Soooo.....my travel buddy moved his coach four spaces away from me, this morning. Thought I said something wrong.
Turns out, he didn't enjoy breathing the diesel from our Aqua Hot. We anticipate being close to our neighbors, in Mazatlan. Fortuately, we are the only big rigs here. I turned off the AH last night, but fired it up this a.m. for showers. How do you deal with this issue??
Switch places?
If it isn't real cold out, the electric element can keep up. It did for us a couple of months ago on the Washington coast. 60-65F days and 50F at night. The Aqua Hot only burned diesel occasionally.
If that doesn't work. Perhaps buying a length of small diameter flex pipe and fashioning a roof level exit would do the trick.
If you haven't done this before, you might want to have it serviced properly. If it's working right, it won't hardly have any smoke or odor at all.
No smoke or odor out of mine. At Phoenix there was a tent less than 10 ft. away. I kept checking when it cycled to see if there was an issue.
No smoke and almost or no odor is normal. Serviced properly and run monthly it should be good for two to three years. Strong diesel small or if the exhaust makes your eyes sting ... time for service.
Agree, should be almost no Oder
Gen-turi?
Tim Fiedler
Gen-Pro.biz
630 240-9139
Look toget it serviced.
Talk to Rudy and Roger Berke. Easy to service it yourself and very cost effective. Also a great way to learn a little bit more about how things work in your coach.
Larry
Glenn,
Our engines (by and large) and Aqua-Hots do not have catalytic convertors, nor urea afterburners nor exhaust gas recirculation components, so we all generate dangerous exhaust gases.It makes me sad when I encounter those who are so rabidly defensive of Aqua-Hot heating that they go to great lengths to deny reality and dismiss the exhaust dangers as poor Aqua Hot maintenance or sissified overreaction. The dangers inherent in burning diesel fuel should be respected and protected against, not dismissed and denied. Yet, I see that happen over and over on this Forum.Diesel fuel combustion products are produced when ANY burner or ANY engine combusts diesel fuel. The exhaust is a complex mixture of thousands of gases and fine particles (commonly known as soot) that contains more than 40 toxic air contaminants. These include many known or suspected cancer-causing substances, such as combustion product particles, benzene, arsenic and formaldehyde. It also contains other harmful pollutants, including nitrogen oxides (a major component of urban smog).The major pollutants associated with combustion are carbon monoxide, nitric oxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and perhaps the most insidious, fossil fuel combustion particles small enough to be essentially invisible to the human eye (1/2 the width of a human hair at their largest). These are particles small enough to pass through the finest tissues of our lungs and into our bloodstreams. Some people tolerate that well. Other people react with great distress (more on that later).Exposure to diesel fuel combustion products can have immediate health effects. Depending upon sensitivity, possible health effect symptoms from combustion products include eye and respiratory irritation, persistent coughing, headaches, fatigue, and dizziness. In the case of carbon monoxide, symptoms can include nausea and confusion, and, at very high levels, loss of consciousness and death. Diesel fuel combustion products can irritate the eyes, nose, throat and lungs, and it can cause coughs, headaches, lightheadedness and nausea. In industrial studies, diesel fuel combustion products particles made people with allergies become MORE susceptible to the materials to which they were allergic, such as dust and pollen. Exposure to diesel fuel combustion products also causes inflammation in the lungs, which may aggravate chronic respiratory symptoms and increase the frequency or intensity of asthma attacks. The same studies provide strong evidence that long-term occupational exposure to diesel exhaust increases the risk of lung cancer. OK. So that is the burned fuel oil exhaust side of the story. The other side of the story is the physiological or personal differences side due to an individual's different inherent or induced sensitivities to this "complex mixture of thousands of gases and fine particles" in the diesel fuel combustion products. In other words, diesel fuel combustion product exhaust effects different people VERY differently. Some people, including several of our members who have tipped their hands, could breath exhaust through a straight pipe and still beat their chests in defense of an Aqua-Hot, while others develop respiratory defensive mechanisms (allergic) symptoms when they inhale just a trace amount of the exhaust contaminants. So a uniform dismissal of every complaint as a maintenance issue is inappropriate. Many of us have exquisitely fine tuned and maintained Aqua-Hots, but those same Aqua-Hots still exhaust the same complex mixture of thousands of gases and fine