New England Liveaboard Heating Recommendations

[nash_sailing]

Hi all,



We are new liveaboards in Boston and as July goes on we are beginning to think about how to heat our 40' sailboat in the colder months. The only heating system currently installed is a hot water heater and a solid-fuel stove, which is luckily allowed in our marina - however we need a solution that will keep the boat at a reasonable temperature while we go to work during the day. We are also very worried about moisture, as our hull construction is not insulated - however it is quite thick, with 7 layers of FG.



This is our first season living aboard so we do not want a huge project, but electric only seems like a dangerous and expensive option, as does propane. We are currently considering a portable oil-filled radiator, a forced-air Eberspacher or knockoff, and have also heard good things about ceramic, but it seems like ventilation is a must. We are also planning on buying a desiccant dehumidifier and have heard that these give off a considerable amount of heat - can anyone clarify how much?



Finally, we are planning to take our boat cruising to the high lats in 2024, so any system that can work off shore power is preferred in the long run.



Thank you for any insight,



Nash

[Caleb_Grey]

In the long run you would be best off with a diesel cookstove.

Bristol Diesel Cook Stove | Dickinson Marine

[nash_sailing]

Originally Posted by Caleb_Grey

In the long run you would be best off with a diesel cookstove.

Bristol Diesel Cook Stove | Dickinson Marine

We currently have a large-ish propane stove that actually emits a crazy amount of heat, and from my understanding, also a lot of moisture. This is definitely low on the list of things we want to replace.

[chris mac]

I installed a "planar" forced air deisel heater. It can be used on a thermostat and uses very little electricity and is very efficient on Diesel . It is dry heat, Infact we also use it to dry out our foulies when we get soaked.
We avoid cold weather, so don't use it often, but it's still one of the best upgrades I've done. When we do need it, it's worth its weight in gold

[PippaB]

Originally Posted by chris mac

I installed a "planar" forced air deisel heater. It can be used on a thermostat and uses very little electricity and is very efficient on Diesel . It is dry heat, Infact we also use it to dry out our foulies when we get soaked.
We avoid cold weather, so don't use it often, but it's still one of the best upgrades I've done. When we do need it, it's worth its weight in gold

+1, we installed a knockoff of the Planar knockoff of the Webasto/Eberspacher. Three seasons in Alaska and it did the job admirably. Much cleaner if you run it on #1 diesel. We also ran a dehumidifier when on shore power, ours was the compressor/refrigeration style and would not say it gave off any measurable heat value. The load was low enough that we could also run it underway when motoring, so when the winds were light and motor was running we would just fire up the dehumidifier as general practice to get things really dried out every now and then. With a relatively sealed boat and humans breathing definitely worth the space it took up.

[CaptTom]

I have a Planar too. If I bought today I'd probably just buy two of the Chinese knock-offs, keeping one for spare parts. Not sure how easy the Planar is to source, since it's made in Russia. Plus those who've bought the Chinese versions have overall reported good results.

Whatever brand, these take up little space or electricity. The down-side is the exhaust gets VERY hot. You'll need to keep it short, and well insulated. Keep the duct short, too, the fan isn't very powerful and it needs to keep the combustion chamber cool. I use the little day fuel tank which came with it, which allows me to run kerosene to (I'm told) keep the combustion chamber cleaner than running diesel.

[Caleb_Grey]

Originally Posted by nash_sailing

We currently have a large-ish propane stove that actually emits a crazy amount of heat, and from my understanding, also a lot of moisture. This is definitely low on the list of things we want to replace.

Propane is not good in a cold environment, unless you like condensation and mold. Even with the trouble of a dehumidifier, it will still be a wet boat.

[deblen]

Diesel,no power reqd, burns clean- Hamilton Marine
You must use Refleks insulated chimney components for these to draw & work properly-constant running on Lo will burn 30 gal / mo.
https://refleks-olieovne.dk/en/



Next choice-Dickenson heater-almost as good as Refleks-but require 12VDC to run their tiny combustion blower for cleanest burning.Also needs proper insulated chimney to draw/burn cleanly.


The Eberspacher type & Chinese variants work well,but burn a fair amount of DC & as stated,& have a hot exhaust.



Cheers/Len

[Captainmitch]

There are so many diesel fired "chinese" heaters on amazon, take your choice. They work great and use very , very little 12volt power and just sip fuel.
I have installed them on several boats and RVs with great success Everybody loves them AND they cost sooo much less.


https://www.amazon.com/Bestauto-Muff...s%2C386&sr=8-4

[wingssail]

Our 43' fiberglass sloop requires about 11,000 BTU to heat just the main cabin in below freezing conditions. Electric or propane won't do it, but diesel will.

We used an Espar forced air heater which did pretty good, supplemented by a 1500 watt ceramic heater. The Espar used over 3 amps of power so it was a draw when anchored out. Plus it was a maintenance nightmare.

We switched to a diesel drip heater, which I cranked up to provide the needed output, and put 5 fans around it to draw away the heat. At least it was maintenance free.

Neither worked well while sailing because down drafts blew out the fire and caused huge amounts of smoke. But the drip heater was better once we put a long smoke stack on it.

There is little finer than sitting in your warm cabin with the diesel fire flickering from the heater while it is frosty outside, anchored in some hidden away cove. Then you take a hot buttered rum outside and look at the snow covered trees and think, this is quite OK. Then your nose gets cold and you duck back below. Winter cruising, all is good.

[Jammer]

It is written somewhere that if you have a drip pot heater, eventually there will be a diesel spill from it and the boat will smell like diesel forevermore. Much to the displeasure of the admiralty.


Fact, or fiction?

[seandepagnier]

Originally Posted by wingssail

There is little finer than sitting in your warm cabin with the diesel fire flickering from the heater while it is frosty outside, anchored in some hidden away cove. Then you take a hot buttered rum outside and look at the snow covered trees and think, this is quite OK. Then your nose gets cold and you duck back below. Winter cruising, all is good.

I have lived many winters with below freezing weather using wood heater.

wow it would be a sad downgrade to have a "diesel fire" instead.

[hugosalt]

As stated in above posts, very happy with my Planar diesel heater.
Initially purchased to heat boat while cruising in shoulder seasons but has given ability to extend my winter day sails to winter overnights/cruises.
I use a mix of kero into diesel (basically making #1 diesel) burns cleaner and still enough lub to keep fuel pump happy.
If considering a chinese unit (good reviews) I would stock spare glow plug and fuel pump.
Good reliable dry heat as you will need with your propane stove, and they need to be run at full bore not to clog up.

Welcome to Cruisersforum Nash.

[Bowdrie]

Originally Posted by Jammer

It is written somewhere that if you have a drip pot heater, eventually there will be a diesel spill from it and the boat will smell like diesel forevermore. Much to the displeasure of the admiralty.
Fact, or fiction?

Perhaps a little of both?
I've lived with a Dickinson stove for many years, it pretty much runs 24/7 for ~8>9 months a year.
With snow outside the boat is warm/dry.
Never have had any "spill", but I'm sure there are those with horror stories, (there is a definite learning curve).
I can understand the desire of the OP to keep the propane cook stove, as such I can 2nd the motion for either the Reflex or Dickinson drip-burner heaters.
In the Dickinson brand, the floor standing units are quite powerful, the little bulkhead mounted ones are not as efficient with their fuel burn but can work for a smaller interior volume.

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by seandepagnier

I have lived many winters with below freezing weather using wood heater.

wow it would be a sad downgrade to have a "diesel fire" instead.

I have cut split and burned dozens of cords of wood over the years.


There are tradeoffs, most especially in a small space. But I agree the romance is unbeatable.