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UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: dazmond on December 15, 2017, 06:17:17 pm

Title: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: dazmond on December 15, 2017, 06:17:17 pm
so.......ive made sure my frost stat is on and my hose is connected(return to tank)......its forecast to get down to -2 here overnight so it will kick in...

it just seems weird not to be putting a heater in my van overnight! ;D

do you guys use the frost stat or do you turn it off and put a heater in there?......this is new to me...but i think it defeats the object of getting one of these heaters if you dont use it to its full capacity.  :)
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: Jonny 87 on December 15, 2017, 06:20:48 pm
A question I’d like to know also.......... is it going to sap your power from your batteries keep kicking in and starting throughout the night?

Or potentially does it kick in, then It generates so much heat in 20 minutes or so that it wouldn’t need to kick in again during the night.

Guess time will tell daz. My finger is hovering over the “send” button on my email to Oliver to arrange the system, so any info I can gather beforehand the better.
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: The Jester of Wibbly on December 15, 2017, 06:32:17 pm
I stick to my electric heater on frost setting. 

In the dead of night the burner starting up does draw attention with noise.  I'm not saying it's loud, but does seem to magnify in the dead of night.

Go for it Jonny. Take a gulp of whisky and hit the send button. You won't look back.  ;D
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: dazmond on December 15, 2017, 06:46:47 pm
A question I’d like to know also.......... is it going to sap your power from your batteries keep kicking in and starting throughout the night?

Or potentially does it kick in, then It generates so much heat in 20 minutes or so that it wouldn’t need to kick in again during the night.

Guess time will tell daz. My finger is hovering over the “send” button on my email to Oliver to arrange the system, so any info I can gather beforehand the better.

i doubt itll drain the batteries too much in one night mate or im sure they wouldnt fit the frost stat feature in the first place.apparently it doesnt kick in fully.just enough to stop everything freezing for 10 mins every hour.

if you left the van for a week in freezing conditions without driving it with the frost stat on then they might drain the batteries then but not one night.
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: Jonny 87 on December 15, 2017, 07:56:49 pm
I stick to my electric heater on frost setting. 

In the dead of night the burner starting up does draw attention with noise.  I'm not saying it's loud, but does seem to magnify in the dead of night.

Go for it Jonny. Take a gulp of whisky and hit the send button. You won't look back.  ;D

I’m oh so close.  :)

Does rum and coke help? That’s what I’m on at the minute.  ;D
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: Jonny 87 on December 15, 2017, 07:58:25 pm
A question I’d like to know also.......... is it going to sap your power from your batteries keep kicking in and starting throughout the night?

Or potentially does it kick in, then It generates so much heat in 20 minutes or so that it wouldn’t need to kick in again during the night.

Guess time will tell daz. My finger is hovering over the “send” button on my email to Oliver to arrange the system, so any info I can gather beforehand the better.

i doubt itll drain the batteries too much in one night mate or im sure they wouldnt fit the frost stat feature in the first place.apparently it doesnt kick in fully.just enough to stop everything freezing for 10 mins every hour.

if you left the van for a week in freezing conditions without driving it with the frost stat on then they might drain the batteries then but not one night.

Thanks daz, that makes sense. Seems like a lot of tech in them. I see what spruce means now when he says there a work of art.
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: brianbarber on December 15, 2017, 10:33:35 pm
If it's very cold and likely to kick in all night,I will put van on charge overnight if working local the following day just to be on the safe side.

Mr B
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: Splash & dash on December 15, 2017, 10:48:46 pm
so.......ive made sure my frost stat is on and my hose is connected(return to tank)......its forecast to get down to -2 here overnight so it will kick in...

it just seems weird not to be putting a heater in my van overnight! ;D

do you guys use the frost stat or do you turn it off and put a heater in there?......this is new to me...but i think it defeats the object of getting one of these heaters if you dont use it to its full capacity.  :)



The frost stat will kick in at 2 degrees but I’ve found if I have warm water in the tank that it doesn’t come on as the temperature is obviously above 2 degrees , first few times it did kick in it woke me up as the van is below my bedroom window works a treat you live in a much colder part of the country to me so will probably find it fires up a lot more
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: Splash & dash on December 15, 2017, 10:52:59 pm
A question I’d like to know also.......... is it going to sap your power from your batteries keep kicking in and starting throughout the night?