particles (commonly known as soot) that contains more than 40 toxic air contaminants. To make things worse, few of our exhausts are elevated above roof level (in fact, most are seldom elevated). We are loaded with non-air-tight-perfect seams; i.e. - our slides, doors, bay doors, windows, A/C's, etc. Also. some owners seldom go outside and don't even realize how obnoxious their exhaust really is. And then we have the human nature side, whereby sensitive victims seldom want to "rock the boat" with their friends and neighbors. So they just quietly move or they simply put up with the eye and respiratory irritation, coughing, headaches, fatigue, nausea, confusion and dizziness that the situation creates for them but not their antagonizers.I know that I am one of the sensitized ones in that my submariner USN service gifted me with an intolerance to petroleum fumes and petroleum combustion products. I grew up on a large farm and used to eagerly anticipate diesel tractor smoke for breakfast. I was never allergic to anything. That all ended somewhere during seven years on 90 day (+), always submerged, submarine patrols. After seven years, lots of things, far more than just petroleum byproducts, set me off big time. So I have been highly sensitized for life. And it ranges from perfumes, to tree/plant pollens, to being stuck in traffic exhaust, to Aqua-Hots, and many more. I don't care how well maintained our Aqua-Hot is, when I am outside, it still reeks, gives me headaches, makes me dizzy as it gradually deposits visible soot on the ground. I have NEVER seen one that doesn't. $K's down the road in repairs, replacements, and fine tuning in four years. I tried twice and FOT, Paul Yasbeck, MOT and (as of this summer) Rudy have all pronounced it perfect, but it still remains obnoxious to me and other sensitive people.So be considerate, keep your Aqua-Hot in excellent operating condition, go WAY beyond reason to respect your neighbor, elevate your exhaust when possible and whenever possible (in cramped areas less than 10 to 15' between units or if tents/lesser design slides are within 25') avoid using it at all, if possible.HTH change some minds/be more respectful,Neal
I have to agree with Neal, concideration is neccessary. I'd like to add, always have a Carbon Monoxide (CO) Detector in your RV, not just for your fumes, but for fumes from neighboring rvs.
As these oderless killers have caused some to not wake up.
I most always use my: ($87.97 on Amazon, Camco CAM44461)Camco Gen-Turi RV Generator Exhaust System Camco Exhaust Systems CAM44461 (https://www.etrailer.com/Exhaust-Systems/Camco/CAM44461.html) not just for others, but for myself to vent the fumes higher, hopefully off and away.
Well said, Neal & Jack: We all share a responsibility to avoid trashing the planet (and ourselves). The only option, is this:
Have to agree with Neal. Our diesel generators are bad enough, especially up at altitude but AH that is not in tip top shape will really put out the pollutants. No altitude compensator so one that is "out of tune" is going to be really bad in places like the Rockies or Sierras. If you insist on a AH, why not trash the diesel version and fit the propane modes? http://www.aquahot.com/Products/Work-Ready/Propane.aspx Propane heaters will not give even 10 percent of the problems an diesel fired AH has.
I suspect the out of tune AH problems are compounded by many owners who put off a tune up because of the expense involved.
Pierce
Couldn't see if a current AH can be retrofitted. I would imagine not.
There is an altitude compensator, it is the air inlet. I have mine wide open as Rudy said it would still work at low altitudes. Maybe why mine burns very clean. I still have to keep it maintained as this adjustment is not a crutch for a poorly maintained one, just makes it a little better.
On a different note when I was in the Operating Engineers I was an equipment mechanic on the construction of the 30' wide 7 1/2 mile long tunnel between Pyramid lake and Castaic lake. We used loaders and scrapers in the tunnel. We put scrubbers on the exhaust which was just a tank of water that the exhaust went through. The air was OSHA approved for quality in the tunnel. Seems something similar could be constructed for the generators and Aqua Hots
My good friend with his Blue Bird (that he got a 'good deal' on) blew 2k getting his AH going. I like quiet heat, a great idea, but, the diesel smell is terrible. Wonder if anyone has converted to propane? Seems like a no-brainer AND, why did AH go with diesel in the first place? :facepalm:
" If you insist on a AH, why not trash the diesel version and fit the propane modes? http://www.aquahot.com/Products/Work-Ready/Propane.aspx Propane heaters will not give even 10 percent of the problems an diesel fired AH has."
180 gallon diesel fuel tank. Not even close with propane.
Who is going to remove the diesel generator and fit a propane generator???? If you are going to do one, might as well do both right? It's only money after all. Enjoy the runs for propane refills.
