All things Heating

[FamilyVan]

I sail long seasons in Canada, I'm pretty happy with my alcohol heat. I have an Origo 5100. Its not fancy, but its a good effective space heater.

[newhaul]

Originally Posted by FamilyVan

I sail long seasons in Canada, I'm pretty happy with my alcohol heat. I have an Origo 5100. Its not fancy, but its a good effective space heater.

Alcohol is good however for a full time cruiser diesel or propane would be better alcohol gets spendy when you are trying to stay warm all winter with it
Been there done that

[FamilyVan]

Originally Posted by newhaul

Alcohol is good however for a full time cruiser diesel or propane would be better alcohol gets spendy when you are trying to stay warm all winter with it
Been there done that

Diesel yes, but you're going to have to sell me on propane. Propane is terrible for live aboard heat. Boat bombs don't excite me.

I'd take wood or coal over propane.

[newhaul]

Originally Posted by FamilyVan

Diesel yes, but you're going to have to sell me on propane. Propane is terrible for live aboard heat. Boat bombs don't excite me.

I'd take wood or coal over propane.

Nothing wrong with propane heat they do make a bulkhead direct vent unit.
Lots easier to store a tank of propane than a cord of wood on a boat. Also lots cleaner than coal. Some marinas won't allow solid fuel heaters for liveaboard. You have propane for cooking and diesel for the main engine not so easy to get wood in the middle of the ocean

[GILow]

Originally Posted by FamilyVan

Diesel yes, but you're going to have to sell me on propane. Propane is terrible for live aboard heat. Boat bombs don't excite me.

I'd take wood or coal over propane.

Yep, gas on a boat scares the bejeebies out of me. I am slowly removing the gas appliances from my boat, even though it is a professionally installed and certified system.

The only problem is that the stove is a ripper, and has the best boat oven I have ever met. At least using gas only for the stove means I can leave the bottles turned off 99.9% of the time.

The bilge gas alarm remains on 100% of the time though.

[Skip JayR]

Originally Posted by GILow

Yep, gas on a boat scares the bejeebies out of me. I am slowly removing the gas appliances from my boat, even though it is a professionally installed and certified system.

In some countries for charter boat business its the duty to check the gas system annually by a certified gas specialist.

So long one deposit the gas bottle outside of the main hull section in a separate container far away from the entry and locked from outside (hatch cover) with a small opening hole on the bottom to outside so eventually emitting propane / butane can escape, a boat owner has a safely system.



An important rule one should follow: after cooking (or heating coffee water) not only the valve behind the stoven/ 2-4 flame hearth is closed, same the main valve directly on the bottle is closed.

That makes it very safely, more less.

Best would be we can cook and heat with solar energy on board. As all kind of fossil resources will end one day.

[Ostinato]

I have two Wallas diesel heaters on board. They generate a lot of heat but require at least annual maintenance. Mine have had a tendency to blow out in the face of head winds over 15 knots and leaked fumes into the cabins when this has happened. They are not as closed a system as advertised. The blowing out could be a result of type of chimney vents I am using and/or its placement. Their literature rates the vents on this and other characteristcs. Pay attention to this and how far you can mount the vent from the unit - different models have different limits. Supposedly they are designed to run at low flame without sooting but I think this maybe less of an issue than it purported to be if you do regular maintenance. In balance, given that they are almost twice as expensive as Webastco or Espar, I would not choose them again.

[FamilyVan]

Newhaul, those closed loop, propane systems are a very interesting design and I see the appeal to them for occasional heating.

I lived aboard year round on the great lakes, in my marina, any body who could afford diesel systems had diesel systems. No doubt very nice for live aboard in cold climates. But, of about 25 or 30 boats in the marina, although many had propane cookers, myself included, there was only one guy who was okay with propane heat in a fully shrink wrapped boat. I agree though, if one were to use propane heat, the Dickinson with the external air intake and external vent is a very nice unit.

OP, depending where you're sailing and how deep your pockets are, Wallace makes very nice fully vented diesel cookers that can provide light duty heating (only about equivalent to my alcohol, which is only adequate down to about 0 Celsius/32 Fahrenheit.).

[newhaul]

Originally Posted by Skip JayR

In some countries for charter boat business its the duty to check the gas system annually by a certified gas specialist.

So long one deposit the gas bottle outside of the main hull section in a separate container far away from the entry and locked from outside (hatch cover) with a small opening hole on the bottom to outside so eventually emitting propane / butane can escape, a boat owner has a safely system.



An important rule one should follow: after cooking (or heating coffee water) not only the valve behind the stoven/ 2-4 flame hearth is closed, same the main valve directly on the bottle is closed.

That makes it very safely, more less.

Best would be we can cook and heat with solar energy on board. As all kind of fossil resources will end one day.

A proper install also includes an electric solenoid valve at the tank power on gas flows power off and have the gas is off. Turn it on when you are using it and off when you are done with it ( make it a habit and part of your normal procedure to use it. Personally I prefer diesel forced air or hydronic.

[mikereed100]

In the interests of simplicity, we installed a Newport diesel heater with it's own tank in our starboard hull. It keeps both the starboard hull and saloon warm and dry. The port hull remains cold and damp, but before we return to higher latitudes we will install another identical heater there as well. The heater is gravity-fed and, aside from a yearly cleaning, completely maintenance-free.

