Not sure if I have a similar issue or not. Got one fitted this week, tried it out today, so set controller to 24C to se what it could do (heat reading from controller thermostat). Air temperature in the van was reading 11C, after 15 mins we had got up to 14C, 30 mins 16C, 1 hour 19C and by 1hr 30mins only up to 20C. From what I'd read, seen on vids, etc. the heater should make the van really toasty quite quickly. Is the above sound normal or are my expectations too high?
It will take me 1/2 hr + to get my van up to 20 deg. with 4Kw of heat being put in. ( LWB with hightop)
Factory fit for these vans is 3.5Kw so don't expect miracles from the small heaters.
Factory fit for these vans is 3.5Kw so don't expect miracles from the small heaters.
Ok, so today checked through the controller settings and saw 'Power Value' was at 0, so put that up to 9 as per post from @Eclipse Campers, tested it again and there was noticeable improvement. Thanks folks.
Thats great news. The instructions are not brilliant but adequate. Glad its now sorted.
You're welcome
.All the best,
Ian
First post on the site so please bear with me .....
we had a van converted in October ...t6 from a hire vehicle to a loverly camper !!!
Clearly been unable to go far apart from the drive and loving it so far apart from the planar heater ... we have tried all the different settings etc but still had little success in getting it hot !
We have taken it back to the conversion company, who have done a great job of the conversion , twice and the last time, yesterday they did replace the control panel saying it was faulty and that was the problem.
However, I've been in it tonight and it’s taken an hour to reach just 20 degrees....
Is this normal ??? From what we have read folks seem to say they preform really well but our experience so far is a little disappointing.
Any advice
we had a van converted in October ...t6 from a hire vehicle to a loverly camper !!!
Clearly been unable to go far apart from the drive and loving it so far apart from the planar heater ... we have tried all the different settings etc but still had little success in getting it hot !
We have taken it back to the conversion company, who have done a great job of the conversion , twice and the last time, yesterday they did replace the control panel saying it was faulty and that was the problem.
However, I've been in it tonight and it’s taken an hour to reach just 20 degrees....
Is this normal ??? From what we have read folks seem to say they preform really well but our experience so far is a little disappointing.
Any advice
Where is the heater taking its cool air intake from (the big inlet on the end not the inlet for the burner which is about 25mm)
If it's a fresh air feed then the colder the outside air temperature the slower it will be to warm up, it should be taking the intake from within the van so it recirculates and rewarms the air.
If it's a fresh air feed then the colder the outside air temperature the slower it will be to warm up, it should be taking the intake from within the van so it recirculates and rewarms the air.
Hi
I have a new conversion with a Planar, like you not had a lot of use these last 3 or 4 mths , but whilst playing with my new baby time to heat up not been a problem. I did make the mistake when i first got it to press the buttons too long and set it on fan only rather than heat. There are some very good web videos to help you understand the set up and the controls , would suggest you go looking for those , and check you are operating it correctly. Are you measuring the 'temperature' at the heater or at the controller, check that in the set up. youtu.be/1fVCiMTcByg Jeff
I have a new conversion with a Planar, like you not had a lot of use these last 3 or 4 mths , but whilst playing with my new baby time to heat up not been a problem. I did make the mistake when i first got it to press the buttons too long and set it on fan only rather than heat. There are some very good web videos to help you understand the set up and the controls , would suggest you go looking for those , and check you are operating it correctly. Are you measuring the 'temperature' at the heater or at the controller, check that in the set up. youtu.be/1fVCiMTcByg Jeff
Threads merged.
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As wildjeff said, if you hold the button too long it puts it on ventilation mode only , no heat. But if you are taking too long to heat your van I assume you have the curtains closed and not opening the door too often. Have you read the control manual and adjusted parameters for max heat settings. I have found setting the temp thermostat to be read at the control panel not at the heater gives you more accurate temperature control.
If you are in cold conditions and van interior is low temp then heating will take longer as walls , furniture etc are cold.
You will take longer with a pop top roof up as well as its only canvas and not a good insulator, i sometimes leave my pop top down for more rapid heating ,once van is warm i then put it up.
If you are in cold conditions and van interior is low temp then heating will take longer as walls , furniture etc are cold.
You will take longer with a pop top roof up as well as its only canvas and not a good insulator, i sometimes leave my pop top down for more rapid heating ,once van is warm i then put it up.
I'm due to get my planar fitted next week with the basic PU-5 controller, linked with external sensor. I'm getting nervous that I should have gone for the digital control panel.
Anyone able to assure me the PU-5 is good enough and not too hard to understand. How hard can it be with 2 buttons ?
