Air Cooled heater - Early type

[thisbusinessisclosed]

Hi - I spent ages worrying that the blower was broken and now realised that because it is an early Aircooled it has no fan setting! I assume that warm air should just trickle through? I got a cheap electric one to help but still it is a nightmare trying to use the van in this weather!

I noticed that the cables going to the heat exchanger flaps and for the bottom selector are not really doing anything so a few questions please!
- Is it worth replacing these (about £15 a side) or just wiring it open to let the heat in over the winter?
- Where does the bottom one attach to (as I assume this is the fresh air control), and is there a way to fix it also.

Thanks - Any ideas would be great.
Rob.

[kevtherev]

A lot of folks with Aircooled vans come here looking to increase the heat output from the VW system in place
to some extent it can be improved... But this very cold weather we've had recently shows up the deficiencies

A lot of my Aircooled mates have used another heat source.
There is plenty of room for a Propex or Ebberspacher to be fitted on the front bulkhead (inside) and used while the van is moving.
If I may say this just something for you to consider before spending a lot of money for very little improvement, in my opinion.

[72BUG]

Before spending any money on anything I would jimmy the heater pods open with some cable ties and make sure that the heat exchangers are in good working order and all the ducting present and in good working order.

[..lee..]

the air cooled heating system is very efficient.........just not in a long van. even if you get it working right you`ll find although you have boiling hot air at the exchangers by the time it travels through the cold ducting tubes is not very good at the dash and more often than not they are a bit smelly due to oil contamination.

if i was running an A/C van the first thing i`d buy would be a ebber or webasto. they are quite a big outlay but you can run them while camping all night and use whilst driving. you can pre time them to come on and warm the van up before you get in to it and you can even devise a system where you can phone the van up to start the heater. so a cold van can really become a thing of the past.

[kevtherev]

Good point there lee, about pre warming.
In this day and age the problems you face are easily solved... it's whether you're an "Old Skool" Aircooled fan "keeping it real" that may get in the way.

Personally I would have an Aircooled van tomorrow, and keep it original and fix all those things you say.... Because Aircooled vans look great no question

[thisbusinessisclosed]

Ok thanks guys - I think I found the flaps behind the rear wheels? I will try to cable tie them in the forward position to let heat through. Also, any suggestions on insulating the warm air pipe? Just some old car matting and some cable tie's or is this a bit dangerous?
Cheers!
Rob.

[sarran1955]

Hello,

I've been following this thread with interest.

If your heater system is poor, there are lots of improvements to be made.

Here I am being 1600 CT engine specific:

Make sure that all the plastic piping in the engine bay is in place and correctly fitted.

Make sure there are no airleaks due to badly fitted or missing tinware.

Make sure that the heat exchangers themselves are in good condition, including the pre heaters. You can use exhaust putty to make good any holes.

Are the heat exchanger flexibles likewise in good condition and well seated.

The main plastic stretchy pipe from the heaters to the front of the van is often torn, Gaffer tape a temp repair, or replace with grey PVC drainpipe and collars. then insulate.

I've had plenty of VW aircooleds, and this ct T25 van is the first to impress me with the air flow and temperature.

By all means fit an Eberspacher, but follow the guidelines above first and see.

Cordialement.

[faggie]

my heat exchangers are open all the time so i have heat entering the van summer and winter it got so hot this summer i had to disconnect the heater pipes as it melted one of the vents

[thisbusinessisclosed]

thanks guys - I cable tied them open and there is heat now! much better. When I get a chance I will get underneath and check out the exchangers and everything but at least it works ok now!

[toolsntat]

The heat in mine is hot enough to be very uncomfortable when your hand is over the vent

The system is not easily understood by all but with all components and settings right it does work very well.....

When I swapped over to a newer engine the wind through the system was enough to blow a residue of old leaves and crap all over the cab (stationary with a good blip of the throttle)

Another option is to try and source an early a/c heater matrix which has an electric fan fitted but they are quite rare

Andy

[orangebooboobearcrew]

Yeah - we wired our exchangers open permanently as well and this makes a significant and noticeable difference...!!

The windscreen now clears in minutes and it is actually uncomforably warm at times - proof the system does work if all components are correctly fitted.

As others have said, you can still improve on the original system - there is a long article on this in the WIKI somewhere re insulation as I remember printing and reading it (based on bay window but same principles apply)...

We will more than likely get a propex shortly, purely for camping reasons and the thought of coming back to a warm van at night...

Glad you're a bit warmer now!

Chris F