Ebersp채cher D4 Maritime diesel heater installation. This is not a detailed technical instruction, which you get included in the Ebersp채cher package. this is just an exampleof how it can be built into a Ballad. I put the heater in the port cockpit locker, which dobbles as pilot berth, all the way aft, and as high as possible. I asked the local machine shop to cut and bend a suiteable "bracket" out of 2mm stainless steel plate. I bolted it on using the existing deck/hull assembly bolts. The white thing around the black hot air pipe is a piece of plastic pipe, drain pipe, to protect from luggage. At first I only used drain pipe, but it meltes in 10 minutes. The black pipe is an extra heavy quality, which does not crush so easily. I then added the plastic pipe as extra protection on exposed positions. Here the pipe divides. One branch goes backwards to the original outlet just out of the picture to the left. the other one is the original pipe going forward to the outlet under the hanger cabinet. The pipe for the new extra outlet is protected with a plastic pipe. This is the original piping going forward to the oulet you can se to the left of the white 220V power outlet, in the upper right corner. I made holes in the pipe where it goes through the hanger locker, to have warm air dry the clothes in the locker. Exhaust pipe (insulated), Combustion air intake pipe, fresh air intake pipe, Fuel pipe (in aprotective pipe). Below them all the protective pipe holdign the electrial wire for the fuel pump. Having the heater in the pilot berth is not in every way perfest. The original haeter was way out at the transom, and that might turn out to have been a less noisy solution. I will have to take a few more pictures, and maybe draw up a plan, to give a fuller impression of how I found room for everything. But questions are welcome. Jesper Milling  | I wanted to add some impression of the piping in the aft locker. This is not a solution to a very big problem, could have been done just as well in many other ways, but gives an impression of what it takes to install a heater. The fresh air intake for ventilation and heating, is not led to an outside intake. The instructions said it was better to take the air from th locker, since in wearst case scenarios it would be drier air. The burner air intake pipe was led to the old burner air intake box, which is a contraption that will sepate any water coming in from the air, simply by gravity. For this reason the box has an outlet for the water too. The exhaust pipe should not be allowed to touch anything even though it is insulated. This is difficult. 5 millimeter distance should however be enough, and the importers service guy came by, inspected and approved. (a little too quickly though I think). I hope the pictures are of some interest, questions are welcome. How this huge heater (4000 watt) works in a small yacht I will report on later. Jesper Milling |
 | Hi Jesper,
I just bought a Webasto 2000st to replace my 30 years old Ebensp채cher. I will built it in the same way in as you did in your ship. My question is: did you use the original hole through the transom for the exhaust pipe or did you make a new hole? I did studie your photo's , but I am not sure.
Kind regards,
Gerard |
| Hi Gerard I did not use the old hole for the exhaust, because I have a small hinged platform on my transom, which is in the way of the old exhaust. If you look at the last picture in this posting, you see a plywood plate, which covers the original hole. You also see the second hole I made for the original heater, which is still open. This second hole was positioned too high for the exhaust outlet that came with my heater. So I had to make a third hole. Chances are good that you can use the old hole, if you don't have something on the outside, like I do, which is in the way. good luck with the heater, I just turned mine on yesterday to test it and we easily went to 21 degreees celsius, with 0 degrees celsius outside (4000 Watt Eberspächer). It was a quiet day however, with no wind. |
 | Hi Gerard: I bought a Webasto Airtop 2000 last October and I just finished with the installation. I used the same mounting location for the unit as Jesper but, since my Ballad is the version with the aft-facing chart table, I made some modifications to the routing. One of the things which I highly recommend is to insulate the warm air hoses with some type of material. Webasto markets special Thinsulate insulation which is great but expensive. I used Eurobatex insulation--also known by the brand name Armaflex--which is used for hot water pipes and it was 1/10th the price of Thinsulate (about 1 euro per metre). Also, unlike Eberspaecher's twin-walled exahust, Webasto's exhaust is single-walled, so that needs more insulation as it gets very hot. As the local agent couldn't give me any info I contacted Eberbasto UK and ordered a length of a woven silicon sock (similar to what is used on race car exhausts--see photo). I then wrapped this with a thin sheet of rockwool (40mm) and then inserted the whole lot into flexible aluminium tubing. I ended up with a thicker diameter exhaust but it's no longer a hazard. I also installed a small diesel tank close to the unit since I wanted the engine and heater to be on completely separate fuel circuits. I will be taking some photos of the installation the next few days so, if you haven't finished already with yours, you may find them helpful. -Nicholas Moments of Clarity #334 |
