Count Steer wrote: ↑Tue Dec 13, 2022 8:10 am
The bottles actually cool in use as the gas is vaporised (ye olde adiabatic expansion). You'll see condensation on the bottles at the level of the liquid iirc. We tried running those big blower heaters in a huge old barn when doing a project. We had to chuck the bottles in dustbins of warm water and keep changing the water.
Yup. Before we moved onto dustbins we actually ended up with one cylinder encased in a block of ice. On the plus side, chucking a gas tank and regulator in a volume of water was a good way of finding out that we had a gas leak in one of them.
Shame I haven't got any pix. This barn was huge and ancient. They hired out space to store classic cars, you could play badminton in it (lobs were interesting) and they were trying to get planning permission to do summer weddings in it. You could probably have fitted the owner's house in it. Awesome place (but freezing in the depths of winter).
Doubt is not a pleasant condition.
But certainty is an absurd one.
Voltaire
You could try a Chinese diesel heater. They make an all in one unit if you don't fancy a permanent install. I've got one in my van and they work really well
Bowman wrote: ↑Fri Dec 16, 2022 10:05 am
You could try a Chinese diesel heater. They make an all in one unit if you don't fancy a permanent install. I've got one in my van and they work really well
And as if by magic the shopkeeper appeared, no wait, that's not right, oddly this turned up on my feed yesterday, for the money it seems like a deal
Bowman wrote: ↑Fri Dec 16, 2022 10:05 am
You could try a Chinese diesel heater. They make an all in one unit if you don't fancy a permanent install. I've got one in my van and they work really well
And as if by magic the shopkeeper appeared, no wait, that's not right, oddly this turned up on my feed yesterday, for the money it seems like a deal
I have one to go in (Not the all in one) Just not at that stage to put it in as need to work out where the tank is going or tap into the main tank
I have one in my camper. Keeps us toasty even on low setting even when it's freezing outside. It's tapped into the main tank because I didn't want 10 litres of diesel inside the van, if only because of the smell.
Druid wrote: ↑Fri Dec 16, 2022 7:37 pm
I have one in my camper. Keeps us toasty even on low setting even when it's freezing outside. It's tapped into the main tank because I didn't want 10 litres of diesel inside the van, if only because of the smell.
Got a mate in Cumbria making me a larger main tank as we speak so tapping into that is probably best option. How did you do it? T Piece into engine feed and one way valve to heater feed?
cheb wrote: ↑Tue Dec 13, 2022 9:06 am
I don't know. I've only ever seen jets for natural gas and different jets for LPG. LPG seems to include butane and propane.
Natural gas, methane, has one carbon atom, propane has three and butane four. The proportional molecule size difference between the propane and butane compared to methane must be significant.
I wonder why ethane, 2 carbon atoms, isn't used? Ethyne is, AKA acetylene.
Cos acetylene takes a LOT more effort to care for. Also its way more dodgy to use. Detonates and pretty bloody unstable at high pressure.
Needs the bottles stored upright, needs stored disolved in acetone yada yada yada.
cheb wrote: ↑Tue Dec 13, 2022 9:06 am
I don't know. I've only ever seen jets for natural gas and different jets for LPG. LPG seems to include butane and propane.
Natural gas, methane, has one carbon atom, propane has three and butane four. The proportional molecule size difference between the propane and butane compared to methane must be significant.
I wonder why ethane, 2 carbon atoms, isn't used? Ethyne is, AKA acetylene.
Cos acetylene takes a LOT more effort to care for. Also its way more dodgy to use. Detonates and pretty bloody unstable at high pressure.
Needs the bottles stored upright, needs stored disolved in acetone yada yada yada.
He was asking about ethane really, rather than ethyne/acetylene.
She was only the welder's daughter, but she had acetylene legs.
(Should probably be the gas axe man's daughter but hey ho...)
Doubt is not a pleasant condition.
But certainty is an absurd one.
Voltaire
Doesn't acetylene need a licence and corresponding insurance cover (and stupidly high premiums)? The gas with the highest calorific value that is readily available over the counter is MAPP gas. I started using it for soldering copper pipe and would never go back to propane/butane now.
Some guys I know who are pro welders were talking about it a little while back. Seems like the regs surrounding it have got way tighter in recent years. It is just about the most flammable gas you can get, and has dodgy stability. Probably why it's so good. All the good stuff is dodgy as fuck.
Druid wrote: ↑Fri Dec 16, 2022 7:37 pm
I have one in my camper. Keeps us toasty even on low setting even when it's freezing outside. It's tapped into the main tank because I didn't want 10 litres of diesel inside the van, if only because of the smell.
Got a mate in Cumbria making me a larger main tank as we speak so tapping into that is probably best option. How did you do it? T Piece into engine feed and one way valve to heater feed?
Crafters and Sprinters have an aux fuel takeoff in the fuel sender, accessed from the top of the tank. The standpipe is short of the bottom of the tank so it doesn't pick up any crap from the bottom of the tank, and more importantly the heater can't drain the fuel tank leaving you stranded. If you're getting a custom tank made ask for an aux take off.
Bowman wrote: ↑Fri Dec 16, 2022 10:05 am
You could try a Chinese diesel heater. They make an all in one unit if you don't fancy a permanent install. I've got one in my van and they work really well
And as if by magic the shopkeeper appeared, no wait, that's not right, oddly this turned up on my feed yesterday, for the money it seems like a deal
Is it ridiculous to consider one of these for my office? (Which is more of a barn / outhouse, albeit technically part of the house) and is fooking freezing in the winter.
Just watched the vid and followed a few of the links, and it seems that all UK suppliers are sold out and Banggood has them listed at a crunchy £220. I suspect that price and availability won't return to sensible levels until spring 2023.
Shame - that would be ideal to heat my brick outhouse/bike shed.
mangocrazy wrote: ↑Sat Dec 17, 2022 10:43 pm
Just watched the vid and followed a few of the links, and it seems that all UK suppliers are sold out and Banggood has them listed at a crunchy £220. I suspect that price and availability won't return to sensible levels until spring 2023.
Shame - that would be ideal to heat my brick outhouse/bike shed.
Ebay. You will get a stand alone one like in the video for about 150. You will get the cylinder ones from around 100. They are both identical just one has a nice case.
I think at this stage in the winter I'll carry on with the thermostatically controlled electric fan heater I use and suffer the bills, and then actually plan out and implement a proper solution ready for next winter. I like the idea of an extended, internal, downward sloping exhaust run to reclaim as much waste heat as possible before exiting to external. And using waste engine oil...
I used a Webasto on the boat (9kw water heating) for c/h and dhw...brilliant. I eventually replaced it with a cheaper rebuilt one, but if we still had the boat it would have one of these by now.
freezing in the depths of winter).
