Buses & Heating

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Seriously, do buses have permanently 'on' heating? During this sunny madness, lots of buses i've been on still had their heating systems active. Do drivers seriously not have an off button for it, or do they like watching their passengers melt?

Just a random question cause its annoyed me for so long. Just when you get a nice bit of breeze, some twit will come along and shut the damned window again.

[Kogut]

Maybe heating system is integrated with air conditioning?

[PikkaBird]

Well most buses have a 200kW heater under the floor that's running most of the time...

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Well most buses have a 200kW heater under the floor that's running most of the time...

Why though? It was 28'C outside, the buses don't need heating in that condition D:

[Ameecher]

Well most buses have a 200kW heater under the floor that's running most of the time...

Why though? It was 28'C outside, the buses don't need heating in that condition D:

To make it move?

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..I'm referring to the buses heating systems, not the engine, you pillocks. The things that blow air from the sides of the buses under seats, or on some double deckers, a large panel under the stairs that blows air into the gangway.

Unless buses are so badly designed their engine heat is always recirculated through the bus, wether you want it or not.

[61653]

Last time we had a spell of unseasonably warm weather, there was something in the Metro about how A LOT of buses have to have the heaters turned on/off at the depot by a mechanic, rather than the driver simply pushing a button. Can't think why they'd do this, other than to save energy...

[welshdragon]

its because the heaters are linked to the engines coolant system. the extra heat means that they have to send it though the buses to stop the engines over heatnig

From an ex Oxford bus driver I know.

edit: to switch off:

2-3 taps in the engine compartment
mechanic's job? yep
...
problem is, if they turn them off, engine can overheat
...
not to mention, not closing all the taps can cause the coolant pipes to burst

[Redirect Left]

Well I wish they'd use a proper cooling system on the engine, instead of just directing it all through the bus and making passengers suffer. It's ridiculous how hot some buses get, enough to rival the Tube sometimes ¬_¬

[orudge]

The newer buses here in Minneapolis/St Paul (I'm just back here for a week) have decent heating in the winter (and boy, do they need them), and reasonable cooling in the summer. The older buses are mostly OK, too, but then the climate here is a fair bit more extreme than in the UK!

[jvassie]

Well I wish they'd use a proper cooling system on the engine, instead of just directing it all through the bus and making passengers suffer. It's ridiculous how hot some buses get, enough to rival the Tube sometimes ¬_¬

Complain much? Jeez

[Redirect Left]

Well I wish they'd use a proper cooling system on the engine, instead of just directing it all through the bus and making passengers suffer. It's ridiculous how hot some buses get, enough to rival the Tube sometimes ¬_¬

Complain much? Jeez

Nope. It's truth. My phone recorded the ambient temperatureon one bus at 42'C, the outside temperature was around 26'C at the time. According to the feed it was getting from BBC. But if you want to sit in that temperature every day for 1 hr 15 then do so. I won't stop you.

[doktorhonig]

42 is really bad.
But if you cannot turn the heating off, because the engines would overheat, then how do you guys over there survive summer?

[Nawdic]

Happens in London too many times, BUT, they only seem to rocket when travelling in 7 year old Scania Omnidekkas...

[Born Acorn]

I remember the old buses we used to use for school; horrible things from the early 80's (exact bus in image!). The heat pipes on those would burn your leg if you sat by the window because they stuck out from the wall for the entire length of the bus.

That they used these until 2005 is madness in itself!

[ThorRune]

I've unintentionally driven the bus with the heating on in severe heat because i didn't actually know how to turn it off. As in, i pressed the button i thought would do it and then didn't find out it wasn't the right one before hours later. Just a few months after i first started though =p

Mind, i never truely figured out how the heater truely worked in every bus. It has many settings that seem to do a different thing in every single individual bus, even of the same make, year and factory.

Well most buses have a 200kW heater under the floor that's running most of the time...

Why though? It was 28'C outside, the buses don't need heating in that condition D:

To make it move?

High five!

[uktrackbuilder_loco]

Happens in London too many times, BUT, they only seem to rocket when travelling in 7 year old Scania Omnidekkas...

It's been discussed in Buse's ( the magazine by Ian Allen ) many times about the fact that London has moved to large expanse's of non opening glass windows on the double deckers, yet no one has a clue about how to turn the heating off.

One of the issue's seems to be that the air con system's take up valuable space in the vehicle compartment and also have weight penalties, let alone fuel penalties. The other issue is maintenance of the system in that it is another load on a maintenance system that can be over stretched to say the least.

Personally in my day all you did with the National was T Key the rear flap under the pod ( inside the passenger compartment ) and turn down the toggle switch and bingo job done.

[PikkaBird]

Ye's.

We manage to run a 99% airconditioned fleet out here in the 3rd world (will be 100% from next year when the last of the butterboxes go). Aircon is contracted out to specialists rather than being done by BT mechanics, but I won't deny it's still a major maintenance hassle.

The only "heaters" we have aside from the radiator (which warms up the back end of the bus VERY fast with the aircon off!) are the windscreen demisters and driver fan, which are great on cold mornings when they actually work. But they're not used very often and half the time you turn it on and all you get is a vague smell of burnt dust.

[noofnoof]

High Five for the 3rd world!
To be honest, when I saw this topic, I thought "Oh, buses with heating? intriguing."
I don't honestly remember sweating on a bus in Brisbane, other than when it was entirely my fault, and it was actually quite cool inside the bus.