Date: Mon, 26 Oct 1998 14:19:29 -0600
Reply-To: Rob Wright <wright@APS.ANL.GOV>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From: Rob Wright <wright@APS.ANL.GOV>
Subject: Re: aux. heater questions
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Well first your heater should be a eberspacher ba6,and your right about the altitude
your heater is probably set up for sea level,the pump will have to be adjusted here
is a paragraph which explains this,but use the Bentley book as a guide.
Here's the part you've all been waiting for, adjusting the fuel/air mix (which
is why I put it at the end of the article,
naturally). The manual states that 18.4 to 21.7 cm. of fuel should be dispensed
every 200 ticks of the fuel pump. I did
this and the heater smoked liked a runaway freight train. Due to the nature of the
beast, that being that these heaters are
nothing more than big carburetors, they have to be setup for altitude. Since there's
no timing adjustment you can only
throttle back on the fuel to accommodate the lower oxygen density at higher
altitudes. If you're in the mountains (I'm at
5,280') then you want to keep throttling back on the fuel pump until the heater
stops smoking. Leave the heater at this
setting for a week or so then check the tabs and propeller on the end of the
combustion motor fan. If the tabs, etc. show
signs of being burnt you need to richen the mixture a little so as to cool off the
charge. If you get things too lean you'll
fry the fan and the heater won't work very well if at all, so keep checking the
state of the fan until you're happy that it's
not getting toasted. I did not write this paragraph i found it at this very
interesting link. http://www.type2.com/bartnik/ba6art.htm There is lots of good info
here so check it out.
As far as using the heater for camping it is probably possible but the
current draw is pretty substantial so you would have to charge your batteries some
how.As far co i would buy one of those co detectors and keep it in the van to be
safe.As far as parts you have to go to VW or the junkyard.Well i hope this helps if
you have anymore questions let me no.
Rob Wright
82 westy
85 mercedes 300 td-t
Iaonbb@aol.com wrote:
> Hi Rob...I was wondering if you'd be kind enough to play heater "guru" for
> me...I've got an '80 westy w/ the gas heater underneath...don't know the
> history too well but I've used it for a couple years now. It also smokes...
> however I live in Colorado and have been told that it is due to the altitude.
> I run it all winter from 5,000-11,000 feet back and forth from Ft. Collins to
> Steamboat. It kicks out heat like no other but it also smells horrible. I've
> got the Bentley manual but find it to be less than helpful. I've called around
> and no one seems to know or even care about them...most certainly won't
> service or repair them. We were camping in Winter Park last year and just
> happened to look underneath the bus- very surprised to see a large blue flame
> shooting out the bottom! needless to say i don't use it quite as much at
> elevation anymore. I've also heard people talk about using it while parked or
> camping but when I tried that it worked ok, but wouldn't start
> afterwards...possibly a large drain on the battery? some kind of safety switch
> that is bad? I've got an auxillary battery and have located the power wire
> under the dash, possibly rewire it to the aux. battery? anyway...I'll just
> list all the questions I've ever had and if you could answer any of them for
> me, or refer me to someone who can I'd really appreciate it!!!
> 1. what model is it (i've seen eberspacher, nb2, or something???)
> 2. can i use it while camping?, if so how, is there any battery drain, can I
> use the aux. battery, what about emissions inside the vehicle?
> 3. what serice work should I do? can it be adjusted for elevation so it
> doesn't run too rich, will it adapt to changing elevations?
> 4. Are they even safe-i've been told they can explode! I run it at least once
> a week-even in the summer, just to keep it in working order
> 5. where can i get parts if necessary?
> Any info would be gratefully appreciated...TIA MMBITNER
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