Alde Flow Tank Leak?

JeffroNC

I had water dripping from behind the left wheel. I checked the back of the fresh water connection and as many pipes as I can see or touch and the water does not seem to be coming from any of them. The left rear corner of the floor under the bed is wet. 

I see water coming from under the Alde flow tank. The water is in the location indicated below. 

Has anyone had this happen? Is the flow tank bad?

pthomas745

Something like this was reported last year.  The thread has  a discussion and there are other links in the thread.

https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com/discussion/13425/leaking-around-base-of-alde-3020

JeffroNC

@pthomas745 thanks. I looked through them but didn’t see anything about the flow tank. After some more standing on my head, I am convinced that my tank is leaking. Lots of reports about this on Airstreams.

 I am not liking the prices I am seeing to replace the tank. ($770 for the part -$1680 installed)
I think I can replace the tank myself but I am reluctant to replace an item that failed with no apparent reason other than “thin metal”.
Do I really want to do it again in three years?

I am considering blowing the water out and connecting the inlet and outlet water lines together. I can turn off the Flow function on the display and leave it as is.

Denny16

The leak might not be from the tank, which is stainless steel.  The pressure relief valve for the Flo tank, might be the cause of the leak, thst is the little pipe unit going through the floor in your photo above?

Cheers 

Pintoplumber

Is it dripping from the blue and white fitting circled?

Denny16

Does that fitting have a yellow lift handle on its top?  If so, that is the pressure relief valve for the Flo.
 Cheers 

JeffroNC

Not dripping from any fitting. It seems to be seeping from between the tank and the ply it is mounted to. 

I have bypassed the Alde to winterize mode and drained the system through the valve with the yellow handle. I am going to see if that makes it quit leaking. 
 

JeffroNC

@Denny16 do you know what I need to disconnect the water lines from the flow tank. They look like snap fittings. My goal is to connect the incoming fresh water to the Alde instead of the flow. Eliminating the leak but allowing me to have hot water for now.
I have verified that switching to bypass mode stopped the leak from the bottom of the $$$ tank.

Denny16

Sorry Jeff, I do not know.  I looked into installing a Flo system on our TaB, but haven’t done this yet.
 Cheers 

JeffroNC

@Denny16 I answered my own question. Press in on the ring and pull the fitting off. I bypassed my Flow tank and have hot water again without leaks. Now i need to decide if its worth the money to replace.

Denny16

Jeff, you should try contacting nüCamp Customer help.  Your Flo tank is the first one I have heard of with a leak.  Possibly nüCamp might help you out here with this issue.
 Cheers 

JeffroNC

@Denny16 thanks. I did that and got the new boilerplate type answer about dealers. Same with Alde/Truma service. I can’t imagine anybody touching my TAB other than me or the guys at NuCamp. (Sorry, I was an auto mechanic and then an educator in the field. I have seen and talked to RV repair people and was not filled with confidence. Especially on something like the Alde.  )

I have plenty of time to decide what to do now with the fresh water portion of the tank bypassed. The glycol lines are still connected but I shut the pump off from the display. I have hot water for dishes and bathroom sink. I am going to try a shower.

Most water in the US is very alkaline compared to Europe. I remember how much trouble Euro cars had with heat exchangers over here from back in my career days.

An Airstreamer made a video about getting his leaking tank replaced here.
The Alde tech states that the tank is not needed.

We are essentially half-timers in our TAB so our systems see a lot of use. I just need to decide how much the tank is worth to me.

Whew! If you made it this far, thanks for reading. LOL

Denny16

Yes, thanks Jeff, funny video, the tech spent more time talking about his life choices than he did the Alde system.  But, he did mention the corrosion found on some aluminum tube to rubber hose connections was caused by old glycol accumulation and atmospheric interaction causing the corrosion, nothing to do with galvanic issues.  

I found this interesting, and it makes sense.  I had a similar issue on a marine Diesel engine with a glycol heat exchanger that had an aluminum manifold that corroded from the inside due to old glycol sitting in the manifold while the engine was not being used (it was an auxiliary engine, so very low use).  Old glycol can cause more problems than it solves sometimes.  I think this may be the issue some are seeing on their Alde systems in the TaBs.
 Cheers 

JeffroNC

@Denny16 yes old fluids are trouble. Ya can’t leave it in but ya can’t dump it out.
It’s the fresh water leaking out of my Alde tank which makes me think about all the different campgrounds we have connected to, several for months at a time while we hosted. I see a lot of rigs using portable water softeners as well as filters. It kinda makes sense to me now.

Denny16

Yes Jeff, if connecting to hard water or unknown quality water systems, filters are a good idea.  Seems the Flo tank weak spots are the seam welds, not holding up to the road conditions on AirStream trailers.  Your leak may well be the result of using too high a mineral content water reacting with the tank?  I have thought bout adding some filters to our rig, might be the time to do so.

Cheers 

JeffroNC

@Denny16 we were hooked up for months while hosting. Might be time for some more doodads!

JeffroNC

FYI I am going to run without the flow. I now have the equivalent of a 2018 TAB 400 water heater. I have enough hot water to shower, wash dishes and hands.
If I decide to replace the tank, it is $720 for the part or $1400 installed.

Dutch061

Wow it must really be a special job to install.

Brad

JeffroNC

@Dutch061 They said three hours. The glycol portion will need to be bled. 

Denny16

Replacing the Flo,tank is not hard in itself.  It is awkward to get to in the TaB400, being buried in the back corner under the rear bunk.  When nüCamp installs it, the outside wall is not in place, making access easy.  Once installed, on a 2019 TaB400, it has the rest of the plumbing lines mixed in with the Alde Flo plumbing, which adds time to the task.  

A nice solution would have been for nüCamp to install the Alde and Water system on a slide out unit, that one could undo the fasteners, and then slide the water system unit out, Alde, Flo, water pump and Nautilus system, making service access easy from the outside of the TaB, and reducing labor times for repairs.  The bottom of this slide out could be a drip pan, with a drain installed to catch any leaks and spills from servicing.
 Cheers