A foggy 3deg overnight here in Maffra.
Being completely self contained with shower, toilet and diesel heater makes mid year free camping in Victoria as close to a pleasure, as we’re likely to get.
It would be the exception now days to find a van in a freecamp without a diesel or gas heater. Our diesel heater is German made Eberspacher diesel heater ducted to 2 points.
For those interested the diesel heater is a electronic controlled and fully automatic. It features a one touch set, with self diagnostic fault finding.
The specs are 2.2kW. An electric ceramic blow heater is 1.5kW
The heater consumes 4amp at startup, down to 0.5amp at temperature. Fuel consumption is 280ml/hr at start up to 100ml/hr at temperature and it moves 105m3 of air per hour.
We have a 10ltr permanantly mounted heater fuel tank. This trip and the last trip where the days are warm and the nights cold we would expect to get 10 to 14 days from our 10ltr tank.
The true benefit is off grid freecamping. The heater is powered only by the batteries so we dont require mains power to be toasty warm.
Our locally sourced heater kit cost $1600, the same kit today sourced locally is around $2100 which includes a healthy and typical dose of retail rape and Aussie price gouging. Ross installed ours, but installation of the $2100 kit would be an extra $500+.
The exact same Eberspacher kit can be imported direct from Europe for $1300au delivered.
By comparison one of the many unbranded Chinese knock off kits complete can be commonly found for under $300. Not sure we’d be confident enough with the Chinese knock off, but we certainly wouldnt be buying a local Eberspacher again either.
We would have enjoy the opportunity to pay it forward and visit the car museum, but we also need to get back for Ross to be able the pack the van away and start organising some factory work projects.
Very early call, but after Barb mentioned the complete adsence of Maccas this trip, we may well end up with some chippies at some point on the way home. Whilst we never aim to visit Maccas there is usually at least one occasion we find ouselves in one of the many Maccas partnered roadhouse fuel stops.
Maccas coffee isnt great, but it is mostly consistantly reliable enough for a reasonably drinkable brew.
Yup … we hit up Maccas Pakenham for coffees and toasties. The Maccas toasties are getting smaller and smaller to
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