| I have promised to report on the efficiency of the Ebesp채cher 4000. We just went sailing with one overnight stop, with a couple of friends who slept in the the fore cabin. The weather was not tooo hard, wind around 6-8 m/s, and temperatures just below freezing point. We often had the cabin entrance open, either for getting in or out or for fresh air. At no time did we have any trouble, or lack of heat. The thermostatic regulator was adjusted when necessary, and the heater was always strong enough to raise the temperature quickly. But then again, it wasn't really that cold. Stronger wind, in an open anchorage and minus 10 degrees would have been a better test, but that will have to wait. We ran out of fuel though. The pipe for the heater, in the dieseltank, does not go down as low as the pipe for the engine. This is to keep a little fuel left for the engine. How much is left I don't know. We put on 20 extra iters of diesel, and started the heater again. We had to start it twice, before it kept running. probably it didn't get the fuel pumped all the way to the heater in the first try before it automatically shut down, for security reasons. But eventually it ran as normal again. Finally off course, as an attempt to evaluate the nessecity for the 4000 watt heater in stead of the 2000 watt heater must say that the heater on startup ran at a very high power. I don't think the little heater would have been as quick, but I can't say if it would eventually have ahieved the same temperature. Jesper |
| Hi Nicholas and Jesper,
I just finished the installion of the Webasto 1000ST in my Ballad. I used the old connection on my dieseltank for fuel support. I bought a complete set from Webasto to install the heather on a boat. So I have a spare pipe and connection for the fuel tank left. The heather worked instantly, I only had to restart it about 4 times for pumping the fuel to the heather. The fuel pump is placed 70cm above the bottem of the tank and the total distance is 180cm. I did not insulate the exhaust and the warm air hose. Maybe I will insulate the piping which is in the pilotbunk and I will insulate the warm airhose with simular material as you used . I also used the old silencer from the cold air intake from the Ebensp채cher as you can see on the picture. This week I came aboard. It was inside the boat minus 3 degrees. In one and a half our the heather raised the temperature to 10 degrees. My boat was empty and the wall with a cold easterly wind. In the water , you will have a better insulation. Of course 4000 watt heather will do the job much better. However for 3 seasons I think it wil be okay.
Gerard
Mallejan #1144Attachment: P1000016.JPG |
| Hi Gerard Thanks for your posting. It's interesting to know that a 1000 watt heater, is able to maintain a 13 degree temperature difference, at least. In a ballad. I never tried the maximum temperature difference I could achieve with the 4000 watt Eberspächer I have, but at least 25 degrees. Probably more. In a windy anchorage even more effect would be needed, off course. No doubt that in many a chilly evening and night, your Webasto 1000Watt will be sufficient. And what a difference it makes to have a heater! Summer as well as winter! I noticed that you did in fact insulate the exhaust where it runs real close to the fiberglass. This is very important! Fiberglass burns like a gasflame, fast and furiously. If a heater ignites the fiberglass, the chances of putting out the fire is small, unless discovered immediately. And all the boat will burn away to the waterline, and sink. So we have to very carefull with insulating the exhaust pipe on heaters. Jesper Milling. |
| Sorry Jesper, it is a Webasto Airtop 2000ST. Mayby I confused it with the number 1000 of an Autohelm. Thanks for the advice for the insulation of the exhaust pipe. I will take this seriously.
Gerard
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| Hi Gerard Even more interesting. If you installed a 2000 watt heater, and achieved only 10 degrees, even in very tough conditions like strong wind, and out of the water, then I am really happy that I chose the 4000 watt Ebesp채cher and not the 2000 watt Ebersp채cher that was only a little less axpensive. Especially since we were just out sleeping in the boat December 30th as I have been boasting about previously on every occasion possible. On the other hand, I feel certain that the 2000 watt will be quite sufficient in 3 out of 4 seasons. Enjoy your heater, when you get back into the water. It'll make a world of difference for you. Thanks for the correction which was most interesting. Jesper Milling |
 | I installed an Ebersp채cher Airtronic D2 in my 'Josin' before last season, and blessed it's often-used warmth on an extended cruise up to north Norway and back last wet and cold 'summer'. The installation is similar to Jesper's, but mounted further forward, behind the false bulkhead which closes off the bunk. (This was never used as a bunk, but often for wet sails). I have led the combustion exhaust in a short hose out into the cockpit just aft of the mainsheet traveller. Helps to warm up cold feet! Rest of ducting very like Jesper's, except for a branch outlet in the botom of the hanging cupboard Fuel supply is from the standard fuel tank. Engine fuel is now from a new 65 liter tank mounted under the cockpit floor in the large space made available by mounting the exhaust water lock inside the engine hood. (see an earlier article on exhaust problems). Fuel from standard tank can be routed to engine if needed. I have two comments: 1) The unit gets very hot shortly after startup. Hot enough to melt the tape holding the outside of the insulation in place. 2) Control, by thermostat only, makes it very difficult to ensure operation on low setting only, used to dry out wet clothing in the hanging cupboard. Manual control needed. To do something about the hot problem I'm considering ducting the ventilation air past the hot areas before entering the heat exchanger. It would slightly pre-heat the ventilation air, which is positive, but also raise the unit's overall temperature, which is probably not a good thing. Experiment will show. Any comments, you heated people? I'm in (slow) correspondance with supplier to try and have a control over-ride to force operation onto one or other of the four levels of heating. Cabin heating really is a comfort item, uses very little fuel and saves my old bones from the dreaded shivers. |
| I cut holes in the hot air pipe where it goes through the hanging cupboard. Also for drying wet clothes. Jesper Milling |
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