Retrofit parking heater discussion

[soulstyledevon]

Used the heater yesterday for a trial run.
Had a drive into the country and parked the Cali. Set the heater dial to about a quarter heat and went off for a walk for about a hour and a half. Came back to a nice warm van coats off picnic ready inside and a nice enjoyable lunch.
Heater is a fantastic addition and I can't believe how nice and warm inside it was on such a low setting. Should be more than capable on cold winter nights camping.

:cool

Some pics of install. Big thumbs up to Dirty Weekender in Worcester who fitted this for me.
Opted for dial on the B pillar in the end.
Used original Webasto duct vent and brackets to bring the fitting cost down. But I'm very happy with it and it blends in perfectly.

 

[Speedbird]

I'm getting serious heater envy! :evil:

 

[Custardtart]

I'm getting serious heater envy! :evil:

Me too! Nice job.

Is the heater fitted under the driver's seat or under the van?

I'm still thinking about it but haven't quite got there yet.

 

[James]

That looks like a very tidy and unobtrusive job, very neat.

My only concern is the location of the hot air. When we camp and have a heater plugged in, if sits on the floor and the bed is down, the bed tends to obstruct the heat. So I'd be interested to know how it fares during a night of cooler camping. I notice on a factory install the heat comes out of vents on the pillars.




Does look like a very tidy install though.

 

[soulstyledevon]

The actual heater is fitted under the van.

The advantage with the Webasto vent James over the Cali SE which a few of the other guys have installed, is it rotates and turns and the heat can be directed slightly.
Although the SE part probably looks nicer to the eye.
Didn't notice any cold spots yesterday but the real test will be the camping experience

Same with the position of the dial. I loved what one of the other guys did with mounting it on the panel behind the passenger chair. But after careful consideration we decided it might be a pain as we usually have the VW coolbox suited there and would be more difficult to access if the table was out.
Also its easier to access if we were outside of the van. Open the door and the dial can be adjusted.

Hope this thread helps others thinking of adding it to their calis.
I know its been a great source for our decision making

 

[James]

The actual heater is fitted under the van.

The advantage with the Webasto vent James over the Cali SE which a few of the other guys have installed, is it rotates and turns and the heat can be directed slightly.
Although the SE part probably looks nicer to the eye.
Didn't notice any cold spots yesterday but the real test will be the camping experience

Same with the position of the dial. I loved what one of the other guys did with mounting it on the panel behind the passenger chair. But after careful consideration we decided it might be a pain as we usually have the VW coolbox suited there and would be more difficult to access if the table was out.
Also its easier to access if we were outside of the van. Open the door and the dial can be adjusted.

Hope this thread helps others thinking of adding it to their calis.
I know its been a great source for our decision making

I think it looks excellent and if keeps the whole van warm, then it's a great aftermarket addition. Will be particularly useful for this who buy say a demo Beach and need to have a heater fitted. It looks very tidy.

I always look at what VW does, where they placed the vents, if it can be adjusted, then that would be perfect.

I personally think the dial there is the best place.

James

 

[owen_h]

Looks good and another one here with heater envy.

How much clearance is there when the front seat is swivelled? As well as the Webasto I'm looking at the MV Airo versions but their control units are surface mount. They dont look as neat as the Webaso dial.

 

[bournemouthbeach]

Lovely looking install is there any reason people seem to go for Webasto is stead of Eberspacher??

Think we will end up with one in the long run...

Cheers

Shaun

 

[defender1]

The actual heater is fitted under the van.

The advantage with the Webasto vent James over the Cali SE which a few of the other guys have installed, is it rotates and turns and the heat can be directed slightly.
Although the SE part probably looks nicer to the eye.
Didn't notice any cold spots yesterday but the real test will be the camping experience

Same with the position of the dial. I loved what one of the other guys did with mounting it on the panel behind the passenger chair. But after careful consideration we decided it might be a pain as we usually have the VW coolbox suited there and would be more difficult to access if the table was out.
Also its easier to access if we were outside of the van. Open the door and the dial can be adjusted.

