Lagging blown-air ducting

[brightmore]

We have recently bought a Sterling Eccles Jewel.....by the time the warm air from the heater reaches the outlets, it is only aired at best. Obviously a lot of heat is being lost under the bed and seating and when the weather gets really cold it will get a lot worse. We only turn on the blower when the heater really warms up but it makes little difference.
Has anybody tried lagging the piping, if so what did you use, how did you go about it and was it worth the effort/cost etc
Thanks
Brightmore

 

[VIP640]

We used some 5" silver pipe lagging from B&Q in a previous Bailey, it was easy to instal other than when the pipes ran under the wardrobe and it helped keep the heat in the ducting until it left the outlets...

 

[ChristineandAlan]

Hi brightmore,
we have the same problem we have a 2009 abbey 620 gts,we find the blown air heating rubbish,we have mentioned this to the dealer they said put the gas heating on aswell,this warms the van up quicker,we havent tried it yet as the van is having a few jobs done by the dealer.as far is lagging the pipes i havent heard of anyone doing it. All The Best Alan P/T

Abbey 620 gts 2009
Kia sorrento 2008

 

[ChristineandAlan]

Hi Vip640,
i think i will try that ,one pipe is outside under the door for about 2foot. when we get the van back.
thanks All The Best Alan P/T

 

[RegandPat]

I also think lagging may be a good idea, the outlet to the toilet we have to close off as it gets to hot in there.
We do have a small fan heater this may be good to use as well if it dose not blow the trip switches on site.
Just my view
Reg and Pat

 

[Parksy]

I've bought some Spiral Pipe Wrap to try to lag my blown air pipes because the blown air heating in our Abbey 620 is rubbish as well.

 

[ChristineandAlan]

Hi parksy,
its nice to know we have same vans,and we have the same problem. we have bought a small fan heater as a back up.when we get the van back i will do the same.we had a lunar lexon eb in 2001 the blown air heating was great thats before we had a load of damp in it,we packed in caravanning until 2009.
All The Best Alan P/T

 

[SirRogerFFS]

Hi Christine and Alan.
You have had a good recommendation back there and that is to put your heating on both gas and electric ,your van will warm up quicker aswell.
You want to leave them both on for about 30mins and then switch on your fan ,we used to put ours onto auto and and set fan speed between 2and 4and I think you may notice a difference.
I do know of one or two Forum members out there that have laggged the pipes with good results .
Im not sure how your heating works ,if ots the Truama with the 3 settings and you are on a16 amp hook up set you heating at the highest.
I hope this helps in some way.
Good luck, Sir Roger ( Forgot to say after 30mins or so turn off gas and go onto electric as youve paid for that in site fee.)

 

[Parksy]

Hi parksy,
its nice to know we have same vans,and we have the same problem. we have bought a small fan heater as a back up.when we get the van back i will do the same.we had a lunar lexon eb in 2001 the blown air heating was great thats before we had a load of damp in it,we packed in caravanning until 2009.
All The Best Alan P/T

Hi Alan
Great minds think alike (fools never differ)

We bought a fan heater from Argos last year when we tried winter caravanning. With the gas fire on our bodies were warm sitting at the front but our feet were freezing !!
With the fan heater on the floor at the front the caravan is warm as toast.
We often leave the washroom door slightly ajar in cold weather so that the heat from the rest of the caravan warms up the washroom on cold mornings. The blown air duct goes outside the caravan close to the doorway and then there is the long stretch under the bed so no wonder the blown air is not warm enough. Apart from that we love our Abbey 620 which is a 'Cardinal' Vogue dealer special and after 3 years there's no damp.

 

[DeliDave_]

Did ours in that spiral wrap that Parksy recomends,used foil tape to secure ends,its easier to do in shortish lengths,did inside and out and makes a big difference

 

[ChristineandAlan]

Hi Sir roger,
Thank you for the info,we will try the two together for 30 minutes as you said.we have truma heating.
Thanks Again Alan P/T

 

[RegandPat]

Sorry to go off track a bit but I only use the electric heating, I get worm air from the ducts but the fire stays cold.
Would this be correct?
I did try to light the fire with the gas but gave up so just use electric, I think it is me but not to keen on the gas.
Reg

 

[OmOnWeelz]

We've had blown air on previous and present caravan and I don't think we've ever run the fan t top speed. Even on our larger van we still get cooked even in winter, As with a previous van the bathroom is one of the nearest points to the heater and fan and I'm sure you could could cook Kentucky Fried Chuck in there.
I fitted T piece so the air has direct flow straight past the tube to bathroom vent and taped all the joints on the piping so we lose no air. Works fine heat in to the van rather than 80% in to the bathroom and I believe you can also play around in thteback of the heater and alter the balance of where the air flows.
Check that no air escapes on route to outles first as they only push th tubes on the plastic pipes.

 

[cooky1]

I lagged all the pipes in our van with insulating tape from Screwfix, it's a bit like silver bubble wrap. I also limit the amount of air being blown to the rear of the van when we are sat at the front, by partly closing the vent outlets.
Normally get the van warm using a fan heater, then turn that off and use the vans system.

Graeme.

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hello Reg,

The electric heating elements are at the back of the heater, so when the fan is running id draws cool air from the front and over the gas side of the heater, which keeps it cooler - so yes the front of heater will stay cool.

I suggest you check the caravan instructions for details of the gas system. There is often a set of gas appliance isolating valves in the caravan and one is usually one for the heater.

If you still have no joy with the gas heater, it may need a service.

 

[brightmore]

Thanks to all of you....Off to Screwfix to try your solution Parksy....got to have it warm for the winter
Thanks again
Brightmore

 

[RegandPat]

Me to....

 

[Parksy]

What I want to know is.............
Why do we always wait until the colder weather before we think about getting these jobs done?
This afternoon I've started to lag my blown air ducting running underneath our caravan which is parked on the drive at the moment. I've come back indoors to have a warm, it's a bit cold today here but I could have done this job at anytime during the summer months when it was nice and warm.

 

[SirRogerFFS]

BRUMMIE

 

[Parksy]

The job's a good un

 

[JohnM20]

Thanks, Parksy, for the tip about using Srewfix Spiral Wrap on the heater ducting. Got some today and have done the job in about an hour and a half and used about 2½ rolls on an Abbey 460. I was going to do the external bit under the door but even with the heater on full blast it was only slightly warm. My guess is that there are at least two thiknesses of ducting there so is it really worth it ?.
With some of the wrap left over I have made myself a sleeve to go over the bit of water supply pipe between the top of the Aquaroll and the inlet on the side of the van. I cut three lengths of the wrap, each about 13" and joined them edge to edge using foil tape (duct tape would work equally well) making a piece 13" x 6". Because the inlet connector block on the pipe is relatively big I didn't want to make a tube big enough for this to pass through so I have put Velcro down the long edges of the piece. All I have to do now when frost is expected is wrap it around the pipe and push the Velcro together. "Simples" - (to pinch a saying).
If Nigel Donnelly is reading this, does it qualify for a modification worthy of a mention in PC ? If so I'll send some pics.
JohnM