Or potentially does it kick in, then It generates so much heat in 20 minutes or so that it wouldn’t need to kick in again during the night.

Guess time will tell daz. My finger is hovering over the “send” button on my email to Oliver to arrange the system, so any info I can gather beforehand the better.



I think you will find that it runs for about 5 muinets it pumps the water through the system quite slowly then shuts down it will fire up again later as the temperature dropes back to 2 degrees , as many times as it’s needed : dont worry about the battery’s if you have two decent 110  you will be fine
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: Slacky on December 15, 2017, 11:03:44 pm
I picked my van earlier after Grippa fitted my unit.

Sounds like a 747 once the burner is up and running ;)

Peter ran your van over earlier didn't he Daz?


Oliver suggested if you don't do a great deal of miles and its frosty check the batteries charge and charge if necessary in addition to any split charge relay.
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: dazmond on December 15, 2017, 11:10:07 pm
I picked my van earlier after Grippa fitted my unit.

Sounds like a 747 once the burner is up and running ;)

Peter ran your van over earlier didn't he Daz?

it was simon who finally arrived at my house around 3pm  matt (after a long drive )and explained the ford issue with the fuel return pipe(or lack of!).all sorted now!im very happy.

grippa are a great company to deal with.excellent customer service.

yeah when the burner gets going its like a jumbo jet!lovely... ;D
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: Slacky on December 15, 2017, 11:23:53 pm
I was picked up by a taxi company paid for by Grippa when the heater was finished. He said how conscientious Oliver is as a businessman. Thats the impression Ive got since doing business with them. He's a great guy and has time for whatever you need to discuss to get it clear.

Great company.
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: andyM on December 16, 2017, 07:55:41 am
I was picked up by a taxi company paid for by Grippa when the heater was finished. He said how conscientious Oliver is as a businessman. Thats the impression Ive got since doing business with them. He's a great guy and has time for whatever you need to discuss to get it clear.

Great company.

Daz had a Chauffeur! (http://www.cleanitup.co.uk/smf/1513410905_grin.gif)
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: dd on December 17, 2017, 12:44:35 pm
A question I’d like to know also.......... is it going to sap your power from your batteries keep kicking in and starting throughout the night?

Or potentially does it kick in, then It generates so much heat in 20 minutes or so that it wouldn’t need to kick in again during the night.

Guess time will tell daz. My finger is hovering over the “send” button on my email to Oliver to arrange the system, so any info I can gather beforehand the better.

i doubt itll drain the batteries too much in one night mate or im sure they wouldnt fit the frost stat feature in the first place.apparently it doesnt kick in fully.just enough to stop everything freezing for 10 mins every hour.

if you left the van for a week in freezing conditions without driving it with the frost stat on then they might drain the batteries then but not one night.
How hard is it to run a lead out to the van to be on the safe side. When I had an Isothermal 1 from Pure Freedom my experience was that it ate batteries. My preference now is to use cold as it makes life much simpler for me.
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: Splash & dash on December 17, 2017, 01:42:58 pm
A question I’d like to know also.......... is it going to sap your power from your batteries keep kicking in and starting throughout the night?

Or potentially does it kick in, then It generates so much heat in 20 minutes or so that it wouldn’t need to kick in again during the night.

Guess time will tell daz. My finger is hovering over the “send” button on my email to Oliver to arrange the system, so any info I can gather beforehand the better.

i doubt itll drain the batteries too much in one night mate or im sure they wouldnt fit the frost stat feature in the first place.apparently it doesnt kick in fully.just enough to stop everything freezing for 10 mins every hour.

if you left the van for a week in freezing conditions without driving it with the frost stat on then they might drain the batteries then but not one night.
How hard is it to run a lead out to the van to be on the safe side. When I had an Isothermal 1 from Pure Freedom my experience was that it ate batteries. My preference now is to use cold as it makes life much simpler for me.



It won’t eat batteries if the correct ones are used a lot of people use to smaller amp hour ones use a cheap and nasty charger and then say the heater is heavy in batteries : if it’s installed with the correct amp hour batteries and a proper charger used it will work fine for many years
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: dd on December 17, 2017, 02:05:28 pm
PF installed it with 2x 85amp batteries which clearly was not enough. I did think they would have been more professional as they get good feedback on this forum.

