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Old 02-18-2011, 11:34 AM   #331
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Re: Hal The Van

Webasto heater install continued:

It's hard to see in this photo but the Glow Plug has carbon buildup crusted over it's entire length.


Used a utility blade to carefully scrap it clean.


Wanted to clean out the inside of the Burner Insert where the Glow Plug is positioned.


I'll be using a old can of Carb and Choke Cleaner. I say old can since none of my vehicles have carburetors anymore so this can was just sitting around getting rusty.


Some of the debris I flushed out.


Use a single edged razor to clean the remains of the gasket from the Combustion Tube.


Use the carb cleaner and a small wire brush to clean out the inside of the Heat Exchanger. As the name implies this where the heat from the combustion is transferred to the inside of the vehicle. It's also where soot will collect. Soot buildup on the heat exchanger will reduce heat transfer efficiency. A clean heat exchanger will require less fuel to get the same amount of heat.


Nasty looking.


Use sandpaper to remove the last bits of the gasket that I didn't get with the razor.


Clean up the edge of the Heat Exchanger.


Much better.


continued -

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Old 02-19-2011, 09:44 AM   #332
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Re: Hal The Van

In small engine repair class we were taught to put the bolt/screw/nut back where it went while taking things apart. If it doesn't get in the way, it's a great way to store them, especially if you have mixed lengths of different sizes or shelve projects for months at a time.

Love the ice cube tray idea though, will have to implement that.
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Old 02-20-2011, 09:18 PM   #333
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Re: Hal The Van

Quote:
put the bolt/screw/nut back where it went while taking things apart
Good idea. I'll have to remember that.

Webasto heater install continued:

I'd mentioned before about how a previous owner of the heater had cut off the part of the label that indicated the manufacture date.


Now that I have everything apart I have a better idea of it's age. This figure on the top of the Heat Exchanger appears to indicate it was cast in the 5th month of 1996.


On the Housing Shell is a similar figure for the 4th month of 1997.


In the center of the Burner Insert is another for the 9th month of 2000.


I'm guessing that the heater was manufactured in 1997 and serviced in 2000 or 2001.

Before getting to reassembly I want to write about the gaskets.
To repair the heater I ordered Gasket Repair Kit 82302a from a local truck supply business which is my closest Webasto parts seller. With shipping it came to $37 and contained three items.


First item is the rubber pad that goes beneath the heater. The repair manual calls it a "seal" but parts manual has it as a "gasket". You can see the new one next to the old one. The old one is still fine.


Next item is the gasket that fits between the Heat Exchanger and the Combustion Air Fan. If you remember I was real careful when separating the two parts so I could reuse the gasket. You can see the new one next to the old one. I'll be reusing the old one.


So out of the three gaskets I bought this is the only one actually needed to repair the heater. It wouldn't be as bad if I could just order the single gasket but I've only ever found them for sale as a set of three. $37 for the one gasket I need is pretty steep.


I don't know diddly about gaskets but bet I can find a better deal. Did some reading and settled on Mr. Gasket 5961 Ultra Seal Exhaust Gasket Material. Currently $17.44 for a 24" x 6" sheet at Amazon.


The new gasket material contains a steel core so making accurate cuts will be a challenge.


It took some experimenting but here's the method I settled on for making new gaskets.

Trace out the gasket. Then using aviation snips cut out a square with the traced out gasket in the center.


Take my Dremel-like rotary tool and put it in the bench vise. It's not a actual Dremel but I'm going to call it that. Tighten the vise just enough to hold the Dremel upright but not damage it.


Here's the bit I'm using. When I bought the Dremel it came with an assortment of different bits but they aren't all labeled. I'll just call it a cutting bit.


Using the Dremel like a router, cut along the inside line of the gasket tracing.


Cut while rotating the gasket material in the clockwise direction. I didn't have a deck, like with a regular router, to hold the material as I cut it so took my time.


It's at this point that Bob, who had been supervising the job, started giving me lip. She began telling me I was just making a ragged mess. She wanted me to hand it over because she could do better job with her claws than I was doing with all my tools.


