Carver Cascade 2 Safety Issues

Below is a report as to a problem which occurs under certain wind conditions with the Carver Cascade 2 as fitted to most British Caravans from 1984 until 1999.

It would appear that with a head on wind at a speed of 10 meters per sec (22 mph to you and me), the flue of this water heater is blocked by the pressure of the wind. This has the effect of starving the flame of oxygen and therefore high quantities of carbon monoxide are produced while the flame continues to burn.

This in itself may not be all that dangerous as the heater is supposed to be ‘Roomed sealed’, and unless a window above were open should not enter the living space. I say supposed because there is another problem, which under these wind conditions compounds the issue. The room seal is completed by a strip of foam attached to a bracket which carries the burner rail and gas solenoid valve of the ‘Burner module’. This bracket will under these conditions bend away from it’s corresponding seat on the main body of the heater, so destroying the roomed sealed quality.

Now given the above circumstances, the flame has another supply of oxygen, this is from inside the van . The flame will  reach for this oxygen and enter the caravan though the the gap. What happens next would depend on what materials are close by, one such is the plastic box which contains the electronic control for the module, this readily melts causing a strong smell, but should not be able to burn or in itself catch light. Three recent examples are shown, the Truma one being dated 29.01.02 and had seen little use prior to it’s demise.

The tests and resultant report below have been undertaken by Advantica, formally the British Gas research establishment on Loughborough University campus.

The tests were to achieve a CE qualification for a similar heater. The failure as detailed prompted the complete redesign of the flue termination, ( this is the plastic outer cover), to prevent the above happening, and as you can see from the report, this has been achieved and we now have CE approval for an effective flue, which is a very simple and direct replacement of the original

This valuable safety feature is now available though Arc Systems at a cost of £49.95 inclusive of Postage.

Contact Information:

Gary Connelly, Arc Systems (Nottingham) Tel: 0115 921 3175 Email: info@arcsystems.biz

Click Here for Test Report         Click Here for Pictures