Smelly heater

[rookeryview]

Having used the heater a few times now, we are starting to get used to the very strange noises etc,
However, I am still smelling something akin to a diesel smell inside when it runs.
This is definitely not exhaust gas coming in a vent as I have observed and smelt this from underneath.
The CO detector doesn't flinch (although it did go off the other night at 160PPM with nothing on at all for some reason!) even though I shoved it right up the outlet nozzle for a while.

Is this normal?
Does it go after a while from new?
Do I need to mention it to the dealer?
Any ideas?

Cheers.

 

[Pete M]

My 2014 140 SE, 20000 miles does it, I assumed "they all do that"!

 

[Hotel California]

We all got smells from the heater , specially at the first stages of the start up .
Also depending on the wind....you do close the sliding door...?
If it is getting a more than just a few smells thing it's best to have the heather checked ....

 

[WelshGas]

Remember the Parking Heater exhaust is towards the centre line on the Sliding Door side of the vehicle.
The heater is at it's smelliest on startup, so you need to take note of the wind direction and which windows, if any, you have open.
As stated in previous threads the Parking Heater produces minimal Carbon Monoxide, so low it is difficult to measure. In fact your vehicle barely produces sufficient CO to be measured let alone the Parking Heater. So, these fumes you are smelling are unpleasant but not dangerous.
I have used mine a fair amount, obviously not during the summer, and although I smell it on startup that goes within 10 mins.
During the winter it is left on all night, so I think it will settle down in time but does, I believe, need a good run in period.

 

[jts46]

1 I always run the heater once a month for about 1 hour.
2 Run fridge on a regular basis i.e. if we go on a decent run
3 Run the air con on a regular basis at least once a week
Never had any problems yet.

John

 

[WelshGas]

1 I always run the heater once a month for about 1 hour.
2 Run fridge on a regular basis i.e. if we go on a decent run
3 Run the air con on a regular basis at least once a week
Never had any problems yet.

John

Agree, although I leave the Air Con on all the time. I know economy, global warming etc.

 

[jts46]

Agree, although I leave the Air Con on all the time. I know economy, global warming etc.

I do most of the time but I didn't want to upset too many people on the Cali forum.

John

 

[rookeryview]

Thanks to those who have given feedback so far. I would like to hear from more of you on whether a smell is experienced at all, whether normal, and whether it abates after time. It does seem to reduce after an hour or so. We've been a bit too scared to leave it on all night but it does work well, that's for sure.

Just to clarify - we have all doors and windows shut with the only ventilation from the vents in the roof high up. It's not quite the same smell as diesel exhaust anyway. The smell comes from the heater outlet as far as I can tell so could there be a leak from the outside to the ducting at all? If you all get it then that must be OK, likewise does it stop after many uses?

Diesel fumes are to blame for causing cancer so you don't want to bathe your body every night in a cocktail of nasties even if the CO won't kill you!

 

[rookeryview]

PS what are the benefits of running the air-con in the winter then?

 

[Hotel California]

PS what are the benefits of running the air-con in the winter then?

It takes out moist and result in less condensation on the windows

 

[rookeryview]

Sounds useful. So a/c button ON, And heat to your liking?

 

[WelshGas]

PS what are the benefits of running the air-con in the winter then?

Air Con cools the air. On a hot day the outside air can be very humid, containing a lot of water. If that humid air was just cooled then the excess water would condense out as mist. Not good inside a vehicle, so the Air Con first cools the air and dries it. It is then warmed to the temperature selected. This means the interior of the vehicle is kept dry at the temperature you set.
However, this means part of the Air Con circuit gets wet and if the system is not used regularly then bacteria can grow inside and produce smells, so regular use prevents this. There is a hit on fuel economy but it is minimal

 

[GrannyJen]

I use my heater extensively and apart from start up I do not notice any unpleasant smells. I keep it on all night quite often and not bothered with fumes.

The only time that I have noticed fumes is when entering the vehicle via the side door.My vehicle is coming up to two years old and has been used extensively through two winters so quite a lot of use of the heater.

 

[Barryjm]

Ditto to GrannyJen, can get some smell on start up but this tends to come from outside if windows or doors are open, definitely no smell from the inside.


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[rookeryview]

It looks like starting up is the main event that starts the smell then, but in no way does this come from the outside unless the gases rise up through the floor or something.

 

[Barryjm]

Perhaps worth leaving the heater running for a few hours to burn it in, when you are not in the van, I seem to recall that the heater was smellier when the van was new, however, that was 6 years ago and my memory is not getting any younger In my experience heaters, in general, smell when new.


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[rookeryview]

We've used it less than a dozen times, and not overnight yet, so I think we'll put trust in your memory and see if it steadily improves with use. Just need some bad weather to test it more

 

[aileron346]

We use ours very regularly and I would agree that there is a smell for the first 10 minutes or so. I too got a bit worried about this and checked a CO detector but nothing found. Given the Cali's small space, I wondered whether it would intake air from outside and whether there was a risk that would be contaminated by its own exhaust fumes, but apparently the heaters air input is from inside the van...so it recirculates internal air ( though I guess there must be a bit of internal-external air movement ) . Would be interested to know the source of the smell though. We don't use the heater overnight even in Winter.


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[rookeryview]

Yes, that's exactly it !
What is that smell then? And more to the point, is it dangerous?, because it certainly smells like it could be, in an enclosed space all night.
It's not diesel fumes unless there's some sort of leak, but it is diesely. Remember those old parafin heaters? It reminds me of that type of thing.

 

[Taglish]

The factory setting for the heater is relatively high and reducing the heat level a notch or two noticeably reduces the paraffin smell.

 

[roball]

I'm just experiencing exactly this, rookeryview. New van (July 2015), run the heater less than a dozen times so far, only on level1, always with doors and windows shut . Every time on startup, there's a smell like the fumes you smell in an aeroplane when sitting on the tarmac waiting to take off. It dissipates after a few minutes, and it's not pleasant, but it's tolerable given how quickly it makes the van nice and warm

 

[2into1]

It could be coming from the plastic / painted metal components in the system. They can give off a smell when first heated.
(The home central heating always creates an odd smell on the first winter use, after the summer switch off).

 

[sidepod]

The heater, in start up mode basically acts similar to an engine. A glow plug is activated and diesel is pumped in via a (pulsed) pump. You may hear a faint ticking like a metronome.
After approx 90 seconds the glow plug is deactivated and the diesel burns normally.

The hot air is a closed loop recirculating from the van, the diesel being burned in a sealed heat exchanger. In other words no diesel fumes can directly enter the hot air supply duct.
Smells at start up are simply a result of excess fuel from the exhaust wafting around under the van.
The van is not a sealed unit, in fact there is probably a fridge cooling air intake (cold air/hot) exhaust directly under the fridge. This may be adjacent to the heater exhaust (not too sure of T5 layout) so fumes may be drawn in via this.

S.

 

[rookeryview]

Yes roball, we have a July 2015. I think we are experiencing something fairly normal from what you are all saying.
It's definitely NOT diesel fumes.
I'm going with the idea that it may be from residual manufacturing stuff getting hot inside the heat exchanger. Clearly this will get very hot, and may take a while to burn off.
So I suggest the newbies go for a big burn up with the windows open and we'll report back.

 

[GrannyJen]

Put it on 3 and let it run overnight whilst on the drive.

Then try it a night later sat in it for an hour and see if it improves.