I had a new to me technician aboard for the better part of three days last week installing a diesel forced air heater on the Key of Sea. The heater kit has been sitting on my bench in the garage for nearly a year while I figured out how to get it installed.
Originally it was to be installed with the heavy help of a buddy from the Power Squadron. But then he got very ill and was unable to help. It would have been done free! So, after months of waiting, hoping he would get healthy enough to help me, it became obvious his days of helping others was probably over. I started looking around for someone else to do the job but it was tough because all the reputable places in town wouldn't touch the project because they were all representatives of Espar or Wabasto or one of the other few well known outfits, all of which cost an arm and two legs!
My Planar unit is Russian made and costs far less than those other company's products which cost in the thousands of dollars. My Planar kit was a little over a grand and with the extrta parts I had to buy to make it right for our particular boat, it was still less than $1,500.
I finally found a young fellow through a boat buddy who works very inexpensively and had experience intalling heaters. So we got started on the project and into the first day we discovered I didn't have all the parts I needed. So, I made a quick drive up to the Planar showroom in Surrey, B.C. only about a 40 minute drive from our house. I picked up the parts and drove right back to the boat where my guy was still doing what he could do without those parts.
Day 2--He was cutting holes here and there including enlarging the old 3 inch ducting holes to fit the 4 inch ducts we wanted. Plus there was the new exhaust through hull which meaant a new hole through the hull. Anytime holes get cut in my boat I get a little nervous because well, just because. If you own a boat you know what I mean.
Day 3--Finishing the ducting, attaching the exhaust hose to the through hull and powering up the unit. It all went together very easily except for the customization that was often necessary due to the characteristics of our boat.In the end though, all went well and the unit running very well. It is so efficient and quiet and heats up the boat quickly.
Meanwhile, my tech also installed the correct water hose to the fresh water pump, removing the old garden hose which should never have been used. He also made sure each connection was tight and no air was leaking into the system. It seems that we now have a solid working water system. However, he advised me that our hot water heater does have a small drip that will eventually become worse and we'll have to replace the unit. We'll cross our fingers that it keeps working for another year or two as we have exhausted a couple of year's worth of our budget.
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| 4" ducting connected to the heater output end. |
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| Fuel filter about to be installed. One of the parts we needed to get in Canada |
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| The heater unit in its cabinet. |
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| The muffler ducted into the space to the right where the exhaust thru hull is located. |
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| Digital display |
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| Thru hull exhaust. |
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| Forward duct in the stairwell leading to the galley |
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| New thru hull hole. |
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| My tech installing new water hoses replacing the old garden hose. Poor choice by previous owner. |
