Alde wet heating system
Hi everyone
We are brand new to caravanning and have recently purchased a Lunar Clubman SE (2010) with an Alde wet heating system. I've searched the owners handbook and heating system manuals (along with google and discussions on here) but
cannot find what is required with regards to winterisation of the heating system? We are going to continue to use the van during winter months so it's likely to only be sat unused for 2-3 weeks at a time. We already empty the water pipes on site each trip
and leave our taps open to help drain any excess. But we do have the option of a 30 min boost to heating the water so we assume there must be a small water tank somewhere which we have not yet located... Any clues to the
whereabouts and how to drain would be greatly appreciated please!
Also, is there anything special we need to do with the heating system?
I apologise for our ignorance on the situation and thankyou for any help you can provide!
Comments
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You don't need to winterise the Alde heating. The liquid in the system is a mix of anti freeze and water as you would get in your car's radiator. It is designed to be non maintenance apart from the occasional top up, if the header tank level is below minimum,
and replaced every few years (up to 5) depending on the type of anti freeze that the system has.A search of Google and Alde's own web site will give you a lot of information.
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Answers may be here!
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Thankyou so much for that guys. I thought that was the case but on our first trip with the van a fellow caravanner mentioned that the heating may need to be drained down (however they admitted that they have always had blown air systems) so i panicked when
I couldn't find any info on it!Glad I'm not as mad as I thought
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I assume that you have the service history. When the van was built in 2010 it would have had 2 year antifreeze in i., blue in colour from memory. Presumably changed in 2012? Around this time (?) 5 year antifreeze became available and was
pink in colour. If this was changed for the pink it would be due for replacement next year. The antifreeze not only stops freezing, but is essential to prevent corrosion. Check service history. I was in a dealer local to me (Flintshire Caravans) today picking
up toilet fluid. I noted that they had a notice saying that they would replace the fluid for £150. I would have guessed that it would have been £200 otherwise.Check service details as to situation with the fluid and antifreeze. Corroded boilers are expensive to replace.
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Hey Melmodz there will be 9 or 10 ltrs of water in your boiler to drain down you will find the switch under your offside seat probably yellow flip it up and the boiler will empty don't forget to flip it down again when refilling
Not the boiler and heating fluid!! That is just the hot water tank
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....... I was in a dealer local to me (Flintshire Caravans) today picking up toilet fluid. I noted that they had a notice saying that they would replace the fluid for £150. I would have guessed that it would have been £200 otherwise. ...
Not a bad mark up when you can buy a gallon of 'anti freeze' for a little over £40 click here
I should have read my link first ..... I've linked to a premixed glycol
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Melmodz, don't fotget to fully recharge your water system on your next trip out, so that water is running from all taps on the hot setting, before switching on the heating &/or water heater.
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....... I was in a dealer local to me (Flintshire Caravans) today picking up toilet fluid. I noted that they had a notice saying that they would replace the fluid for £150. I would have guessed that it would have been £200 otherwise. ...
Not a bad mark up when you can buy a gallon of 'anti freeze' for a little over £40
click hereI should have read my link first ..... I've linked to a premixed glycol
To do it properly probably takes an hour. So with dealer rates .....
Because of physical problems I would not DIY in my case.
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Melmodz, don't fotget to fully recharge your water system on your next trip out, so that water is running from all taps on the hot setting, before switching on the heating &/or water heater. It runs happily without filling
Not necessary with the Alde system.
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To do it properly probably takes an hour. So with dealer rates .....
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You're assuming the dealer will do it properly .....
It'd be as cheap if not cheaper to take it to Mercedes where they 'only' charge around £120/hr
Would the Mercedes dealers have the special Aldi pump which would make the job quicker otherwise I suspect it would work out a lot more expensive. I had ours changed by the local dealer but it still took me some time to get all the air out ( and find the
bleed points) and I had to top up the system three times.0 -
Taking delivery of my new van in May has meant there has'nt been the need to use it other than the first couple of nights just to make sure it worked. A week ago we were at Wereham in Dorset and, despite some really good weather during the day, we had some
pretty chilly nights and mornings. Not the depth of winter type chill but never the less it did what it said on the tin and heated the van. The juries out on whether the bathroom is as warm as our previous blown air system, but time will tell. It is very quiet,
with just a gentle hum once up and running, after a little gurgle before the liquid gets up to full flow. I do think the boiler is more efficient at heating the water as it seems to get up to temperature quicker and stays hotter for longer. This could of course
be because the Truma boiler has a larger capacity but we can both shower consecutively without using the boost.0 -
Ours developed a gurgle during the first week of use. I dopped the front of the van right down and bled at the rear radiator whilst topping up. Gurgle stopped.
We find that in the summer when temperatures are high our end washroom stays reasonably cool. In the winter however with the domestic style radiator it tends to be warmer than the rest of the caravan, Obviously I could adjust on radiator valves but we like
it to be cosy if we are stripping off for a shower etc. If we are using the shower in cold weather I open the shower door in advance as the air behind the shower screen door stays cooler.0 -
Taking delivery of my new van in May has meant there has'nt been the need to use it other than the first couple of nights just to make sure it worked.
As we were in the Highlands from 7th April until last week in May it was very welcome as we had all sorts of weather .......... often in the same day!
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Melmodz, don't fotget to fully recharge your water system on your next trip out, so that water is running from all taps on the hot setting, before switching on the heating &/or water heater.
Write your comments here...
Alde systems heat tap water through a second water jacket. Unlike the old systems where heating an empty tank would cause the system to trip, you don't need to fill the hot water jacket in order to run the heating.
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Melmodz, don't fotget to fully recharge your water system on your next trip out, so that water is running from all taps on the hot setting, before switching on the heating &/or water heater.
Write your comments here...
Alde systems heat tap water through a second water jacket. Unlike the old systems where heating an empty tank would cause the system to trip,
you don't need to fill the hot water jacket in order to run the heating.as with the Truma Combi....heating with an empty water cylinder is perfectly fine.
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Melmodz, don't fotget to fully recharge your water system on your next trip out, so that water is running from all taps on the hot setting, before switching on the heating &/or water heater. It runs happily without filling
Not necessary with the Alde system.
Surely one must ensure that there's water in the system before switching on the water heater boost.
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Been reading this thread, interesting. We have been looking at new caravans, wondered if the Alde system of heating was worth the extra money? Looked at two vans one with Alde and one with blown air.
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Yes, the thing is, you don't have to have water in the boiler to use the heating system with Alde and Truma Combi. If you want hot water aswell then obviously you need to fill the boiler.
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Melmodz, don't fotget to fully recharge your water system on your next trip out, so that water is running from all taps on the hot setting, before switching on the heating &/or water heater. It runs happily without filling
Not necessary with the Alde system.
Surely one must ensure that there's water in the system before switching on the water heater boost.
No, Just raises the temperature in the system. Turns the pump off and so circulation. Achieves nothing though
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From what I recall, the Boost function just gives priority to the water over the heating but the temperature is the same. We never found it useful.
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From what I recall, the Boost function just gives priority to the water over the heating but the temperature is the same. We never found it useful.
But what if you don't want the heating on, only hot water relatively quickly?
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From what I recall, the Boost function just gives priority to the water over the heating but the temperature is the same. We never found it useful.
Not so, it raises the temperature of the HW by about 10 degrees.
Very useful when showering, gives you hotter water to mix with the cold, so a longer shower.
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