Hot water
- Thread starter Darton
- Start date
cruiseroutfit
Well-known member
I've been using one under the hood of my FJ40 for nearly 4 years now, its been quite the wife pleaser to say the lease. There are quite a few different models and makes out there, from home-brew to the Helton and Decker models. Different engines will heat differently, with cast iron motors being a bit more "efficient" per say than say an aluminum block when it comes to the amount of heat it produces.
Heat exchangers can come in several different designs, the one I am most familiar with is a tube in shell setup, with varying amounts of wraps within the tube depending on the desired heat exchange. Some will literally bo too hot for shower use, with water output in the 100+ ranges, others just heat ~25-50* per pass, so if its not hot enough on pass #1, send it back a second time and recycle your water to preheat.
What else did you have in mind?
Heat exchangers can come in several different designs, the one I am most familiar with is a tube in shell setup, with varying amounts of wraps within the tube depending on the desired heat exchange. Some will literally bo too hot for shower use, with water output in the 100+ ranges, others just heat ~25-50* per pass, so if its not hot enough on pass #1, send it back a second time and recycle your water to preheat.
What else did you have in mind?
LandCruiserPhil
Expedition Leader
Been using an exchanger for several years and love it. Having access to hot water for washing of dishes, hands, and faces is almost as nice as a shower. Our exchanger gets a 50* split on a single pass with good flow. We prefer to use a lake river or creek for a water source for long hot showers:wings:
I know of some expo folks that claim they can shower on 1 gal. :Wow1: I personally have found 5 gal is not that bad in a pinch if you turn the flow down.
I know of some expo folks that claim they can shower on 1 gal. :Wow1: I personally have found 5 gal is not that bad in a pinch if you turn the flow down.
cruiseroutfit
Well-known member
Its very relative to the particular system you build or source. Using the pump supplied with the Helton kits for example, my wife and I can each shower twice on 5 gallons of water. These are not 20 minute soak forever showers, rather get wet, wash off the dust, soap up and a good rinse. Now, using a higher volume pump, you get a more "comfortable" shower per say, but you can burn there a lot more water. There is no right or wrong answer, you just need to decide your needs and go from there. Its very common for people to buy a comercially built heat exchanger and build their own water pumping system from there, using something like a SureFlo pump and a shower head from the RV store or Home Depot, etc. Each has its own benefits. The Decker kit for example comes with a much higher flow pump than the Helton kits, if your often camping near endless water supplies, there is no reason not to use the higher flow setup, just do your best to minimize the wasted water by turning off the pump. In our case, we leave the pump on and simply shove the shower head into the Scepter can, thus just re passing the water through the same closed loop, minimal wasted water.
Regarding water sources, I would urge that any using an open water source such as a river, lake or stream to be very environmentally conscious. Soap/shampoo selection, waste water run-off and parking your vehicle so close to water source, all need to be done with forethought. Due to these reasons, my wife and pretty much just use our shower out of a Scepter can. If we run low on water, take a short trip with the Scepter can to the water source and fill it up, leaving the shower a safe distance from a otherwise pristine water source.
CanuckMariner/Nomad
Love having fun 😊 in the 🌞 by the ⛵ and the ⏳
Search this forum for Water heaters, Helton hot water system, etc. there are a few write ups. www.Cruiseroutfitters.com has one of the best units - Helton - Kurt can help you out!
spressomon
Expedition Leader
cruiseroutfit
Well-known member
Yours would make a great picture
There are quite a few of them that I can think of, I'll grab some pics from a local customer next time they are over my way.
cruiseroutfit
Well-known member
Its going to be very dependent on the pump. Higher volume pumps such as the SureFlo will pull quite a bit further than the standard low volume pumps such as the Helton supplied unit. That said my pickup length is ~15' and my shower head length is ~10'. With the Helton the pump is built int the pickup unit, so your somewhat limited by the 12V line running to the pickup, while you could easily extend this length, you'll be pressing the limits of the pump.