Chinese Diesel Heater install in motorhome
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- Опубліковано 8 лют 2025
- This time Redders installs a Chinese Diesel Heater into our 14 year old Dethleffs A class Motorhome.
Having never done one of these before he comes across a few issues and has to spend quite a bit of money to make sure he can do it right.
Athough we were sent this heater to review we do not discuss the product review at all in this video and it purely covers the installation.
We will be reviewing this heater in the next 2 months after we have given it a good testing period.
Quiet pump upgrade
amzn.to/4hmfhqu
Paul I admire your patience on doing this job I give you 100% for doing it
Thanks Simon, it’s not always as simple as it seems 🙂👍
I used some of that plastic tubing you're saying smells of plastic. What I did was hook up the entire length of 16 feet (487 cm) tubing to my diesel heater and ran it for a few days to plumb heat into my coach while I worked inside.
(I had the diesel heater setting on a stand outside, blowing through an open window with a piece of styrofoam board insulation to fill the air gap)
And yes, it did have a smell for a while, but after a few hours, the smell burned off, and it doesn't smell anymore.
The tubing does get a little warm to the touch, but not enough to set anything on fire. But, as a precaution, when I mounted my heater in the side under floor storage bay and kitchen cabinet, I slipped a 4" (101mm) over the 3" (76mm) ductwork to act as a heat shielding, and it gives off zero heat now off in the compartments the ducting goes through.
( The 4" flex heater tubing was old dryer ducting I had laying around and I just sipped it over the 3" like a blanket)
Like I said, I mounted my heater in a side bay under the floor and ducted the heater into my existing propane furnace heat ducting and added a "Y" splitter, with diverter flap, so I can run either heat system through the floor to the entire 38' coach.
Also, I'll throw this out. They make a nice, through the wall. exit flange panel for the exhaust pipe that makes the exhaust plumbing really nice, rather than just having another exhaust pipe hanging under the coach. (Amazon)
And lastly, the last thing I wanted to hear was that heaters fuel pump clicking all night, so I mounted it under the coach wrapped in insulation and metal straps so I can barelty hear it click when its running.
Enjoyed the video! I live in Texas, so our coaches are a little bigger than the ones you guys get! 😊
The plastic ducting did cool and felt a little brittle, I wasn’t convinced enough to continue using it ( 30 years fire service ) probably swayed my cautious side 😂🚒 , and yes your trucks will be a lot bigger than ours , we don’t have the room in our tiny little country 😂 but diesel heating is very effective isn’t it 👌 so nice to hear from you 🙂
Nice one redders, patience is a virtue 👍😁, some difference on the new pump, great job 👍👍
It’s a huge difference for sure 👍🙂 very pleased with it 👌
I took my fuel from Ducatto main tank and fitted the pump externally. After a really simple mod the ticking is now almost silent. (Well pleased) I also fitted an "Afterburner". Enjoy your new heater, brilliant little things.
Hi ! Thanks for watching and commenting, what mod did you do, sounds interesting ? 👌🙂
Great job both, you fitting it and your wife bringing you coffees
❤❤ xx
😊 thank you xx
From having Eberspachers in my yachts over many years I think you have done a good overall job especially having heater in its own compartment and not cramming it in with other items. Apart from the ticking pump even quiet ones that may be annoying I would suggest having a instrument that burns diesel under where you are sitting fitted in highly flammable surroundings I think safety is vital. It may be an idea to line the space with unflammable material like they do gas lockers. On my yachts which had commercial safety certificates there would be requirement for auto fire extinguisher (you can get small relatively cheap ones) Finally it is worth checking the heater has enough ventilation to draw air they do suck quite a volume of air and being in a small space if not drawing properly will have safety issues.
