A few years ago I converted a Peugeot partner into a little micro camper, I tried to do it as cheap as possible, in the end including even the purchase of the vehicle was just over £1300. It includes solar electric though the one item I didn’t include was a diesel hearer though. This year I decided I would try to fit one. All links to the items I used are linked at bottom of post to purchase through Amazon.
As I didn’t included in the original design for one this was going to be a fun project. As the base of my camper was the car version not the van. The best place for me to fit one was at the rear, so the inlet and outlets come out where the spare wheel would be.
Most people fitting a diesel heater go for the separate components the one problem for me with this type was the size of the included fuel tank normally these are either 10 or 15 litres and the physical size I have nowhere to fit the tank. So I went for a all in one system. There main two design types is a thin one but tall, then a square one. The height of the taller one was too tall to fit in the bench design I have, so the square one it is. These ones have a smaller fuel tank at 5 litres.
I documented my journey on fitted this on my YouTube channel, you can watch in the video at the top. Though will go through the challenges that I had fitting it. The way a diesel heater works is you have an inlet pipe and exhaust, these go through the floor of your camper the best practice is to have turret this is a metal part, so that you only have to drill one big hole instead of two holes, this in turns help from a sealing point of view. I had got a turret to fit but I hadn’t realised that the pipe fittings on the all in one design are higher up, so you cannot use the turret system.
So I had to drill the two holes, which involved cutting a bit of the floor I had installed , then I realised I hadn’t got the r night drill bit, so in the end got one. Fitting and sealing wasn’t that much of a problem, do make sure you get high temperature sealant as remember the exhaust does really get very hot. Once the sealant had set I tested the unit and worked great.
So with all that done was now onto what was going to be the worst part of this install was to completely resign the bench seat, as for me the area where the diesel heater was going was where my toilet was, so the frame work, pull out supports etc had to be completely changed. This did take me a while but all went well in the end, Though I wished when I had designed the bench would have made it with prevision for a heater as this would have saved a lot of time, but as the saying goes we all live and learn.
For power I just piggy backed off the wires that goes into the inverter system I have, though had to have longer cables that what was included in the kit. One modification I made was to extend the cable to the front control panel so instead of it being on the front of the heater that now I cant access I could mount higher up.
All in all took me around 5 days doing this working few hours a day, as unfortunately I have a spinal problems that restricts my movement and I am in a lot of pain, so take me longer than most people. If I hadn’t have had a few of the problems like not having the right drill bit and figuring out how to modify the bench could have prob done the whole lot in less than 6hrs.
So was it worth fitting, well since fitting as of yet haven’t been out to test it fully due to illness and not being able to drive, but will update soon.
Below is a list of items used, You can purchase these items through amazon
Diesel heater:
The one I have – https://amzn.to/3ulxT69
Taller but thinner one – https://amzn.to/46pjzXy
Separate unit – https://amzn.to/3MRwjiW
Turret – https://amzn.to/3MUNTT7
Silicone – https://amzn.to/3QKqgxT
jubilee clips – https://amzn.to/3R8DSV3
carbon monoxide detector – https://amzn.to/3uscxEs
holesaw – https://amzn.to/46qkmrw
DISCLAIMER: Links included in this description might be affiliate links. If you purchase a product or service through the links that I provide I may receive a small commission. There is no additional charge to you! This just helps me keep the channel going, thanks for you support. Some items maybe different brand as exact item may no longer be available.