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Truma Combi D6 heater - fuel-pump noise


htrevor

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Posted

Hi

I have recently purchased a campervan with a Truma diesel heating system which heats the water also. Works fine except for the constant tick over of the pump which I cannot get used to. I wonder if anyone else has this system ( I’ve yet to find anyone) and has the same problem?

Posted

Welcome to the Out&AboutLive forums, htrevor.

 

The Combi D6 air/water heater was a a joint venture between Truma and Eberspacher. Originally the D6 was diesel-fuelled only, but now there’s a D6E version that can be powered by diesel and/or 230V. The appliance is essentially a Combi C6 (or C6E) with the Truma gas-burner unit replaced by an Eberspacher diesel burner-unit.

 

There have been on-line complaints on forums about motorhomes fitted with Eberspacher or Webasto diesel-fuelled heaters that the heater’s fuel-pump’s ’ticking’ is sufficiently irritating to make sleep difficult. Ways have been suggested to combat the noise (eg. using more flexible mountings for the pump to better isolate it from the motorhome’s body or relocating the pump so that it’s further away from the motorhome’s sleeping area).

 

I THINK one current forum-member (david lloyd) has a 2015 Chausson Welcome 717GA motorhome with a Combi D6E (though the information on his postings suggests he has a 2014 Hobby!). If he does have a D6E, he should be able to comment on the fuel-pump noise.

 

Another current forum-member (andy mccord) used to own an Adria motorhome with a Combi D6E heater (mentioned here)

 

https://forums.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/Truma-6E-v-Webasto-4kw/46207/

 

so should also be able to advise.

 

It would be useful if you provided details of your campervan - make, model and build-year - just in case the pump noise is known to be a particular problem with that motorhome.

 

Posted

Hi Derek

 

Yes I too have a problem sleeping with the pump on at night. Details of my van as requested.

 

Fiat Ducato Westfalia Amundsen 600D.

2017 but 1st. Registered aug. 2018

Posted

I did come across this Combi D6 (Australia) installation guide

 

https://www.manualslib.com/manual/1246695/Truma-Combi-D-6-Au.html?page=8

 

and you’’ll note the following advice

 

Route pressure-side fuel line in provided soundproofing hosemade from cellular rubber.

 

Allowing the fuel lines to come into contact with vehicle components or overtightening the cable binders may result in metering pump noise transmission (clicking).

 

Connect fuel line (in soundproofing hose) to unit and metering pump as shown in diagram. Secure soundproofing hose and connecting cable to vehicle using hose holders(part no. 34020-76000) or attach loosely with cable binders(approx. every 50 cm).

Posted

Hi htrevor,

 

Whilst you are parked try 'un-mounting' the pump from the vehicles body and hang it either on the fuel pipes or with something like a rubber band and see if this reduces the noise. If it does look at re-mounting it with the softest rubber mount you can find which will still hold it in place.

 

Note that the flow of diesel through the pump must go uphill to ensure any air is purged from the pump.

 

Keith.

Posted

Hi Derek

 

Many thanks. I have tried everywhere to find if anyone else has this problem, but finding another Motorhome owner who had a Truma diesel heater was difficult, lots of

Truma heaters but not diesel. I sought out Truma at Caravan show at the NEC to no avail, I was even resorting to knocking on the doors of giant lorry cabs in lay-bys as I had heard they used these kind of heaters. Got some strange looks. So at last this forum has given me some hope. Tell me though could you by any chance have a recommendation for someone to be able to check the heater? It’s still under warranty but the company I purchased the van from do not seem to have much interest in the problem I have.

 

Trevor

Posted

Hi Trevor,

 

Eberspacher diesel fired heaters are common factory fitments on MB Sprinter vans and there is always a lot of talk about them on the American Sprinter forum, including fitment and repair tips. They call them Espar heaters over there!

 

https://sprinter-source.com/forum/

 

They are also fitted extensively on canal boats so maybe a local marina could help with suggestions on your pump noise?

 

Final suggestion would be to either contact Eberspacher directly...

 

https://www.eberspacher.com/header-meta/contact.html

 

or one of their local service centres...

 

https://www.eberspacher.com/dealers/dealersearch.html

 

PS I have a lot of electronic copies of installation, service and repair manuals if you ever need them.

 

Keith.

Posted
htrevor - 2018-12-10 5:44 PM

 

Hi Keith

 

Many thanks but I have A Truma not an Eberspacher.

 

Trevor

 

But, as Derek stated in his first reply, your Truma Combi was a joint venture between Truma and Eberspacher!

 

Derek Uzzell - 2018-12-08 7:45 AM

 

The Combi D6 air/water heater was a a joint venture between Truma and Eberspacher. Originally the D6 was diesel-fuelled only, but now there’s a D6E version that can be powered by diesel and/or 230V. The appliance is essentially a Combi C6 (or C6E) with the Truma gas-burner unit replaced by an Eberspacher diesel burner-unit.

Posted
htrevor - 2018-12-10 2:41 PM

 

Hi Derek

 

Many thanks. I have tried everywhere to find if anyone else has this problem, but finding another Motorhome owner who had a Truma diesel heater was difficult, lots of

Truma heaters but not diesel. I sought out Truma at Caravan show at the NEC to no avail, I was even resorting to knocking on the doors of giant lorry cabs in lay-bys as I had heard they used these kind of heaters. Got some strange looks. So at last this forum has given me some hope. Tell me though could you by any chance have a recommendation for someone to be able to check the heater? It’s still under warranty but the company I purchased the van from do not seem to have much interest in the problem I have.

