Adding heating to interior!

[Gixermark]

Hi All
Bit of a dilema :

We want to use the Bongo ( fully converted ) more during the colder weather, however, wild camping means no electric heater! We have been toying with the idea of buying a small 2 berth caravan to tow behind the Bongo but having caravanned for many years we have decided against this, not only because of the extra money involved ( insurance, service etc ) but also the hassle of where to put it when not in use.

Sooooo, I know from talking to some at the Bash earlier in the year they had heating ( Webasto I believe like fitted to lorries ) in theirs, just wondered what the best move would be to have ours done? Any ideas / advice / est cost's involved please?

Thanks all
Mark
Mmmm, just been searching and found Propex heaters! I'm handy with fitting and think I can put one under my rock/roll bed, vent through the floor and take gas supply from the gas bottle in the rear of the vehicle. Anyone know of these heaters?

[salexander]

Hi Mark, I put a Propex in my van earlier in the year. They come up on eBay frequently, but even older spec models seemed to go for big money when I looked (older versions use a bit more electricity). I phoned Propex to see if they had any factory refurbished units, which they didn't at the time. However, I did get a customer return which they did for about 20% off of list price if I recall.
I fitted mine under the R&R bed and it works very well. they are quite noisy compared to an electric fan heater, but not really a big problem. They now do a unit that can be fitted externally which would certainly be a possibility with all of the free space under the Bongo.
I plan to move the Propex when I redo some of the interior, probably fitting it in place of the rear heater/aircon when I remove it.

Stephen

[Velocette]

I bought an Airtop 2000 secondhand from ebay and had it fitted by a Webasto specialist. It is highly effective. I think if I was doing it again I would ask the guy at the Webasto specialist if they had any secondhand ones, might get a better deal on supply and fit. Quite easy to fit yourself if you are handy but mine was a fuel tank out job as I had the standpipe fitted so that the heater can't empty the tank. If you want to fit it under the front seat you might have to do it yourself as my Webasto man wouldn't put it there due to damp conditions etc. (More likely that it becomes a much more involved job!).

[Simon Jones]

Eberspacher is another make which is pretty much the same as Webasto but a lot more readily available 2nd hand. There are a couple of factsheets in the members area on fitting these in a diesel Bongo. I'm about to fit one in my V6 which will have a separate diesel tank.

[briwy]

Its a fairly straightforward job Mark to fit a diesel heater, especially on the earlier Bongos.
If buying secondhand make sure you get ALL the bits, pump,wiring, tubing, switches etc as a lot on eBay are just ripped out of utility vans without much care. It can be quite costly to buy the missing pieces if it's not all there as I found out the on first one I did.

[scanner]

which will have a separate diesel tank.

You can save a bit of cash by running it on heating oil then

[helen&tony]

Hi
Not being sarcastic , but how often will you use it in cold weather, and how cold?
If you use the right grade sleeping bag, you won't need heating...We use a good wide duvet, and when crunched up in a van, it's very warm, as the duvet is concertina'd up making it highly efficient, and we use an opened out sleeping bag to kip on!.....
If it's extra cold, climb into bed, grab a tinny of your favourite, and watch a DVD....KOOL!
Cheers
Helen

[wilnx005]

I'm just about to fit an eber D2 to my bongo in readiness for the winter.
The fact sheet in the member area is fab! I'll have to let you know how I get on .
Just waiting for a few bits and pieces to arrive

[Velocette]

In the Uk it can get cold enough for it to be useful any time of year but we have mostly used ours for getting dressed in the morning or watching films at night, Scotland in June would not have been much fun without it the weeks we went. A lot of people would have given up and gone home but it wa one of the things that made the weather tolerable.

[Simon Jones]

Warm sleeping bags aren't very practical when you're sat down by the coast on a winters afternoon enjoying the view with a nice cup of tea. We tend to use an electric heater and blanket when on site in the evening, but a diesel heater gives you the flexibility to use it when out and about or on a site with no hookup.

If you go for Webasto or Eberspacher, get an exhaust silencer as it will make it much quieter.

[Northern Bongolow]

I'm just about to fit an eber D2 to my bongo in readiness for the winter.
The fact sheet in the member area is fab! I'll have to let you know how I get on .
Just waiting for a few bits and pieces to arrive

you wont regret it mate. and as simon says fit a silencer to the exhaust---------------and the inlet side, this can roar like a harrier jump jet when the unit initially starts up, making for silent washing up sessions in the morning on the posh sites.

[Gixermark]

Thanks all for your input.
Decided to go with the Propex system in the end ....initial cost & ease of diy fitting was the decider! On its way from VW Heritage so i will be a busy man next week!!!!

[wilnx005]

Hmmmm not the best of starts! I went to start the process of fitting the eber to my 96 bongo - after reading the pre facelift fact sheet - expecting there to be a nice big space! but sods law mine has a lot of component in the way. So I scratched my head a little and read the facelift eber fact sheet by Brian, it seems that I have the winter pack in there! So it looks like I'll have to remove, relocate that lot first

[wilnx005]

Eberespacher fully fitted and it’s brilliant! - I'm very happy with it.
I paid £400 for a year old D2 - with everything, I took a bit of a gamble with ebay but I didn't want to either pay the new price or pick up a tiered BT example for £150.

The fitting is very simple in my opinion, most of my time was spent fabrication the mounting plate, removing the winter pack bits and drilling the 64mm holes for the main air input / output with rubbish hole saw. The actual electrics, mounting and tapping into the fuel system was really easy!

I'm just going to install fire alarm and carbon monoxide alarm for piece of mind with having the little ones.