Glycol flush and refill 2019 320 CS-S

DIYerTAB320

Truma gave me the name of a certified technician in Phoenix.  Since this camper is used, I decided to hire a professional who would be able to spot any and all problems.  He gave me a quote of $800+tax to flush and refill with Rhomar, and go through the system with me.  

1) I showed him where there was a clamp missing allowing a small leak.  He disassembled the joint, cleaned the aluminum sleeve with sand paper, and reassembled adding a second clamp.  There was a pea-sized bulge in that hose, however the tech did not replace it as he didn't carry replacement in his mobile van.  (Given his repair service is specifically for Truma systems, I found that unprofessional). 

2) He then brought out his two 5 gallon buckets, one with fresh Rhomar and one to collect the discharge, a small transfer pump (~1gpm) with hoses, and a small battery.  He hooked the hoses up to the overflow tank behind the toilet and added new glycol until he could see the color change in the discharge hose. 

3) He did NOT flush with distilled water first. 

4) The entire time to recharge the glycol took maybe 2 minutes max (more like 1 minute).  

5) The entire time he worked on my camper, including explaining the system to me, was 2 hours. For this he charged me $826.   

6) I questioned the affordability of the Alde system given this is supposed to be done every two years.  If one runs the heater 10 times per year, that equates to $43/night just for heat at the price for a certified tech to do the recharge. 

7) His response was that the Rhomar alone cost him $300, and the pump assembly was around $1000.  I challenged that knowing the pump cost is ~ $40, battery ~$50, the hoses ~$20, and I'm guessing less than $100 Rhomar.  I suggested he flush his pump with distilled water if he wants to make that "expensive" pump last longer.  

Conclusion - I'm glad to have seen just how easy this is to do (REALLY EASY!) and will never hire someone again. If anyone reading this post sees that I've misjudged something, please DO let us all know. 

Mickerly

I think you have captured the situation well. My switch to Romax was hired out for about the same price. They did flush with distilled water first. Other changes of fluid I did my self. I used a shop vacuum to suck all the old fluid out. I used a couple points to make sure nothing was trapped. I wanted to check a few of the hoses anyway.

qhumberd

I also agree and would only be concerned that the system was not flushed particularly if your 2019 had the Century (yellow) fluid. Truma and NuCamp both specify that and the tech should have know.

BTW the pump I have used from Amazon is around 1 GPM and was around 20 dollars. I have used it twice over the 4 years and it still works just fine. I have not seen a reason to change to the Rhomar in my unit as there has been no visible corrosion. I did ground my Alde directly to the battery when that directive from Airsteam came out a couple of years back. Still no clarification about galvanic corrosion. The consensus seems to be the trapping of the fluid on the connecters by the clamps. And yes it is an expensive little thing but every time I use it I like it.