One easy to purchase fuel for the coach, gen, and heat.
We've had propane heat in several Rv's and I was always either cold or too warm waiting for the furnace to quit. Always had to plan ahead for propane. With AH we have always been comfortable. We use the 120v as long as it will keep up. I sure hope if the exhaust ever bothers someone they will speak up so we can be the one to move.
[quote author=AC7880 link=msg=334012 date=1543089919 180 gallon diesel fuel tank. Not even close with propane.Who is going to remove the diesel generator and fit a propane generator???? If you are going to do one, might as well do both right? It's only money after all. Enjoy the runs for propane refills. [/quote]
Yup, prolly the reason in the first place they went with diesel, Hell, the designers never had to park next to a coach with diesel fumes all over that the owners, in their snug coach, never even noticed! :headwall:
No, I can't imagine trading a diesel generator for a propane but I never suggested that. Our solar makes the generator only necessary for AC use.
So keep the AH brand but use their propane model. With our huge propane tank, the AH would run forever. For us, propane is a little over $1 gallon so with diesel at around $3.50/gal in California, the BTU cost is not that much different. Just remember how much your service is going to cost for the diesel model. Not if but when. AH propane heater should work and operate EXACTLY like the diesel version.
Waiting for delivery this next week of the two diesel fired air heaters so will have to see how they work out. If they make much of an odor, I'll switch to a Propex style air heater like installed in this VW: TheSamba.com :: Vanagon - View topic - Mounting a Propex heater in the back... (https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=4973358)
I should have them working for a demo at Q. At their price, why even have someone do a tuneup? Just put in the small spare you have onboard then look at the old one when you get home.
Pierce
The unburned hydrocarbons cause the smell. A well maintained diesel AH puts out next to zero unburned hydrocarbons. I was in an Oregon rv park and wanted to use Aquahot and talke to people next to me and they never noticed.
Legally you are limited to two 300 pound propane tanks? Maybe only one?116 gallons. Roughly 116 hours run time. Odorized propane stinks.
You have to move the coach for a volume fill. Diesel can be poured in the tank,
Gen runs on diesel.
As a prepper somewhat the increased run time is extremely important.
I have had propane systems freeze in severe weather.
Yes the odors are not good.
I used the Primus prototype unicoach and the consumption was very noticeable.
No substitute for the diesel aquahot imo. Commercial grade. Lots of btu's.
Internet references to a full winter use in Montana without moving coach on one tank of fuel.
Wind blocks around coaches bottom edge with block foam.
They said it worked well
I can tell you that at 11,500 feet my diesel aquahot will smoke even with the shutter wide open, lots of black smoke. But at 7000' or lower it is smoke free with very little exhaust smell. I have to put my hand over the exhaust to tell it is running. But even though it does smell and doesn't really bother me there are other things that do. Cigarette smoke? Campfire blowing through my open windows? Heavy perfume? Car exhaust? Emissions from the various chemical plants around my house?
But normally if plugged in at a campground I'll use the electric element.
Just curios where is there a 11,500' foot area that you can park a motorhome? There is one campground in California at 10,500 at Saddlebag lake, but you aren't going to get even a 25' coach up there.
Chuck,
In your favorite part of the woods, Virginia Lakes Campground is at 9600 feet. Don't think I could get our coach started up there after a cold night.
To others:
Unless you are burning hydrogen, there are products of combustion that are harmful, whether you can see them with our relatively poor eyes or not. That what everything from smog to global climate change is about.
Pierce
This was a private lot we rented for a couple weeks in Arrowhead subdivision between Gunnison and Montrose. Beautiful place but a bit short on O2. But I mistyped that, it's actually 9500'. Need to finish my coffee before I type anything.
Don't worry about it. When I re-read some of my posts, I can't believe I typed it. Without spell check, I would be accused of posting in Esperanto.
Pierce
I thought the OP had a really good question and the gist of the first few answers was solid: "If properly serviced, the Aqua-Hot should have little or no smell" or "when it's warm enough, use the electric heat".
Larry said, "Easy to service it yourself". I did it, but wouldn't call wrestling a 12" extension on a 1/4 drive through a jumble of wires and hoses while on my side to cinch down a 10mm nut I can't see, "easy". I'd do it again, but would probably have to grade this "intermediate".
Glenn, thank you for your service. Camping with humans is an adventure in smell. I don't particularly like campfires -- probably from putting out grass fires in the VFD -- but consider it part of the deal.
