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[GMCnet] Mini-Splits in GMCs? [message #342193] Tue, 02 April 2019 13:06 Go to next message
Dave Stragand is currently offline  Dave Stragand   United States
Messages: 307
Registered: October 2017
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Senior Member
Hi All,



I have a 1978 Transmode, that originally shipped without a propane
compartment. I was thinking that a mini-split a/c unit might fit
wonderfully in that space, allowing a clean flat roofline. I perused
the archives and saw several mentions of folks who were considering
installing a mini-split, but no mention of anyone who actually had
completed the job.



Would anyone who has considered it or completed it like to share their
experience?



-Dave

1978 Transmode near Pittsburgh





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1978 Transmode (403) Pittsburgh, PA
Re: [GMCnet] Mini-Splits in GMCs? [message #342195 is a reply to message #342193] Tue, 02 April 2019 14:43 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Harry is currently offline  Harry   Canada
Messages: 1888
Registered: October 2007
Location: Victoria, BC CANADA
Karma: 3
Senior Member
I just had one installed in my house. 18,000 BTU
Heat and AC.
My power consumption is less than 30% now.
Fujitsu brand.

Re: [GMCnet] Mini-Splits in GMCs? [message #342196 is a reply to message #342193] Tue, 02 April 2019 15:05 Go to previous messageGo to next message
lqqkatjon is currently offline  lqqkatjon   United States
Messages: 2324
Registered: October 2010
Location: St. Cloud, MN
Karma: 5
Senior Member
Jessup Miller has one in his GMC. LG unit mounted on rear bumper. Beautiful Orange coach. Unit is slightly out of place on his bumper, but no more then some coaches I have seen, or mine with the lawn chairs and bikes hanging off the back. I think he said he was going to paint the cover of the LG unit to match the coach. He says it works great.

not sure if he is on the GMCnet, but if you search the facebook groups you will find photos of his coach and system.



Jon Roche 75 palm beach EBL EFI, manny headers, Micro Level, rebuilt most of coach now. St. Cloud, MN http://lqqkatjon.blogspot.com/
Re: [GMCnet] Mini-Splits in GMCs? [message #342211 is a reply to message #342196] Wed, 03 April 2019 08:07 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Dave Stragand is currently offline  Dave Stragand   United States
Messages: 307
Registered: October 2017
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Senior Member
Thanks for that -- I will be in contact with him. It looks like it
could be a wonderful solution mounted hidden where the propane
compartment would normally be in my coach. As I don't have a heater
either, this might be a nicely effective solution.

-----Original Message-----
From: Gmclist [mailto:gmclist-bounces@list.gmcnet.org] On Behalf Of Jon
Roche via Gmclist
Sent: Tuesday, April 02, 2019 4:06 PM
To: gmclist@list.gmcnet.org
Cc: Jon Roche
Subject: Re: [GMCnet] Mini-Splits in GMCs?

Jessup Miller has one in his GMC. LG unit mounted on rear bumper.
Beautiful Orange coach. Unit is slightly out of place on his bumper,
but no more
then some coaches I have seen, or mine with the lawn chairs and bikes
hanging off the back. I think he said he was going to paint the cover
of the LG
unit to match the coach. He says it works great.

not sure if he is on the GMCnet, but if you search the facebook groups
you will find photos of his coach and system.


--
Jon Roche
75 palm beach
St. Cloud, MN
http://lqqkatjon.blogspot.com/

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1978 Transmode (403) Pittsburgh, PA
Re: [GMCnet] Mini-Splits in GMCs? [message #342224 is a reply to message #342193] Wed, 03 April 2019 11:44 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Bill Van Vlack is currently offline  Bill Van Vlack   United States
Messages: 419
Registered: September 2015
Location: Guemes Island, Washington
Karma: 14
Senior Member
We have a mini-split system in our house and it's great. We used two ducted indoor units under the floor - about 18x18x6. This approach may allow a little more flexibility compared to the wall cassette that Jessup used but may not be available in smaller sizes.

To mitigate the appearance of the outside unit you'd have to figure out a way to push air through the outside unit while it was inside the coach (similar to the way the refrigerator coils waste heat through a sealed box).

I think the sweet spot will be when someone designs a mini-split rooftop unit similar to a standard coach AC unit. Lots of customers for that form factor.




