CHINESE DIESEL HEATER - LOW SETTING

[Mtbcol]

Evening all.
We have a Laverna Pro 2kw diesel heater, and I've heard lost if conflicting reports some saying you can run them on low all the time and it won't be a problem, others saying only run them in low for a while then run them on them on high for ten minutes before turning them off.
Does anyone have a good knowledge on this matter or the brand and what are peoples thoughts experiences?

Thanks all. It's -6°C here in the Cairngorms at the moment and I want to make sure it keeps going!

 

[Tomo]

I don’t think there’s a precise answer to the question. Sometimes you’ll get lucky and have no issues, others have continual problems. I think whether it’s an expensive eberspacher/webasto or cheap Chinese special it’s the same issue. They’re more likely to foul up inside if run at low for long periods. That’s why people suggest giving any of the brands a good blast on high power from time to time. It’ll hopefully burn out and blast out any of the sooty residue in the burn chamber so it doesn’t build up. I live on a boat and have a planar 4k, it’s been permanently on for over a week during Xmas at a low tick over but every now and again I’ll give it a good blast just in case. Some people have problems irrespective of the brand. You can’t go too far wrong by giving it frequent high temp blasts. Consider a service at the start of the winter season too. I’ll still fire mine up occasionally through the summer for 30 mins to keep it ticking over.

 

[Thistle]

If these are a good Eberspacher clone then it should modulate down and still burn cleanly and reliably, I’ve owned five Eberspachers in various vans and had Webastos before then, never had one fail due to being coked up. You do hear rumours of the really cheap Chinese clones coking up though, if run constantly at low speeds I suspect it is more likely the little thimble like gauze around the vaporiser that needs cleaning than any significant amount of coke though.

These things are all dead easy to take apart to service and clean so why not just buy a gasket kit and gauze and simply don’t worry about it too much.

Most run flat out for quite a while on startup anyway which should also help to keep them clean.

 

[mopedracer]

It makes no difference i run a 5kw (should have bought a 2kw ) in a Berlingo micro amper and use it in my eriba puck caravan so run on low constantly. No problem most instances of sooting up are due to installation problems think of it ss s cat engine if you dont have the correct fuel air proportion then it fouls the plugs.and lastly these heaters get nowhere near the temperature required to burn off the carbon

 

[Mtbcol]

Morning Tomo & Thistle. Thank you both for the replies. I do most of what you've both said anyway, but will buy a service kit for the future. Yes the Lavaner unit is a fairly decent quality clone which we picked after a lot of research so I'm fairly confident as it uses more quality parts than most of the others.

Thank you both.
Colin.

 

[jeffmossy]

I have left mine on low for many a 24 hours, it is now getting on for 6 years old without any issues

 

[1 Cup]

If it runs . It's all good .the less you spend the more you can buy. My 5kw is 3 years old now good as gold, cost £80. Mines used to heat water also so Evan in the summer It's running on full but plumbed into derv tank. So clean fule

I would buy again and again if needed . The ones in the trucks I drive, only break because of the users . the trucks heater £1000 is left on all night on low keeps truck with good heat. Chinese just cooks you if left on low as no room stat

I think they have it right as a cheap copy.

If they came with 2 programmable starts which is only cut and copy in software I would not have a cold van at 3am in winter

If a gas boiler in your home can have 16 start times why can't there be 2 in the script for cheap heater ?

 

[Nabsim]

I can only think some of the Chinese burners don’t mix the fuel/air properly for it to be a problem. While it was easy for people to copy the mechanical side the CDH’s do lack on control compared to something like an Eberspacher. I have seen pictures of some really badly clogged burn chambers and people always say it’s because they have been run on low but if mix is right it shouldn’t make a difference. Plus, who knows what fuel people run, I have seen people running on waste oil, they seem to think if something burns it’s okay and disregard any crud that may be in the fuel.

I was after a Lavaner 5Kw heater in January but at that time you couldn’t get hold of any, only the 2Kw so I ended up with a Maxpeedingrods unit. From what I could find out the Laverners were the best you could get from China with decent quality control and customer support that responded quickly. If I was you I would direct the question to them via email. If anyone has the mix right I suspect it will be Lavaner.

 

[Nabsim]

If it runs . It's all good .the less you spend the more you can buy. My 5kw is 3 years old now good as gold, cost £80. Mines used to heat water also so Evan in the summer It's running on full but plumbed into derv tank. So clean fule

I would buy again and again if needed . The ones in the trucks I drive, only break because of the users . the trucks heater £1000 is left on all night on low keeps truck with good heat. Chinese just cooks you if left on low as no room stat

I think they have it right as a cheap copy.