As a new member, I'm amused that Aqua-Hots are so controversial. I can't say I've seen such a divisive subject in RVs. It comes up a lot on this forum!
I'll offer this: I own both a new-to-us Foretravel and a Mobile Suites 5th wheel we're moving out of. The FT has Aqua-Hot and the MS has propane heat and hot water. AH is new to us as well -- we've always had propane. I've run both of them. Neither smell much and you have to walk through the exhaust to smell either one. The AH smells a bit like an airport tarmac (burned jet fuel) and the propane smells like propane. I'm at 600 feet elevation. Since I just put the nozzle in the AH, who knows what it will smell like next week, but I'm hoping for the 2-3 years of service I've heard.
I like the OP's attempt to be considerate. That's HUGE. But, I'd worry more about the dog poop, trash, loud music, burning wet rotten wood, and drunken parties. We've been camping A LOT for the past 20 years and I've never smelled a heater. You're welcome to camp next to me. I like considerate people and like to think that I am as well.
I'm with you, Rick. Our Aqua Hot was on a 36' and located right in the middle. With the double joey beds, access was really awkward. Glad you got yours done.
jor
As a new member, I'm amused that Aqua-Hots are so controversial. I can't say I've seen such a divisive subject in RVs. It comes up a lot on this forum!
Much like Ford vs Chevy If you have one you love it, and if you don't you hate it. Some what the same as slides.
Most that hate slides never had one. Most that hate AquaHots never had one. Whatever you have is fine.
When I first joined the forum many years ago, I posted that I had a few Roloks that had failed. When I criticized the fasteners and the bulkhead design, you would have thought I had committed heresy. Now that all of our coaches have aged, the problem is becoming more apparent and openly discussed without much controversy.
I can't imagine anyone not wanting to have an AquaHot installation. The problem as I see it is that as our coaches age and depreciate, not only are more AHs going to need maintenance but the cost to maintain them will become a larger percentage of the value of the coach. A $50K-$100K RV with a AH maintenance issue is far different than when the coach drops in value to $15K-$20 in a few years.
Some may have the unit in a easy to reach spot but others may be harder to reach to work on.
So, as more new prospective buyers join the forum, I don't think it's fair to not let them know the pros and cons of the AquaHot installation and any ideas to keep the costs to a minimum. Perhaps there should be a poll to see how many AH coaches have had a problem and the average cost to keep them in top shape.
I just purchased a diesel fired air heater so will also be subject to the higher maintenance issues of a diesel fired heater. That's one of the reasons I bought two of them so I can quickly change out the small unit when a problem arises.
Pierce
As you know, we are a might younger than many of you. For some odd reason, we have an Oasis system. Not sure if this was an original owner preference or what. Are there any other FT coaches with Oasis systems? We have only needed the electric componet when traveling, As it seems to be very efficient. I suspect that the Oasis needs similar care to the AH system.
My unit has the Oasis also pugman. Change fuel filters regularly and the burner nozzle and ignitor once. Seems the Oasis is a little easier to work on. I think FT stopped using them because AH came out with a larger capacity model versus the Oasis.
Oasis 3 year parts kit. Looks really expensive for what you get. How much can a spin-on filter cost? Oasis Hydronic Heating System 3 Year Service Kit | eBay (https://www.ebay.com/p/Oasis-Hydronic-Heating-System-3-Year-Service-Kit/14003800521?iid=152596008889&chn=ps)
Oasis annual tune up: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKGMSGZm6Es
Pierce
I would try to cross reference the filter to Wix or other brand with same micron filter capacity, then see if I could adapt a Aqua hot
nozzle to the oasis and try to find an ignitor off something else that would work. You can Google the oasis information and there may be someone who has already crossed them.
My SOB last coach had electric step that quit the new motor was nearly 300.00 I you on google and found that the motor was actually a electric window motor off ford Taurus - go figure!! It was 50.00
Chris
Pierce is correct that we should try to help prospective buyers understand the pros and cons of different systems, years, engines and everything else about a coach ... based on actual experience.
But I would not offer up an opinion about a Detroit Deisel engine based on what I have heard without direct experience. I might comment on an ISM11 because I have had one for 8 years. I have a slide and will comment on what benefits we see from having a slide as well as some of the mainenance and use issues we have seen. I would not say a coach without a slide is better or worse, we have never owned a FT without one. I have owned RVs with LP gas furnaces and an AquaHot. I have spent about the same amount of money keeping an older LP furnace going as I have servicing and maintaining my AquaHot over 8 years. I would always choose an AquaHot now.
