Diesel engine blower?

[sailor25b]

I'm thinking of installing one of those small in-line blowers to exhaust the heated air from my diesel engine compartment. I could attach it to a ventilation hose that leads aft. I believe it will help on those hot summer nights, and should keep the air fresh in the aft berth.

Is this a good idea? If so, should I run it continuously when the engine's running, or should I put it on a switch and turn the blower on after running the engine?

[Idiens]

I have two. They are wired to run when the engine is running.

[Giulietta]

I have it too, in fact, even with a Diesel engine its mandatory by law in the European Union.

I have an inline (had a centrifugal impeller one, but was too heavy and noisy, so I removed it), made by vetus, and its on when the engine is on. It helps recirculate air inside the engine compartment and removes the hot air.

Its good to dry the shoes also.....

[hellosailor]

When the engine is running, it should be sucking in enough air (which is simply taken from the engine compartment in small boats) to keep up good airflow. The real value with a diesel engine is when the engine is shut down, the forced air from the blower will cool it down faster, which prevents the engine oil from cooking and tarring, and taking the heat out of the boat keeps you cooler as well.
As an exhaust for the afterberth it might be excessive--engine blowers usually are high velocity and noisy. For a berth you are better off with a low velocity high area (i.e. large and slow) fan.

[Faster]

I think it's a great idea, as long as you are sure you will still have adequate air intake to the engine box to run the engine. The fan will remove heat more quickly, and also perhaps help to minimize the inevitable odors that manage to sneak out into the cabin space after a long run.

I'd run the fan all the time the engine runs, and perhaps with an off-delay timer so it runs a minute or two to exchange the engine box air a time or two after shutdown.

[FrankLanger]

I have read (but don't really know) that some blower motors are not designed to run for long periods of time--ie. anytime the engine is on. Others apparently are designed for continuous, longer term operation. Does anyone know if that's true, and which ones are short/long term use?
Frank

[Giulietta]

I have installed the white one on the bottom left of page 89 of Vetus....

Had the black one but was too noisy and heavy..can you get these in the US?

Pretty good Vetus

[GrittySchu]

How about an electric thermostat? Would only turn on when it gets hot. Would shut down when it's cooled. You would have to set it high enough that it doesn't pop on during a hot day though.

[sailor25b]

I just bought this one: Marine In-Line Blower

[hellosailor]

"How about an electric thermostat?"
More stuff to break?

Actually, if your engine block has a spare thread tapped in it, you can use a standard automotive fan switch--perhaps with a manual blower bypass. They typically come on between 170-200F which is not ideal for a raw-water cooled diesel but might be good enough.