Cabin Heaters: Which is Best and Why?

[chinamooninoz]

I'm interested in Snow Petrel's experience and that he is now using a wood stove. Which one Ben?
We have a Dickinson Bristol on China Moon which I have never had working properly, and am now considering whether to chase it and get it working (with possibly a new or rebuilt valve kit) or to use its prime position in the galley to install something marvellous.

[rebel heart]

We have a drip diesel and it's great when it's not to windy. But underway or in a storm it can be a bit of a problem. I've heard that's solvable with a barometric valve in the flu, so maybe we'll try that. It keeps things quite warm. Had some 30f nights and the interior was overly warm to the point of shorts and t shirts.

[Andrew Troup]

The controllers/carburettors on the Dickinsons need rebuild kits every few years - and it's not just when the stoves/heaters are used a lot. They seem to wear out quicker on boats that are sailed a lot, and quicker on boats than on shore...

And amen to whoever said you can't ask for too much heat before they're thoroughly warmed through.

I suspect one reason some users encounter so much soot trouble is that they're temperamentally out of synch with the "don't rush me" ethos of a diesel burner.

[Snowpetrel]

Originally Posted by chinamooninoz

I'm interested in Snow Petrel's experience and that he is now using a wood stove. Which one Ben?
We have a Dickinson Bristol on China Moon which I have never had working properly, and am now considering whether to chase it and get it working (with possibly a new or rebuilt valve kit) or to use its prime position in the galley to install something marvellous.

Hi, Been up your way and I admire China Moon when I go past devils corner. Last time I saw I kayaked around her, I love everything about her. As for stoves have a look at what I made for snow petrel here. On the few trials last winter I loved it. It put out way more heat than I needed and the smell was very cosy. But since I have sold Snow petrel and the new boat needs lots of work before I am ready to install a heater I probably won't get to run it this winter (not to mention first bub due in a month!). As far as diesels, mine was an old dodgy drip fed one (rather than the more sophisticated carby style) It worked ok but when it got hot it smoked slightly through some very slight leaks in the diesel supply lines. I tried the basic tricks to stop the leaks but it still leaked when it got hot. So I think it needed a complete rebuild of the fuel supply system.

My experience of the dickenson has been good, but they can take some fiddling to get them working right. And need occasional cleaning. If they are smoking they quickly soot up and it all goes bad very quickly. but when they are working well they provide steady dry heat 24 hours a day.

On the charter boat we ran it 24 hours a day for 4 months in Antarctica and south america. As I recall only cleaning it about once a month. It normally ran at sea as well.

Might be worth you getting in touch with Wayne off Ambler, he is just around the corner from you at deviot. He crewed for me on one of the trips south and is a dab hand at fixing stuff like that, plus he has one on his boat. So if anyone nearby could give you a few pointers to get it running well it's probably him.

All the best

Ben

[islander20]

Beautiful stove? Check out this wicked stove porn

http://www.marinestove.com/halibutinfo.htm

If I had lots of money and space I would be getting one of those...unfortunately I'm broke and have a 20' sailboat. Love her to death!

[chinamooninoz]

Thanks, Ben for all the kind thoughts and for the links. Congrats on the impending baby.
Wow you certainly made a fire box, and that was in Snow Petrel?
I'll contact Wayne and see if we can get the Dickinson going. Thanks again.
Simon

[onestepcsy37]

infra red heat lamp. runs on 120v ac. pick a size to suit your needs. get fancy and put it inside a vented box with a small fan. runs off the inverter.

we take a small one to bed on cold nights. gets so damn hot you've got to turn it off.

only problem is you can't/shouldn't look at it, so mount it 'looking' away from crew's eyes....

[rebel heart]

Originally Posted by onestepcsy37

infra red heat lamp. runs on 120v ac. pick a size to suit your needs. get fancy and put it inside a vented box with a small fan. runs off the inverter.

we take a small one to bed on cold nights. gets so damn hot you've got to turn it off.

only problem is you can't/shouldn't look at it, so mount it 'looking' away from crew's eyes....