You are the only poster I know who runs their system on 2x 200amp batteries. This seems a good idea, but is not how they are set up by professional installers, who normally seem to fit 2x 110amp batteries.

Needless to say I would not use PF again.
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: Splash & dash on December 17, 2017, 04:25:55 pm
PF installed it with 2x 85amp batteries which clearly was not enough. I did think they would have been more professional as they get good feedback on this forum.

You are the only poster I know who runs their system on 2x 200amp batteries. This seems a good idea, but is not how they are set up by professional installers, who normally seem to fit 2x 110amp batteries.

Needless to say I would not use PF again.


With respect t that’s exactly what I said wrong batteries used 85 amp isn’t enough pure freedom are useless they didn’t Evan have the decency to get back to me and I phoned them on several occasions cowboy outfit as far as Ime concerned ; the minimum I would use would be 2x115 with my old system that’s what I had and worked fine , my new system is almost 400 amps I know it’s over kill but I also know I won’t have  any problems with it which is important when working 200 miles away from home
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: dazmond on December 17, 2017, 06:00:38 pm
A question I’d like to know also.......... is it going to sap your power from your batteries keep kicking in and starting throughout the night?

Or potentially does it kick in, then It generates so much heat in 20 minutes or so that it wouldn’t need to kick in again during the night.

Guess time will tell daz. My finger is hovering over the “send” button on my email to Oliver to arrange the system, so any info I can gather beforehand the better.

i doubt itll drain the batteries too much in one night mate or im sure they wouldnt fit the frost stat feature in the first place.apparently it doesnt kick in fully.just enough to stop everything freezing for 10 mins every hour.

if you left the van for a week in freezing conditions without driving it with the frost stat on then they might drain the batteries then but not one night.
How hard is it to run a lead out to the van to be on the safe side. When I had an Isothermal 1 from Pure Freedom my experience was that it ate batteries. My preference now is to use cold as it makes life much simpler for me.

Not hard at all mate.

But I have a smart split relay fitted. I won't need to charge up overnight often. Maybe once a week we ll see.
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: NWH on December 17, 2017, 06:46:43 pm
It’ll be interesting I’ve just had the same fitted as you Daz I’ve had battery problems with my heater forever so like you say we will see,I’m hoping with grippas setup I’ll have to plug in once a week as I do at least 25 miles to work and back with a bit of travelling in between jobs.
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: dd on December 17, 2017, 06:52:05 pm
Daz, you may find the frost stat takes more out of your batteries than you think on a cold winter night. If it cuts in and out several times this could be a significant drain on your batteries.

This is what knackered the first set of batteries I had with my Isothermal 1. You maybe OK, but I would always leave batteries on overnight charge when it is frosty. A cheaper option than having to replace them.
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: dd on December 17, 2017, 06:56:26 pm
PF installed it with 2x 85amp batteries which clearly was not enough. I did think they would have been more professional as they get good feedback on this forum.

You are the only poster I know who runs their system on 2x 200amp batteries. This seems a good idea, but is not how they are set up by professional installers, who normally seem to fit 2x 110amp batteries.

Needless to say I would not use PF again.


With respect t that’s exactly what I said wrong batteries used 85 amp isn’t enough pure freedom are useless they didn’t Evan have the decency to get back to me and I phoned them on several occasions cowboy outfit as far as Ime concerned ; the minimum I would use would be 2x115 with my old system that’s what I had and worked fine , my new system is almost 400 amps I know it’s over kill but I also know I won’t have  any problems with it which is important when working 200 miles away from home
Glad to know I am not the only one PF have treated poorly as everyone else seems to think they are great. I think you are very sensible going for your 400 amp set up.  My experience is the heaters really drain batteries.
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: Ian Sheppard on December 19, 2017, 03:55:04 pm
A question I’d like to know also.......... is it going to sap your power from your batteries keep kicking in and starting throughout the night?

Or potentially does it kick in, then It generates so much heat in 20 minutes or so that it wouldn’t need to kick in again during the night.

