Updates on diesel/kerosene heaters

[Kayos]

Why can't you compare it to a gas hob? Gas hobs also give out similar products, and they should be rated in kilowatts, something like 1kw for a small ring on a cooker, 4kw for a big one. (ballpark figure) and you can work,out, or rather look up in some regulations, the permanently open fixed ventilation needed per kw.

Known calorific value of gas, heat input/output and as you said fixed ventilation requirements based on volume

It's around 50cm2 per kw for flueless gas fires plus a minimum room volume, flueless water heaters need a minimum room volume and can only be run for 5 minutes continuously
Gas hob needs 5m3 room volume, door or window to outside and 150cm2, 10m3 room volume, door or window to outside and 100cm2

Etc etc, vent requirements drop to zero as room volume increased but door or window to outside is s constant

 

[slim_boy_fat]

Forgot to put up a pic of mine finally in place



And, as of today, how it looks from outside



Quite neat overall, and I have a source of heating oil to burn in it at 50p a litre.....

 

[fizzy]

Very interesting thanks for posting. @fizzy

Carrying on chatting about the unvented (non-flued) type:

Yes, plenty of CO and also water vapour is a certainty.

I'm sure they are more efficient than an Aladdin type.
Yes lots of people including my family had Aladdins, etc as the sole heating in some rooms, but (old codger alert..) dare I say some folk have no common sense these days, being raised in a risk free environment..)

Yes people do use big unflued space heaters in garages, they also put out lots of CO and H2O, but hopefully it's for a short time, the garage door gets left open, or the space is very draughty.

The unflued ones would be a total non-starter in boats, camper vans and silmilar airtight spaces where people might close the portholes to stay warm, and the fixed vents, if any are not defined in cross-sectional area for that particular heater. Unless it's in the instructions, @fizzy ?
(Actually, edited to ad, you can work it out from the kw's produced by the heater, or by a gas or paraffin cooker, in a worst case scenario with all the burners and ovens full on.)

Everyone uses gas cookers, there is a minimum fixed air vent requirement, (for boats and I bet there is for house kitchens as well), that is a vent that can't be closed in any way by inhabitants. Gas cookers put out similar combustion products to paraffin heaters. Or any unflued flame.

I presume both types can run on diesel as well as paraffin?

Thanks for that.

I was worried about the amount of water vapour but I placed a humidity meter in the room and it was fine.
It is a nice heat as well - doesn't dry the air out too much like fan heater.

It does say in the book the min vent area.

And you would have to be mad to use one in a confined space.

Yes will run on both fuels.

 

[fizzy]

I have my 12V diesel/paraffin/kero eBay one up and running in the shed and am very happy with it.

Yes, it's noisy, sounds like a jet taking off if you're outside, but I only need to leave it on for half and hour in the shed before I go out on a cold/frosty morning and it's bearable.

Within an hour I can turn it down or off and be comfortable working out there, whereas before within 10 minutes I had to pack in through lack of feeling in my hands and feet.

My pal, who bought one on my recommendation, says he can now go out into his [very cold] garage to work and is also very pleased with the result(s) [phew!!].

Cheap to buy & run, it's a win:win as far as I'm concerned.

Sadly it isn't powerful enough to heat the office. It will maintain temp so the staff use electric heaters until about 12 gggrrr! Then it keeps the place warm the rest of the day.

The unvented heater was powerful enough but too many staff in one room and it did smell a bit. Fine in the kitchen and toilet area though.

A tip for you.
Don't run it on tickover - either on full or off. Runs cleaner that way less soot build up.

 

[slim_boy_fat]

A tip for you.
Don't run it on tickover - either on full or off. Runs cleaner that way less soot build up.

Cheers for that - I hadn't considered that aspect, as I don't generally 'do' diesel etc.