Block heater vs booster heater vs auxilary heater vs Espar?

Patrick of M

2005 T1N 2500 (NA spec)
Hmm. The Espar is an auxiliary heater but it is not The Auxiliary Heater that is the rear section heater ( ducts and tubing on the left side of the cargo area of the van). The Espar is the booster heater when it is used to help get the engine temp higher while the engine is running. The Espar is also a block heater(it will heat up the block before the engine is started if configured to do so) but not a traditional Block Heater which is usually electric heating elements either attached to the oil pan or installed in the frost plug holes to warm the coolant/heat the block. When all is said and done an Espar configured to run when the engine is turned off, is a block heater, when the engine is turned on, a booster heater and in general provides auxiliary heat. Espars are the best!
 
Ok, thanks Patrick. So my Espar is not working...and looking underneath the left front there is no hose connecting it to the heater muffler. However, the booster does blow out more warm air while the engine is running. So that would confirm that the Espar is still, well....working...but there is another reason it isn't blowing its own air?
 

Patrick of M

2005 T1N 2500 (NA spec)
Ok, thanks Patrick. So my Espar is not working...and looking underneath the left front there is no hose connecting it to the heater muffler. However, the booster does blow out more warm air while the engine is running. So that would confirm that the Espar is still, well....working...but there is another reason it isn't blowing its own air?
I’m not sure not sure we are on the same page yet. The rear heater is not directly attached to the Espar. It is plumbed into the cooling system with the other cabin heater.
The Espar heats coolant, the only air it blows is a turbine fan that feds the Espar furnace.
Is the “booster” you referred to as putting out heat the “Auxiliary Heater” I defined in my previous post?
 
I press the booster button and warm air increases through the cab vents. I assume that's what it is supposed to do. Is the Espar doing that?

The rear heater I have is a large AirPro unit (factory) on the ceiling above the seats. It does not work either.

BTW: What is "the other cabin heater" that you referred to.
 
Last edited:

Patrick of M

2005 T1N 2500 (NA spec)
What exactly is the booster button you are pushing... A pic? If you mean the 3/4 circle with an arrow head that is the recirculation button, it closes the outside vents and just reciculates so air seems warmer.
By other cabin heater I mean the main heat exchanger in the dash that provides heat to the front seating area and windscreen
 

autostaretx

Erratic Member
The "boost" button, also known as "the bow tie":



If the teeny tiny (dim) red light didn't come on, you didn't start the boost heater (a.k.a. Espar)
Its exhaust is just forward of the driver's-side front tire in the wheel well (a little can the size of a wallet is the muffler).

--dick
 
After reading the manual, I've sorted out a few things, but....

Page 127 of the manual has a section with the headline "Auxiliary Heater - Water or Air Heater (Optional)"
It then speaks of a timer for this heater and a switch to turn it on. I have neither the timer nor a dedicated on/off switch so apparently I do not have this option. Because I do not have this option but do have the Espar, then the Auxiliary Heater is not the Espar. (transitive property)

Am I on the right track?

If so, where in the manual does it describe the Espar and what it does?
 
Last edited:

autostaretx

Erratic Member
Dear Lemon: enter your VIN at https://www.datamb.com/

That will provide your datasheet.

H12 HOT WATER ADDITIONAL HEATER <-- Espar used with 7-day timer
H86 TIMER FOR HEATER BOOSTER <-- 7 day timer
HZ9 HEATER BOOSTER, DIESEL <-- the basic Booster, even if you have the above two options.

If you *only* have the "Booster", you'll just see the HZ9

All booster/AuxHeat-equipped Sprinters also have the:
KL1 FUEL-LEVEL SENSOR FOR AUXILIARY HEATER (how they tap the fuel)

Some people have an additional "heat exchanger" on the driver's side, under the cargo floor (where a second sliding door step would end up) it's the:
H13 ADDITIONAL HEAT EXCHANGER, REAR

The boost/auxiliary (with or without timer) are *all* built by Espar ... i think they're all the same "furnace", and only the "logic" as to when they'll operate differs.

Here: http://www.diysprinter.co.uk/reference/espar_sprinter_manual.pdf is the Espar manual for the Sprinter installation.

In the 2006 service manual: http://www.diysprinter.co.uk/reference/2006-VA-SM.pdf the "cabin heater" section of chapter 24 covers the Espar (starts on page 24 - 104)
The 2006 Body diagnostic book: http://www.diysprinter.co.uk/reference/2006-VA-Body.pdf also has sections on it.

--dick
 
Last edited:
"H12 HOT WATER ADDITIONAL HEATER <-- Espar used with 7-day timer"

I do not have this code but do have an Espar. Is there a code for Hot Water Heater WITHOUT 7-day timer?

I only have HZ9, heater booster code.
 
