Should I get a Proheat or Webasto heater?

[belfert]

Nimco has the Proheat XL45 (45K BTUs) or the Webasto DBW 2020 (80K BTUs) for the same price.  Takeouts of course.

Any opinions on which would be a better choice for radiant heat in a coach?  I'm leaning towards Proheat from what I have read, but Webasto heaters are much more common and may be easier to get parts and service.

45,000 BTUs should be plenty so that should not be an issue.

Brian Elfert

[Burgermeister]

Proheat

[H3Jim]

The Webasto at 80k btu is too much capacity, will not be good for it to cycle too much.   Go for the proheat.

[belfert]

Anybody else have an opinion?

Brian Elfert

[white-eagle]

Being new to all this, i guess i'd ask where you live and where do you plan on needing this.  since we are not mobile enough, in Ohio, where there is snow and ice too many days of the year, i'd lean toward the higher btu in order to be able to heat the bays as well as the living area.  also, i'm interested in the explanations since we only have toe kick heat, and none in the basement, so i'm looking for a solution also.

[belfert]

I'm only looking to provide interior heat and domestic hot water down to maybe 40 degrees.

Brian Elfert

[Stan]

A tin box with a row of windows could not be heated with the 80k unit. A properly insulated bus with most of the windows removed and new quality RV type windows installed can be heated with the 45k unit.  I live about 400 miles north of the 49th and my 1300 square foot house is heated on two levels with 120k BTU furnace.   There is no problem keeping it warm at -40 with the wind blowing. If you need more than 45k in  320 square feet you have a problem.

Keep in mind that all the same factors will determine how much A/C you will need in hot weather.

For years the public has been inundated with information on insulatiion in houses but some busnuts still think that it doesn't apply to them.  Most pf us have buses that were built when fuel was cheap for A/C  and engine heat was free.

[buswarrior]

Hello heater enthusiasts.

Another variable to consider along the lines of how are you going to use the coach:

How quickly do you want or need the coach to heat up from cold?

Now, Brian only needs a small heater due to his target environment and heating needs.

For someone who will be returning to a cold coach, depending on the latitude, and as Stan points out, insulation and window count, and if your coach is "drafty" and the wind is blowing....

I have seen too many emergency responce support units that sit outdoors, stone cold, that when pressed into service, are simply useless and very much unloved by the user group because they take a couple of hours to warm up. Usually someone lifted the specs from a stick and staple to arrive at the design criteria.

The amount of furnace/heater to keep it warm is far less than the BTU's needed to get it warm quickly.

A four cylinder engine will get you there, but on a short freeway onramp, a V8 might be preferred?

For those who aren't sure what to choose, nice thing about these Proheat/Webasto beasts, for a modest extra cost, you may design your piping sizes a little larger to accomodate a potential upgrade, and just leave the space in the heater compartment to fit a bigger one.

happy coaching!
buswarrior

[Stan]

I only have personal knowledge on one 80k Webasto in a MC-8 and it was removed after a few months because of high battery drain and frequent cycling.

A big boiler doesn't put more heat in the coach unless you have the heater cores, finned pipe or kick space heaters to accomodate the output of the boiler. Space to install heat output units is at a premium in a bus. An 80k boiler could be piped into the original bus central heat core but the battery drain on the large fan would kill you.

Buses being converted by the people on this board are not usually being done for emegency vehicles.   You just turn on the heat the day before you plan to leave so that you can flush out your water system and put fresh water in the tank and let the spouse get the refrigerator filled up, working in a warm bus.

Before you go to bed, open the valves to let the Webasto circulate through the engine and you are ready to go first thing in the morning.

[white-eagle]

I was reading thru the manual (see, i told you i was green at this) and noticed it says there was a Wabasto heater on the Eagles optionally, to preheat the engine and heat the bus?  Does that mean there may be something left that we can use to tie into our coolant line to heat the bus.  Also, the previous post or two back mentioned about turning on the wabasto a day ahead to heat things up in the engine.

also, this is off topic, but everyone seems pretty aware of where to get "stuff".  i've got a thermostatic controller for my hydraulic engine fan that was spraying oil, so we tied it off and the fan runs full speed.  i want to get a new hydralic thermostatic controller put it before it gets cold so that itdoesn't run full speed when it shouldn't.  suggestions on parts yards that might have one, or a method of repairing.  if you know what it looks like, the hydraulic half seem to have come loose from the sensor section that bolts into the coolant pipes.  if you don't hold it together, oil squirts out.  if this should go onto a separate post, someone just tell me and i'll start a new question. or just send an answer to my email.
thanks

[H3Jim]

Manasst,

Yes, the Webasto or Espar heater that came with our buses - mostly the newr 4 strokes, are in fact plumbed in as engine preheaters.  There are many ways to use / modify this for RV use.

keep it as is

create an entire separate system using the preheater, but use a heat exchanger to join the systems - engine can heat hot water, or go the other way and pre heat the engine.  can use it to heat domestic hot water, as well as the coach.

various combinations of this whether or not you create a separate system,

[white-eagle]

unfortunately, if i have one on this bus, it's hidden cuase i don't see it.  i was hopin ther'd be some integration left so i wouldn't have to start from scratch.

[JackConrad]

Tom,
   I did not see any sign of a Webasto on your coach. There wouls have to be an extra exhaust pipe coming from the webasto if it was "hidden".  Jack