Ta
Anyone able to assure me the PU-5 is good enough and not too hard to understand. How hard can it be with 2 buttons ?
Ta
The intake is in the drivers side footwell so inside the van ....
we have tried all the different settings ie t- heater , panel etc and still always get poor results ...
We have the pu 27 controller which tbh is fine....well it should be now after they changed it but pretty sure it still can’t be right !
We have never had the pop top open..... far to cold !!!!
it runs well for 10 mins if so then shuts off, losing loads of heat before kicking in again ..... however 10 mins later it cuts off again .... so frustrated ......!!!
we have tried all the different settings ie t- heater , panel etc and still always get poor results ...
We have the pu 27 controller which tbh is fine....well it should be now after they changed it but pretty sure it still can’t be right !
We have never had the pop top open..... far to cold !!!!
it runs well for 10 mins if so then shuts off, losing loads of heat before kicking in again ..... however 10 mins later it cuts off again .... so frustrated ......!!!
Exactly the same issue as we are having ...... very disappointed in the heater !!
I'm in the habit of running the Planar 2Kw Heater with PU27 Controller in my camper once a month for about 45 minutes and therefore did a 'scientific' test yesterday with the outside temperature hovering around 4°C. I ran the heater with the PU27 set to 26°C (T Panel), closed the side door but left the curtains open at the side and rear window and the windscreen bare - the door windows were also open about 1" (which is always the case as I have wind deflectors fitted and I always think that even a little bit of ventilation is a good idea all year round). After the aforementioned 45 minutes, the PU27 indicated that the temperature in the back of the van had reached 16°C but it felt warmer so I checked it against an old (but very accurate) mercury thermometer which read 22°C.
I guess two things came out of that test - firstly, the thermometer giving inside temperature is not very accurate but, more importantly, the heater doesn't do a bad job but it might be a bit more efficient if I closed all windows, drew the curtains and fitted insulated blinds to the windscreen and front windows.
Is anybody else OCD enough to have tested PU27 temperature readings? If so with what result.
I guess two things came out of that test - firstly, the thermometer giving inside temperature is not very accurate but, more importantly, the heater doesn't do a bad job but it might be a bit more efficient if I closed all windows, drew the curtains and fitted insulated blinds to the windscreen and front windows.
Is anybody else OCD enough to have tested PU27 temperature readings? If so with what result.
When you turn heater on do you have warm air coming out of vent.
Where is your control panel fitted in van.
Do you have the T panel setting ticked in setup.
What power setting do you have it on. 5 is default setting if I remember correctly. Try 9.
It should go to idle when selected temp is reached and then fire up again a few degrees below that.
Try fan setting a bit slower as the higher the fan speed the less warm air feels.
Where is your control panel fitted in van.
Do you have the T panel setting ticked in setup.
What power setting do you have it on. 5 is default setting if I remember correctly. Try 9.
It should go to idle when selected temp is reached and then fire up again a few degrees below that.
Try fan setting a bit slower as the higher the fan speed the less warm air feels.
I've a chinese copy/cheapo heater, which seems to make the van as warm as you want (I've always turned it down), but it doesn't totally shut off and on once up to temp, it seems to just drop the fan speed right down (and possibly fuel supply?). I was slightly concerned that a long ducting run, from the warm air outlet of the heater externally under the drivers seat, across and back into the van under the passenger seat, would lose a load of heat. It doesn't seem to be an issue (2KW heater).
EDIT: As I haven't had mine on for a while, I've given it a quick run. It took 20 mins to go from 9 deg C to 23 deg C on it's thermometer in the controller. I can't hold my hand in front of the warm air outlet for more than a few seconds - how hot is the output on your Planar? I realise these are all rather inaccurate, but interested to hear more. I fitted my Chinese heater using Autoterm/Planar capable parts, thinking that if/when the Chinese job fails, I can swap in an Autoterm. As I wasn't sure how much I'd use it, I didn't want to pay the extra £500.
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There are many planar heaters on ebay etc that are actually Chinese copies.
If you have a genuine planar they come with a full warranty.
I have gone to have a look at friends planar heater that wasn't performing well and discovered that it was not a planar.
If you have a autoterm planar that is programmed correctly but not doing as it should contact planar UK and they should sort you out.
If you have a genuine planar they come with a full warranty.
I have gone to have a look at friends planar heater that wasn't performing well and discovered that it was not a planar.
If you have a autoterm planar that is programmed correctly but not doing as it should contact planar UK and they should sort you out.
Support from Autoterm is excellent - best to contact them via their FB page.