Hope this thread helps others thinking of adding it to their calis.
I know its been a great source for our decision making

Looks great and you will find it a brilliant addition. Welcome to the retrofit heater club!! We are just back from a couple of nights in the Cairngorms and Perthshire. We slept upstairs and the heater was on low all night just to keep the chill off, very useful in below zero temps which we have just now.
The grey trim vent we have rotates too-think it is a webasto part.

 

[Barefoot62]

That looks like a very tidy and unobtrusive job, very neat.

My only concern is the location of the hot air. When we camp and have a heater plugged in, if sits on the floor and the bed is down, the bed tends to obstruct the heat. So I'd be interested to know how it fares during a night of cooler camping. I notice on a factory install the heat comes out of vents on the pillars.




Does look like a very tidy install though.

I don't know if this is anything to go by but the parking in the truck blows hot air forwards into the footwell from under the seat, and I can't set it any hotter than 17 degrees else I'd be cooking!

Alasdair

 

[uniqueadventures]

Great thread.
I'm definitely considering aftermarket on my 2013 beach, it was the intention since purchase of dealer ex demo was cheaper but we couldn't find any with the heater.
My beach seems to have rectangular vents built into the bottom of the B pillar that I was intending to try to use? I can't see them in the pictures above. What year is the van in the pics above?
When I get a chance I'll have a look behind the vents and see if it's possible to utilise them.
Has anyone ever considered fitting the unit in the engine bay somewhere so it could directed through the dash vents? This would mean you could use the dash controller to give it some direction and possibly avoid some condensation if you direct it at the screen!?
The obvious problem I can think of that you'd have to work out is that adding something like that in the engine bay is going to cause issues when servicing or maintaining the vehicle. :-(
But if there is a way...

I have uploaded pics of the vents in the B pillar trim here:

gallery/album.php?album_id=194

it seems the actual metal pillar doesn't have the necessary hole though...

 

[James]

Great thread.
I'm definitely considering aftermarket on my 2013 beach, it was the intention since purchase of dealer ex demo was cheaper but we couldn't find any with the heater.
My beach seems to have rectangular vents built into the bottom of the B pillar that I was intending to try to use? I can't see them in the pictures above. What year is the van in the pics above?
When I get a chance I'll have a look behind the vents and see if it's possible to utilise them.
Has anyone ever considered fitting the unit in the engine bay somewhere so it could directed through the dash vents? This would mean you could use the dash controller to give it some direction and possibly avoid some condensation if you direct it at the screen!?
The obvious problem I can think of that you'd have to work out is that adding something like that in the engine bay is going to cause issues when servicing or maintaining the vehicle. :-(
But if there is a way...

If you want a dealer demo with a parking heater - you could be expected to pay a premium for that as it is seen as a desirable option.

So in your case, I think you are wise to buy a Beach and fit it afterwards.

These seem to be a very good install, i believe if memory serves me the factory Parking Heaters have the vents on the door pillars with the hot blowing into the van.

Although tricky and probably not worth the expense or effort, I'd be interested to know if it would be possible to fit the VW vents and feed the heat into the van that way. Probably not worth it in any respect but when modifying I always look at what VW has done.

These look to be a good install though.

James

 

[soulstyledevon]

Looks great and you will find it a brilliant addition. Welcome to the retrofit heater club!! We are just back from a couple of nights in the Cairngorms and Perthshire. We slept upstairs and the heater was on low all night just to keep the chill off, very useful in below zero temps which we have just now.
The grey trim vent we have rotates too-think it is a webasto part.

That's good to know. I might change it over to the same as yours

I tried looking for an ex demo with Parking Heater. But they are rare as rocking horse dung. Dealer told me that because it's a £2500 added extra you won't find many dealers which spec it to their demo vans.

I saved £5k on book price buying an ex demo model. She was only 6 months old with 50 miles on the clock 15 of which I clocked on the test run.

 

[soulstyledevon]

Great thread.
I'm definitely considering aftermarket on my 2013 beach, it was the intention since purchase of dealer ex demo was cheaper but we couldn't find any with the heater.
My beach seems to have rectangular vents built into the bottom of the B pillar that I was intending to try to use? I can't see them in the pictures above. What year is the van in the pics above?
When I get a chance I'll have a look behind the vents and see if it's possible to utilise them.
Has anyone ever considered fitting the unit in the engine bay somewhere so it could directed through the dash vents? This would mean you could use the dash controller to give it some direction and possibly avoid some condensation if you direct it at the screen!?
The obvious problem I can think of that you'd have to work out is that adding something like that in the engine bay is going to cause issues when servicing or maintaining the vehicle. :-(
But if there is a way...

