Erberspacher Heater

I took this van out for the first time last week,when we put the heating on during the evening the temperature did not get any higher than 18 degrees.we tried running on electric and then diesel but there was very little difference. I would like to know how well other [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]s (airtronic D2) work in other vans?

The Airtronic D2 produces a good output of 2.2kW and should heat your Symbol to a very comfortable temperature.  However, it will only operate on this high output mode if you are not connected to a mains hook-up, because it will then run on diesel.
If you are connected to a mains hook-up the system will sense this and the Airlectric part of the system will provide the heating.
The Airlectric is rated at only 1kW and will therefore struggle to raise the temperature to a comfortable level if it is very cold outside.
I stand a small oil-filled heater in the cab during the winter when on hook-up.  This supplements the Airlectric and allows the temperature to be raised to a higher level.

G

We had this heater in our last Duetto and it worked very well indeed. As Gram says, the electric side is quite low rated (900 watts according to our instructions) and if you are on ehu, it will by default choose to run in electric mode only. The heater in the Duetto and I imagine other vehicles also, could have the electric supply turned off and in this case it would run on diesel, even though on ehu.

We found that we preferred to run the heater on diesel, even when on ehu, as a) the output was much greater and b) it was much quieter than using electricity.

The main message here is to make sure that you are actually running on diesel and not on electric, as the difference is dramatic.

Thanks for your replies I will give another try next time I go out and maybe get a separate heater.
                                                                                                                                                  Arthur

Spospe wrote:We had this heater in our last Duetto and it worked very well indeed. As Gram says, the electric side is quite low rated (900 watts according to our instructions) and if you are on ehu, it will by default choose to run in electric mode only. The heater in the Duetto and I imagine other vehicles also, could have the electric supply turned off and in this case it would run on diesel, even though on ehu.

We found that we preferred to run the heater on diesel, even when on ehu, as a) the output was much greater and b) it was much quieter than using electricity.

The main message here is to make sure that you are actually running on diesel and not on electric, as the difference is dramatic.

Another point to remember (and I forgot to mention it above) is that the heater will not run on electric if you have a reversed polarity mains connection, it will automatically default to diesel, even though the mains is present and you can boil a kettle etc.

This is an interesting thread. We had one in our Duetto for 7 years, and never had any success with it even from brand new.

The fact stated above that it works on mains power has astounded me. Ours never worked off the leisure battery when camped without hook up, and we just shivered in cold weather. 

My assumption was the tiny 60a battery in the Duetto wasn't powerful enough to run it, seemed to be proved true by the fact it worked on hook-up - i.e. the battery being charged via the mains when we tested it at home now and again to see.

As above, I would never have 'wasted' diesel on hook-up and carried an oil radiator everywhere.

The truth now is that it has a mains element in it, and the heater must have been faulty and never worked on diesel anyway. Too late now, we sold the van two years ago. 

If we had ever complained to the dealer, I am sure they'd have repaired it under warranty ! Oh well, live and learn.

I had this heater in my Topaz it was brilliant, too warm for me at times. it was on diesel.
Margaret

Campievanner wrote:This is an interesting thread. We had one in our Duetto for 7 years, and never had any success with it even from brand new.

The fact stated above that it works on mains power has astounded me. Ours never worked off the leisure battery when camped without hook up, and we just shivered in cold weather. 

My assumption was the tiny 60a battery in the Duetto wasn't powerful enough to run it, seemed to be proved true by the fact it worked on hook-up - i.e. the battery being charged via the mains when we tested it at home now and again to see.

As above, I would never have 'wasted' diesel on hook-up and carried an oil radiator everywhere.

The truth now is that it has a mains element in it, and the heater must have been faulty and never worked on diesel anyway. Too late now, we sold the van two years ago. 

If we had ever complained to the dealer, I am sure they'd have repaired it under warranty ! Oh well, live and learn.

A point to remember is that (to the best of memory), the electric heating element was first fitted by Auto-Sleeper to Duettos about mid 2007 and before that the heater was diesel only.