Thanks Andrew , some very valid points indeed 👌 much appreciated, I tried to factor in every safety element I could, which is why it took so long 😂 probably the 30 years with the fire service 🙂🚒❤️
Hey Redder’s you’ve got the patience of a saint!! 🙄 well done !!! Xxx
Aww thank you xx ❤️ only did a few hours each day cos I got bored 🤣🤣
Enjoyed that. Our 2011 Motorhome had an eberspacher diesel heater fitted from new and it really is a great bit of kit.. once you get used to the aircraft take off noise on startup 😂. Our heater is fitted outside the vehicle (under the floor) and is virtually identical to yours. It has a metal open ended "U" shaped cover over it . During your research did you find any others that were fitted outside the vehicle ? I also found out that ours is not drilled into the diesel tank but is T,d into the diesel supply pipe under the bonnet. Which seems to work OK.. but once after a long stopover .. I nearly drained the tank ! I am sure you know that diesel heating is so much more convenient and you will save money on gas. Thanks for the video and safe travels 🚐
Some interesting points 👌 haven’t seen any outside , we do visit cold climates and diesel heaters don’t like the cold , luckily I fitted the pickup tube so when it gets low in the diesel tank the heater shuts off 👌🙂
Personally I’d have kept the diesel feed and pump and filter outside the van. Especially as it connects outside anyway. Any leaks or spillage are going to stink the place out. Almost impossible to get rid of the smell of spilled diesel.
Thankyou , appreciate the info, may well be a future quick job 👌
one thing I woud advise you to change is the mounting of the exhaust pipe you fitted to the van silencer, the silencer is on rubber mounts because it moves about when you are travelling, the vibration might damage the heater exhaaust pipe. You need it mounted to the vann boody, just my thoughts, cheers, Liam
Hey thanks Liam , appreciated. The exhaust is fairly rigid and should be ok , but I’ll certainly keep an eye on it as I do take on board what you suggest 👌🙂 Thankyou
Great job. The only thing I would have done differently is to fix the plate to the heater and connect the pipework before I fixed the plate to the floor, just so I wouldn't have to fit it all from underneath.
Yes I realised that after ! 😂 luckily it wasn’t too bad for access underneath 👌
Fitting the pump inside on a wooden sounding board is never going to be the quietest of installations. The rear facing surface of a sturdy chassis cross member is ideal, e.g. the one above the rear axle. Manufacturers run all the rear external wiring there with good reason (out of the dirt), and for heater pumps there’s hardly any resonance at all compared to a flat surface. People sometimes seem to get fixated on something that’s really simple to avoid completely, use the correct acoustic dampening mounting bracket, install it like that and you won’t hear it at all inside.
Good morning, some great advice there Thankyou , did you see the new pump I installed at the end of the vlog ? 🙂
@ ‘Morning, yes I did see that you opted for a different pump. Perhaps the Chinesium ones are noisier than I understand compared to the Eberspacher / Webasto units.
@SH-vb5ph it’s made a huge difference to be honest, but I also get installing underneath, it’s an option which is quite an easy task , appreciate the suggestions 👍
Good job , as a light sleeper I couldn't live with the pump clicking all night , tried a supposedly quieter pump but no different really. I have now installed a silent pump , purchased from a genius by the name of James Browning-Smith, and it's so quiet I have it under my pillow (not really) but it is silent. It also features a altitude correction adjuster.
Did you see the last few mins of the vlog ? I changed the pump and it’s so much better 👌 thanks for watching and commenting
Hello great job I have fitted a few of these heaters the only thing I would of done differently is mount the diesel pump and pipes on the outside of the van but shouldn't be a problem but I would definitely mount the exhaust pipe to a solid mount and not to the exhaust of the engine as this does flex when you're driving over bumps etc and the pipe that comes from your diesel heater won't take alot of this movement and will probably break off hope this helps but great job 😊
Thankyou , much appreciated 👌 I may reroute it when it gets a bit warmer , seems ok for now , and to be fair the second pump I installed ( last part of vlog ) is so much quieter , my old battery powered clock ticks louder 👌🙂
@redsgotravels yes liked the new pump you fitted we can still hear the pump ticking on the van but it's a nice sound when you wake up on a cold morning 😂😂
@Johnboyhaulage 👌😂
Welldone Redders i must say when you do a job near enough isn’t good enough welldone ( looked a real ball ache). I will keep using my Alde heating i am blessed as system is fitted with a heat exchanger manifold which runs of the water from the engines radiator (Swift Kontiki 669) just start the engine set the temp on the control panel and Bobs your uncle so when travelling everything heats up roasty toasty. The old Stag looked very shiny and your motorhome always looks lovely,what waxes do you use i guess some kind of Kanuba wax. Catchup with you guys soon thankyou for what you do superb x Take care.
