Gurgling Alde

Hans111

With all the Alde posts, I'm surprised my Alde gurgle search comes up nil!
We had Alde problems develop this spring and had warranty work done. We've used the Alde for hot water this summer and it's worked well. Now we're camping in the chilly mountains and the Alde heats well but the glycol reservoir gurgles loudly whenever it is running. (This has no relationship to the earlier Alde issues.) I don't think it was this loud last fall. Maybe I have one of the many valves under the seat positioned wrong?
I hope to avoid the multiday trip to the nearest Alde certified shop!
Thanks for any insight.

Nomad

Surprised you didn't find any, been plenty of mentions of it.
Check your glycol level and make sure it's in the margin - seems to be louder if you're low. BUT, the gurgling is always there. Bothers some more than others. Since I'm full-time, I have the gurgling half the year so it's just one of those background noises the brain learns to filter out.
If you don't use it enough for the brain to finally ignore, I recall someone wrapping some fiberglass insulation around it (the reservoir) to deaden the sound.

Tabaz

The noise is caused by two things (1) the glycol level in the reseviour tank and (2) the pump setting. Insure the glycol level is at least midway between Min and Max. If that doesn't quiet the noise, then lower the pump setting to 1 or 1.5.

Nomad

And even then you may hear gurgling :-)

Ratkity

PXLated said:

And even then you may hear gurgling :-)

Although it could be PXL's stomach because if he didn't make gourmet things on his special grill.

Michigan_Mike

Could be the oatmeal too?  

JacobyO

I am having lots of gurgling loud noise when using the Alde on propane. Seems pretty quiet overall on shore power. How exactly does the propane power the Alde. Seems to make the most noise when the heat starts each time. Impossible to sleep through. It seems to be working but want to make sure it isn't going to break on us. Still have another 2 weeks of this trip to get through.

Tabaz

Are you using the propane at a high altitude?  See "Alde freight train" for a discussion on this issue.

Michigan_Mike

JacobyO said:

I am having lots of gurgling loud noise when using the Alde on propane. Seems pretty quiet overall on shore power. How exactly does the propane power the Alde. Seems to make the most noise when the heat starts each time. Impossible to sleep through. It seems to be working but want to make sure it isn't going to break on us. Still have another 2 weeks of this trip to get through.

Have you checked the reservoir fluid level?  It's difficult to see mine, but as Verna noted a Sharpie pen helps as a visual reference if you mark the minimum and maximum fluid levels emblazoned on the outside of the tank and use a mirror, etc. to see where the Glycol level is at.  I was out on Oklahoma one night in a rest area and kept hearing a rumbling sound intermittently and thought it was from semis parked nearby.  I later figured out it was emitted from the Alde unit and it eventually did stop but couldn't figure out why it occurred?  later I was told that it could have been a mud wasp nest inside the exhaust pipe that comes out the side of the trailer so I have since inspected it and have installed protective screens over the intake and exhaust area in an effort to keep insects out.  

Your problem could be a fluid level issue or it could be that the pump flow might need to be adjusted/regulated or as Frank noted above, due in part to issues related to higher elevation use.  

JacobyO

Well, we have been camping at higher altitudes. We were at Crater Lake 2 nights ago and it was VERY loud. That was near 7,000ft elevation. The night before that we were on shore power so no loud noise. I am following the frieight Train thread to see what comes of the high altitude solution. We are in the redwoods now so will see how it reacts at lower altitudes as soon as we are off shore power. At least I know it isn't going to explode

Thanks for the quick responses.

Tabaz

The gurgling noise comes from the fluid movement in the reseviour tank. The high altitude "roar" is a much different sound and appears to come from the Alde unit itself and/or the intake/exhaust pipes.  You could be hearing both.

gbell

we had the same problem at 9000+ ft in CO. Using gas, it would roar, vibrated, and sometimes "gas failure" and it would turn off. Finally we turned it off in the night. Made for a cold morning.  Took it to the dealer and it worked perfectly, they had no idea why it would do it.  Kind of hard to camp at 4000 feet and lower in Colorado.  The one thing they thought it could be was a air in the gas line. They told me to turn on the stove to try and  fix this. I did use the stove while camping and the Alde still did the roar and gas failure.  All I can think of, this  is just the way it will work at high altitude.  Not reliable for dry camping at high altitude.

jehdfd

I second the pump setting. Mine made a horrible gurgling sound and it drove me crazy. I turned down the pump setting and I get zero gurgling now. There are still some other noises from the system but the gurgling was the worst. Problem solved.

gbell

my question then is where is the Pump setting? as in the above conversation. (The noise is caused by two things (1) the glycol level in the reseviour tank and (2) the pump setting. Insure the glycol level is at least midway between Min and Max. If that doesn't quiet the noise, then lower the pump setting to 1 or 1.5. )
The glycol is fine, so now I should check the pump setting. do you have a diagram or picture on this devise?  Also, along with the roaring at high alt using propane it also had "gas failure", so it would turn itself off 3 times though the night.

Tabaz

I'll take a photo this evening if someone else doesn't post it first. The pump is located right in front of the Alde under the seat cushion. You must stick your head into the cabinet to see the round face of the pump dial. You can't see it by just looking from above. It is a small round dial with an even smaller red knob. Move the red knob to 1.5 or 1.0 and see if that works.

RollingLagrima

http://tab-rv.vanillaforums.com/discussion/2615/first-trip-with-new-2016-t-b-s-max-modified/p2 

gbell

Thank you for that photo.  Now that I know where that dial is I will turn it down to 1 or 1.5, I'll have to check it out to see where it is set at the moment and try it out. Appreciate the help.

Nomad

The standard factory setting is/was #2 - At least was when I got mine.

RollingLagrima

You're welcome. I never would have found the dial had it not been for OutbackAZ and others discussing it. If you don't find it in your model don't freak, it seems editions after mine (2016 model built Spring 2015) don't have it. Let us know if you don't have it. Somebody in your  "T@B generation" should be able to help you out.

Photomom

The digital control panels on new T@Bs have a control for pump setting. Default is 2. 

Tabaz

Photomon - someone else posted that the T@B does not come with the electronic pump even though the digital control panel has that setting.