Colin Leake Posted February 2, 2016 Share Posted February 2, 2016 Truma Combi heaters seem to get a lot of less than enthusiastic mentions here and indeed we've had than our fair share with ours. Three visits to get it fixed with loads of parts being replaced. Seem to be working fine now but like a lot of others we now carry a small fan heater with us. How about Alde heaters that are increasingly being fitted to caravans and motor homes? I can see a few potential problems but has anyone had any experience of them or any thoughts on them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
747 Posted February 2, 2016 Share Posted February 2, 2016 The present van and the last one had the Alde system fitted. Neither had been regularly serviced but gave very little trouble (none on the current van). I fixed a couple of minor problems myself on the last van and I regard as much better than the competition. :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken the kontiki Posted February 2, 2016 Share Posted February 2, 2016 Alde have been around since 1966 so should have a fair idea of what's going on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve928 Posted February 3, 2016 Share Posted February 3, 2016 Our Compact 3020 has performed faultlessly over the past 13 months, despite a very shoddy installation by messrs Bailey, and it has had a lot of use. The only downside that I can think of is how long it takes to warm up the van but that is countered by the all over nature of the heat and the lack of air blowing around, plus a toasty hot bathroom radiator/towel rail. You can of course modify your heating usage to get over this drawback by using the timers etc. to keep a level of heat in the van and by running the heating whilst on the road to have a nice warm van on arrival at your destination. Consequently gas consumption is very high and I wouldn't contemplate feeding it on other than forecourt LPG. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayjsj Posted February 3, 2016 Share Posted February 3, 2016 Double post. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayjsj Posted February 3, 2016 Share Posted February 3, 2016 Consequently gas consumption is very high and I wouldn't contemplate feeding it on other than forecourt LPG. That is a very good point, do Alde heaters/boilers have a mains option? and if so, how effecient is it ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve928 Posted February 3, 2016 Share Posted February 3, 2016 Rayjsj - 2016-02-03 8:57 AM That is a very good point, do Alde heaters/boilers have a mains option? and if so, how effecient is it ? Yes, 1, 2 and 3kw settings on ours although this functionality may be optional, I don't know. The 3kw setting will warm a cold van but only very slowly. The 2kw setting will easily maintain an already warm van. The 1kw setting is useful for frost protection. I have used it overnight a few times this winter when seriously cold weather has been forecast with the room thermostat set to 5 degrees and it seems to run very little to maintain that temperature in a well insulated van. The heat is going all around the extremities of the van with pipes running alonside water pipes so it does a very good job of keeping the chill out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted February 3, 2016 Share Posted February 3, 2016 For anyone fed up with tepid/cold showering, the latest “Alde Flow” product is designed to provide continuous hot water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken the kontiki Posted February 3, 2016 Share Posted February 3, 2016 As for comparison gas consumption, on max settings the latest Alde 3020 uses 405 g/h whereas the Truma Combi 6E uses 480 g/h. Interesting. http://www.alde.co.uk/itemdetails.php?itemId=1 versus https://www.truma.com/int/en/heating/combi-6-e.php Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve928 Posted February 3, 2016 Share Posted February 3, 2016 ken the kontiki - 2016-02-03 9:47 AM As for comparison gas consumption, on max settings the latest Alde 3020 uses 405 g/h whereas the Truma Combi 6E uses 480 g/h. Interesting. http://www.alde.co.uk/itemdetails.php?itemId=1 versus https://www.truma.com/int/en/heating/combi-6-e.php Yes but the Truma or other blown air heater will probably take around 30 minutes to bring a cold van up to a comfortable temperature (and you can get instantly warm by blowing hot air up your trouser legs :-D) whilst the Alde may take 3 hours of on/off operation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
747 Posted February 3, 2016 Share Posted February 3, 2016 Steve928 - 2016-02-03 9:50 AM ken the kontiki - 2016-02-03 9:47 AM As for comparison gas consumption, on max settings the latest Alde 3020 uses 405 g/h whereas the Truma Combi 6E uses 480 g/h. Interesting. http://www.alde.co.uk/itemdetails.php?itemId=1 versus https://www.truma.com/int/en/heating/combi-6-e.php Yes but the Truma or other blown air heater will probably take around 30 minutes to bring a cold van up to a comfortable temperature (and you can get instantly warm by blowing hot air up your trouser legs :-D) whilst the Alde may take 3 hours of on/off operation. Sounds like your Alde system needs attention if it takes that long. For rapid heating, the Gas AND Electric can be used at the same time, which makes the van toasty very quickly. There is also the option to have the heating on while travelling (so the van is not cold in the first place). Another option is to have a tankful of hot water on arrival. Both of these options run off the engine cooling system, so use none of your Gas. I have both of these options fitted and find them to be excellent. I don't know about the latest model Alde but the Compact 3000 could be 2 Kw or 3 Kw. With other systems the electrical heating was usually a