| Portable Air Conditioners [message #85389] |
Thu, 20 May 2010 14:43  |
GeorgeRud
Messages: 1380
Registered: February 2007
Location: Chicago, IL
Karma: 0
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Has anyone used a portable AC unit in their coach? I have read good reviews of the Maytag portable AC, and wonder if that would be an alternative to putting a new box on the rooftop of the GMC.
Just wondering out loud!
George Rudawsky
Chicago, IL
75 Palm Beach
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| Re: Portable Air Conditioners [message #85399 is a reply to message #85389] |
Thu, 20 May 2010 16:40  |
Chr$
Messages: 2690
Registered: January 2004
Location: Scottsdale, AZ
Karma: 1
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If you are talking about the little ones on casters that you stick a hose out the window to eject the heat, I have some comments:
1. They are usually only around 5,000 BTU or so. about 1/3 of the rooftop units. Not very much capacity.
2. Even though they eject the heat out of the hose, they need to draw air in across the condenser. Most of them draw from inside, so they create a negative pressure in the room (coach) and thus draw warm air from outside through any cracks and leaks int he room(coach).
3. Even though they eject heat out of the hose, the condenser and compressor are in the unit, and they both radiate heat, and that unit is in the room (coach) and thus, radiates some heat, negating some of the output.
The best Alternative to a rooftop unit other than a window unit built in somewhere is a "Ductless Mini Split" unit like they use in Asia on homes, and are starting to (finally) come down in price here. I am considering one for my coach since both my roof units suck, and I have a hard time paying $800+ for a "good" unit, even a Coleman low profile which is now discontinued. I'd put the condensing unit on the rear bumper or lay it on the roof and rotate the compressor upright, possibly punching a hole in the case to allow it to extend out since it is probably a long skinny inverter driven scroll compressor...
I know, too much information. I live in Phoenix and give this a lot of thought...
-Chr$: Perpetual SmartAss
Scottsdale, AZ
77 Ex-Kingsley 455 SOLD!
2010 Nomad 24 Ft TT 390W PV W/MPPT, EV4010 and custom cargo door.
Photosite: Chrisc GMC:"It has Begun" TT: "The Other Woman"
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| Re: Portable Air Conditioners [message #85449 is a reply to message #85399] |
Thu, 20 May 2010 22:55 |
idrob
Messages: 645
Registered: January 2005
Location: Central Idaho
Karma: 0
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| Chr$ wrote on Thu, 20 May 2010 14:40 |
The best Alternative to a rooftop unit other than a window unit built in somewhere is a "Ductless Mini Split" unit like they use in Asia on homes, and are starting to (finally) come down in price here. I am considering one for my coach since both my roof units suck, and I have a hard time paying $800+ for a "good" unit, even a Coleman low profile which is now discontinued. I'd put the condensing unit on the rear bumper or lay it on the roof and rotate the compressor upright, possibly punching a hole in the case to allow it to extend out since it is probably a long skinny inverter driven scroll compressor...
I know, too much information. I live in Phoenix and give this a lot of thought...
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Chris: Here is a mini split system page to look at in your quest. Some good prices here.
http://www.alpinehomeair.com/viewcategory.cfm?categoryID=239
Rob Allen
former owner of '76 x-PB
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| Re: Portable Air Conditioners [message #85451 is a reply to message #85449] |
Thu, 20 May 2010 23:18 |
Chr$
Messages: 2690
Registered: January 2004
Location: Scottsdale, AZ
Karma: 1
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Thanks Rob. I have a Johnstone supply in my industrial park that carries them. I may be able to get one Wholesale. The next question is will an Auto-transformer handle the load so I don't have to rewire my Onan for 240..
-Chr$: Perpetual SmartAss
Scottsdale, AZ
77 Ex-Kingsley 455 SOLD!
2010 Nomad 24 Ft TT 390W PV W/MPPT, EV4010 and custom cargo door.
Photosite: Chrisc GMC:"It has Begun" TT: "The Other Woman"
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| Re: Portable Air Conditioners [message #85453 is a reply to message #85449] |
Thu, 20 May 2010 23:20 |
bukzin
Messages: 840
Registered: April 2004
Location: North California
Karma: 0
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I put a mini-split heat pump system in my master bedroom at home.
Very impressive cooling and good heating. What's amazing is
it runs on a 15 amp breaker at 120 volts. Therefore
super cheap to operate.
Mine is a LG 'Art Cool' model, think I paid $1,600
Love it!
Bukzin
1977 Palm Beach
[Updated on: Sun, 23 May 2010 00:05] Report message to a moderator |
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| Re: Portable Air Conditioners [message #85571 is a reply to message #85451] |
Fri, 21 May 2010 20:26 |
midlf
Messages: 2212
Registered: July 2007
Location: SE Wisc. (Palmyra)
Karma: 1
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| Chr$ wrote on Thu, 20 May 2010 23:18 |
Thanks Rob. I have a Johnstone supply in my industrial park that carries them. I may be able to get one Wholesale. The next question is will an Auto-transformer handle the load so I don't have to rewire my Onan for 240..
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Unless you have a different Onan than the standard drawer unit supplied with the GMC it can not be rewired for 240V operation.
An auto transformer will work. You would need a 3kva as a 2 to 1 auto only needs to be 1/2 the total capacity if the load is balanced. It will be heavy.
