Diesel Hydronic Heaters: Hurricane vs. Webasto

[Boaterbob]

New 41 ft sailboat (Bavaria 2004) needs heat in Northwest. Hurricane made in BC recommended by friend. Webasto recommended by local dealer. Hurricane appears to be on/off vs. gradual steps for level in Webasto. Hurricane enclosed in steel box vs. Webasto open mount construction. Hurricane less noisy? Anyone with experience for non livaboard use of diesel heaters in 33 to 40,000BTU category?

[Lepke]

I have an 83' boat with a house type boiler (50-90,000 btu depending on nozzle) and hydronic heat strips throughout the boat. I winter on the Columbia River near Astoria and sometimes further north. I have no experience with either Hurricane or Wabsco, but lots of time getting heat without getting a bank loan. I bought the boat in Nanaimo.
Marine equivalent car forced air heaters work the best for quickly heating the boat. They can be built into cabinets, closets, booths, etc. Baseboards, various radiator type take hours to make a dent in the cold. Car type on the other hand work quickly. From a cold boat to heating the main cabin (or any other limited area) takes about 30 minutes. Hydronic baseboard radiators took 3-4 hours to 60°F. Heating 1/3 of the boat with hydronic baseboards used about 5 gallons of diesel/day in below freezing weather.
I also added a pellet stove, about 45,000 btu then I put a water coil inside that ties to the boiler. And my main engines also tie into the hydronic system. A side benefit, I can run warm water thru the diesels before starting in cold weather. If the pellet stove or engines are running I don't use the boiler except for storage and heat control.
A diesel stoves heats well and can make your hot water. I was a PNW fisherman.

[Paul L]

I installed the ITR hurricane zephyer. I like the fact that I can remove my hotwater tank and just use the ITR to heat domestic water on demand. The boat is heated with raditors that each have their own thermostat and 2 speed fans.

[EdenRose]

Originally Posted by Paul L

I installed the ITR hurricane zephyer. I like the fact that I can remove my hotwater tank and just use the ITR to heat domestic water on demand. The boat is heated with raditors that each have their own thermostat and 2 speed fans.

I also sent you a PM....how has it been 4 years later? How has the on demand hot water worked vs. having storage hot water?
EdenRose

[EdenRose]

Originally Posted by Boaterbob

New 41 ft sailboat (Bavaria 2004) needs heat in Northwest. Hurricane made in BC recommended by friend. Webasto recommended by local dealer. Hurricane appears to be on/off vs. gradual steps for level in Webasto. Hurricane enclosed in steel box vs. Webasto open mount construction. Hurricane less noisy? Anyone with experience for non livaboard use of diesel heaters in 33 to 40,000BTU category?

What did you end up with?

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by EdenRose

I also sent you a PM....how has it been 4 years later? How has the on demand hot water worked vs. having storage hot water?
EdenRose

Since most our cruising is in the more tropical waters we use the on-demand hot water far more than the cabin heat of the ITR heater. The on-demand hotwater works very well. Turn on the heater, get ready to enter the shower and magically there is hotwater.
When we've used the heater in the greater latitudes (like New Zealand winter) it has more than enough heat for our two cabin radiators. Its been reliable.

In our case the unit fit in the space left when we removed the 11gal hotwater tank. A little more space was lost in running the exhaust.

[EdenRose]

Originally Posted by Paul L

Since most our cruising is in the more tropical waters we use the on-demand hot water far more than the cabin heat of the ITR heater. The on-demand hotwater works very well. Turn on the heater, get ready to enter the shower and magically there is hotwater.
When we've used the heater in the greater latitudes (like New Zealand winter) it has more than enough heat for our two cabin radiators. Its been reliable.

In our case the unit fit in the space left when we removed the 11gal hotwater tank. A little more space was lost in running the exhaust.

Thank you for updating how its going. Do you use the AC plug in at dock for the heater? If so how does that work for you. I imagine on AC only you can get enough to a few dishes or wash hands. It think the specs show that it is up to 2.5 gallons on AC only (what is stored in the heat exchanger of the unit). Several of the dealers in Washington State have recommended the external hot water tank anyway and I think that would wipe out some of the advantage of the Hurricane over a Webasto for example.

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by EdenRose

Thank you for updating how its going. Do you use the AC plug in at dock for the heater? If so how does that work for you. I imagine on AC only you can get enough to a few dishes or wash hands. It think the specs show that it is up to 2.5 gallons on AC only (what is stored in the heat exchanger of the unit). Several of the dealers in Washington State have recommended the external hot water tank anyway and I think that would wipe out some of the advantage of the Hurricane over a Webasto for example.

We don't use the AC heater. I believe it is 1,500 watts. That's enough to add some heat to the cabin on a mild day over a long period of time. It isn't enough to produce real on-demand hotwater. It is so easy and quick to have diesel hotwater, why screw with the other approaches. You turn the heater on and the water us warm in a minute and hot in 2 or 3. You do not run the hotwater during this startup, so you aren't wasting water.

It doesn't make sense to me to add a tank. I doubt tne ITR factory would recommend that.

[EdenRose]

Originally Posted by Paul L

We don't use the AC heater. I believe it is 1,500 watts. That's enough to add some heat to the cabin on a mild day over a long period of time. It isn't enough to produce real on-demand hotwater. It is so easy and quick to have diesel hotwater, why screw with the other approaches. You turn the heater on and the water us warm in a minute and hot in 2 or 3. You do not run the hotwater during this startup, so you aren't wasting water.

It doesn't make sense to me to add a tank. I doubt tne ITR factory would recommend that.

I have been talking with Marcello from ITR. He says the on demand is good but maybe a liveaboard is better off with the Hurricane II and external tank instead of the standalone Zephyr. I have had a boat (and lived on it for a while) for the past 35 years with no hot water or pressure water so anything will seem luxurious.


Do you think the 5,000 btu from the electric element is enough to replace the
three AC dehumidifiers (Air Dryer) when the boat is left in the winter. That would be convenient.

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by EdenRose

I have been talking with Marcello from ITR. He says the on demand is good but maybe a liveaboard is better off with the Hurricane II and external tank instead of the standalone Zephyr. I have had a boat (and lived on it for a while) for the past 35 years with no hot water or pressure water so anything will seem luxurious.


Do you think the 5,000 btu from the electric element is enough to replace the
three AC dehumidifiers (Air Dryer) when the boat is left in the winter. That would be convenient.

I guess it depends a lot on whether you are looking for dock heat or for heat while cruising. Like I said we use the on demand hotwater the almost everyday cruising.

I'm not sure about the heat vs dehumidifier I suspect it depends a lot on how cold the outdoor temps get.