A lot of efficiency lost between fuel, alternator, transmission, and heating element.

[Stonefloat]

My vote fwiw is solid fuel central mounted , we have a " Luke" ...but their are many others ( little cod sardine, dickenson ) . We carry some pressed logs and hardwood chunks in the off season and have been known to cut up beach wood , very dry comfortable heat ..... Cheers, Stonefloat

[onestepcsy37]

rebel heart - you're right, if you use it a lot. if you just need very occasional heating, it's inefficiency is offset by it's ease of use, ready fuel supply, and no need for a 'permanent' installation - just stuff it in a drawer somewhere.

[Laksmi]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

There is no ideal cabin heating system. Every one of them has significant disadvantages. You have to set priorities and make up your own mind.

Webasto & Eberspaecher (Espar) hydronic -- plusses are -- efficient transfer of heat all around the boat, and will heat water. No soot on deck as the exhaust is forcibly blown out the transom. Minuses: expensive, complicated to install, unreliable, requires professional service so no good for cruising in remote areas. Very noisy from the outside, much more so than a generator.

Webasto & Eberspaecher (Espar) air heating -- plusses are -- simpler than hydronic. Minus: limited distribution, noisy inside, will not heat water. Otherwise all plusses and minuses like above.

Bulkhead mount drip heater -- plusses are -- totally simple, no electrical power required, simple installation except for flue, professional service not required so good for cruising in remote areas. Minuses -- single point heat source so effectively warms only one space, soot on deck, must cut a hole in your deck for the flue.

So pick your disadvantages!

Hello Dockhead
The DeFever we put a offer and was accepted will have a survey end of March. It does have a Webasto 2020. Do you know anything about that one?
Michel

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Laksmi

Hello Dockhead
The DeFever we put a offer and was accepted will have a survey end of March. It does have a Webasto 2020. Do you know anything about that one?
Michel

I don't know that unit specifically, but it is a large hydronic furnace which I would guess probably works like all of the rest of the hydronic units -- that is, requires regular professional maintenance, can have expensive breakdowns, needs electrical power (that is, will drain your batteries), but should give you the best distributed heat you could possibly have on a larger boat.

[bletso]

We have an old shipmate which seems to be adequate down to the upper 30's. It has a small flue which is nice and uses the same burner as our shipmate stove. Pressurised kerosene and uses a cup an hour on full burn. The one point source heat is taken care of by a wall mounted fan. Ignore the cable as Vigah is on the hard and the mast isn't in place.

[Sandero]

Best? Who knows. I have used Espar forced hot air for years and find them fine. The new Airtronic 4 is markedly better than the old D3L... quieter and has a very low power draw mode when cabin temp has reached design temp.

I found the install easy... Yes there is some drilling... and mounting. A fuel pick up for the diesel is required... a thru hull for the exhaust gas (hot)... but the rest is easy peasy. Allow a day for the install. Plan ahead, have all the materials (ducts and grills) and tools and go for it.

[Adelie]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

There is no ideal cabin heating system. Every one of them has significant disadvantages. You have to set priorities and make up your own mind.

Webasto & Eberspaecher (Espar) hydronic -- plusses are -- efficient transfer of heat all around the boat, and will heat water. No soot on deck as the exhaust is forcibly blown out the transom. Minuses: expensive, complicated to install, unreliable, requires professional service so no good for cruising in remote areas. Very noisy from the outside, much more so than a generator.

Webasto & Eberspaecher (Espar) air heating -- plusses are -- simpler than hydronic. Minus: limited distribution, noisy inside, will not heat water. Otherwise all plusses and minuses like above.

Bulkhead mount drip heater -- plusses are -- totally simple, no electrical power required, simple installation except for flue, professional service not required so good for cruising in remote areas. Minuses -- single point heat source so effectively warms only one space, soot on deck, must cut a hole in your deck for the flue.

So pick your disadvantages!

+1


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