Steve Lashley wrote:
>
> In a message dated 11/3/98 9:26:24 AM, scote@PTBO.IGS.NET wrote:
>
> <<With all this talk about heaters, can anyone tell my what is wrong with
> the auxillary gas heater that is supposed to be in the vans.>>
>

I have one in my 81 Vanagon, and couldn't make it through the winter
without it.

I missed any earlier posts about the problem. The only trouble I have is
with blowing fuses. There is a timer that lets you fire up the heater
before starting the motor, which is a nice way to  get the motor a
little  warm before cranking it. The timer runs for 10 minutes. For
whatever reason, if it is really cold, like 15 degrees or maybe 20, it
will blow a fuse if the motor is not running when I start the furnace.

There are 3 fuses and a circuit breaker associated with the furnace, and
there is a thermostat to regulate it.

If you don't run the heater often, even in summer, it will give off a
gosh-awful smell and even some smoke when you crank it up after a few
months of inactivity, but it does clear out and is relatively clean
smelling. It is also way oversized as it can drive people to open the
windows even at below zero temperatures. :)

It is supposed to use a pint of gas per hour, but I have never even
tried to measure the usage. If I was using it for something other than
while driving, I would get one of those disconnect devices that monitors
the battery and shuts it off if the battery is drained too far. I have
no idea how much power it uses.

This is probably not much help, but if it doesn't run at all, its likely
a fuse or the ckt breaker. I got the van back in 88 and have never been
to visit the heater. Its under a large cover on the bottom of the van,
so I just keep my fingers crossed. :)

Regards from Utah

John

81 Vanagon