Diesel Heater Remote Control Options

[Kayos]

I have had the diesel heater installed for a while now, very happy with it and now the insulation is (nearly) finished it warms the office very quickly

Mine came with the little keyfob to turn it on and off, I turn it on from the house while I make morning coffee and kids breakfast, however it can be hit and miss

Can I change the controller for one that confirms the heater has actually fired up?

Needs to be remote/wireless. Walking to the office and checking rather defeats the object of remote activation

 

[voipio]

Is there already a remote office temperature monitor with an indoors display? Or a weather station, perhaps, that accepts external temperature sensors? Feedback won't be instant, of course, but if a temperature rise isn't seen after 5 mins, then the chances are that the heater hasn't fired up.

There are Bluetooth-enabled controllers out there, that might be compatible with your heater, and will talk to a mobile phone app, but Bluetooth range is going to be quite limited.

 

[gaz1]

you will have to check if the module has been upgraded yours was the newer model that people could buy to upgrade theres to a remote function

as i posted that type up as someone module had failed but there was another one available

 

[JOEPRO]

I have seen this but no personal experimce of using one:

Ignite WiFi Chinese Diesel Air Heater Controller & Replacement CPU Kit | eBay UK

Ignite WiFi offers unprecedented control over your Chinese diesel air heater along with detailed examination / customisation of the run time conditions SIMPLE PLUG U PLAY Installation. Ignite WiFi controller includes a replacement heater CPU to ensure compatibility, works out of the box every...

www.ebay.co.uk

It may have the functionality you are looking for but a bit spendy.

 

[gaz1]

i posted this one last time if you want features on it

Home

Afterburner home page

www.mrjones.id.au

 

[Kayos]

I found this one

1PC Red 4 Key Thermostat Remote Control for Diesel Air Car Heater LCD Switch MU | eBay

Suitable for diesel air car heater LCD switch. Color:Red & English LCD. This item have 3 months warranty. Because, our prices are unable to include above fees, as the custom policies are different in every territories.

www.ebay.co.uk

Also see it sold with a different control panel though

 

[qwakers]

google afterburner controller.

 

[JOEPRO]

google afterburner controller.

 

[Smallfry]

I have been using these for years to control the Webasto heaters in my vans with no problems at all. There are lots of different sellers on eBay

Pardon our interruption...

 

[Kayos]

I have been using these for years to control the Webasto heaters in my vans with no problems at all. There are lots of different sellers on eBay

Pardon our interruption...

It's the confirmation it has turned on I need rather than a means of turning it on

 

[Smallfry]

It's the confirmation it has turned on I need rather than a means of turning it on

Ah. What I did with the vans, was to install an ultrabright 10mm LED in each van, so I could see it was switched on from the house.

Each switch comes with two fobs, so I leave one in the house to switch it on, and leave the other in the van to switch it off. the LED also reminds me it is on.

Perhaps you could do the same in the office window ? Assuming it is the switching that is intermittent, and not the heater itself.

 

[Kayos]

I have seen this but no personal experimce of using one:

Ignite WiFi Chinese Diesel Air Heater Controller & Replacement CPU Kit | eBay UK

Ignite WiFi offers unprecedented control over your Chinese diesel air heater along with detailed examination / customisation of the run time conditions SIMPLE PLUG U PLAY Installation. Ignite WiFi controller includes a replacement heater CPU to ensure compatibility, works out of the box every...

www.ebay.co.uk

It may have the functionality you are looking for but a bit spendy.

3 x the cost of the heater

That's why I love this forum

 

[Kayos]

Is there already a remote office temperature monitor with an indoors display? Or a weather station, perhaps, that accepts external temperature sensors? Feedback won't be instant, of course, but if a temperature rise isn't seen after 5 mins, then the chances are that the heater hasn't fired up.

There are Bluetooth-enabled controllers out there, that might be compatible with your heater, and will talk to a mobile phone app, but Bluetooth range is going to be quite limited.

Sadly not, although I have been looking for an excuse to buy a weather station

 

[JOEPRO]

3 x the cost of the heater

That's why I love this forum

Ah OK so you had a budget not stated in post #1 then.

What is your budget so people know going forward on your thread?

 

[Kayos]

Ah OK so you had a budget not stated in post #1 then.

What is your budget so people know going forward on your thread?

My reply was tongue in cheek, however I'm more £15 than £150. For that price I will walk the 25 metres to the office

 

[JOEPRO]

My reply was tongue in cheek, however I'm more £15 than £150. For that price I will walk the 25 metres to the office

For that budget and since you said the remote works but you want to know when it's powered up - what about adding a visible LED or similar visual aid on the garage visible from your house window? That way you could see that the fuel pump is running and therefore the heater is on.

 

[JOEPRO]

Actually, I have a blink mains plug camera in my garage. Inexpensive WiFi camera. I can turn on inbuilt torch on and off to see in the garage on my app and it's got audio.

So you could use that to listen for the heater starting up with the remote and also keep an eye on it as I really wouldn't let mine run unattended for long.

 

[m_c]

I have seen this but no personal experimce of using one:

Ignite WiFi Chinese Diesel Air Heater Controller & Replacement CPU Kit | eBay UK

Ignite WiFi offers unprecedented control over your Chinese diesel air heater along with detailed examination / customisation of the run time conditions SIMPLE PLUG U PLAY Installation. Ignite WiFi controller includes a replacement heater CPU to ensure compatibility, works out of the box every...

www.ebay.co.uk

It may have the functionality you are looking for but a bit spendy.

That is a rip-off of the Afterburner.
Ray Jones (the original creator) made the entire Afterburner project open source for those who wish to build their personal one, but does sell complete units for a reasonable cost (basic version is 115$AUS). The Ignite producer blatantly abused the opensource to produce their own commercial product, with no royalties being paid to Ray.

 

[Smallfry]

That is a rip-off of the Afterburner.
Ray Jones (the original creator) made the entire Afterburner project open source for those who wish to build their personal one, but does sell complete units for a reasonable cost (basic version is 115$AUS). The Ignite producer blatantly abused the opensource to produce their own commercial product, with no royalties being paid to Ray.

Welcome to the modern world. This is happening all the time with just about everything.

 

[Jelly_Sheffield]

If you have some kind of smarthome or smart lighting setup already, then these are very effective.

I have one which is controled primarily by the smart speakers, and is also digitally linked to the temperature and humidity sensor in the workshop via a subroutine that automatically cuts in and signals the heater to come on at full power when the temperature drops below 3°C, then signals it to turn off at 10°C.