ALDE wet v Truma dry

[Phillybarbour]

ALDE wet v Truma dry

Both my previous vans had ALDE heating with heat exchangers. Great heat, very quiet and a great system. Downsides odd leaks needed fixing, and it takes ages from very cold to warm up.

This is my first Truma unit, noisy at first but does go quieter, but I’ve only had it on for a few hours so far.

During long periods in cold weather will it feel like a dry heat as it’s blown air? Does the noise bother anyone at night? Early days for me and I’m not sure at the mo would be interested in others views.

 

[Deleted member 155]

Not had the Alde but have always wanted to try it , for me the Truma heat up quickly but then cool quickly if you turn it off .
My preference would be a gas fire as no power required as the Truma are power hungry.
Depending on the model you have they can eat gas , ours was the 6kw model and in winter it would use a 13kg cylinder in 3 days (some of that may have been because of the crap insulation and draughts in the Swift)
The rv had a 10 kw blown air heater and again was very power hungry and about £9 per day in lpg !
If blown air was any good we would still be fitting it in houses but that was very quickly given up and went back to wet systems.

 

[Molly 3]

I had a small motorhome with Truman 2400 heater very low power consumption 600 m amps .very quiet very warm now have truma 6 combi .even quiter.and warmer but a bit more power hungry. Very fast warm up at full power

 

[Clunegapyears]

Both vans had / have Alde wet so can’t compare. Do find it holds the heat well ... can switch it off and stays warm for quite a while, depending on o/s temperature. Last van did not have a double floor ... this one does as well as under floor heating ?

 

[eurajohn]

Through the years have had various types of heating in vans.
Panel type fires are OK but unless fitted with fan and associated ductwork tend to be very local heat.
Truma through the years have improved no end, but as others have already mentioned tend to be somewhat noisy, the newer versions with the electric option are good if on hook up, although really need the gas boost to get the temperature raised quickly, not really an option to leave on overnight for most as the distribution fan is noisy in the dead of night.
Alde does take a while to raise the vans temperature but once up to your chosen comfort level maintains it throughout the van. The circulating pump does have a slight hum but dependant where the unit is located unlikely to trouble you overnight, perhaps the occasional gurgle but generally very quiet. They have a good programmer and various options for the power source dependant on what's available to you, these benefits of course come with a weight and cost implication.
I don't have actual first hand experience of the very latest development versions of the Truma system (after 2014) so they may have improved and overcome some of the issues most people have with them

Generally I'm a strong fan of the Alde and have the system in our current van.

 

[Phillybarbour]

The Truma in our current van is the 6E which should be powerful enough for a PVC, but we do go skiing in it so I will have to see on noise. Globecar have just moved the unit for 2018 model year from in the rear to in the lounge which is where our is located. They say the have done this to reduce noise during the night for the rear bed and better distribution as it’s more centrally located then under rear bed. Time will tell.

I really wanted a PVC with ALDE but only Adria offered it and I was not struck on some of their features and something had to give, hope I don’t regret that after our first ski trip. All I know is most other vans on the site we use don’t have ALDE and they all seem to survive.

 

[2cv]

Having had Alde on a boat and Truma in a van I prefer the Truma. Wet systems are fine for stationary houses but in a vehicle can be prone to leaks. In a well insulated van the Truma only cuts in occasionally even when it's very cold outside and is quite quiet after the initial warm up. Even the electric side is sufficient without gas assistance for the great majority of occasions.
I did have a problem with my 4e, which ended up to a trip to the hq near Uttoxeter, but there it was resolved very efficiently and at a reasonable price. After a later version ecu was fitted it runs much better, mostly with very low fan speeds meaning little noise.

 

[Cookies]

Have found with our alde system that the heat reduces as it goes round the system. Wife's bed is very hot and mine is a lot cooler.also if we close bedroom off it can be quite a few degrees difference in temperature between lounge and bedroom ateas

 

[Trek]

Alde will only leak if its been badly installed or something breaks

much prefer my Alde to previous campers that had truma and propex heaters

 

[Trek]

Have found with our alde system that the heat reduces as it goes round the system. Wife's bed is very hot and mine is a lot cooler.also if we close bedroom off it can be quite a few degrees difference in temperature between lounge and bedroom ateas

Sounds just about right

heat loss would have been a design factor and lounge needs to hotter than bed room And wife side of bed needs to be hotter than my side

Do you have any controls around your bedroom .? On my camper i can turn off bedroom heating totally with a valve

 

[derk]

We have a knaus sun ti with alde heating which is what we specified as our previous van also had alde heating and we liked the central heating effect. I would however recommend anyone thinking about a van with such a heating system to check where the manufacture has placed the radiators. We have a large radiator in the cupboard under the sink where we store the food !!!. Another issue is that the fluid requires changing every two years unless you have it changed from a pink fluid to a blue fluid in which case it’s every 5 years.

 

[wakk44]

We've got the truma 6002 blown air heating.It takes around 7-8A when getting up to temperature and is quite noisy.It does heat up quickly though and then the fan ticks over quietly taking around 0.5A.Never had the wet type heating so can't compare but I am happy with the system which has been efficient during the current cold spell.

 

[maingate]

We have a knaus sun ti with alde heating which is what we specified as our previous van also had alde heating and we liked the central heating effect. I would however recommend anyone thinking about a van with such a heating system to check where the manufacture has placed the radiators. We have a large radiator in the cupboard under the sink where we store the food !!!. Another issue is that the fluid requires changing every two years unless you have it changed from a pink fluid to a blue fluid in which case it’s every 5 years.

You have got that the wrong way round. Pink fluid is good for 5 years.

I have had the Alde system for a total of 9 years and the only leak I have ever had was when the Automatic Air Bleed valve on the boiler developed a fault and was easily sorted. For rapid heating both gas and electric can be used at the same time.

 

[Trek]

Maingate is correct Blue change ever 2 years Pink should be good for 5 years

It’s because the fluid looses its anti corrosion properties over time and could result in damage to the boiler water jacket


With regard to the radiator in the food cupboard Have you considered removing the radiator

if you are handy at diy you could remove this radiator and replace it with a straight though 22 mm aluminium pipe insulate it and if unsightly box it in
( never use copper pipe or fittings in your Alde system ! ) you may want to fit it somewhere else Look at the Alde catalogue for different ideas

 

[derk]

Sorry guys yeah your right about the colour of the fluids I got them the wrong way round. Have considered bypassing the radiator in the food cupboard but just not around to it. Cheers