Heater hose hook-up

M

Matt in Alameda

Senior Member
I think I know how to do this, but it seems I screw it up so much that I want to check to make sure. I have a 59AB engine in my '35 Coupe. I am putting in a heater....I have a shutoff fitting on the passenger head and a fitting on the lower radiator hose connection on the passenger side. The INLET for the heater goes to the shutoff valve on the head..correct? It seems straight forward to me, but I have made so many straight forward mistakes on this 5 year old project. By the way, the heater I bought is 7" square (tiny), has 3 speeds 12,000BTU and comes with wiring and 3 way switch. Mac's wanted $270...( it takes 14-16 days to receive package) ........Summit wanted $149 for the same thing....guess who I bought it from??? I had it two days after I ordered it too!!! Thank-you,.....Matt in Alameda
 
You have figured the connections correctly although I don't know what difference it would make which direction you run water through the heater. But, if it does make a difference the hot water is coming out of the head, into the heater, and out of the heater into the lower radiator hose.
 
Thank-you Professor..... The instructions said that if the heater was hooked up backwards the efficiency would drop by 25%. ......Matt in Alameda
 
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If there is an upper and lower connection on the heater, run the hose from the head to the lower one. ..B.
 
Matt, I'm thinking this might be your heater. Is it?

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NK, it's here: http://static.summitracing.com/global/images/prod/large/SUM-991101-1.jpg
 
Matt, They may have meant the source of the water (before or after the radiator), as the 25% difference, rather than the direction through the heater core.
 
The supply hose from the head is connected to the bottom connection so that the heater core fills from the bottom and returns from the top, rather than dropping through the core and exiting directly from the bottom, and also to purge the air out the top. Sometimes they will air-lock on initial fill and you will have to loosen the top hose to burp out the air bubble. ..B.
 
Matt in Alameda said:
Thank-you Professor..... The instructions said that if the heater was hooked up backwards the efficiency would drop by 25%. ......Matt in Alameda
Click to expand...

Now that I've examined the design and construction of your heater I see how for this modern heater the flow would make a difference since it has multiple rows of coils it would much more efficiently transfer heat to the air if the hottest water entered the coil at the rear of the heater where the coldest air entered then as the water cooled it continued through the front coil where the air would have been heated some to "milk" a bit more heat out of the front coil - kind of like a two stage heater. The other way around would be less efficient I see now. The old original heaters did not have that multi-row configuration that would make so much difference.
 
Yep Professor, you get all in the picture for $149 except the hose and hose parts.....and right now I think they have free shipping....Matt in Alameda
 
Also I should mention that Summit has a defroster kit with vents and hoses that is made for this heater.....you simply remove the plugs and install the hoses.....I can't use it in my '35, wish I could,......but I would think this would fit later model cars and trucks although anyone wanting this should research it for themselves........Matt in Alameda
 
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