If they came with 2 programmable starts which is only cut and copy in software I would not have a cold van at 3am in winter

If a gas boiler in your home can have 16 start times why can't there be 2 in the script for cheap heater ?

You can get a controller off an Aussie guy that will give you the same control you get on an Eberspacher. Think they are a bit over £100 but if anyone is full time it makes it more viable for cost.

 

[1 Cup]

Sounds

You can get a controller off an Aussie guy that will give you the same control you get on an Eberspacher. Think they are a bit over £100 but if anyone is full time it makes it more viable for cost.

To exotic for me van. Nice extra for someone thow. Put a link in. David mclucky orange boiler suit man on you tub has played hard with these parking heaters.

 

[Stevie 25]

Had my Chinese heater 10 yrs no problem at all

 

[mistericeman]

You can get a controller off an Aussie guy that will give you the same control you get on an Eberspacher. Think they are a bit over £100 but if anyone is full time it makes it more viable for cost.

Afterburner ....

Home

Afterburner home page

www.mrjones.id.au

He wasn't shipping to the UK at one point though .

Others available on ebay now too

Ignite WiFi Chinese Diesel Air Heater Controller & Replacement CPU Kit | eBay

Ignite WiFi offers unprecedented control over your Chinese diesel air heater along with detailed examination / customisation of the run time conditions SIMPLE PLUG U PLAY Installation. Ignite WiFi controller includes a replacement heater CPU to ensure compatibility, works out of the box every...

www.ebay.co.uk

 

[Nabsim]

Afterburner ....

Home

Afterburner home page

www.mrjones.id.au

He wasn't shipping to the UK at one point though .

Others available on ebay now too

Ignite WiFi Chinese Diesel Air Heater Controller & Replacement CPU Kit | eBay

Ignite WiFi offers unprecedented control over your Chinese diesel air heater along with detailed examination / customisation of the run time conditions SIMPLE PLUG U PLAY Installation. Ignite WiFi controller includes a replacement heater CPU to ensure compatibility, works out of the box every...

www.ebay.co.uk

That’s the one, couldn’t recall the name when I did my earlier post. Yes he did stop shipping to U.K. but started again at some point

 

[yeoblade]

The problem I have heard of is on a low setting the unit has to start up and stop, ignite more often, so the battery usage is a lot greater and can cause to a high current drain. ie having a 3kw unit is better than having a 5kw heater that constantly has to start and stop.

 

[wildebus]

That’s the one, couldn’t recall the name when I did my earlier post. Yes he did stop shipping to U.K. but started again at some point

From what I have been told by someone with one, they (the Afterburner add-on) are not as good as cracked up to be
Shame as I had planned to get a kit before I ended up changing the van. Not got a diesel heater anymore as a backup (but do have a 12V heater instead : ))

Apparently the latest chinese design rip-off heaters do have actual temperature control now (probably cracked the Eberspacher code or maybe just ripped off the Aussie software?)

 

[1 Cup]

New from David mcluckie. Not cheap but problem solved.

 

[Mtbcol]

Thanks guys. As usual some great info on this forum

 

[Geek]

The problem I have heard of is on a low setting the unit has to start up and stop, ignite more often, so the battery usage is a lot greater and can cause to a high current drain. ie having a 3kw unit is better than having a 5kw heater that constantly has to start and stop.

No, thats not how it works.

The 'low' setting simply slows the fuel pump and the fans' motor down so it burns less fuel and produces less heat.

It doesn't switch on and off at all, even when set to hold a specific temperature. All it will do is modulate up and down to try to maintain the chosen temperature.

The reason they soot up when run on low seems to be bad installation.

The exhaust pipe needs to run in a continuous fall. Any dip may collect condensation when on low, and an exhaust blocked by condensation WILL cause the burner to soot up.

 

[Dowel]

john mck 47 started testing and explaining Chinese Diesel Heaters 4 years ago, he now has 19 videos on youtube.
Very worth viewing, link to his first video:

 

[JQB]

Evening all.
We have a Laverna Pro 2kw diesel heater, and I've heard lost if conflicting reports some saying you can run them on low all the time and it won't be a problem, others saying only run them in low for a while then run them on them on high for ten minutes before turning them off.
Does anyone have a good knowledge on this matter or the brand and what are peoples thoughts experiences?

Thanks all. It's -6°C here in the Cairngorms at the moment and I want to make sure it keeps going!

A question about the quality of diesel may arises too, they say buy a tank of the very best quality branded sort of super diesel now and then. Never had an issue after 60k odd miles.