Hey Graham ! Sounds like you’ve got the perfect system 🙂👌 lovely ❤️ I use Autoglym wax polish , it’s really good , but both vehicles were originally cut back using meguiars cutting compound and then a few layers of polish 👌 all done with a rotary polishing tool 🙂 as ever Thankyou for watching and commenting, very much appreciated 🙂
good job, good coffee service 👍
and as you say, lots of "options there 🙂
hope you gonna enjoy it on your next trip....
?alaska 🙄
Thankyou, much appreciated, a few trips upcoming, we hope to do Norway at some point 🙂❤️
@@redsgotravels norway sounds great... the most north point... 🥶
@rijmenammerart1100 that’ll give it a good work out 😂 ( and us ) 👌
Well done, impressive. 👍 I wouldn't know where to start other than using my credit card to pay for it to be fitted. 🥴
Thankyou , slow and steady got this one done 👍
By golly what a clever chap you are! Do I detect Corrine has lost quite a bit of weight? Hope it won't be too long before you can set off on your travels again.
Aww thank you ❤️🙂 hopefully on our travels soon xx ❤️
glad all it works
It’s really good 🙂
Hi. I can never understand why the diesel heaters can't be connected to the trunking for the existing van heater so you get heat from all the outlets instead of just one outlet.
Hi , that’s the next step, our main gas heater at the opposite end of the van has 2 outlets for blown air, so a feed to each side , my diesel heater is 5 metres away , so I’ve just got to reconfigure the ducting to accommodate 👌🙂 but that’s enough for now, don’t be giving Mrs Redders ideas 😂
@ Could you not just use a “T” connection where the diesel heater is?
@tomball5133 yes, but it’ll only feed one side of the van 👌 there are two outlets on the gas heater , each outlet feeding one side , so theoretically I could t at the diesel heater and t at the gas heater 👌 sounds like a plan 🙂
Hi both and not forgetting the dogs diesel heater I bought 1 Chinese and I got a quieter pump the same as the one you have built in filter like you’ve mentioned the exhaust is basically not brilliant the clips are not good but once you’ve sorted out all the duff parts /I’ve got one on top of the wood burner Using the chimney it’s been working great since October to date a good test before I install in motorhome can’t be to careful fumes and heat as your well aware as you were a retired fire man good job by the way 👍 my problem is where to put it
Thankyou Paul , they are really effective, perhaps I was overly fussy , but I just wanted to get it right 👌 they do need a bit of space, but very worthwhile 👌 mind you a log burner is nice 😊
@ we bought 2 xpeedingrods There were bought for a move to the Isle of Man For a potential home move . blowing hot air through ductwork down stairs and up using kerosene 28second central heating fuel cheaper than red heating seems dear inTHE ISLE OF MAN just a idea atm the heating idea .the house move definitely
@paulsmith3338 good luck on the house move , and very interesting ref the heating , could be very economical 👌
Sorry to be a pain but what make was the black car in garage only ask I was very into cars had a 78 points trans am 4on the floor and a 58chevy step side I fitted it with a x police interceptor engine far to much engine 😳🤭
@paulsmith3338 some lovely motors 👌 the black car is my 1977 triumph stag 3l v8 👌
Very informative as always thank you chick. Hope ur all well? Tc xx
Aww thank you xxx 🐾🐾🐾🐾❤️
You might be in danger of invalidating your van insurance as they are not conforming to spec being the Chinese brand so may have de valued your van some insurance companies allow a professional fitment of the two main brands, I wanted to do RBI’s on my van but was informed of a few major risks, we fit these to home built campers but only externally
Good morning and thanks for sharing, we are certainly going to put this one through its paces, and give an honest review, luckily the fitment is the same for the named brands, so an upgrade for the future if required.
It will be supervised use and we have gaslow as main heat and water 🙂
Steaming good work.
👌🙂
Splendid job, just one question what's the blue pipe next to the heater ?
Thankyou ! It’s the drain tap for the main water tank 🙂
Well done you find the exhaust will only last 2 years then just rots away if pos make sure there no low points in the run that holds water else it will rust in now time enjoy ya vlogs
Thanks buddy , you were spot on about the tank lid tool too 👍 luckily the exhausts are fairly cheap ( and it shows 🤣 ) 👍
I think I would put pump outside as they are noisy.
