TheSamba.com :: View topic - Eberspacher 801 Controller Wiring for Gator Heater

Fri Jan 10, 2020 4:20 pm

Does anyone have any experience with wiring up an Eberspacher 801 Controller to an Eberspacher John Deere Gator heater? I recently purchased one of the John Deere/Eberspacher heaters and would like to use an Eberspacher 801 controller to run the heater instead of the supplied rotary controller that came with the heater.

What I need to know is how the 801 controller wires up to the harness on the John Deere/Eberspacher heater.

Jeff Jordan - in a previous thread about these heaters - used an 801 controller on his install which is how I know it can be used on the John Deere heater. I've been in contact with Jeff who sent me pinout wiring diagrams for the heater, but the colors of the wires in the pinout of the main plug on the heater harness don't match what I have.

Thanks. Any help would be much appreciated.

Fri Jan 10, 2020 5:29 pm

Hi Izzy,

CessnaJon on here installed one. PM he is responsive

I installed mine but never finished. I got it running but it would shut off after :30s and never heat up. Will be around it tomorrow sorry I can’t help

Fri Jan 10, 2020 7:15 pm

Thanks, Marshj.

I read through his posts and it didn't look like he used an 801 controller but I'll PM him and see...

Sat Jan 11, 2020 1:18 am

FWIW the kit is a eberspacher B1LC with a bunch of parts needed to install in the gator, it isn't a john deere specific heater. Maybe a google search with the eberspacher model will help you. Please update if you find an answer.

Sat Jan 11, 2020 7:40 am

You can call Eberspacher tech support in the USA at this number. 1-800-387-4800 ext. 2299

I have spoken to them a couple of times about wiring up my B4 and they were incredibly helpful. That number and extension gets you directly to a live person who knows his stuff. And if he doesn't know it directly he'll go talk to the other experts there. :D :D :D

Sat Jan 11, 2020 8:31 am

MarshJ- check your harness. Mine had a bad fuel pump connection within the harness . It was the ground wire, it pulled tight out of the bundle. I ended up just grounding the fuel pump to the van body.

I bought another B1Lc for my 73 Westy and installed it in a similar manner under the rear seat. I love having heat.

Sat Jan 11, 2020 9:28 am

Thanks, dobryan! Contacting them directly was going to be my next move.

Syncrodoka - searching "B1LC" gets you the same info that's in the 2 manuals in the kit. The wiring pinout in the Eberspacher manual diagram doesn't match what I have, so either there was a Gator specific wiring harness that is different from a "normal" B1LC or Eberspacher's diagrams have not been updated. I'll find out on Monday when I call Eberspacher and report back.

Mon Jan 13, 2020 8:17 am

Will be watching this as well. Just installed my B1LC Gator heater and it works great and I don't really mind the rotary dial but having an option would be good.

nate

Thu Feb 13, 2020 10:46 am

OK, B1LCC fans - here we go. The following is how I installed my Gator heater and wired up an Eberspacher 801 controller to my B1LCC Gator heater.

First of all - a HUUUUUGE thank you to JEFF JORDAN in BC for send me a wiring diagram. There is no way I could have done this without his help.

I used an 801 Contoller because it gives you more options than the rotary dial controller provided with the Gator kit. It tells you what the ambient temperature is and allows you to set the temperature one degree at a time. It also makes the heater run for a one hour cycle and then shuts off. Note: temp scale is in Celsius and cannot be changed.

My recommended steps for a somewhat painless install:

1) Get yourself an 801 controller. I found mine on eBay: https://tinyurl.com/vgb7zbg

2) Layout the location of your B1LCC and the 801. Purchase any additional color-matching wire you may need. I put my heater directly behind the front passenger seat. I don't use this space much and already use all the space under my rear seat and fridge. I've included photos of my install location. I have a Syncro Westy and had just enough supplied fuel hose to make it from the rear fuel tank to my heater's location. My intake and exhaust hoses exit the van just behind the passenger seat under the floor, parallel to the sliding door. See photos. Wherever you locate the heater, be sure it is in a place that can withstand heat from the direct contact of the exhaust outlet. The outlet, clamp and first 6 inches of the exhaust hose hose get really hot! My 801 Contoller is a 6 ft long cord that lives in the storage cabinet just aft of the sink/stove under the rear table. I did this, rather than mounting it on the wall, so I can control the heater from either the top or bottom bunk without getting out of bed.

3) Use the attached wiring diagram (thanks, Jeff Jordan!). The Gator wiring harness has a few mystery plugs that only apply if you have a Gator. If you follow my wiring diagram, you can eliminate everything else on the Gator harness after you have matched all the wires up. Don't cut anything off the harness until you have tested the heater!