[Roy M]

When I launched my boat, many years ago, I realized how cold it got at night during several months of a Southern California winter. At first I used an electric space heater, from West Marine, but that meant I was going to be tied to the dock. So, I installed a Dickenson solid fuel fireplace with a flue out the cabintop. That was very nice, and it sucked the humid air right out the flue. I had thought that it would be the best because there is always some wood, somewhere, to burn for free. That was pretty true, and as a boatbuilder, I discovered the enormous heat potential of scrap teak. But what I hadn't prepared for was the waste management. The first time I took the ash drawer out the companionway and got hit by a wind gust, I leaned the downside. Later, I learned to simply dump the ashes in the sink and run some water to flush it all down the drain. Still, it was messy and time-consuming. That solution lasted a couple winters, then it got sold at a swap meet. I still have the chimney flue.

As I prepare to spend some time in the Pacific Northwest, I have returned to continue my quest for heat and dryness inside. For me, the issue is no longer about fuel. Diesel packs the greatest amount of energy in the smallest package, and it's relatively cheap for quantity of heat. I have decided on a diesel forced air system with two ducts. My engine room is in the center of the boat, and all the necessary support infrastructure is there also (access to venting, fuel supply, sound deadening, fire protection, electrical, ease of access for maintenance). Best of all, each duct is only a couple feet long and heats the two sleeping compartments and primary living areas, including the head/shower. So, now, my search is focussing on the specific brand to select. Cost won't be the determining feature, since I've learned about the hassles of cleaning and tweaking a diesel heater, and I'm quite happy about paying for a dependable, easily maintained system. And, the added advantage of having hot water available (without a propane heater) is very seductive. In the tropics, during the southern leg of my perambulations, it will merely be taking up space, but once I get into the land of perpetual green and damp, it will mean all the world to me. So, any suggestions for the best system for a two-port system for a forty foot multihull?

[newhaul]

Originally Posted by Roy M

When I launched my boat, many years ago, I realized how cold it got at night during several months of a Southern California winter. At first I used an electric space heater, from West Marine, but that meant I was going to be tied to the dock. So, I installed a Dickenson solid fuel fireplace with a flue out the cabintop. That was very nice, and it sucked the humid air right out the flue. I had thought that it would be the best because there is always some wood, somewhere, to burn for free. That was pretty true, and as a boatbuilder, I discovered the enormous heat potential of scrap teak. But what I hadn't prepared for was the waste management. The first time I took the ash drawer out the companionway and got hit by a wind gust, I leaned the downside. Later, I learned to simply dump the ashes in the sink and run some water to flush it all down the drain. Still, it was messy and time-consuming. That solution lasted a couple winters, then it got sold at a swap meet. I still have the chimney flue.

As I prepare to spend some time in the Pacific Northwest, I have returned to continue my quest for heat and dryness inside. For me, the issue is no longer about fuel. Diesel packs the greatest amount of energy in the smallest package, and it's relatively cheap for quantity of heat. I have decided on a diesel forced air system with two ducts. My engine room is in the center of the boat, and all the necessary support infrastructure is there also (access to venting, fuel supply, sound deadening, fire protection, electrical, ease of access for maintenance). Best of all, each duct is only a couple feet long and heats the two sleeping compartments and primary living areas, including the head/shower. So, now, my search is focussing on the specific brand to select. Cost won't be the determining feature, since I've learned about the hassles of cleaning and tweaking a diesel heater, and I'm quite happy about paying for a dependable, easily maintained system. And, the added advantage of having hot water available (without a propane heater) is very seductive. In the tropics, during the southern leg of my perambulations, it will merely be taking up space, but once I get into the land of perpetual green and damp, it will mean all the world to me. So, any suggestions for the best system for a two-port system for a forty foot multihull?

Due to everything u want I would recommend one of the hydronic systems dads new boat has the pro heat system it does a great job of heating his new to him bay liner 3888. Also does the domestic hot water.

[Cavalier MK2]

Put me down for your chimney flue Roy. I've got a Newport kicking around somewhere.

I liked the idea of the Wallace range but not the price.

Right now its a Origo 5100 but it doesn't get used much. Can't imagine sleeping with anything burning on a boat. On land I have a vented propane catalitic Platinum Cat that is pretty nice for radient heat and low 12 volt draw.

[rabbi]

Originally Posted by psychfeld

I'm trying to find out what is a more feasible way to incorporate an efficient heat source in a catamaran. I'm going to be circumnavigating with whichever cat I buy and there don't seem to be many with existing heat. So I will probably be installing something aftermarket.

I'd like to find out what anyone's experience has been with whatever heat source they've been using. I have used a small West Marine space heater in my small sailboat in the Seattle winters. They suck a tremendous amount of power for the heat provided. I would like a heat source that could work independent of shore power.

I don't seem to find any threads on CF searching for heater or heating systems, maybe I am not searching properly.

Thanks!

First think about how often you will need it and in what climates. Just the few cold days outside the normal season or overwintering at anchor?
For the later i would go for a water based diesel heater. Espar and webasto come to my mind.
Other wise forced air is OK in my book.

Many manufacturers offer forced air heating as optional extra for enormous amounts of money. That means that there is definately space to route the ducting, but it may be much harder to install it afterwards than during the production.


We have a forced air diesel heater from espar, a small D1-20 with 4kW. Last easter we ran it from dusk till dawn. It sips around 0.4 lietrs per hour at full load and 0.15 liters a lowest setting. Battery draw was ok, between 0.8A at low speed and 2.5A at full speed, more when starting. Cost off the internet was around 1400 euro for everything, including ducting, exhaust, silencers, etc
Installation was doable for DYIbut took some time for routing the ducts and planning the intake / exhaust.

[Roy M]

Cavalier MK2, you can check it out when I get up to your neighborhood next summer. I'll be aiming at Anacortes as my initial base. We can plan a raft-up somewhere convenient and pretty. The location of the old Newport heater, though, is now being taken over by a freezer in the aft cabin.