What you know from personal experience has value to a prospective buyer. What you have heard or read about is second hand information. Not necessarily right or wrong but not first hand direct experience.
If maintenance costs relative to the value of your coach is the only measure then every routine maintenace operation, tire purchase, battery purchase for older coaches becomes too much except to the owners who value their coaches in ways other than money.
Everyone gets to choose what coach they want and how they maintain and use it. It is not up to you or me.
My actual experience includes maintaining a home heating (diesel) oil heating system with the same type of injector, a Webasto diesel heater in a Mercedes van and bus and maintaining lots and lots of diesel engines since 1968. So that has given me what I believe is a good insight into potential problems that diesel fueled devices may have and the potential service that they may require.
I've only had few minor issues with the Rolocks in our coaches but I remember in the last couple of weeks, a new member posted about his new to him coach and the big expense he incurred for a bulkhead repair. Unfortunately, he had no idea there was going to be a problem before he plunked the cash down. I think my experience in not only my repair but many years of welding and metal fabrication allow me to have an educated opinion on the aspects of bulkhead problems.
While many of us may be able to maintain our heating appliances without ever calling a repair person, a prospective buyer without the DIY experience is well served by looking carefully at the maintenance records from A to Z for the coach they are interested. Careful research is the best way to avoid potential problems ahead.
Again, everyone should get to make their own choices but educating themselves beforehand enables them to make better choices.
Pierce
I guess that I was in error in calling the job of servicing the AH as easy. As many others, mine in located smack dab in the middle of the coach, I had to work over a joey bed, and yes it made my side hurt and figuring out that it took a 1/4" drive not a 3/8" drive extension to properly get the job done was part of the learning process. After working on industrial machinery of all types and persuasions for 40+ years and in every imaginable position ( including literally hanging upside down and backwards) to get into working position, I felt that it was an easy fix. My mistake.
Perhaps I should have stated that it was not a terribly difficult job for most people, with the minimum amount of effort, patience and foul language. I have found that many projects are not as difficult as I had been fearful of once I researched the subject and put hands on to it. This was one of those items. I was very worried that it would be too difficult, too intense, require more skills than I possessed. but with the proper guidance (thanks Rudy and Roger), it was a relatively quick and efficient job done.
There are those here on the forum who have done many tasks themselves which I would not even think about attempting. Others who have gone before me and I can gain knowledge and confidence from on a couple of upcoming major projects. I hope that my fears of "what if" are proven as false to me as was my learning how to service the AH.
In the long run, we all have different skills and talents. Thankfully the wonderful people on this forum are willing to share and help those of us who lack in some area or another. I will always be very grateful to those who have reached out, answered questions &/or called me with needed advice and encouragement. I only hope that I can repay to someone else down the line.
Larry
Rudy does a normal service including parts for a bit over $200. If you run it every month for a single cycle that service should last 2-3 years. Cheap for the benefit. Other parts may fail but can be easily obtained. The AH is in the middle of my coach as well and I have had it completely apart to repair a motor clutch and service it several times. The first time like most things is not so easy. Some long socket extensions help. Pull the joey bed out the other end and come in from the driver's side.
I would rather have the AH there than all 3 of the 167 lb each coach batteries.
Giving a prospective buyer a balance view of what they are getting themselves into is OK. A balance view.
I have found the servicing easy as there is no slide in that compartment on my coach. I have made a test area to check the fuel pump pressure and the rpm's under a load. The hardest thing I have encountered on the AH was replacing all the pump seals. Like Roger commented the first time is always the hardest. I could do the seals again in half the time if ever needed, they lasted 19 years so I don't think that will be necessary.
Well, I've poked and prodded but Chuck and Roger have defended the AquaHot well. With only a glimpse into their characters the the forum provides, anyone can see that they have a long list of successful life accomplishments and have continued to apply their abilities in the realm of RV ownership and maintenance. I can tell they feel the same passion for their AH as I do for our Detroit. It is also apparent that an owner who practices pro-active maintenance should be able for minimum costs, have a reliable hydronic heating system that should not let them down. A $200 charge for normal servicing is very reasonable.
So, well done C & R !