Last edited:

RJV

Active member
If HZ9 is listed when you look up your VIN, then you have the Espar booster heater, or at least your van did when it was first manufactured. The reason for these boosters(if I understand correctly) is to help warm the coolant more quickly to help with cold starts and to warm front(inside) of the van up more quickly in colder weather, as diesel engines do not warm up as quickly as gasoline engines. See the photo above for the "bowtie" button--all T1N Sprinters will have the bowtie, but if the Espar booster is not installed, it's not really a button. Example:my 2004 has the bowtie but when depressed there is no "click" of a button(it is solid) and no red light comes on to the left of the button. This is because my 2004 does not have the Espar Booster. My 2006 does have the Espar booster, so when I depress the button, it gives a "click" and the red light comes on. You may be confusing this Espar booster heater with an Espar "parking heater" such as the D2 which many Sprinter owners have installed aftermarket. This type of heater is different from the Espar booster, as a parking heater is designed to run with the engine off to warm the inside of the van--this makes it more tolerable to sleep or just hang out in the van when the outside temperatures are colder.
 
Last edited:

autostaretx

Erratic Member
"H12 HOT WATER ADDITIONAL HEATER <-- Espar used with 7-day timer"

I do not have this code but do have an Espar. Is there a code for Hot Water Heater WITHOUT 7-day timer?

I only have HZ9, heater booster code.
If you only have the HZ9, you probably only have the Booster.
I found those option codes by flipping through a dozen or so datacards i've collected over the years. None seemed to have the H12 without also having the timer. (i have to admit that i got bored before i ran out of datacards, but i really did run through over a dozen)
So i don't know what the code would be for "Aux, but no timer" (i'd think it was still H12)

If you look in the Sprinter's owner's manual, the "AuxHeat without timer" has a switch:

AuxHeatSw.png

... somewhere on the panels.

If you don't have the timer, and you don't have the switch, you're boost only.
Which only operates when the engine is running.

--dick (if someone else who has that half-way Aux Heater can tell us the code (or their VIN) it would help)
 
The "booster heater" = Espar that initiates the booster function. :thumbup:

Auxiliary heater as referenced in the manual indicates an optional additional heater (not the Espar) used with a timer and rocker switch and is used when the engine is shut off.

The block heater is the wire attachement to the block that you plug in to an outlet to preheat the engine to aid in cold starting.

Have I missed anything?
 
Last edited:

autostaretx

Erratic Member
The "booster heater" = Espar that initiates the booster function. :thumbup:
OK so far... but then:
Auxiliary heater as referenced in the manual indicates an optional additional heater (not the Espar)
No!
Both what they call the "booster" and "auxiliary" heater are one and the same Espar.
The 2006 service documentation (such as the parts list) only speaks of **one** model.
"HEATER, Supplemental Diesel Fuel" Dodge: 05124687AA MB: A 003 830 80 61 (for 2006)

(in the 2003 catalog, they do list two part numbers: the above and 05124692AA - A0048302661 ... these are "without HDB". But they also list the "687AA" as both with and without HDB. They don't explain "HDB" (it appears nowhere else in the catalog)
((in the 2004 catalog, they're down to one model, but retain the "with HDB" note. That note is gone in 2006))
The Timer is Dodge #05120301AA ...and doesn't mention "HDB")

There have been members who have turned their "booster" into an "auxiliary" by simply providing a "key not needed" power bypass (involving relays to also turn on the circulation pump).
used with a timer and rocker switch and is used when the engine is shut off.
... it's the "engine shut off" part that separates the "booster" from the "auxiliary".
The block heater is the wire attachement to the block that you plug in to an outlet to preheat the engine to aid in cold starting.

Have I missed anything?
One of the functions of the auxiliary heater is also to pre-heat the engine.

--dick ( Espar = booster = Espar = Auxiliary = Espar )
p.s. i just looked at my 2005's Invoice ... and it lists the auxiliary heater group as option AMJ
The rear cargo area heat exchanger is listed as HDC (and they call it "rear auxiliary heater", but all it is is a second "heater core" (think water-filled radiator) and a fan.
 
Last edited:
:bash:

So I have the Espar which creates the heater booster function but my Espar doesn't have the auxiliary heater option because I do not have the timer/rocker switch combo? :hmmm:
 

autostaretx

Erratic Member
:bash:

So I have the Espar which creates the heater booster function
correct :thumbup:

but my Espar doesn't have the auxiliary heater option because I do not have the timer/rocker switch combo? :hmmm:
It's an either/or: IF you have the Aux Heater option THEN you EITHER have the Aux switch OR the clock.
You don't get both. (when my timer died, i chose to add a switch ($5 vs $120+))

If you have NEITHER aux switch nor clock, then you have the Boost heater.

(people with an Aux heater DO have the "boost bow tie" switch, too)

--dick
 
Last edited:

white whale

Active member
This is a head spinner thread - whoa. As my electric block heater seems to have packed it in at the best time I'll look to my espar for a while. I too was curious about how options compared. 30 min plugged in vs 30 min running the espar.
 

Ckoski

New member
I have a 2022 sprinter with the factory Coolant preheater. H12 option. I’m trying to add the espar cabin heater, the one we all put under the passenger seat, but the factory block heater is hooked up to the diesel Line coming out of the tank. Is there a splitter available for this? Factory part maybe? I can’t be the first dufus to run into this problem?
 

Top Bottom