Heater bypass valve

[dwhylan]

Hi, has anyone put in a bypass valve on the heater hoses. I would like a four way valve so I could have coolant going to the heater core when needed and bypass the heater core when not required.
Otherwise would a heater valve tap on the inlet heater hose be ok, like this one.

http://www.supercheapauto.com.au/online ... 0151#Cross

Living in Darwin I can really feel the heat from the heater core pipes in the cab after driving, especially in the wet season.
I assume the coolant flows through the heater core continuously so would blocking the inlet flow to the heater cause any problems.

Thanks

Dylan

[variflex]

I understand the principle behind closing off the water flow to the heater core however I'd be concerned that the heater core may corrode from the inside prematurely without the continuous coolant flow

[NowForThe5th]

I remember the bad old days when heater cores had a valve.

The valves would stick and the cores would corrode and leak. IMHO the new way is much better.

[RHKTriton]

You might find a lot of heat is comming in through the transmission tunnel and front food area - gets pretty warm when driving in summer. I'd say this contributes to the AC's battle to cool the cab.

You might be able to insulate the heater housing to reduce some of the heat leak.

[RHKTriton]

You might find a lot of heat is comming in through the transmission tunnel and front food area - gets pretty warm when driving in summer. I'd say this contributes to the AC's battle to cool the cab.

You might be able to insulate the heater housing to reduce some of the heat leak.

[dwhylan]

I will insulate the metal pipes joining the core to the firewall and the core if I can get to it, see how that goes first. I would be tempted to get rid of the heater all together but I used it last month and might need it again, one day maybe.

[Greedy]

I will insulate the metal pipes joining the core to the firewall and the core if I can get to it, see how that goes first. I would be tempted to get rid of the heater all together but I used it last month and might need it again, one day maybe.

You never know when you might make a trip south. Very cold down here at the moment.

[RHKTriton]

You might find a lot of heat is comming in through the transmission tunnel and front food area - gets pretty warm when driving in summer. I'd say this contributes to the AC's battle to cool the cab.

You might be able to insulate the heater housing to reduce some of the heat leak.

[Greedy]

Excellent effort RHKTriton! Triple post all 6 minutes apart. How so?

[RHKTriton]

Must be the ole studdering finger trick......would you believe....?

I don know.

[RHKTriton]

Must be the ole studdering finger trick......would you believe....?

I don know.

[yakfishdave]

Hi all, was looking for a way to improve the crappy air conditoning by maybe relocating a temperature sensor, could'nt find one but found a pipe under there that was hot enough to cause some serious burns, what the?. The engine had been off for maybe 20 mins after a short run in todays heat. Its located on the passenger side where the centre console meets the dash, is this the pipe for the heater? I thought the heater valve would be located under the bonnet rather than adding all than heat to the interior and possibly to the cool air coming from the air con. Thought I'd warn everyone about sticking their hand under there too soon after switching the engine off, it gets seriously hot.

[RHKTriton]

Don't think the water gets shut off in this setup - stupid for hotter climates.

I'm considering a bypass valve in the engine compartment to keep the heat out, for under $ 20 on eBay, cheap fix.

[RHKTriton]

Don't think the water gets shut off in this setup - stupid for hotter climates.

I'm considering a bypass valve in the engine compartment to keep the heat out, for under $ 20 on eBay, cheap fix.

[AnOldFart]

I know someone who once owned a Lada Niva, ie, a short wheelbase Russian 4WD, for the sake of those who don't know them. They were literally built like a brick 'shitehouse ' ie, made out of leftover WW-II T34 Tank panels ... and designed to operate in Russian winters -in Siberia- with minus 70 oC temperatures, and NO, I-REALLY-AM-NOT-JOKING ... Anyway, their cabin heaters were --FIERCE-- even when turned off, and the -ONLY- possible cure available for their owners here in Oz was to install a manual shut-off valve into their heater inlet hose under the bonnet. That way, even in Hobart in the depths of winter, if things got a bit 'chilly' all you ever had to do was turn 'on' the under bonnet heater inlet shut-off valve again, and you would be as warm as toast in no time, --without-- ever having to even bother with turning on the actual cabin heater controls....
Anyway, might be an idea worth investigating for those in Darwin ....

[dwhylan]

I ended up wrapping both heather pipes with the fibreglass exhaust tape held in place with cable ties, too hard to do individual pipes and there is not enough room between them, this did help reduce the heat build up in the cab.

[RHKTriton]

The whole setup is bizarre. Who would design an air on system with a heat source radiating full bore in the guts of it?

The design is obviously a cost cutting measure both in terms of parts and production line efficiency.

[yakfishdave]

Seems it may be commonplace in vehicles now, was charging up the wifes battery on her Mazda 3 and noticed there were no heater valves under the bonnet, but her air conditioning is way better than the Triton.

[RHKTriton]

I wonder whether the older style setups where the AC core was inline with the air intake to the heater/air distribution box gave better isolation between the hot and cold functions. Turning the hot water off has got to have a big influence - the plastic in the heater box isn't a particularly good insulator.


Has anyone noticed that just running fresh air never seems to deliver air at the outside temp?

[ML2008]

You might ask MML, how they build car temperature cold/heating for the SE Asia market, surely they never use a heater??

[RHKTriton]

We'll, finally lashed out for a heater bypass valve. Unit used in commodores.

Last couple of hot days, doing a few short drives, convinced me that the heater core is handicapping the AC.

It was obvious that everytime I got back in and took off that the was a measurable delay before cold air was delivered.

All my previous vehicles pumped out cold air fairly quickly.

The best air I've experienced to date was my old man's Camira. You'd hit the AC button and cold air was shy of immediate.

I now have to pick the best spot to cut the heater hoses.

[RHKTriton]

SUCCESS!

With the bypass valve in situ, i now have unadulterated cool outside air coming out of the vents.

Only about 22° today, so a real hot day will be the real test.

Is already noticeable that cold air is delivered faster after the car is warmed up.

[ag9111]

Photo's and link please

[RHKTriton]

And would you believe.....top temp of 17° today!

Will have to deactivate the bypass today.

I'll have a go at uploading.

The valve is one used in Holdens, about $35 at Supercheap.

Similar to:

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/imag ... eLXuNoVw&s


I'm thinking of repurposing the swirl flap control valve to control the bypass actuator, just have to see if the ecu monitors this if it's unplugged.

[RHKTriton]

28° yesterday.

Fresh aiir is definitely cooler when hot water is bypassing heater core.

Cold air is being delivered much quicker after the car has been parked for a while.

The temperature had dropped to around 24° when I got home and I decided to check the dash vent temperatures.

I was reading the centre vents down to -14° . I checked the thermometer my freezer and it showed similar temperatures.