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rebel heart · 02-12-2010, 06:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skylark

I have a Fab-All manual on the boat, when I get a chance to bust through the snowdrifts I will get it and scan it in.

I use a shot of alcohol to prime the thing, let it burn for 3 or 5 minutes, then turn on the kerosene.

I've used diesel and kerosene for priming; those work too. I think alcohol might actually be able to work in a spray bottle though. I've been trying to come up with a way of holding the primer and delivering it that doesn't look like an alchemy experiment.

Oh, and thanks a lot if you can scan it for me. I'd really appreciate it.

Skylark · 02-12-2010, 09:40

alcohol in a shot glass, dump it in.

**Pblais** · 02-12-2010, 13:31

Our Sigmar looks like yours skylark. we burn diesel. I prime it with a shot of denatured alcohol and toss in a match, then wait for the flame to almost go out then turn on the fuel. For diesel it uses a regulated 2.5 lb fuel pump. There is a dial from 1 to 10 to adjust the flow as well as a damper to adjust the flue. We also have a 12 volt fan like those in a computer mounted to the overhead and it blows down along the flue to pull off the waste heat. It runs off the same power that the fuel pump runs on so you don't have to turn it off and on. The fuel pump is direct connected to the breaker on the panel. The flue is deadly hot. It has a 45 bend to help hold back the heat.

Sigmar no longer makes them but you can get a manual at Gord's link above. The design is very simple so I'm sure more than one vendor sold them.

If you don't adjust it properly you can get a little soot that accumulates over a long period of time.

cburger · 02-12-2010, 14:29

Sigmar no longer makes them but you can get a manual at Gord's link above. The design is very simple so I'm sure more than one vendor sold them.

Paul you're breaking my heart, are you sure that Sig is no longer making heaters. As per Hal Roth's reccomendation in his book I was planning on installing the Sig model 180 in my boat.

**GordMay** · 02-12-2010, 15:43

It seems (to me) that Sigmar (Sig Marine) is still making Propane, Solid Fuel, & Diesel Heaters, and Diesel Stoves.
Here ➥ Welcome to SigMarine.com - Marine Heaters & Stoves - Our Product Line
And ➥ Welcome to SigMarine.com - Order Form

perchance · 02-12-2010, 16:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by wolfenzee

I had a cheap kerosene heater on this boat, last time I put it out I put it out with a fire extinguisher (this was not a fault of the fuel so much as the heater it'self). That said I was going to install a diesel cookstove but it was recommended to me by well experienced individuals to burn kerosene it, it is actually far more efficient/heats up faster than diesel. If I had to choose between propane, kerosene and diesel I would probably get a Dickinson Newport Diesel heater and burn kerosene in it (Dickinson will promptly provide the tweak necessary to do this)....I btw have a wood stove.

How much kero do you carry, where do you store it and can you use it for the diesel in a pinch?

Skylark · 02-12-2010, 17:19

Do you really throw the match into the pot? Doesn't the match ash accumulate? I use a long lighter.

A fan sounds like a good idea, even with my heater mounted as low as possible, my feet still get cold. I use insulated boot inserts as slippers to deal with it, then it is comfortable. Longjohns help against the occasional draft as well.

I have a 2.5 gallon daytank, a 6 gallon canister and a 5 gallon canister. Fuel transfer is done by using a fuel hose with a squeeze bulb on it as a pump. I'm just a weekender so I don't know how much the heater uses if run full time, less than a gallon a day I would guess. If I were on the boat full time my fuel reserves would probably last about 2 weeks. I usually keep the thing on a low to medium setting, so the top of the flames are above the glass (mica) view port. Turning it above that creates more heat so in really cold situations you can turn it up, but most of the time, a low setting is enough.

The tubing to the left of the heater is an air inlet tube. It eliminates backdrafts because the inlet and exhaust are near each other and they have similar pressures on them in windy situations. Also, if there was a backdraft, it would go outside the boat. The downside is another hole in the deck.

**Pblais** · 03-12-2010, 00:04

Amazing it's a whole new web site. The old one was in sorry shape and about the only links that worked were for the older manuals.

cburger · 03-12-2010, 05:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pblais

Amazing it's a whole new web site. The old one was in sorry shape and about the only links that worked were for the older manuals.

This site has actually been around for number of years. Hal Roth's writing on the Sig stove was based on a friend of his that sailed along the coast of Norway for years. The suggestion was to place the muffin fan in the intake flu for better performance, Hal indicated that he used this setup for many years with no trouble, and could sail the boat with the heater running on any angle of heal, once even in a gale.

**Pblais** · 03-12-2010, 06:04

It was always a site but the content was not the same. They really have spruced it up with all new pages. There still are a few odd things about it . The spare parts are not really current. The old units used A Walbro bellows diesel pump. That part is no longer made. The belows eventually go bad and it leaks (mine did). The new ones have no bellows but do use a separate regulator. I would not use an old Walbro pump. It can be anything that can self regulate to 2.5 lbs. The adjustment is at the needle valve on the heater.

I saw they added an auto shutoff for the flue temperature. That would be a good idea. The heater really can put out the heat. Ours is directly plumbed to the forward fuel tank. You can use a small in-line fuel filter as they don't need much filtering

I really would not use it under sail. Mine is mounted pretty far forward just in front of the mast step. The chimney cap is mounted just a few inches above the deck. I have a flat solid cap I put on it with rigging tape. For me it could also be a sheet catcher when the real cap is mounted. I can also take water on deck at the mast step.

They are a reasonable price and have few moving parts. The chimney vents the moisture generated by the combustion and anything that you really need to be warm with will saturate the cabin if you don't vent the stove. You must learn to manually set the flow rate and adjust the damper. Getting it a little off can yield soot in the cabin. You may not see it but after a winter aboard you'll need to scrub all the walls and surfaces. It can impregnate the upholstery.

I would use caution attempting to force the intake air. Turbo charging the heater could yield some undesired effects. It drives the temperature really high. Because Hal Roth did it is not a sure sign you should do it too. For the NE US I don't see that extra trubo charging is required. These heaters do generate a lot of heat just the way they are.

For something better a truck heater is all self contained and has an electric blower and runs on a thermostat and are exceptionally efficient and totally effective. They cost more. Friends with a sister ship sail out of Marblehead, MA and swear by it. Having a good heater in the NE is clearly a good idea.

Mainebristol · 03-12-2010, 06:15

Hi. Not to sidetrack, but I have an old Shipmate that I just refurbished. It was installed by the PO, and when I first got the boat five years ago, I fired up the heater which immediately smelled and gave me a headache. I ripped the thing out and it lurked in my basement for years, because I was afraid of it. Finally, I rebuilt the top of it, gluing it together with stove cement from the big box store. No more smell! I will reinstall it, but ONLY after I install a couple of CO detectors. These are cheap. My wife and daughter sleep on board. What could be more important?