02/28/06

Hydronic Diesel Heater (Dec-2005)

The heater is installed (Feb 28, 2006).

Quick overview of the system:

1. Espar D5 Hydronic heater (approx 17K BTU) in port lazarette

2. Heater hose loop across the boat (run along port-side to the v-berth and return along starboard)

3. 7k btu blower under aft berth, 14k btu blower in main salon (both dual-speed)

4. 3' copper radiator under v-berth (since it's hardly used)

5. Water heater in series w/ bypass

Works well. There are still some tweaks left to be done.

Boat gets hot nicely. The only downside is the heater exhaust sounds like a small turbine/turbocharger!

Pix to come. In the meantime - here are some pictures of an excellent installation of a fellow Catalina 380 captain:

Sea Sea Rider (Paul McManus) Diesel Heater Installation Pix