I told her to hold her horses and let me get on with it. Took some fine sandpaper and dressed up the inside edges.


Use the aviation snips to trim along the outside traced line.




To make the holes in the gasket first drill a little larger hole in a scrap wood piece. Draw on the crosshairs.


The crosshairs help line up the drawn circle over the hole. Drill through the gasket material.


After drilling look closely to see if any of the metal core is sticking out through the hole.


A little work with a round file will clean it up.


Finished product.


Once I got the hang of it I found I could crank them out fairly quickly. I could probably get 6 gaskets out of this one sheet of material which brings their price down to $3 each.


Before any one asks, I have reassembled the heater and ran it several hours using the new do-it-yourself gasket. It runs just fine.

There is a difference in the thickness of the DIY gasket when compared to the original. This will necessitate an minor adjustment during the reassembly of the heater but I'll cover that in the next posting.


continued -
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Old 02-26-2011, 11:01 PM   #334
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Re: Hal The Van

Webasto heater install continued:

Start some reassembly. Glow Plug into the Burner Insert.
Notice that the Glow Plug is slightly oval.


Place the Glow Plug so the wide part of the oval is parallel to the face of the Burner Insert. The wire contacts should face towards the open end of the burner tube.


install the Glow Plug's hold down screw. Don't over tighten it.


How it looks after cleaning.


Slide the Glow Plug wires into the groove on the face of the Burner Insert.


Treat the Rubber Grommets with Armour-All.


Place one of my DIY gaskets into the Heat Exchanger.


Put the Combustion Tube into the Heat Exchanger.


Only fits one way.


Maneuver the Burner Insert into the Heat Exchanger. Mind the metal fuel tube.


As the Burner Insert is lowered into the Heat Exchanger the fuel tube grommet must be slid into place. I've used Armour-All on the grommet so it slides easier.


Be sure it's completely seated.


The two sets of wires are next. The grommets will be fitted into these holes.


Be sure to run the Flame Sensor wire between the face of the Burner Insert and fuel tube.
I've highlighted this step since I got it wrong the first time. Didn't realize my mistake until the heater was completely assembled and I looked back at the photos.


Here is the only change I had to make because of the DIY gasket. The yellow wires were originally wrapped around the Spoiler one time. The DIY gasket raised the Burner Insert just enough so the wires made contact with the spinning face of the Combustion Air Fan. This was easily fixed by running the wires under the spoiler and not around it.


Clean off the edge of the Combustion Air Fan where the gasket rests. First with a razor.


Then fine sandpaper.


The fan blades of the Combustion Air Fan need cleaned.


To clean it I used brush,


paper towels,


and finally Q-tips to get in the corners.


continued -
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Old 03-02-2011, 11:04 AM   #335
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Re: Hal The Van

Hal the Van at the local steel supplier yesterday.


$60 for 4' x 10' 16 gauge sheet metal.


Headed into the shear before loading in the van.


It's way more than I need but so much cheaper than Lowe's. Can't pass up a bargain and I'll have lots more to practice my welding on.
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Old 03-02-2011, 09:47 PM   #336
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Re: Hal The Van

Webasto heater install continued:

Reuse the gasket that fits between the Combustion Air Fan and the Heat Exchanger.


Screw the two together.


Put it back on the work mount.


Run the two sets of wires under the side clip.


Take the Lower Housing Shell and clean it.




Clean the Heater Air Intake.


There's a small lip in the Lower Housing Shell that the Heater Air Intake fits into.


As the heater is lowered into the Lower Housing Shell the Heater Air Intake has to be fit both onto the front of the Combustion Air Fan and behind the small lip in the shell.




There is a small round catch like this on each side of the heater.


It needs to pop into the corresponding hole on the Lower Housing Shell.


Next up is the Control Unit.
Look down between the heater and Lower Housing Shell. You can see the Arrestor Groove.


The bottom edge of the Control Unit fits into that groove.