Our 2008 Duetto (on a MK7 Transit) had a 90 a/h battery, so was considerably better off than yours with a miserable 60 a/h.

I have the Eberspacher in my 2008 Symbol, and agree with many of the comments in this thread.

When running on electricity, the heat output is feeble, and requires the thermostat turned up much higher.. When on electric, the fan seems to resonate in two different pitches.. when the heating element is on the fan sounds "deeper'. When the heating element switches itself off on the thermostat, the fan sounds less deep (and the fan just blows cool/un-heated air)..

When on hook-up I use a 500W Delonghi Bambino oil heater, it needs to work flat out to warm the van on cold nights, but can be left on overnight (no noise).

I had one of those NASA BM-1 battery monitors fitted, and it's interesting to watch the power drawn by various things in the van.. When the Eberspacher is first turned on, and the glow-plugs are igniting the diesel, the Eberspacher pulls 9 Amps for about 3 or 4 minutes... then once the diesel is lit, and the blower comes on at full-speed, the draw is about 2.5A.  Once the van's up to temperature, and the fan slows down to tick-over mode it draws around 1 Amp.   I've left the heater on overnight (at tick-over) many times, the fan noise is not intrusive.

When the Eberspacher is turned off, it then draws about 9Amps for a minute or two to forcibly burn-off the un-burnt diesel.


I normally leave the engine running when starting or stopping the Eberspacher so that the alternator's still charging the leisure battery when the Eberspacher sucks 9Amps.

Even more interesting with those replies - our Duetto was 2005 so therefore didn't have the electric element, thank goodness i wasn't that unknowing.  However the other remarks still stand - with that current drain, there is no way the 60ah battery would be sufficient.  Using the water pump, lights etc it wouldn't stand a hope.

Great thread, as a relative newbie I have always struggled to get my head around the heater. Its a great shame there wasn't some type of switch, that allowed you to use hook up, whilst running the heater off diesel. The fact that most of us need to supplement it with an oil filled Rad or similar, indicates it's not actually "fit for purpose" in an average damp cold british autumn/winter.

Journeyman,

As was mentioned earlier in this thread, it is possible to isolate the heater from the hook-up to force it to use diesel only.. In my Symbol, there's an isolator switch (marked "Heater") under the oven.

--
 Lee

Brilliant Lee…Missed that   Will give it a go this weekend. I'm assuming its very light on fuel?  "Fit for Purpose?" I take everything back!

If I remember correctly, the Eberspacher consumes about 0.2l per hour on full-belt, and only around 0.1l per hour on tick-over.

Diesel's not cheap, but I think it's very cost-effective.

Lee


Lee

ForresGeek wrote:Journeyman,

As was mentioned earlier in this thread, it is possible to isolate the heater from the hook-up to force it to use diesel only.. In my Symbol, there's an isolator switch (marked "Heater") under the oven.

--
 Lee

In the Duetto built on the MK7 Transit, the unmarked switch is located on the outside of the compartment housing the heater and water heater. Given Auto-Sleepers ability to hide things, you may have a hunt on your hands to locate the switch: Good Luck!

Im assuming its the bottom left switch. Its located alongside the left side of the cooker, under a removable velcro'd board, beneath the bench seat.

Yep... that's just like mine..

--
 Lee

Cheers Lee, and even though the heater will be drawing off the leisure Batt when isolated, whilst I'm on hook up…the l/Battery will still be getting charged…is that right?

Yes..

Once the Eberspacher's got fired up, it's a relatively small draw from the battery anyway.. As you're on hook-up the battery is kept topped-up


--
 Lee

Thanks again. Ready to go then….Westley House Farm this weekend…Sunny Shrop

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Gave it a whirl last night, wow! what a difference. Possibly a bit quieter, certainly a heck of a lot more heat. Interestingly it also managed to warm the bathroom, via the wall vent. I will use occasionally this facility in the colder months, when I don't want to be taking space with the Rad.

Thanks