www.espar.com/htm/applies/marine.htm
www.eberspacher.com/marine1.php?section=marine
Does anybody up in the north have cabin heat onboard? If so what do you have and do you like it?
My local guy is suggesting:
The Espar unit that has been suggested for
your size vessel is the Espar D4. It is a two outlet system starting at
$2111.00. The Webasto unit that is recommended is the Webasto AT3500, another
two outlet system, this one starting at $2333.00.
Installation for either unit will take
anywhere from 16 hours and beyond at $65/hour.
Experience reports with either of these would be most welcome. Equally welcome are descriptions of
alternatives. Thanks.
Greg January 2001
_______________________________________________________________________
Greg,
The forced air Espar is wonderful. We had one on a boat we
borrowed from some friends when sailing north of
________________________________________________________________________
Todd,
We have had fairly extensive experience
with the Espar (also called Eberspacher) on a boat that we have used for the
past three or four summers along the coast of
The price you are being quoted is
typical, but outrageous. Two problems - the units being sold in the
You can buy the same unit from Chandleries
in
The major problem with ordering it from
We had the same unit on a boat we
chartered this past Fall in
regards,
________________________________________________________________________
What is the diameter of the venting flue that goes through the coach roof? I presently have a Force 10 Cozy Cabin Diesel heater. It uses a pressurized tank, and a Primus type of burner. It looks a lot better than it performs. It was a bit too cozy for comfort, when it flamed out of control and practically burned up the boat. I subsequently learned how to use it at less risk, but still don't feel comfortable with it. I had thought of converting to the Propane version, but the notion of adding yet another propane line into the cabin was not appealing. The worst part of the Cozy Cabin Force 10 is that it just doesn't put out enough heat to really warm things even during our San Diego winters (temps in the 40's), and is near worthless when the companionway is open to the cockpit.
In the event that we end up trucking
north to
regards,
________________________________________________________________________
It's been a while but the last time I was up
Kevin McPadden October 2003
________________________________________________________________________
With all the talk of cabin heaters, I did some research on Webasto and Espar
units. Both of these units are considered the "Porsches" of
heaters from what I read.
Espar is one brand of diesel heater that uses forced air. List
price is around $4,200 for the 5LC unit which
would work in a Tayana. Below is a website to obtain the manuals on their
products....They also sell hydronic units as well. Most research I read,
says to stay away from hydronic units on smaller boats due to complexity and
maintenance etc. www.espar.com/htm/tecmans.htm .
Webasto is a second brand with costs around $3,200 for their AT 5000 unit which would work in a Tayana. Again, the below website is not listed, but contains all their manuals....
http://www.techwebasto.com/blueheat_main.htm
.
Both units are made in
One issue I see with both these styles of heaters that are considered
"forced air" versus types like
I see the advantage of the forced air type of heater is the
complete lack of diesel smell. Has anyone had good luck with bulkhead
mounted heaters? I really hate the smell of diesel and would like to
have some heat while anchoring on cold nights. I froze my Christmas
ornaments off in
John Hovan s/v Celtic Dream October
2004
________________________________________________________________________
Gerard,
If I was ready to buy a high end unit, I
also would choose Webasto. I think the Espar unit is simply too much
money. The Espar rep even admitted that their unit cost was somewhat
higher.
John Hovan October 2004
________________________________________________________________________
I had an Espar heater (D-5) installed on my Mason 43 about 6 weeks ago. So
far, it
is doing fine and keeping us toasty in the
I also had an Espar (D-4) on the
Tayana 37 I lived on for about 5 years, back in the early 90's. That
heater was the primary reason I bought another Espar.
A couple thoughts on Espar’s:
1) I have always heard that a proper electrical installation of the Espar is essential. If you cannot do this yourself, then pay someone to do it. In fact, the only problems I have ever encountered with my Espar’s have been electrical in nature, and stemming from the boat (i.e. battery charger being turned off), rather than the heater.
2) Make sure you are able to keep the voltage up high. If the batteries begin to loose voltage, the glow plug and screen will become fouled. If you do not have a constant readout volt meter on board, the Espar will notify you of the fouling by blowing smoke and your smelling diesel exhaust. With my current battery setup, I can be off shore power (or alternator) for about 5 days without a voltage problem
3) Carry spares (glow plug, screen, filter and fuel metering pump)
4) Have the heater serviced annually. This includes cleaning of the blower motor and changing the glow plug and screen. This is especially true for cruisers, in that they tend to have much lower voltages than boats that are
kept on shore power during the heating season.
5) As far as fuel consumption is concerned, I do not know at this time. I would venture to say somewhere between 1-3 gallons a day, depending upon the weather.
Things I like about the Espar:
1) Being a diesel heater, it requires that I use the fuel in my tanks, rather than have it age.
2) It tends to be quiet. Granted, you hear the sound of warm air blowing and the ticking of the fuel metering pump, but that is something easily lived with.
Enough for now, Jim Burns January 2005
________________________________________________________________________
In regards to the Espar D-5 Heaters:
Cost: Someplace between $2,000 - 3,000
if you install it yourself. If you have it done for you on a Tayana 37 it
might cost between $5,000 -6,000.
Noise: The noise exiting the transom is surprisingly quiet. In
fact, having had an older Espar, I was very surprised at how quiet it is.
On my boat, most folks coming aboard are not even aware the heater is on while standing
in the front of the cockpit. Bear in mind that my boat is a Mason, so the
transom is not quite as exposed as a Tayana.
Ducking requirements: Mostly we have runs of 3 inch ducting. Some
are 4 inch. Granted, this is much larger than the hoses required for the
newer hydronic systems. Some folks like to run the hoses through the
bilge, which keeps the engine and all warm. However, when exposed to the
dampness of the bilge, they reportedly last only 3-4 years.
Heating ability: My kids like a cabin temp of about 65 degrees. To achieve
that temperature, we keep the heater at a relative low setting (5 of 15).
We might bump it up several notches if the temps go into the low 20's or teens.
I hope this help you out.
Jim Burns January 2005
________________________________________________________________________