Be sure it's properly seated before screwing into place.


Next are the X1 through X5 connectors.


Remember that the color of the sticker matches the color of the wire.


continued:
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Old 03-05-2011, 08:26 PM   #337
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Re: Hal The Van

Webasto heater install continued:

Before I put the heater into the Lower Heater Shell I should have mentioned again about the Insulation strip. As you can see from this picture the Insulation had deteriorated badly before I removed it.

Since the heater ran fine with it in this shape I figured it could run without it. Didn't replace it.

Clean the Upper Housing Shell then snap onto the Lower Housing Shell.


Plug the X6 Connector into place. The connector is keyed so it only goes in one way.


Snap the Electrical Connection Cover into place.


Slide the Heater Air Inlet and Outlet Covers into place.


Install the seal gasket onto the bottom of the heater.


That completes the heater rebuild. Here's some odds and ends.
I used the new seal gasket but will keep the other two new gaskets as patterns.


To solve the problem of the exhaust leakage at the muffler I welded along the leaking seams.


Used High Temp RTV (Room Temperature Vulcanization) Silicone to seal between the muffler tube and the flexible hose


Here's a tool used in this rebuild that I haven't shown before. It's a heated floor mat I recently discovered at Northern Tool. If you're standing on cold concrete for long periods this thing is heaven sent. Wish I'd found it years ago.


When I began the tear-down on the heater it was the only thing on my work bench. After working for a while this is how the bench always looks. My philosophy is that once you get something out why put it way? You might need it again.


This is the plug for the dosing (fuel) pump. Push down on the wire at the top to release the plug.


Installed the heater back onto the van. Added the flexible inlet air hose.


I routed the inlet end of the hose to behind the fuel pump. The inlet is facing towards the front of the van. This would normally be a bad idea since it would direct road debris towards the inlet of the heater but the final part of this install should safeguard it. In this picture you can also see the plastic fuel filter. I don't normally take the van off-road but I do take it off pavement. To prevent any damage from flying stones I'll be building a shield for the fuel pump.


continued -
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Old 03-09-2011, 08:44 PM   #338
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Re: Hal The Van

Webasto heater install continued:

Before making a metal shield for the fuel pump I used my old friend posterboard to do a mock up.


I'll make the shield from this rusty piece of sheet metal I found laying around the garage. Except for the bottom edge it's a light surface rust. A quick measurement shows it to be 22 gauge.


You can see in the above photo that the sheet is laying on a metal table. I've not mentioned it before but the table is one of the things I recently inherited from Dad. Found that it's a necessity if you're taking up welding. Need to make an addition to the table for this project. Welded a 1" angle along the front edge of the table.


Used a grinder to remove evidence of my beginners quality weld and level out the joint surface.


The sheet metal wasn't large enough to make the shield without first some cutting and joining. Use a framing square as a cutting guide for the saber saw. Use the newly installed angle as a clamp point.


Need to put a bend in the sheet metal. Don't have access to a press brake so I'll have to make something up. I've not done this before but I thought this might work.
Sandwich the sheet metal between the angle I've added to the table and another on top. Clamp securely.


Use a rubber mallet to bang on the edge of the sheet metal and bend it down. Didn't try it to bend it all at once. Just kept tapping away trying to keep the bend even.


End on view. Not too bad.


The edge was a little wavy so some extra work was needed using the table angle like a anvil.


Put another bend in the other end.


Place the clamps so the metal will clear them as it bends.


Both bends done.


Test fit. Looks good.


continued -
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Old 03-09-2011, 09:47 PM   #339
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Re: Hal The Van

Looks like you just made yourself a new heater that should last another 10 years before it needs to be rebuilt.

Does the heater case get warm, hot ?? In short could the heater be placed in a small confined space?
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Old 03-09-2011, 10:44 PM   #340
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Re: Hal The Van

Mine gets warm but not hot. As to mounting in a confined space, I think that's how SMB does mount them. At least from the pictures I've seen it looks that way. Some of the SMB owners could answer that better.
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