cerbera
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| posted on 2/11/07 at 12:09 PM |
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Electric Heater
Has anybody fitted an electric heater to keep their feet/legs warm during the colder months?
If so, are they any good and where did you buy it from and is it an easy install?
TA
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blakep82
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| posted on 2/11/07 at 12:24 PM |
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i haven't, but NFauto have them, and they're cheaper than anywhere else i've seen
________________________
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BenB
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| posted on 2/11/07 at 12:53 PM |
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Be aware that the low wattage ones don't do much!!! If you consider how many kW most engines give out as heat its not suprising a 5A heater
isn't going to do much when it's chilly outside!!
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matt_claydon
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| posted on 2/11/07 at 12:59 PM |
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The coolant-fed heater NFAuto sell is 4500 watts (twice the average mains fan heater). 5 Amps at 12v is 60 watts (think light bulb!).
My conclusion - don't even bother, they are a con! Better bet would be to cut a hole in the firewall 
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britishtrident
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| posted on 2/11/07 at 01:14 PM |
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They aren't a con but don't put out much heat.
I have one for pre-defrosting my tin top, on really cold mornings I leave on for 15 minutes before I go out.
If you really want simple cockpit heating just plumb an old heater matrix into the by-pass circuit of the cooling system.
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BenB
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| posted on 2/11/07 at 01:18 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by matt_claydon
The coolant-fed heater NFAuto sell is 4500 watts (twice the average mains fan heater). 5 Amps at 12v is 60 watts (think light bulb!).
My conclusion - don't even bother, they are a con! Better bet would be to cut a hole in the firewall
Eh???
4500W is 375A at 12v!!!!
That's one bloody big alternator required!!!
Even 37.5A would kill my BEC alternator 
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matt_claydon
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| posted on 2/11/07 at 02:03 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by BenB
Eh???
4500W is 375A at 12v!!!!
That's one bloody big alternator required!!!
Even 37.5A would kill my BEC alternator
Suggest you re-read what I said
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BenB
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| posted on 2/11/07 at 02:08 PM |
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Eh? So they work out the heat output of a coolant-powered heater as Watts? I suppose- why not! Fair enough... Me talking testicles as usual then...
Shows why an electric one is going to struggle to keep up 
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RazMan
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| posted on 2/11/07 at 02:39 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by blakep82
i haven't, but NFauto have them, and they're cheaper than anywhere else i've seen
I've got one of these and I must say they work quite well. 4.5kW may sound like overkill but its just enough to keep my car toasty in cold
weather with the roof on. You can even feel it when the roof is off but I doubt you will even notice anything with less power in an open car. Those
demisters will be a waste of money imo.
You will be much better off plumbing something into the megawatt heater you already installed under the bonnet
[Edited on 2-11-07 by RazMan]
Cheers,
Raz
When thinking outside the box doesn't work any more, it's time to build a new box
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cerbera
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| posted on 2/11/07 at 06:03 PM |
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Cheers for the replies guys.
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