My van is a 2012 model.
Can't see your way ever working. All the heating and aircon stuff is coded into the vehicle ecu. Not even VW do it that way.

 

[owen_h]

Great thread.
I'm definitely considering aftermarket on my 2013 beach, it was the intention since purchase of dealer ex demo was cheaper but we couldn't find any with the heater.
My beach seems to have rectangular vents built into the bottom of the B pillar that I was intending to try to use? I can't see them in the pictures above. What year is the van in the pics above?
When I get a chance I'll have a look behind the vents and see if it's possible to utilise them.
Has anyone ever considered fitting the unit in the engine bay somewhere so it could directed through the dash vents? This would mean you could use the dash controller to give it some direction and possibly avoid some condensation if you direct it at the screen!?
The obvious problem I can think of that you'd have to work out is that adding something like that in the engine bay is going to cause issues when servicing or maintaining the vehicle. :-(
But if there is a way...

My van is a 2012 model.
Can't see your way ever working. All the heating and aircon stuff is coded into the vehicle ecu. Not even VW do it that way.

It is apparently possible to use the dashboard vents, not with the parking heater but the auxiliary (engine block) heater that it seems we have fitted as standard on the Beaches (check for a Webasto or Eberspacher sticker on or around the drivers door). There is a remote kit to turn this aux heater on. There has been talk of using this heater as an alternative to a dedicated cabin/living area heater. Its really intended to warm up the engine though so you would be heating the block and engine oil unnecessarily when camped up. As we have this aux heater already its a simpler install for the parking heater. Usually the fuel tank needs to be dropped to fit another fuel pump but with the aux heater the supply can be tee'd into that pipework.
Interesting that the latest Beaches appear to be coming with the vents in the B pillar. Think this thread originator looked into changing the B pillar trim to include the vents but there was no obvious path from the vents back to the heater unit. Hopefully there now is.
Good question about why people are choosing Webasto over Eberspacher, they seem pretty much on a par to me. Both in performance & cost.

 

[soulstyledevon]

I did some research into using the pre engine heater and what I was told was this.
Yes it can be used, however it will only run for 60mins because it's powered via the vehicle battery.
It won't be as economical as a separate heater as it's also heating the engine block and fluid too and would you really want to do that when all you require is living space heat.

I think this is why Volkswagen install two separate systems. As James said it's always worth looking how VW do something and try and follow it as close as possible.

The reason for Webasto is it seems to have better reliability than eber from what a lot of the installers are saying.

 

[bournemouthbeach]

The reason for Webasto is it seems to have better reliability than eber from what a lot of the installers are saying.

Ah ok but could that not be down to market share with there being more Eberspachers heaters out there than Webastos...

Don't VW use an Eberspacher as the Factory option??

Cheers

Shaun

 

[Bigbud]

If VW are putting vents in the B column now then the retro fit would be so much better !

The beach without any vents in the B column Plastic does not have the hole in the actual structural Column (metal bit behind) this meant that even thou I could get the official pipework and mount the unit under the van as standard fit I would have had to cut a hole in the column. I was not prepared to do this as its a structural member.

If the beach does come with vents in the B column now in the same place as the standard heater then its quite possible fitting a retrofit heater would be a much easier.

 

[soulstyledevon]

The reason for Webasto is it seems to have better reliability than eber from what a lot of the installers are saying.

Ah ok but could that not be down to market share with there being more Eberspachers heaters out there than Webastos...

Don't VW use an Eberspacher as the Factory option??

Cheers

Shaun

Seems to depend on the year of the van.
I have Webasto for the engine pre heater Although I know they fit Eberspacher too...???

 

[James]

I have no stickers - so I am presuming I don't have the engine pre heater. I don't have a parking heater either.

