New Cab Heater not working well...

Dave___in___CT · Jan 19, 2004

Hi...

Anyone have the 15,000 BTU Tuck-Away Hot Water Heater by Curtis Cab ? How well does your's heat ?

I have a new one in a Curtis Cab on a Kubota L3130... dosen't seem to heat all that well...
If it's above 28 F or so... the cab will get to the mid-50 range... this is OK...

But... one night... was 11 F outside... cab only went to 28 F max... then went down to 22 F within an hour while snow plowing... /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif
Heater hoses seem warm enough... tractor's temp guage read same as when 30 F + outside... even insulated the heater hoses on the outside of the cab...

Tractor only has 1 temp thermostat... so can't change that...

Experiences? Sugestions ?

Dave...

TCowner · Jan 19, 2004

I have the 15000 btu heater in my Curtis soft side cab on the New Holland TC40D. I was actually rather impressed with the heat output. Its noisy with the fan on high speed but the heat output is pretty good.

It was cold yesterday (windchill around -25). I didn't check the temp inside the cab but I had my insulated coveralls unzipped and stocking cap and gloves off. If I were to guess I would say it was better than 50 degrees.

I haven't insulated the hoses to the heater but will probably do that this weekend. Again, I was pleasantly surprised on the heat output.

Junkman · Jan 19, 2004

Dave..... it isn't the heater that is the problem it is the cab itself. There is no insulation in a cab and when the weather gets that cold outside, the cab is radiating heat at a faster rate than the heater box can replace it. If you are not satisfied with the amount of heat that the engine produces because of the thermostat, than put a small piece of cardboard in front of the radiator and that will restrict the air flow causing the engine to run a few degrees hotter. This might help the situation, but when the temps drop like they did last week, all heaters become strained to their maximum output. Put on an additional sweater and some insulated underwear and tough it out till better weather arrives in a few months...

tawilson · Jan 19, 2004

Are you sure the heater hoses are warm enough? I just installed the same heater and the directions that came with it were wrong. I called the dealer to confirm this. The way Curtis had me pipe it got little or no circulation. Make sure the cab is sealed tightly where you mounted it. If it is drawing in outside air, it can only heat it so much. You want to be recirculating the cab air as much as possible. There's enough holes in the cab to make sure you are getting enough fresh air.

Dave___in___CT · Jan 19, 2004

Hi...

What is the wrong & right way to hook it up so I can check it...?
This may be it... Air is warm from heater... not hot at all... feed/return hoses warm too...

Cab area... I put self-stick weatherstripping over any extra openings in the tractor's seating area...

And yes.. no insulation in the cab or tractor's sheetmetal... only possibility on cab is the ceiling... but it's a nice lookin' fuzzy material I'd rather not cover up...
Possible to add some to fenders inside... maybe under floor matt...

It's certainly a LOT better in the cab than outside... no wind or snow!
I just expect to be warmer than like 22 F when it's 11 F outside... 30's to mid 50's is fine...

Thanks...

Dave...

AndyMA · Jan 19, 2004

Dave

From what I know of the Curtis heater and from seeing your setup, I think it should be much warmer. If I recall correctly, you told me the tractor was only coming up one marker on the temp guage when it was that cold out. If your heater is hooked up correctly I think the tractor is not coming up to temp. The factory heater in my New Holland TN Cab had the cab above 65 when it was around 5 outside and I didn't have it turned up all the way.

Andy

ducati996 · Jan 19, 2004

Dave,

Once you double check setup to make sure everything is correct, maybe the thermostate should be hotter maybe 180-190 degrees in stead of probable 160 factory spec...

