Truma water heater leak

2foot6 · Veteran Member

Truma water heater leak

Dougwe · Chief one feather

G'day Peter,

I had a Girrard continuous water heater from build that didn't know what hot water was, ever, so changed to a Suburban and now have hot water whenever I want. Great water heater. Anodes are extremely easy to change and cheap.

Bobdown · Guru

Hi Peter, another question was raised on the general forum section under Endless hot water system.

A few suggestions for new HWS you should read................Cheers Bob

Radar · Guru

2foot6 wrote:
My second Tuma water heater is now leaking,not bad 4.5 years average for each unit.Truma now have a new model called Ultra ,does any one have one of these units and are they an efficient unit as they have a 1400 watt element compared to the older models with a 850 watt element?
I am wondering what other members of the forum have done in choosing a replacement water heater as I don't have much confidence in Truma anymore..........Peter.

-- Edited by 2foot6 on Thursday 23rd of May 2019 09:15:53 PM

I am sorry to hear that of your run with Truma water heaters, ours is coming up to 7 years old.

One of my question is why are they leaking and needed replacing? Or was it poor manufacturing standards.

Secondly are we using them for purpose they are designed for? I like them for there size, weight and the ability to recoup the hot water for the second shower quickly.

We run ours mainly on the caravan 12 volt pump, as we like to camp off the grid. Is connecting to town water causing the problem.

If I needed a new boiler I would fit the same or newer model Truma. Very happy.

Santa · Guru

I can understand your disappointment and frustration Peter.

We have a gas/240 volt 14 litre Tuma, professionally installed, very reliable, we use both gas or electric as needed, now 12 years old, have never experienced a problem.

One of the pluses for me is the stainless tank means no anode needed.

Based on my experience would certainly recommend the brand.

Copied this from another thread on this site re Truma water heaters. smile

This from the Truma manual.

http://baileyaustralia.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Truma-B14-hot-water-system-user-manual.pdf

Danger

Failure to operate the relief valve easing gear at least once

every six months may result in the water heater splitting.

Continuous leakage of water from the valve may indicate a

problem with the water heater!

Water may drip from the discharge pipe of the

pressure relief device and this pipe must be left open to the

atmosphere.

The pressure relief device is to be operated regularly to

remove lime deposits and to verify that it is not blocked.

Danger

https://thegreynomads.activeboard.com/t62763413/truma-hot-water-leaking/

2foot6 · Veteran Member

I forgot to mention the water discharge is rusty,meaning a rusty stainless steel tank on the joins again.As suggested by Santa,I do operate the drain valve about three or four times a year to clean out the tank of built up scale and deposits.The problem seems to exist on the gas/electric models,not the gas only,so one assumes it's an electrolysis problem............Peter

-- Edited by 2foot6 on Sunday 26th of May 2019 12:46:59 PM

Santa · Guru

Evening Peter.

As I said in my reply, my Truma is gas/electric, model bn14, 12 years old, never a problem.

I would be contacting Truma in an effort to get to the bottom of the problem, cant fathom the rust issue, any welds in the tank should be stainless.

Did your first unit fail in a similar manner?

2foot6 · Veteran Member

Did your first unit fail in a similar manner?

Yes ,it failed the same way and a number of other units in motorhomes and caravans have done the same thing.They seem to last around the four year life span,then leak with rusty water.I emailed Truma a week ago ,still waiting for a response........Peter

Santa · Guru

I would certainly escalate the matter with consumer affairs, all goods under Australian law must be fit for purpose, rusting out after 4.5 years is certainly not acceptable.

"Under the Australian Consumer Law, certain consumer guarantees apply automatically, including that a product must be reasonably fit for any purpose specified by the customer and agreed by the seller.

If a product is not fit for a specified purpose, the consumer is entitled to a remedy. The type of remedy depends on whether the problem is major or minor."

https://www.consumer.vic.gov.au/products-and-services/problems-with-a-product/product-does-not-do-what-the-salesperson-said-or-the-consumer-asked-for

Tony Bev · Guru

My model B14 Truma, vehicle built in 2006, gas and 240 volt.
It is still going (13 years old)

I used the 240 volt once, (when I purchased the second hand vehicle in 2014), just to make sure that it worked

I then tried to use the 240 volt side of the boiler last year, but it tripped the power box

I had the 240 volt element changed this year, there was just a bit of rust, (only as big as my thumbnail) where the element had corroded through

The boiler was not rusty, and I have never had rusty water from any tap

Perhaps you could be onto something, in regards to an electrolysis problem on the 240 volt side

I shall now, not try to use the 240 volt side if the boiler, just in case

-- Edited by Tony Bev on Monday 27th of May 2019 07:06:50 PM

The Diggings · Member

I replaced our Trauma with the latest version and it works well, the old one was leaking where the electric element is mounted, could have fitted a new element but ordered the new one before removing the old unit, the new unit has a overpressure valve mounted on the tank

Budvv · Newbie

G'Day from WA

I have just joined so am new to this forum and a big hello to you all.

Just continuing on the topic of leaky Truma HW systems.

I am just in the process of replacing my gas only system after 10 years of use (4 months of use a year on average). Will stick with Truma as going to another brand requires too much modification to the van.

I am happy with the performance of the Truma, but scratched my head at all the reports of rust and leaking, considering it is a stainless steel tank.

So when I got the old system out I did some investigation as to where the leak came from and what caused it. I was surprised!

The whole unit itself had little to no rust on it after 10 years, but the tell tale signs of calcium crust pin pointed where it was leaking. There was 2 leaks from below the centre join at the top of the flat area where the inlet and outlet pipes are situated.

I cut the tank in half to get a look at the inside as there was little rust on the outside and I thought it must have rusted from the inside (contrary to popular belief SS does rust).

What I found were 2 stress cracks on the top corners of the flat area (see pic) obviously a design issue where the corners are stamped out in the mould. The severity of these corners mean there is a lot of pressure there when punched out and the resultant thinning of the metal in this are would make them prone to cracking.

I know most caravan repair people don't have a good word for Truma and prefer the Suburban, but my previous van had a Suburban and it wasn't as user friendly as the Truma.

Aus-Kiwi · Guru

Run a little citric acid through heater ? Is the heater well earthed ? It could be the conduit for electronisis (so) ? Even though its stainless . Cheap stainless !! I would run a 4mm wire from heater to body ? Just to put the stray elect out of the way ..