Did you see the upgraded pump I bought ? It’s so much better 👌
As a man of a certain age that pump sounds like the intro to New Order, Blue Monday. 😜🤣
🤣🤣 I know what you mean 👌
red wher the cut out is on the plate is for the wire to come throught so iv done the same on the truett
Thanks for the info 👌🙂
More chewed up wood than a beavers playpen! Fine effort indeed. Cost difference between a ‘quality’ kit and the Chinese offering?
🤣 indeed 👌
Just be careful guys, you’ve not left much room for ventilation around the heater they do get hot!
I’d have also installed the pump externally as they are quite noisy especially when it’s quiet at night and I’d not be happy having the pump inside the van in case of a diesel leak.
Thanks for watching and commenting, it was a tight fit but met the parameters set ( 50 mm ) , the replacement pump I fitted ( end of vlog ) with integral filter is so much better and quieter 🙂we do visit cold climates which can cause problems with sludging up the diesel 👌🙂 all good so far 🙂
Nice job buddy 5* 👍🏻
🙂 Thankyou 👌
I fitted one couldn't stand the smell couldn't stand the smoking now and then went back to an lpg propex heater no smells no smoke no problem.
Interesting, thanks for sharing, we’ve still got our main gas system but will be giving this a good test for sure 👌
We had a VW California with a diesel heater. They all ‘tick’. Truma now locate the pump outside the van. No idea how much this helps.
Thankyou 👌 did you catch the last few mins of the vlog … put in an upgraded pump , huge difference 🙂
red where did you get the new fuel pump from please
Good morning, I got it from Amazon 🙂 , will pop a link in the vlog description shortly 🙂
Out of interest, why doesn’t anyone plumb it in to the existing pipe work so it comes out of all vents throughout the van?
I did mention that , and it’s something that’s easy to do , the ducting is right there for it 👌 but only for one side , our heater boiler is at the opposite end of the van to the diesel heater , and has two outlets feeding the ducting , but it’s a great suggestion 👌❤️
Hi both the Tex about the diesel heater on top of the wood burner was to give it a very good run and we have 2 wood burners we have a large house Though if people look at Tex would think we would be watching tv while heater is ticking 😂😂🤭ps not Sean a black stag nice shape
Sounds like your house is lovely and warm 👌 and done very economically ❤️ the stag has taken quite a few hours to lift up to where I’m happy , but it’s running and looking sweet now 🙂❤️
Hey guys, would of been much better to install the heater and pump under the van and then just brought the hot air pipe in and controller. Much more quiet this way :)
Thanks for watching and sharing your thoughts, much appreciated 🙂 things may change yet !
reds iv read the heater pipe should not have a bend straight from the heater
Thankyou, I have the option to remove the panel where it curves , but I’ve put a metal plate and intumescent sealant behind it to dissipate any heat , all seems good so far, but great point , Thankyou 👍
You be better of buying a super silent filter built into pump and should be under van to reduce tick and a sheaf what goes over exhaust from heater
Thanks Paul 👍 did you see the last few mins of the vlog … the upgraded pump is fab , didn’t want to put it outside due to the sub zero temps we encounter on our travels 🙂👌
Jumped gun should have watched it all before committing good job finely put my 5kw in old gas box and through hole In conservatory works well bluetooth app ect
What a great idea 👌 be good for my garage too 🤔👌
No way would I have run the fuel.pipes in the van and not fitted the pump.in the van if you get a fuel.
Leak it will stink the van out mine leaked after 2 years them rubber fuel.pipe connectors crack so be warned
Did you catch the end where I put a new pump in ? … avoided fitting outside due to the muck , debris and ultimately the freezing temps we pass through on our travels, diesel doesn’t like the cold 👍 the fuel pipes also remain protected internally, stones, debris , muck amongst other things, I get what you are saying, but for us, the internal fitment works 👌
That heater pump is going to drive you nuts being installed inside the van may be best to put it outside under the van ……just a thought
Thanks Andrew, did you catch the last few minutes of the vlog where I put a different pump in ? 👌👍
the exhuast should slop down to let the water drops out
Of course, but it’s tricky when the exhaust outlet has to go to the opposite side due to the awning , I tried but not always possible , and to be honest a new pipe and exhaust is peanuts 😂 thanks so much for sharing your