Blown air heating

[Tom_5086015]

I have an Elldis Oddysey 524 which has an end washroom. It's the same layout as my previous caravan (Sterling europa)

Problem is that by the time the heated air gets to the washroom, it's neither warm or blowing much.

Ther are two causes I think: 1. the air has a long way to go and 2. The air ducting tavels under the van for a while.

i've been thinking tha the solution might be to put another blower in the pipeline to help the air get to the back of the van quicker.

Does anyone have any observations?

Thanks

Tom

 

[Lol1]

Hi Tom, if you're using the heater on electric you won't get a huge output of heat. You could try insulating the pipe that goes outside of the van; it shouldn't be expensive to do and won't hurt if you find that it's still not warm enough.

I have a fairly long run on the hose to the bathroom myself, if I need it to be warmed up more than on electric, I use gas instead. If that doesn't solve the problem, I start to shut off the vents into other areas of the van until it attains the required temp. If you have tried these measures already without success I doubt that a blower alone would be enough. Perhaps a small fan heater could be used to take the chill off?

 

[Ian.L]

Hello Tom

I had a lunar a few years back with the same kind of layout and i just shut one of the front vents or half **** them and it worked fine for me.Ian.L

 

[Rod_5041370]

If you can access the back of the heater, usually by removing the wardrobe floor, there is a lever on the back of the fan assembly which allows the air distribution to be adjusted.

Most caravan manufacturers can't be bothered to set this up and just leave it in the central position.

 

[ken_5127473]

hi Tom,on the fan at the rear of the heater there is a lever that can be moved left or right,this directs the warm air to the ducting ,in the up right central position it gives equal amounts to each duct,it could be worth checking to see that it is not adjusted to far in either direction which would reduce the amount of warm air to one of the pipe ducts connected to warm air fan assembly.

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hello Tom,

You have identified the main two reasons that affect the heating of end bathroom designs.

If the flow of air can be increased, then the temperature will also increase, so your suggestion of an additional fan may help. There are such fans available (both Carver & Truma do a smaller inline fan).

The cause of the problem can sometimes be eased by refitting the duct. In some caravans it is possible to route it internally, but you have to strike a balance between the length and the number of bends. As a rule of thumb, a 90 degree bend is like adding and extra 1 meter of duct.

Insulating the outboard duct can make a difference; some manufactures did this using various methods. The best was an insulation over coat (Fibre glass) and a polythene jacket and then box it in.

The other respondents suggestions are also good and easy to try - its worth experimenting with the variable openings first, before attempting what can be major surgery.

 

[John_5040781]

Hi

I have had a similar problem with a Burstner 500ts.

Truma can supply an insulated weather proof ducting pipe to go under the caravan. I had one fitted but also had the room themostat moved away from a hot air duct and placed at head height

No more problems.

 

[Russ2]

Hi Alll,

Different caravan same problem. We have a Bailey Imperial which has end bathroom, which we love and use all the time. During the coldest part of the year we use an electric fan heater in the bathroom.

I have installed an extra socket in the wardrobe and we find this works fine. In fact we use this most of the time, to heat the whole van rather that the van heating. Thermostat is more efficient for one reason.

 

[anni]

We have had similar problems but in our case the pipe-work for the blown air system had been so badly cut that it just rested in the outlet and on the side you couldn't see was a big hole and so most of the air just discharged into the cupboard.