Bill Van Vlack '76 Royale; Guemes Island, Washington; Twin bed, full (DS) side bath, Brazilian Redwood counter and settee tops,455, 6KW generator; new owner a/o mid November 2015.
Re: [GMCnet] Mini-Splits in GMCs? [message #342226 is a reply to message #342224] Wed, 03 April 2019 12:43 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Dave Stragand is currently offline  Dave Stragand   United States
Messages: 307
Registered: October 2017
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Senior Member
Agreed. There are "ceiling cassettes" for these, but they're not made
for RV use (no cover, etc. -- they are made for home ceiling use).

I like the ducted units as well, rather than the wall-mount. There
should be several places to hide one or more. Question : at 18x18x6,
could they potentially be tucked up under the floor of a coach, with a
floor vent blowing upward? That would be slick.

For my install, the compressor unit would be behind the propane door in
a small custom-made compartment. I was thinking a louvered floor vent
(open facing towards the rear) and a large louvered vent on the door
(again open side facing the rear) would help minimize the effect of wind
and debris buffeting the unit. It feels like a good potential install
location, but I have concerns about locating it under the bed (noise,
vibration) versus a rear bumper mount.

-Dave
1978 Transmode near Pittsburgh

-----Original Message-----
From: Gmclist [mailto:gmclist-bounces@list.gmcnet.org] On Behalf Of Bill
Van Vlack via Gmclist
Sent: Wednesday, April 03, 2019 12:45 PM
To: gmclist@list.gmcnet.org
Cc: Bill Van Vlack
Subject: Re: [GMCnet] Mini-Splits in GMCs?

We have a mini-split system in our house and it's great. We used two
ducted indoor units under the floor - about 18x18x6. This approach may
allow a
little more flexibility compared to the wall cassette that Jessup used
but may not be available in smaller sizes.

To mitigate the appearance of the outside unit you'd have to figure out
a way to push air through the outside unit while it was inside the coach
(similar to the way the refrigerator coils waste heat through a sealed
box).

I think the sweet spot will be when someone designs a mini-split rooftop
unit similar to a standard coach AC unit. Lots of customers for that
form
factor.



--
Bill Van Vlack
'76 Royale; Guemes Island, Washington; Twin bed, full (DS) side bath,
Brazilian Redwood counter and settee tops,455, 6KW generator; new owner
a/o mid
November 2015.

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1978 Transmode (403) Pittsburgh, PA
Re: [GMCnet] Mini-Splits in GMCs? [message #342231 is a reply to message #342193] Wed, 03 April 2019 16:46 Go to previous messageGo to next message
GatsbysCruise is currently offline  GatsbysCruise   United States
Messages: 261
Registered: January 2017
Location: Waukegan, Illinois
Karma: 3
Senior Member
Does anyone have any Specs on the Mini Splits, such as power volts amps, size, etc??

I have heard, (I have not seen one), that they run on less power which would be a big Plus.

Can they heat as well???

Just thinking out loud these days.

slc


GatsbysCruise. \ 74GMC260 Former Glacier Model style. \ Waukegan, Illinois \ Keep those MiniDiscs Spinning \ MY GREYHOUND IS FASTER THAN YOUR HONOR ROLL STUDENT \ WindowsXP-Win7-Win8.1-UBUNTU STUDIO - UBUNTU VOYAGER - Berzin Auto Center
Re: [GMCnet] Mini-Splits in GMCs? [message #342242 is a reply to message #342231] Wed, 03 April 2019 22:36 Go to previous message
Dave Stragand is currently offline  Dave Stragand   United States
Messages: 307
Registered: October 2017
Karma: 0
Senior Member
There seem to be heat pump units up to about 12k BTU cooling and 13k heating on 115v power. Beyond that they move to 220v.

Physical sizes vary a lot, but try searching “12000 mini split” and you can see a bunch of options. Lots of options for the interior portion as well.

> On Apr 3, 2019, at 6:14 PM, slc via Gmclist wrote:
>
> Does anyone have any Specs on the Mini Splits, such as power volts amps, size, etc??
>
> I have heard, (I have not seen one), that they run on less power which would be a big Plus.
>
> Can they heat as well???
>
> Just thinking out loud these days.
>
> slc
> --
> GatsbysCruise. \
> 74GMC260 Former Glacier Model style. \
> Waukegan, Illinois \ Keep those MiniDiscs Spinning \ MY GREYHOUND IS FASTER THAN YOUR HONOR ROLL STUDENT \ WindowsXP-Win7-Win8.1-UBUNTU STUDIO -
> UBUNTU VOYAGER - Berzin Auto Center
>
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
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1978 Transmode (403) Pittsburgh, PA
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