Steve Southworth
1974 Glacier TZE064V100150 (for workin on)
1975 Transmode TZE365V100394 (parts & spares)
Palmyra WI
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| Re: Portable Air Conditioners [message #85583 is a reply to message #85389] |
Fri, 21 May 2010 22:13 |
Chr$
Messages: 2690
Registered: January 2004
Location: Scottsdale, AZ
Karma: 1
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Yeah, those mini splits cost $400 in Malaysia. It's all relative. One unit may actually do the trick since they are so efficient.
-Chr$: Perpetual SmartAss
Scottsdale, AZ
77 Ex-Kingsley 455 SOLD!
2010 Nomad 24 Ft TT 390W PV W/MPPT, EV4010 and custom cargo door.
Photosite: Chrisc GMC:"It has Begun" TT: "The Other Woman"
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| Re: [GMCnet] Portable Air Conditioners [message #85600 is a reply to message #85598] |
Sat, 22 May 2010 07:26 |
Ken Henderson
Messages: 8726
Registered: March 2004
Location: Americus, GA
Karma: 9
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Marcus,
Most Onan's, and other makes, do have a split wiring system which can easily
be selected as 120 or 240 vac output. But the 6kW NH 6000 and the 4kW BF
4000 series, according to my Onan manual, do not have the split windings
necessary for that capability.
Any competent electric motor/generator rebuilder should be able to rewind
either of those generators for 120/240 vac output. It's basically a matter
of removing all of the wire from the generator's armature and replacing it
with twice as many turns of wire half as large, yielding twice the voltage
and 1/2 the current. That's done by replacing a single wire with a pair of
wires so that the two individual wires can be wired in series for 240 vac or
parallel for 120 vac. The Troy-Bilt generator I installed in the GMC
recently was, fortunately, manufactured that way, even though the fact was
not documented, so I was able to convert it from 120/240 vac to 120 vac only
Ken H.
On Sat, May 22, 2010 at 8:00 AM, <crsalert@frontiernet.net> wrote:
> Steve,
>
> Beg to differ with you, but my 6KW Onan was rewired for 220 by my engineer.
> He also rewired another 4 KW from a Transmode for 220 for use at his cabin.
> It was over 10 yrs ago so I do not recall exactly what we did.
>
> It was a fairly easy rewire and it was in the manual he got for the 6KW.
>
>
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Ken Henderson
Americus, GA
www.gmcwipersetc.com
Large Wiring Diagrams
76 X-Birchaven
76 X-Palm Beach
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| Re: Portable Air Conditioners [message #85605 is a reply to message #85389] |
Sat, 22 May 2010 09:07 |
JohnL455
Messages: 4447
Registered: October 2006
Location: Woodstock, IL
Karma: 12
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As far as the original topic, Chr$ I think nailed the topic perfectly. Good only for some temporary situations. Takes up space we don't have, and I think the antique OEM Duotherms work darn well if they are in good shape.
John Lebetski
Woodstock, IL
77 Eleganza II
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| Re: Portable Air Conditioners [message #85639 is a reply to message #85389] |
Sat, 22 May 2010 16:07 |
GeorgeRud
Messages: 1380
Registered: February 2007
Location: Chicago, IL
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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Maybe I'll try to see if I can get the old Duo-Therm running. The fan runs fine and it sounds like the compressor does kick in, but no real cooling that I can feel.
Can they be recharged like a car or home AC system? What is the refrigerant they used?
George Rudawsky
Chicago, IL
75 Palm Beach
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| Re: Portable Air Conditioners [message #85675 is a reply to message #85639] |
Sat, 22 May 2010 21:12 |
idrob
Messages: 645
Registered: January 2005
Location: Central Idaho
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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| GeorgeRud wrote on Sat, 22 May 2010 14:07 |
Maybe I'll try to see if I can get the old Duo-Therm running. The fan runs fine and it sounds like the compressor does kick in, but no real cooling that I can feel.
Can they be recharged like a car or home AC system? What is the refrigerant they used?
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The rooftop uses R22 which, like R12 is not available to us laymen anymore. I don't know if there is any propane substitute. You would also need a tap to put refrigerant in. They are around although not common and are prone to leak later. It might just be time to think about a new unit rather than putting much into a very old one.
Just my thoughts.
Rob Allen
former owner of '76 x-PB
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| Re: [GMCnet] Portable Air Conditioners [message #85682 is a reply to message #85675] |
Sat, 22 May 2010 21:22 |
Mr ERFisher
Messages: 7117
Registered: August 2005
Karma: 2
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Senior Member |
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yes it is available,read some of the links here
http://gmcmotorhome.info/heat.html#duracool
gene
On Sat, May 22, 2010 at 7:12 PM, Rob Allen <profmail@wildblue.net> wrote:
>
>
> GeorgeRud wrote on Sat, 22 May 2010 14:07
> > Maybe I'll try to see if I can get the old Duo-Therm running. The fan
> runs fine and it sounds like the compressor does kick in, but no real
> cooling that I can feel.
> >
> > Can they be recharged like a car or home AC system? What is the
> refrigerant they used?
>
>
> The rooftop uses R22 which, like R12 is not available to us laymen anymore.
> I don't know if there is any propane substitute. You would also need a tap
> to put refrigerant in. They are around although not common and are prone to
> leak later. It might just be time to think about a new unit rather than
> putting much into a very old one.
>
> Just my thoughts.
>
>
>
> --
> Rob Allen
> former owner of '76 x-PB
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> List Information and Subscription Options:
> http://temp.gmcnet.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/gmclist
>
--
Gene Fisher -- 74-23,77PB/ore/ca
“Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today --- give him a URL and
-------
http://gmcmotorhome.info/
Alternator Protection Cable
http://gmcmotorhome.info/APC.html
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