but see my later video where I added to it.

@@Vandemonium thank you, can you tell me what you used on the hole in the floor, looks like a gas vent but without the grid, and where did you get it please? thanks

Yes, just a standard plastic gas vent but I snipped the grill out. Not sure plastic was the best idea due to the heat off the exhaust so I'd probably try to buy something else next time, though I have since added extra insulation as you'll have seen in the other video I referenced.

@@Vandemonium ah thought so ... Any idea what I could get that might be better for the heat, plan to double insulate as you did but nervous about it too ?

No idea, sorry :-(

A hole through which any escaped LPG would drop (being heavier than air) and exit the vehicle so as not to build up within the van as that would present an explosion risk.

@@Vandemonium got it, thanks for clarifying!

Propane is heavier that air, Natural gas is lighter. Release the fumes!