Cali Night heater and Carbon Monoxide

[beardie]

I am assuming that night heater is intrinsically safe i.e. there is no way that the fumes get sucked back into the vehicle. Can anybody explain where the night heater exhaust is (does it feed into the main exhaust).

Is it recommended to have a carbon monoxide detector in the van if you run the heater over night in cold winter conditions.

If so are there any in particular that are recommended

I also realise that you shouldn’t run it in an enclosed space like a garage.

 

[smgcowfoldparts]

The exhaust for the night heater is seperate to the van exhaust and comes out underneath the sliding door and more towards the middle of the van rather than directly under the side.

cheers

 

[JockMacMad]

I have a CO detector in the van mainly for when cooking in the van just in case, this would also cover the exhaust heater as well.

Dunno which one I have but it was £25.00 and remember put it high up like a fire/smoke detector. One thing that screws with CO Alarms is changes in humidity and the Cali is likely to be such an environment. False positives may occur.

 

[John]

Most CO detectors are battery powered so are portable.

Ours lives in our kitchen but can be used in the Cali or indeed taking on holiday if self catering.

John

 

[campbellious]

So to get this straight the heater exhaust expels the fumes directly into the awning if one is fitted!! Surely there should be some sort of warning? We were planning on taking the van upto Yorkshire this weekend, the kids would have been snug in the van with the heating on and we were going to rough it in the awning, may have to change my plans!! :crazy

 

[smgcowfoldparts]

No, the heating unit is under the offside roughly in line with the sliding door area and the exhaust for the heater is seperate to the van exhaust. The heater exhaust exits and goes out towards the middle of the van, not to the outside or underneath the awning

cheers

 

[Freeley]

Regardless of where the heater exhaust is i wouldn't have thought sleeping in an awning with it running would be a good idea.
Have you had the heater running for an extended period before? I find it gets way too hot in the van even on a low setting i tried it once on a cold night and woke up in a sweat. Perhaps an electric heater you can leave on low would be a better option.

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Californiaman]

We've never left the van on once we're retired for the night. Way too hot!

 

[JockMacMad]

If you are sleeping 4 it gets more tricky as those upstairs need it on if you have no thermal cover and the ones downstairs broil else the ones downstairs are comfortable and those upstairs are cold. Shame there is no ducts into the roof and a selectable option to only heat up, down or both.

 

[jeannie]

Hi, glad to see a post on this as I was going to ask questions on this subject too. Used the heater one night only and,perhaps me and my kids have sensitive noses, but we all smelled fumes. I immediately turned it off. Before taking the Cali in for a check (which I will obviously do anyway) just wondered if anyone else had experienced this. It is under a year old.

Thanks. Jeannie

 

[calikev]

Hi jeannie. Did you have the door or any windows open :?: I had the same when I first bought mine I tried it out in the drive with the door open and got gased out.but since then I have used it several times even all night once with all windows and doors shut without any problem
Just a thought

 

[jeannie]

Hi, thanks for the reply.
No, there was no window or door open. I have not tried it again. Thought I would get a cheapish carbon monoxide tester before trying again.

will let you know, but I guess I need to take it to the dealer to be checked. Jeannie

 

[beardie]

I dont feel that a wiff of diesel fumes is a big problem particularly at startup. Its the risk that over an extended period of time (at night) that these get drawn into the cabin and build up to dangerous levels.

As the exhaust for the night heater is separate there are non of the catalysts etc that clean up the main exhaust

On further reflection the levels probably dont build up beyond those in the middle of a traffic jam with everybodies engines running

I am sure VW must have studied these scenarious carefully in placing the exhaust and other air intakes. One reason why a Cali is a good option compared to a van conversion with bolted on heater !

 

[phil the power]

I am a trucker in my day job and quite a few have these retro fitted and there have been some scares where drivers have felt dizzy and sleepy in the morning, this has normally been caused by a blocked or damaged exhaust. I check my exhaust each time I use the heater now to make sure fumes are coming out. I would never leave it on overnight anyway

 

[JockMacMad]

I leave mine on but have the CO Monitor Nd alarm in the van. That is load enough even to wake me lol

 

[Autonaut]

I read a post somewhere advising a small oil heater could be used on the lowest setting overnight. As this is a very eco option I bought the smallest I could find. Super efficient in a room. Havn't tried it in the van yet yet and there may be a problem because the instructions say it should not be within a couple of feet of objects. Will let you know if I melt anything.

 

[Autonaut]

Re: previous post

That's oil filled radiator not the old-fashioned oil stove!

 

[Calimark]

I have recently purchased a small delonghi bambino and will test it out in the cali over the weekend. I have used it in the house and it is excellent. Purchase was mainly in prep for ski trip in feb.

 

[beardie]

For those that are interested I found a Carbon Monoxide detector in Tesco for £13, cheapest I have seen (make is First Alert). Its quite small so shouldnt look out of place in a Cali. Battery life is 7 years I think

Ian

 

[jeannie]

Thank you all for your replies. Such a varied response, which I appreciate. I think I will go for the Tesco detector initially and get the Cali looked at depending on how things go.

Thanks again. jeannie

 

[muttley]

I took a portable carbon monoxide alarm in the van last weekend, and left it on the kitchen unit overnight. I planned to use it in the event that we had the heating on overnight, but we decided not to in the end, as it was far too warm. At 5am the alarm went off - which was a rather unpleasant wake up call. I assume that the O2 levels may have dropped (or CO2 levels risen) with 4 of us sleeping in the van, but frankly I am not going to bother with it again. I am fairly confident that VW have designed a vehicle which won't suffocate sleeping occupants in the night, so I will take my chances. I am more likely to be murdered by my wife if the alarm goes off again in the night!

Simon

 

[Rob G]

I took a portable carbon monoxide alarm in the van last weekend, and left it on the kitchen unit overnight. I planned to use it in the event that we had the heating on overnight, but we decided not to in the end, as it was far too warm. At 5am the alarm went off - which was a rather unpleasant wake up call. I assume that the O2 levels may have dropped (or CO2 levels risen) with 4 of us sleeping in the van, but frankly I am not going to bother with it again. I am fairly confident that VW have designed a vehicle which won't suffocate sleeping occupants in the night, so I will take my chances. I am more likely to be murdered by my wife if the alarm goes off again in the night!

Simon

They don't detect 02 or CO2
Only CO.

 

[andyinluton]

They don't detect 02 or CO2
Only CO.

As Muttley posted that almost 12 years ago I hope he hasn't been waiting for your reply before he goes camping again.

 

[Rob G]

As Muttley posted that almost 12 years ago I hope he hasn't been waiting for your reply before he goes camping again.

Thanks for pointing that out. It is surprising that in 12 years no one bothered to correct it. And it is possible that someone could read it and go on not understanding C0 detectors.

 

[Californication69]

I had this conversation with my 83 year old mom.
Carbon monoxide monitor is for a gas boiler.
CO.
In the kitchen high up near the ceiling.

And then in her living room where she has no air flow.
It hot as hell, no windows open and she has no air to breathe.
Carbon Dioxide CO2 measured in ppm.
I have one in my bed room. Netatmo, and when it gets up to 1200 ppm I can’t breathe in the room.
Open the door wide and it goes down to 700.