A couple of notes regarding the wiring:

-- one end of the Gator harness has a large, 14-pin plug and a set of wires that terminate at a ring fitting. That ring fitting slides over the glow plug post on the heater which is about 8 inches from where the 14-pin plug plugs into the heater. Those are the only two things that plug into the heater itself. The rest of the wires that apply to my wiring diagram either get wired to the 801 Controller or to the dosing pump or to a ground or eliminated altogether.

-- the #8 pin on the 14-pin plug that plugs into the heater is an empty slot on the 14-pin plug - there is no wire there. Since #8 connects to the grey wire on the 801 Controller, you will need to add a grey wire to #8. The 801 comes with a male and female plug along with terminal pins that will fit the 14-pin plug. Use one of those pins for the #8 grey wire going into the 14-pin plug.

4) You will need to install a t-fitting into your fuel line to supply the heater. My Syncro only had a 6 inch piece of hose leaving the fuel tank before the fuel pump - not much to work with! I used fuel hose crimping pliers (cheap on Amazon) to stop the flow of fuel so I could install the t-fitting. My Syncro's fuel hose ID was 1/2". The Gator fuel hose is 3/16" ID which means you have to use two fittings to step down the hose size to go from the van's fuel tank 1/2” hose to the Gator 3/16”hose. I used these two from Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/yx3onxxr https://tinyurl.com/vtv7r7a I also had to spin my fuel pump around 180 degrees to get all the hoses to fit without kinking. Whatever you end up doing, be sure to add the t-fitting BEFORE the fuel pump!

5) the directions included with the Gator say that the dosing pump needs to be mounted at a 15 degree angle upwards (at least) to avoid air getting trapped in the dosing pump. Do it! The hose from the dosing pump to the heater itself has a really tiny ID. Look for fuel injection hose clamps at the auto parts store to secure this tiny hose. There are no screw-type hose clamps small enough for this hose.

6) There is a 25A fuse included on the main 12V pos wire (red) on the Gator harness. However you set up the main 12V pos wire, pull the fuse until you are ready for the first fire-up.

7) First fire-up! When you have everything ready to go, plug that 25A fuse back in and your 801 controller should light up. Push the wavy-heat button in the upper right of the 801 and a small green light should light up above that button. NOTE: it took me 9 start ups to pull enough fuel across the van and light the heater. You could also prime the 3/16” hose by sucking fuel through it so that it doesn’t have as far to travel to the dosing pump. When the fuel finally hits the glow-plug, you will hear the heater start to rumble - otherwise, you will only hear the fan and the dosing pump "ticking". Your heater is on!

It takes a little while for the heater to start working smoothly. You can move the up and down arrows on the 801 controller to make the temp go up and down. The fan will be kinda loud for a few minutes and then the heater will settle down and run quietly. Push the wavy-heat button again and the heater will start it’s shut off. The green light will go out and the heater will continue to blow air for another 3-5 minutes. This is normal. It’s probably done to cool down the heater.

That’s it! Feel free to ask if you have any questions.

Again, a big-ass thank you to Jeff Jordan for sorting the wiring.

Install location:

801 Controller:

Heater w/box, lid off:

Heater w/box, lid on:

Air intake and harness routing:

Dosing pump with rubber mount:

Hoses:

Thu Feb 13, 2020 4:49 pm

Whoops! I forgot to include the wiring diagram...

Also...here's a link (thanks again to Jeff Jordan) to a D2 install that has a lot of useful install info including how to change the 801 controller from Celsius to Fahrenheit and how to get the 801 to run continuously instead of in one-hour cycles: https://radvanadventures.com/2017/02/12/espar-heater-installation-diy-guide/

I haven't tried either 801 mod, but I will shortly...

Thu Feb 13, 2020 6:14 pm

Thanks for updating with your findings =D>

Fri Feb 14, 2020 8:31 am

What's the difference between the B1LC and the B1LCc? Also, where are you guys sourcing these?

Many thanks!

Fri Feb 14, 2020 9:35 am

What kind of orange wrap/sleeve is that on your exhaust pipe?

Fri Feb 14, 2020 10:54 am

Heat lagging isn't necessary on an external pipe. In fact it will soak up water into the fiberglass inner layer and degrade quickly.

Vanatic, pm me. I can help.

Fri Feb 14, 2020 2:44 pm

westyventures wrote: Heat lagging isn't necessary on an external pipe. In fact it will soak up water into the fiberglass inner layer and degrade quickly.

Thanks, Karl - good to know. I put it on there because I have my A/C hoses really close by. Maybe I should wrap those hoses in heat wrap...

Fri Feb 14, 2020 4:21 pm

izzydog wrote:

Thanks, Karl - good to know. I put it on there because I have my A/C hoses really close by. Maybe I should wrap those hoses in heat wrap...

If it's less than an inch I'd worry, but if 2-3 probably not necessary. If you seal the ends of the wrap with red RTV that would resolve any migration of water inside the fiberglass.

Tue Mar 31, 2020 1:12 pm

Shot of the final product. Very happy with the heater.