Guess time will tell daz. My finger is hovering over the “send” button on my email to Oliver to arrange the system, so any info I can gather beforehand the better.

i doubt itll drain the batteries too much in one night mate or im sure they wouldnt fit the frost stat feature in the first place.apparently it doesnt kick in fully.just enough to stop everything freezing for 10 mins every hour.

if you left the van for a week in freezing conditions without driving it with the frost stat on then they might drain the batteries then but not one night.
How hard is it to run a lead out to the van to be on the safe side. When I had an Isothermal 1 from Pure Freedom my experience was that it ate batteries. My preference now is to use cold as it makes life much simpler for me.

Not hard at all mate.

But I have a smart split relay fitted. I won't need to charge up overnight often. Maybe once a week we ll see.

The Frost protection will run for approx 10 minutes once the set temperature is reached (2c is the default) in terms of battery usage the Webasto draws a chunk of current for a few seconds at start up (8 - 9amps) then drops very quickly  to around 3 amps, The pump while recirculating water is drawing maybe an amp an hour, So 10 minutes or so running time will probably draw between 2 - 4 amps over that time, if frosts activates a couple times over night you may draw 4 to 10amps out of the battery during the night but. The more often it fires up the higher the draw.  Two high AH batteries are a good idea as already mentioned above.

Split relays are useful however depending on milage and how long the engine runs they may not to put back in all the amps used so bench charging is a good idea a couple times a week.
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: NWH on December 19, 2017, 04:06:09 pm
Ideal for me I’m doing at least 50-60 miles a day.
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: poles apart on December 20, 2017, 05:18:46 pm
I've got two vans with the hot water Grippa tank systems and I don't use the froststat because it's too noisy in the dead of night! Used to wake me up so god knows what the neighbours were thinking. I bet they were looking out of their windows for a low flying jet! On the plus side, I've never had to charge the batteries as they're always charged up from the split relay charger fitted by Grippa. When I had an Ionics system (years ago) I was always charging the batteries from the mains.
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: dazmond on December 20, 2017, 05:21:36 pm
I've got two vans with the hot water Grippa tank systems and I don't use the froststat because it's too noisy in the dead of night! Used to wake me up so god knows what the neighbours were thinking. I bet they were looking out of their windows for a low flying jet! On the plus side, I've never had to charge the batteries as they're always charged up from the split relay charger fitted by Grippa. When I had an Ionics system (years ago) I was always charging the batteries from the mains.

how many miles do you do a day mate and how long is the engine running over the course of a day?   cheers
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: poles apart on December 21, 2017, 06:53:48 pm
We can travel as little as 8 miles to Swansea and stop start all day around there or we can travel 50 miles and just do two sites. It may be a different story if we were local all the time but thankfully were not.
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: NWH on December 21, 2017, 08:45:34 pm
The are trouble free if you do a bit of traveling during the day I’ve only mains charged once this week on Monday,every morning I’ve pulled up at the first job it’s read 14-2 volts lol happy days I never realised it could read that the lowest it’s been at the end of a big job is 12-6 volts then off to the next job and back up to 14 volts.
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: dazmond on December 21, 2017, 10:07:31 pm
The are trouble free if you do a bit of traveling during the day I’ve only mains charged once this week on Monday,every morning I’ve pulled up at the first job it’s read 14-2 volts lol happy days I never realised it could read that the lowest it’s been at the end of a big job is 12-6 volts then off to the next job and back up to 14 volts.

at the end of my working day today after the heater had been running 6 hours solid the batteries were reading 12.6!(i did have the engine running for 30 mins at lunchtime but thats it)
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: dazmond on December 28, 2017, 10:44:57 pm
my frost stat kicked in tonight.first time ive heard it fire up.its not too loud really.i only noticed it because i took the dog out.i had a look at it and the controller flashes the water temperature in the tank and turns off when it gets to 7c.lovely.

saves remembering to put a heater in my van on cold nights esp when im not working for a few days. :)
Title: Re: diesel heater users.........frost stat.......
Post by: NWH on December 29, 2017, 03:43:54 pm
That’s the beauty of em plug into the tank when it’s freezing and the frost stat does it’s job,I’ve sorted what I think was the main problem with mine the 2 plugs on the heater were loose or the wires were that attatch them. Today it was like a brand new heater from the minute I turned it on although I’m going to buy those 2 new plugs in the new year as I think the wires are just worn from years of use.