frost thermostat too high setting

[umpire111]

have a frost stat on my Eberspacher- left the boat but have been told by nearby boat residents that it is on for prolonged periods and when it has not been too cold. Upon checking see that it comes on at 5C or below and cannot be altered- surely that is set too high and it should only come on at say 2C or below. The cost of the diesel is also a factor. Turned off all the 12v circuits but still plugged into mains and it still comes on.

Question

1. is 5C too high for a winter setting

2. how do I isolate the heater

3. have an oil filled 700w radiator with frost guard that I intend to put in the boat over winter, will that suffice but I shall drain water

4. do I have to empty the waste tank for winter?

[by'eck]

That's the fixed frost stat setting on my Mikuni controller. In fact it doesn't fire up until around 4degC and turns off at 6degC.

[umpire111]

so that be costly if we have cold below 4C weather

[Southern Star]

This will be my first Winter (I'm not yet a liveaboard) so I don't know if I have got it right, but I'm not going to bother with any type of heating because heat rises and all of the water system is at the bottom of my boat. I can't see how heating the roof will stop the pipes or tank from freezing.

 

I drain the water tank via the taps, until every last drop of water has spluttered out, then I leave all taps open. The water tank and calorifier are well insulated but both are beneath the water line anyway and even if the marina freezes over, which I doubt, everything below the inch or two of surface ice will be above zero anyway.

 

I have an Eberspacher in my truck, it does the job of heating up the cab but the thermostat is next to useless.

[b0atman]

If your eberspacher is too noisy then is silencer suitable for it ?

Why carry on upsetting neighbours who will soon complain to marina management and then a rule will be made banning the use of diesel heaters overnight.

Use electric tubular heaters suitably mounted if on shore power or sort silencer.

[ditchcrawler]

This will be my first Winter (I'm not yet a liveaboard) so I don't know if I have got it right, but I'm not going to bother with any type of heating because heat rises and all of the water system is at the bottom of my boat. I can't see how heating the roof will stop the pipes or tank from freezing.

 

I drain the water tank via the taps, until every last drop of water has spluttered out, then I leave all taps open. The water tank and calorifier are well insulated but both are beneath the water line anyway and even if the marina freezes over, which I doubt, everything below the inch or two of surface ice will be above zero anyway.

 

I have an Eberspacher in my truck, it does the job of heating up the cab but the thermostat is next to useless.

Good luck

[b0atman]

only if boat is full of water.

the problem is air temperature and you could end up with some big bills so drain everything down unless it has antifreeze in it (thinking radiators here) and that is to correct strength.

Otherwise Good luck and we may have a mild winter.

[PaulG]

If your eberspacher is too noisy then is silencer suitable for it ?

Why carry on upsetting neighbours who will soon complain to marina management and then a rule will be made banning the use of diesel heaters overnight.

Use electric tubular heaters suitably mounted if on shore power or sort silencer.

Electric heaters are great, but I would not rely on their own built-in thermostats for frost protection.

It's worthwhile spending a few bob on a plug-in, digital type thermostat.

In my experience these pay for themselves in a few weeks.

[Naughty Cal]

Electric heaters are great, but I would not rely on their own built-in thermostats for frost protection.

It's worthwhile spending a few bob on a plug-in, digital type thermostat.

In my experience these pay for themselves in a few weeks.

Wouldnt trust the plug in ones again. During the harsh winter we had the one in our engine bay freeze off leaving the expensive raw water coolers at the mercy of the weather.

 

We now leave ours on 24/7. Might cost a few quid more but the coolers are safe!

[Sea Dog]

have a frost stat on my Eberspacher- left the boat but have been told by nearby boat residents that it is on for prolonged periods and when it has not been too cold. Upon checking see that it comes on at 5C or below and cannot be altered- surely that is set too high and it should only come on at say 2C or below. The cost of the diesel is also a factor. Turned off all the 12v circuits but still plugged into mains and it still comes on.

Question

1. is 5C too high for a winter setting

2. how do I isolate the heater

3. have an oil filled 700w radiator with frost guard that I intend to put in the boat over winter, will that suffice but I shall drain water

4. do I have to empty the waste tank for winter?

 

You may wish to look at how you use your diesel heater for reasons other than disturbing the neighbours, Below is a direct quote from Eberspacher's Technical Bulletin 281 dated 05/2012, which details the main reasons they found for the premature failure of diesel heaters on inland waterways boats:

 

Using the heater as a frost watch heater is not advisable. If it must be done, keep the radiators turned up so the

heater runs in its high heat mode, rather than starting up and running in low heat, i.e. ticking over.