Someone on this board bumped up their thermo- I think its Wildman....he has a JD 2210

The heater should heat that cab up pretty good even in single digit weather....

good luck

Ducati

hwp · Jan 19, 2004

Are you sure you don't have an air lock? How high is the heater mounted relative to the water pump? The higher it is the greater the chance of an air lock. I take my cab off every summer so I have quick-disconnects on the heater hoses but even so I get air locks. I can't be bothered trying to bleed the heater hoses every fall so I have an inline fuel pump in the supply side heater hose. This pumps the hot water up to the top of my cab where the heater is mounted and it provides lots of heat even on the coldest days in spite of there being no insulation in the cab.

tawilson · Jan 19, 2004

The directions that came with mine told me to use an available port on the water pump and gave me a tee fitting to go in the radiator hose. I actually had to use a port in back of the thermostat on the engine block. Their way puts both of the heater hoses on the same side of the water pump so I had no flow. Course this is for a New Holland, yours may be set up different.

art · Jan 19, 2004

That doesn't look like the new model heaters we've been getting from them. that looks like there old model they used to use. Are the valves open for maximum circulation?

Dave___in___CT · Jan 20, 2004

Here's the actual heater... other photo from Curtis site...

Tractor's temp guage goes to 4 marks max... was at 3 or 4 with low heater output...

Thermostat... dealer says only one available for the tractor... don't wanna' change it on a new machine...

Air lock... hmmm... maybe... dealer installed the unit... both hoses are warm next to heater so there's some flow...

Shutoff valve fully open...

UPDATE....

Called Curtis yesterday...
Guy says some recent heaters have a severly undersized/restricted inlet defect...
He's sending a new heater core...
Hopfully this is the problem & solution...

Thanks for all your help & suggestions... !

Dave...

spencer200 · Jan 20, 2004

When properly installed we have guys working in there shortsleve shirts in a curtis cab that heater is usually awesome. I think the flow of hot water may be bypassing somewhat causing your cooler temp.,

art · Jan 20, 2004

Good luck sounds like your problem will be solved shortly.

Golfgar4 · Jan 20, 2004

( Called Curtis yesterday...
Guy says some recent heaters have a severly undersized/restricted inlet defect...
He's sending a new heater core...
)

Glad to hear that Curtis is standing behind their product and trying to help you out. Make sure you let us know how it all turns out. /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

Now all you need to do is hope that Curtis doesn't send the replacement heater with the brother of the UPS driver that delivered to Gary in Indiana before Christmas!! /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Junkman · Jan 20, 2004

Dave...... Curtis is in Worcester MA and is only about an 1 1/2 hours from you... It would have been worth the trip just to see their operation and you could have exchanged the unit yourself. Guess that it is too late since they have already shipped it to you though.....
I have been thinking of contacting them and doing a "field trip" with the other guys from the CT TBN group..... would be great if we could get a bunch of guys together for this... anyone else interested????

AndyMA · Jan 20, 2004

Junkman

I have been in the Curtis factory several times and it is quite impressive. Robotic welding, powder coating equipment large enough to handle their large plow blades, etc.

Andy

Dave___in___CT · Jan 20, 2004

Yeah... Curtis is not far away !
Hopefully the new core will be here before the weekend...

I hope the current heater core IS DEFECTIVE so the issue will be put to bed... and I have to open a cab window to stay cool... /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

Thanks to everyone... I'll try 'n remember to post results...

Dave...

dylan · Jan 23, 2004

Glad I'm not the only one who's heater seems not to be up to snuff. I attributed it to the large air gaps in the cab itself. Although, the air only seems lukewarm at times.
Don't forget to keep us updated.

stillwater · Jan 25, 2004

I was having a problem with the heater in my 555E - similar type setup. Turns out there was air in the heater core. I bled the heater core by removing the return line where it "T's" into the main return line of the engine. It helped a lot.

PineRidge · Jan 25, 2004

On the majority of water baseboard radiators used in the HVAC industry they use some type of small vent automatic or manual to eliminate air in the radiator so that it heats to full capacity. You would think that the manufacturers of these cab heaters might take some initiative and add the very same to their products eliminating just this sort of headache. Bleeding air would then be an easy task.