RV Hydronic Service - RV-Dreams Community Forum

gypsymaus · RV-Dreams Family Member

RV Hydronic Service

Serengeti2001 · RV-Dreams Family Member

We have a Hydro-hot and love it a lot. We also know that we are one of the few that has this system. I am not a certified mechanic but I have been doing our own maintenance on the unit. The factory has been very good with parts and I have downloaded the manual off of the net.
If we ever get close to each other we can swap stories.
And yes we do a annual check up.

gypsymaus · RV-Dreams Family Member

For any of you servicing your own Aqua-Hot or Hydro-Hot systems as Jon mentioned above check-out our online parts store. We may save you some money on parts. We are also happy to answer any questions you may have on this forum or through a private message.

-- Edited by gypsymaus on Wednesday 29th of April 2009 06:40:10 AM

RVDude · RV-Dreams Family Member

Another superb source of information, detailed service/technical questions, gobs of how-to write-ups, and parts is http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HydronicRVHeating The service pro there is Roger Berke and he can also service and sell parts. His parts and service web site is at http://www.rvhydronicheaterrepair.com. Roger has a very long tenure of dealing with routine and very complex technical questions on his Yahoo group.

BTW - As intimidating as the AquaHot (formerly known as HydroHot) may look, the annual service is a no brainer for any handy DIY'er. No previous boiler experience necessary. Takes me about 30mins and no special tools.

-- Edited by RVDude on Wednesday 29th of April 2009 02:23:00 PM

NorCal Dan · RV-Dreams Family Member

Another host here in the park has a leak in his system and he's loosing the anti-freeze stuff. Any pointers on how to find/repair?

RVDude · RV-Dreams Family Member

Go to the Yahoo group above.

A common leak is out of the drain pipe due to a crack that often occurred there when they used plastic fittings.

To troubleshoot you'll need to find where it is wet. Around the unit itself, out the exhaust pipe area, at one of the interior heat exchangers, in a line to the recovery bottle, out the "radiator" cap, somewhere????

All these systems are is a boiler and a a hot water recirculating loop to all the exchangers. Somewhere along that loop is a wet spot. Open the grates covering the exchangers and look at the floor under them. Open the AH cover and look for dampness inside the box. You gotta find the damp places first in order to find the leak.

-- Edited by RVDude on Wednesday 29th of April 2009 03:27:10 PM

gypsymaus · RV-Dreams Family Member

Leaks can be difficult to find. I would start at the Aqua-Hot or Hydro-Hot unit itself. On some installs the connections are on the backside of the unit and are very hard to inspect. Since the units are incased in insulation they can and will leak at a temp sensor and wet the inside of the insulation. Also of course the fittings for the antifreeze coming into the installation. If the coach is less than two years old, the Aqua-Hot unit would still be under warranty.

If you can't locate the leak, my suggestion would be to access www.aqua-hot.com for a qualified service center in your area. Depending on what unit you have, antifreeze type is specific to the model unit and should not be mixed.

Regards. Jerry R. Elkins

-- Edited by gypsymaus on Wednesday 29th of April 2009 03:45:28 PM