Cessna 150

Hey Cessna 150 owners i just got my 150 last spring and this is the first winter im flying it, the problem is it's so cold in the plane that steam comes out your mouth, i had my mechanic check my cabin heater and he said everything is fine with it that just the way they are, does not produce much heat, is anybody have any ideas how to improve heater or maybe install electric blower some how or do anything about it except just don't fly it at all in winter.............

On 1/16/11 2:28 PM, cjacorona wrote:
Hey Cessna 150 owners i just got my 150 last spring and this is the
first winter im flying it, the problem is it's so cold in the plane that
steam comes out your mouth, i had my mechanic check my cabin heater and
he said everything is fine with it that just the way they are, does not
produce much heat, is anybody have any ideas how to improve heater or
maybe install electric blower some how or do anything about it except
just don't fly it at all in winter.............





First thing to check is the heater muff arrangement. Standard factory
setup was one muff for carb heat, the other for cabin heat. Cessna sold
a conversion kit that would draw heat from both muffs for the cabin,
this makes a big difference. Second, install the winter baffles on the
cowl openings, which prevent a lot of cold air from blasting against the
firewall. Third, make sure your cabin door and window seals are up to
snuff, so they don't allow too much warm air to be drawn out of the
cabin. Good luck, winter flying can be some of the best of the year!

Happy Flying!
Scott Skylane

"Scott Braddock" wrote in message
mmunications...
On 1/16/11 2:28 PM, cjacorona wrote:
Hey Cessna 150 owners i just got my 150 last spring and this is the
first winter im flying it, the problem is it's so cold in the plane that
steam comes out your mouth, i had my mechanic check my cabin heater and
he said everything is fine with it that just the way they are, does not
produce much heat, is anybody have any ideas how to improve heater or
maybe install electric blower some how or do anything about it except
just don't fly it at all in winter.............





First thing to check is the heater muff arrangement. Standard factory
setup was one muff for carb heat, the other for cabin heat. Cessna sold a
conversion kit that would draw heat from both muffs for the cabin, this
makes a big difference. Second, install the winter baffles on the cowl
openings, which prevent a lot of cold air from blasting against the
firewall. Third, make sure your cabin door and window seals are up to
snuff, so they don't allow too much warm air to be drawn out of the cabin.
Good luck, winter flying can be some of the best of the year!

Happy Flying!
Scott Skylane

I'm a piper owner but most of my hours are on rental 150's in Canada.
THe point about the winter kit/baffles is essential even then they DONT
warm up significantly till post takeoff. and you might want to overall err
on the side of a litle more throttle than you perhaps would ahve in the
summer and leaning to raise the EGT to near Peak since the EGT is where the
heat for you comes from.

As for the Muff arrangement. the planes i was flying were flown deliberately
in the 2cyls for carb heat 2 cyls for the cabin. You can always dress warmer
or you are already dressed warm to do an outdoor preflight in a good cold
winter day but if you have or suspect carb ice there is no such thing as not
enough carb heat. Yes expect your breath to fog while flying but do not
expect the windows to fog up if the windsreen fogs thats a different concern
but aluminum planes take more to heat despite their smaller size due to Al
being so muuch more termally conductive than the steel and insulation of a
car.

I was fighting for my flight test from december till feb trying to find
decent winter weather for upper airwork. The lessons leanred in winter ops
were very valuable despite the frequesnt winter cancels.

Brent

On Jan 18, 1:31 am, Scott Braddock wrote:
Second, install the winter baffles on the
cowl openings, which prevent a lot of cold air from blasting against the
firewall.

Winter fronts don't keep cold air off the firewall. They reduce the
airflow over the cylinders so that the engine can run warmer. The
airflow onto the cowling goes through the cylinder and head fins and
out the bottom of the cowl; there is little cold air that reaches the
firewall at all.

Cabin heat comes from the muffler. Air enters a small scoop just in
front of the engine in one of the cowl inlets and directs air into a
hose that connects to a shroud around one muffler, and then out via
another hose to a valve on the firewall that wither dumps this warm
air overboard or lets it into the cabin. Any defects such as a missing
air scoop, torn hoses, loose shroud, or a valve that isn't properly
closing off the dump port (and all of these are common problems) will
make cabin heat ineffective. Many 150s have both mufflers plumbed in
to increase the heat available. Still, a 150 was an inexpensively-
built, poorly insulated, drafty little all-metal airplane, and it will
never be as comfortable as the cheapest car available. The older 172s
aren't much better. The new 172s are far tighter and better-insulated.

Dan

On Jan 16, 6:28*pm, cjacorona
wrote:
Hey Cessna 150 owners i just got my 150 last spring and this is the
first winter im flying it, the problem is it's so cold in the plane that
steam comes out your mouth, i had my mechanic check my cabin heater and
he said everything is fine with it that just the way they are, does not
produce much heat, is anybody have any ideas how to improve heater or
maybe install electric blower some how or do anything about it except
just don't fly it at all in winter.............

--
cjacorona

Provided the heater muff at the engine and the valve at the firewall
are in good condition about the only thing you can to is construct and
insulated duct between the heater muff and the firewall. One way to
do that is to cover the original flexible duct with an insulating
material like fiberglass cloth and then slide a larger piece of
flexible duct over that and secure as normal. They say it works very
well. But still it is only a 150.

On 1/16/2011 5:28 PM, cjacorona wrote:
Hey Cessna 150 owners i just got my 150 last spring and this is the
first winter im flying it, the problem is it's so cold in the plane that
steam comes out your mouth, i had my mechanic check my cabin heater and
he said everything is fine with it that just the way they are, does not
produce much heat, is anybody have any ideas how to improve heater or
maybe install electric blower some how or do anything about it except
just don't fly it at all in winter.............




For what it's worth: when the temperature gets to 32F, which isn't often
in SW Oklahoma,in the C-150 I can fly in shirt sleeves with full heat.
If you're in Canada, all bets are off, though I do remember starting up
at 15F long ago, without worrying about the cabin temps.
[no winter kit]
Brian W

Where do you live...how cold is it? Even in North California, at below
freezing at altitude (say 8000 ft) the heater on my Aircoupe isn't
enough to keep things warm.
--
The secret of a good sermon is to have a good beginning and a good
ending; and to have the two as close together as possible.
-- George Burns

Originally Posted by Brent[_2_]

and you might want to overall err
on the side of a litle more throttle than you perhaps would ahve in the
summer and leaning to raise the EGT to near Peak since the EGT is where the heat for you comes from.

That's awful advice! Under NO circumstances should a pilot EVER use fuel mixture manipulation to attempt to increase cabin heat. Follow the engine manufacturer's recommendations on use of the mixture no matter what the season. Excessive leaning is asking for premature top-end problems.