First Time Alde Use: Impressed!

TNOutback

Our first trip in our new T@B 400 happened to be at 5300 feet elevation, and we were able to not only try out the water heating capability of the Alde, but also the cabin heating in “high altitude mode” as the overnight low was 50 degrees.  The Alde worked flawlessly, keeping the cabin temps right at the preset thermostat setting, and it was barely perceptible when it would kick on and off.  I had to back off the mixing valve a bit as the domestic hot water was a bit too hot - I guess I overcompensated when adjusting it up to raise the temperature a bit when we took delivery of the camper.

I can remember many restless nights in our old TT when the propane forced-air furnace would kick on, roaring like a leaf blower and smelling of burnt metal.  What an improvement!

dCliffhanger

It hasn't been cold enough for me to even turn on the Alde for heat in my 2020 T@b 320S. But yesterday, it was a chilly rainy day while I was installing an indoor\outdoor thermometer.  I thought, hey, I've never even turned it on and don't even know if it actually works. So, I pushed the magic On button and set the temp to 70... and waited....   a few minutes. Absolutely soundlessly, I started to feel heat permeating the cabin. Amazing! As TNOutback noted, the quietness was marvelous.  I was plugged in on a long medium duty extension cord so I kept the setting to 1KW except for a few minutes at 2KW to experiment. The cord did get somewhat warm even at 1KW.

MuttonChops

The older model Airstream in the site next to me yesterday woke me up several times as it's non-Alde Furnace turned on and roared. . . . .

Maybe RV Park rules that say no generators allowed should have no non-Alde furnaces allowed on between 12AM an 7AM.

4ncar

MuttonChops said:

The older model Airstream in the site next to me yesterday woke me up several times as it's non-Alde Furnace turned on and roared. . . . .

Maybe RV Park rules that say no generators allowed should have no non-Alde furnaces allowed on between 12AM an 7AM.

Same happened to me a cpl weekends ago. I was, “is that...ohhhhh....”😂😂

gspdx

@TNOutback Completely agree.  I feel sorry now for people who own a travel trailer with a forced air furnace.  There really is no comparison. 

But you get what you pay for.  It takes a  bit more work to design/build a trailer to use this system and more infrastructure to heat and circulate.

TNOutback

Second time using the Alde system and I discovered a problem:  well, not with my Alde, but it is so quiet inside the T@B I could hear the neighboring camper’s forced air furnace kicking on and off at night!  The Alde had no problem maintaining the cabin temp this weekend with lows in the lower 40s.  I was concerned about feeling hot while in the bed with the “vent” in the rear of the bed and essentially our heads resting directly above the Alde compartment, but that did not happen at all.  I don’t really get how it works, but it does its thing perfectly.  This trip I had electric hookups, so I ran the unit on electricity instead of propane and could not tell any difference in performance.  It’s an excellent heating system.

Verna

I have the same problem with hearing the the gas furnace kicking on next door. 

The Alde works by convection. Cool air at the floor enters the notches in the wooden cabinet fronts, it flows naturally past the heated Alde fins, raising naturally upward taking the now warm air with it. No fans needed.

Tundra57

You should try when it's not too cold outside, the heat pump on your coolcat. I was amazed how awesome it is. When you have a hookup of course.

TNOutback

@Tundra57 I have a 2020 model, so no Coolcat, and wish I had it!

Tundra57

Oh sorry I have a 2019 tab 400 didn't realise you didn't have coolcat. The new Tab 400 models no longer have the heat pump option.

:-). I'm so glad I got the 2019 and not the 2020 version.

jimcenname

I used heat last weekend, first time in the new T@B400. I noticed the vents in the rear cabin at the edge of the double bed were blocked. There is a strip of supported fabric that looks like trim on the edge of the bed platform that was pressed agains the rear wall effectively closing off heated air flow. I pulled it away and wedged something in the space to keep a gap open and the heater was much more effective. I need a better fix though. 

Verna

@jimcenname, I had some 6” pieces of 3/4” dowels, plus some 3/4” rubber chair leg protectors. I glued the rubber protectors on one end of the dowels. Then I slid the dowels down into the gap, leaving the rubber protectors at the top to keep the dowels from sliding into the never-to-be-found-again void. 

I also put a couple of spare and empty aluminum water bottles between the trim and the mattress to keep the mattress from sliding over the gap. It’s been working well for over a year. 

jimcenname

@Verna Thanks for the tip. I am glad to know I am not the only one with this issue. Jim

riverrunnermo

We took our 2018 320s "KC" out on a Trick-or-Treat Camping adventure on the weekend before Halloween in Onondaga Cave State Park, MO.  The drive down was a beautiful 5 hours to the Ozarks. The temp at night got down to 40 and it was a wet, rainy Saturday with a high of 47.  The Alde worked wonderfully!  We were toasty warm at night with not a whisper of noise.  Our neighbor campers with their big rigs were roaring all night with their 'furnaces'.  We then moved on Sunday of that weekend to Knob Noster State Park, MO with temps dropping down to 40 again.  Still nice and warm.

TNOutback

Camped this weekend at Chilhowee Recreation Area in southeast TN mountains. Highs in the low 50s and lows in upper 20s. Once again the Alde kept us toasty - maybe a bit too warm as I had to get up and knock the temp down a couple degrees during the first night. There is also something to be said for a warm bathroom! It’s a “set and forget” system that just works. 

jameskuzman

Verna said:

@jimcenname, I had some 6” pieces of 3/4” dowels, plus some 3/4” rubber chair leg protectors. I glued the rubber protectors on one end of the dowels. Then I slid the dowels down into the gap, leaving the rubber protectors at the top to keep the dowels from sliding into the never-to-be-found-again void. 

I also put a couple of spare and empty aluminum water bottles between the trim and the mattress to keep the mattress from sliding over the gap. It’s been working well for over a year. 

@jimcenname - I'm having trouble visualizing this. Might either of you be able to provide a picture of the affected area? 

Thanks in advance if you can!

Jim