 

Trevor

 

The link between Truma and Eberspacher in relation to the Combi D6 is mentioned here

 

https://www.truma.com/au/en/products/truma-caravan-rv-heater/truma-combi-d6.html

 

and Truma’s Installation and Operating Instructions are here

 

https://dealernew.truma.com/_anweisungen/Truma_Katalog/pdf_verzeichnis/30_000/34030_15300.pdf

 

https://dealernew.truma.com/_anweisungen/Truma_Katalog/pdf_verzeichnis/30_000/34030_04500.pdf

 

Diesel-fuelled Combis are relatively rare in motorhomes and (as far as I’m aware) no UK converter has chosen to fit them. Consequently UK motorhome dealers (and Truma technicians) won’t have the same level of Combi D-related familiarity as they have with gas-fuelled Combis, nor the same amount of trouble-shooting experience.

 

I’m doubtful that it would be productive to approach Eberspacher about this as the Combi D is primarily a Truma Combi heater that happens to have an Eberspacher burner-unit, not a ‘true’ Eberspacher product. Besides which it’s not the heater’s performance or reliability that you are complaining about, but the ticking noise that its fuel-pump makes and that’s more likely to be a consequence of Westfalia’s installation rather than an actual ‘fault’.

 

You could try sending a Private Message (PM) to user-names "andy mccord" and "david lloyd” (both of which are current forum participants) and ask them whether their Combi D’s fuel-pump produced a particularly loud ticking noise. I suspect though that the amount of noise the pump makes will depend on the make/model of motorhome, where the fuel-pump is located and whether Truma’s installation instructions have been carefully followed.

 

At the end of the day, as your motorhome is still under warranty, if you believe that the ticking that the pump is making is unacceptable, you’ll need to insist that the company that sold you the vehicle does something about the noise.

Posted

Hi Keith

 

Sorry, I forgot Dereks comment about the Truma/Eberspacher link. Also thank you for the offer of the manuals, I might take you up on that later. Many thanks again.

 

Trevor

Posted

Hi Derek

 

Thank you for this. I am so glad I decided to join this forum and wish I had earlier. I will do what you advised and recontact the company that sold me the vehicle and show them the response I have had, if you do not mind me doing that? I will wait first to see if Andy and David respond to your query and also if it is permissible to send the company a transcript of our conversations.

 

Many thanks

Trevor

Posted
htrevor - 2018-12-11 9:53 AM

 

Hi Derek

 

Thank you for this. I am so glad I decided to join this forum and wish I had earlier. I will do what you advised and recontact the company that sold me the vehicle and show them the response I have had, if you do not mind me doing that? I will wait first to see if Andy and David respond to your query and also if it is permissible to send the company a transcript of our conversations.

 

Many thanks

Trevor

 

Hello Trevor, sorry to hear of your irritating noisy heater. We did have a Chausson with the Combi D6E heater and, at first, I thought it was a splendid alternative to gas/electric. However, we did experience a constant ticking of the fuel pump when using diesel but as ours was located beneath one of the rear twin fixed beds (almost in the garage beneath) it was not particularly intrusive during the day or evening. At night time we nearly always turned it off. As Derek has gleaned from my avatar, we now have a Hobby Premium Drive with the more usual Combi 6E.

 

We also once had a Autocruise equipped with an Eberspacher diesel fired heater and that sounded like a Harrier jump jet when firing up! I would think location of the pump is the biggest determining factor in how loud the ticking will appear to be and in your Westfalia it's much more of a confined space than the Chausson coach built. I can only think that the suggestion to check and see if the mountings are sufficiently insulated from the body is sensible and if more insulation can be applied it may help reduce it but the ticking itself I believe is more to do with the internal mechanics of the pump and, if so, will be ever present.

 

Just as a final point, I spent most of my career on the ambulance service and later models were fitted with Eberspacher heaters. Again these were quite noisy ticks and can be plainly heard from outside the vehicle when stood with the heater running.

 

Sorry I don't have a solution though.

 

David

Posted

 

For what it’s worth, I came across an on-line German review of a Westfalia Amundsen 540 where the GOOGLE entry carries a mysterious text (presumably machine translated) "However the heater is making a rather loud clicking noise when it's running on diesel, is this something you also experienced?” I can’t find where this comment originates, but it suggests that the ‘ticking’ is not unknown for Westfalia models that have a Combi D.

Posted

Thanks for all your help Derek. The conclusions I am drawing from yours and other replies is that the diesel system has many benefits I.e. cheap to run, very efficient and more garage room with less gas bottles. The problem I have though is the inability to get used to the ticking noise. I am aware that that is the way the system works but it is not so much of a problem if the pump is well away from the living /sleeping area I.e. in a large Motorhome/ boat or large truck where the pump can be located in a position well away from the sleeping area. Unfortunately that is not possible in my relatively small van where the pump is in the middle of the vehicle and so obtrusive. I think from my investigations that there are very few vans of this size (6 metres) whereby this heating system is used and it was my misfortune to purchase the vehicle with this type of heating. If using the information gathered from the kind responders fails to improve the noise then I will probably be forced to sell the van in the near future unfortunately.

 

Kind regards

Trevor

Posted

Hi David, many thanks for your reply. What you are saying about the pump being in an unobtrusive location and not really being a real problem because of that fact is the conclusions I am drawing from these kind responses. Unfortunately my vehicle (6 metres long) has nowhere to hide the pump and is in fact in the middle of the vehicle which is the main reason for my problems with the ticking. Yes it sounds like a jet if it starts up from cold but that is not a problem, it’s just the constant ticking or in the van it goes bom, bom, bom like a heartbeat.

Thanks David

Regards

 

Trevor

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