Van Heater Air Duct System – Update / Upgrade

January 20, 2020 by Ben Leave a Comment

To minimize cold spots and help reduce condensation, we upgraded our Van Heater Air Duct System.

If you have spent any time in poorly insulated houses with localized heating, you will no doubt understand the connection between heating air distribution and physical comfort. Because of this, We decided to update the design of our…

Van Parking Heater Air Duct System

See our initial impressions of this Chinese Webasto Parking Heater Copy

Also, If you need some help with your heater install, check out our Gasoline Parking Heater installation

Problems

Cold Spots

One of the first things I noticed when spending extended time with the Parking Heater running was the difference in temperature between the warm and cold spots. When sitting up front in the cab surrounded by glass the side without a heater vent had a significant temperature difference.

Condensation

Another thing I noticed, was the side without a vent also developed the most frost and condensation. Every van dweller knows the importance of reducing moisture by preventing or at least minimizing condensation.

Design

Previously there our Parking Heater was ducted with two air vents, one front, and one rear. To keep consistent supply air volume without losing duct pressure, we decided to only add one more vent.

The system consists of three 60mm Duct branches off of a 90mm Main Plenum/ Duct. Two up front supplying heat to the living area and one to the back. The two air vents up front have directional airflow control, while the rear air vent has direction and flow control.

Duct Parts

Mellor is a great source for all things Webasto and Espar related. I ordered some of my duct fittings from them. Other parts were sourced via email correspondence directly with Drivworld. Otherwise, I would suggest Amazon as a great place to get your Van Air Heater Duct Parts

Van Heater Air Duct System -Schematic

The simple schematic below shows the layout of our new and updated Van Heater Air Duct System.

-30c Test

Without a doubt, this new heater air duct configuration has made our van parking heater work better! We made the changes while under a frigid arctic air mass and instantly noticed how much warmer it felt. Heat up time is quicker, the cold spots are gone, with signs of frost and condensation drastically reduced.

Do You Need To Run This Type Of Duct System For Your Van Heater?

This is probably overkill for most, in fact, most people install the heater under the front passenger seat and in this situation, a plenum and branch duct system just won’t fit. While on the topic of heating, I actually have close to twenty years of experience in the HVAC/R industry. This more than likely swayed my decision to design for different possible duct configurations.