Pierce
Pierce,
Recall that this whole post was started by Glenn Bienfest wondering how he might have offended his neighbor with his Aqua Hot (fumes) and asked what we all recommended to deal with that. Ignoring the diesel exhaust toxicity issues, which are a given, I'm not sure how you jump to your "minimum costs" conclusion unless you really buy into the $200/year annual maintenance myth.
Yes. Some do get by with minimal maintenance and they also may get lucky with reasonable Aqua Hot reliability experience, if not clean burns, but there are a whole host of others that carry out much better maintenance and yet they still have much worse Aqua Hot reliability experience:
- I helped remove, rewind the copper tubing and reinstall one of those in a HR Navigator (chemical attack, not freezing).
- I wrote about another Aqua Hot experience, in Farmington NM, on this Forum, six years ago:
- http://www.foreforums.com/index.php?topic=14535.msg85059#msg85059
- We suffered through a neighbor at RiverBend for years that had the smaller Hydro Hot system in a top of the line American Heritage Coach. The smaller capacity Hydro Hot system needed diesel runs in order to just use the dishwasher, say nothing about showers or heating, and it was a real "stinker" in that, even though attempted numerous times (read that as $$$$$), it could never be made to burn reasonably clean.
- I know of at least two other Foretravel owners that have had to replace circulator pumps and at least 4 others that have had to replace Aqua Hot control "the brain" boxes, in addition to the 2 replacements that I have in my own history. As presented in this thread, these parts may be "readily available" but they are far from inexpensive at nearly $1000 apiece (open my repair history attached), and let it be known that there are good and bad choices for the replacement components. "Going cheap" doesn't cut it! And Chuck, I have another circulator pump that could use a new seal.....when are you conducting your next rebuild class?
- I consider myself to be highly pro-active with my maintenance (as you advocate) and since I have owned it, my Aqua hot has always run, but it has not been reliable and certainly has not gotten by on the implied "reasonable" $200/year that several are prone to quote here.
- Below is a summary of what my system has cost us over the past four years. It is much closer to $1K/year, and I'm still not done for this year, because Rudy discovered a 3/4 inch crack in the burner combustion chamber (not noted by MOT just a few days earlier). When we get back to RiverBend, I will have to remove it and get the chamber welded up before it progresses further.
So, my Aqua Hot is easy to work on in an exterior compartment and, no, I would never exchange its location for the "once every 6 to 8 AGM Lifelines years (minimum), somebody else do the heavy lifting", interior, batteries location, although the batteries do suffer from heat there. We full time and our Aqua Hot (diesel and electric) get used regularly. I'm definitely not sure how waiting three years to look at that burner combustion chamber would have worked out for us when the crack appeared just days after MOT did a full annual service on the Aqua Hot. I doubt that it would have improved in three years.
Absent maintenance experience to the contrary, I will stick with my annual Aqua Hot maintenance, just as we did for several decades with our home, forced-hot-water furnace. Would you go 3 years between services on your home furnace, especially if you were going to be away in the south during several winter months? The Aqua Hot is an even more demanding service! Anything that cycles at 175 to 200 degrees F diesel, 185 to 210 degrees F electric, 24/7/365, and regularly travels down the road, needs more service than once each two or three years!
Anyway,
Hope this helps some people arrive at a more "balanced" viewpoint,
To some, a less than $100 cost for 16 years of Propane furnace maintenance (our U270) vs. nearly $4,000.00 cost for 4 years of Aqua Hot system maintenance (our U320) makes an impression. To others, it is just "peanuts" and trivial.
HTH,
Neal
Neal I think your experience is more anecdotal versus routine. Our 97 Failed and needed service on diesel and ended up needing a couple of relays and a coil. new burner nozzle and chamber cleaning 5 years ago.
21 years. That's it AFAIK.
While individual luck is just that everyone rolls the dice when buying. New or used..
My comment to every customer was "you pay for everyone of your pleasures, and if you did not pay as much it probably was not as much fun, was it?
The aqua hot is a pleasure.
We are also supporters of AH. After 2 years with our present coach we have had about $800.00 of attention.
Propane is probably less expensive. Must we have AH in our next vehicle/trailer - no. It is nice for now though. :D
Love this Fofum.
In eight years we have spent about $1200 in maintennce on our AH which included a new ignition coil and fuel pump (partly covered by a factory replacement program). I have paid for service twice and done it myself as well replaced a blower clutch. Not everyone pays $1000 a year for AH maintenance. Most pay much less.
Bottom line, maintain what you have as well as possible, use it regularly, be courteous and sensitive to your close neighbors.