I don't mind tbh. Would be nice but it conforms as per the brochure that all heating options are just that, options

James

 

[uniqueadventures]

Great thread.
I'm definitely considering aftermarket on my 2013 beach, it was the intention since purchase of dealer ex demo was cheaper but we couldn't find any with the heater.
My beach seems to have rectangular vents built into the bottom of the B pillar that I was intending to try to use? I can't see them in the pictures above. What year is the van in the pics above?
When I get a chance I'll have a look behind the vents and see if it's possible to utilise them.
Has anyone ever considered fitting the unit in the engine bay somewhere so it could directed through the dash vents? This would mean you could use the dash controller to give it some direction and possibly avoid some condensation if you direct it at the screen!?
The obvious problem I can think of that you'd have to work out is that adding something like that in the engine bay is going to cause issues when servicing or maintaining the vehicle. :-(
But if there is a way...

My van is a 2012 model.
Can't see your way ever working. All the heating and aircon stuff is coded into the vehicle ecu. Not even VW do it that way.

I wasn't thinking of doing anything more than piggybacking the ducting somehow. not actually using the controls for it. The vent outlets themselves and the control for up / down / screen is all analogue on mine as I don't have the climate control, so these would still work if heated air from a diesel heater was directed into the ducting somehow? Can anyone think of a suitable space under the bonnet that might accept a heater where it won't get in the way and it will be close enough to the air intakes to splice it in somehow?!

 

[Damien]

Do you know where to get a parking heater installed in scotland? (For a beach 2012)

 

[SlidePods]

I don't actually own a california... I have a caravelle exec which I have fitted an auto cali roof to amongst other things. Trying to make it into a double slider cali beach.

Anyway with regards retro fitting a parking heater......
It can be done really neatly with a webasto airtop 2000 and the genuine vw brackets and ducting.
I sourced the brackets and ducting second hand for £50 and a new webasto kit from Butler bus for about 600. If you have a thermotop engine pre heater installed it's really easy to fit, takes about 4/5 hours. If not you have to remove the diesel tank to install a send pipe into the feeder unit so takes a bit longer.

 

[Big Bloke]

I'm after a bit of advice about having a parking heater retro fitted.We have a 2013 Beach with no electric hook up or parking heater.
We're going to take our Beach to Exploria http://www.exploria-online.co.uk ,to have leather seats and deisel heater fitted using QEM ducting kit. I'm wondering if anybody who has a diesel heater can tell me how the leisure battery is affected. When we camp, we tend to use sites with hook up. We use a trailing hook up lead with an rcd and 3 sockets either into the van, via the window or into an Outwell awning (if we are using it). So the leisure battery is only powering the lighting in the van.We have a C TEK charger which we use to charge the leisure battery every couple of days if we're not doing any driving off anywhere.All of which has so far worked really well. The longest we've camped without hook up and with no driving to charge the battery, is 3 days. During those 3 days everything ran off the leisure battery,ie lighting and Waeco 35l fridge, with no issues at all.
In September we're off to Norway for 3 weeks, going right up into the arctic circle, hence our reason for the diesel heater. We'll be doing a fair bit of wild camping (so no EHU) along with the odd campsite on hook up. The longest I can see us wild camping in one place would possibly be 3 nights.
So.........My options are:-
a) Have the Webasto fitted, stay with the leisure battery already in the Beach and carry on with the trailing hook up. This would be our preffered option.
b) Have the Webasto fitted and a second under floor leisure battery fitted as well. Quite an added expense.
c) Have the Webasto fitted, a second under floor leisure battery fitted and have EHU fitted. A lot more expensive and not sure that the cost involved would be justified against how we already camp with the trailing hook up.
Sorry for the long post but I'd welcome some opinions/thoughts from fellow Beach owners!

 

[owen_h]

Does your Beach already have the vents in the B pillar trim? Back on page one of this thread one of the early posters tried to vent the hot air via the B pillar but there was no hole. Seems things have changed since then though so you may well be OK.
On the leisure battery questions I can't help that much as not needed to use mine for extended periods off hookup. I don't think its much of a current draw when in use. Would a solar panel be an option to top up the battery when wild camping? Perhaps one of the briefcase type ones if you don't want to fit it permanently to the roof.
From a recent experience make sure they don't route the fuel pipe to the heater over the exhaust of the coolant heater!