maximum of 1.8 Kw. Both of mine were/are the 3 Kw option and worked well to warm the van on the very rare times we had a hookup. The Gas side is rated at around 5.5 Kw, I don't know how that compares with Truma. What I am aware of are the number of threads asking for help with Truma and other systems and the rarity of queries on Alde systems. :-S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve928 Posted February 3, 2016 Share Posted February 3, 2016 747 - 2016-02-03 12:17 PM Sounds like your Alde system needs attention if it takes that long. No, it's working perfectly and I really like it in case I'm giving the wrong impression. Heating a large volume of fluid, passing that fluid through heat exchangers and transferring that heat to the air by convection is never going to provide heat as quickly as blasting out very hot air into a space though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 747 - 2016-02-03 12:17 PM ...What I am aware of are the number of threads asking for help with Truma and other systems and the rarity of queries on Alde systems. :-S As far as Truma is concerned that’s hardly surprising given the relatively small number of motorhomes that have an Alde heating system compared with the huge number of motorhomes that have a heating system that includes a Truma appliance. And Alde systems are definitely not ‘bombproof’, as a simple GOOGLE-search on “alde heater problem” will reveal. (Are people aware that Alde has been owned by Truma since 1997, and that certain ‘combi’ heater parts are also used in Alde ‘wet’ systems?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
747 Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 Truma obviously thought that the Alde product was better than theirs (that is often the reason for buyouts). I mean, would you buy rubbish? :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Leake Posted February 4, 2016 Author Share Posted February 4, 2016 Derek Uzzell - 2016-02-04 9:21 AM 747 - 2016-02-03 12:17 PM ...What I am aware of are the number of threads asking for help with Truma and other systems and the rarity of queries on Alde systems. :-S As far as Truma is concerned that’s hardly surprising given the relatively small number of motorhomes that have an Alde heating system compared with the huge number of motorhomes that have a heating system that includes a Truma appliance. And Alde systems are definitely not ‘bombproof’, as a simple GOOGLE-search on “alde heater problem” will reveal. (Are people aware that Alde has been owned by Truma since 1997, and that certain ‘combi’ heater parts are also used in Alde ‘wet’ systems?) I've just done as you suggest and I see what you mean! Any one had any experience with Wale systems? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyboyprowler Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 Our Alde has always worked perfectly, the only niggle, when it fires up in the night, but that could be described as comforting! Ours seems to heat up the van quite quickly, but I agree the electrical option is slow. However, much better than blown air. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keithl Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 Colin Leake - 2016-02-04 2:54 PM Any one had any experience with Whale systems? No, but you could try and win a Whale Expanse water heater (including fitting) courtesy of MMM... https://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/motorhomes/competitions/whale-expanse-water-heater-and-installation Keith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
747 Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 I have only experience of small Whale items (like pumps and non return valves). I found the quality of manufacture to be poor and the cost to be eyewatering. It would never enter my mind to purchase anything major with that name on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Leake Posted February 4, 2016 Author Share Posted February 4, 2016 Best heating system we have ever had was in a Berkly caravan we lived in for a year when we were married almost 55 years ago. Solid fuel and I must admit it was a bit of a pain going out to fetch fuel when it was raining and emptying the ash tray but it kept the van toasty warm and supplied hot water as well and never let us down. That same caravan had a brilliant full double bed that simply folded up into a wall complete with bedding in place when not in use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted February 5, 2016 Share Posted February 5, 2016 Colin Leake - 2016-02-04 2:54 PM ...Any one had any experience with Wale systems? https://www.google.co.uk/?gws_rd=ssl#q=whale+heater+problems Webasto now advertises a ‘hybrid’ heating approach involving a diesel-fuelled blown-air heater and a gas-fuelled Whale water-boiler. http://www.webasto.com/int/markets-products/recreational-vehicles/heating-solutions/hybrid-solutions/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Leake Posted February 5, 2016 Author Share Posted February 5, 2016 Derek Uzzell - 2016-02-05 1:14 PM Colin Leake - 2016-02-04 2:54 PM ...Any one had any experience with Wale systems? https://www.google.co.uk/?gws_rd=ssl#q=whale+heater+problems Webasto now advertises a ‘hybrid’ heating approach involving a diesel-fuelled blown-air heater and a gas-fuelled Whale water-boiler. http://www.webasto.com/int/markets-products/recreational-vehicles/heating-solutions/hybrid-solutions/ Diesel is a very expensive form of heating especialy compared to AutoGas due to,the high tax on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bolero boy Posted February 5, 2016 Share Posted February 5, 2016 but (i suppose) extremely comvenient to find.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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