Air conditioning can’t keep up 2020 View 24D

[Eagle5]

One other factor which affects heat load on a motorhome is the coach color.
Under direct sunshine, white exteriors are typically 30ºF cooler than black exteriors.
Eagle5
P.S. I just noticed Keith H's comment above; some very good real-world numbers there.

[JohnnyVL]

I agree if you want to chip in LOL ill have mine painted solid White trust me I didn’t have a choice at the time it was purchased on other colors who in their right mind would have chosen to paint something so poorly built BLACK.

[Eagle5]

Originally Posted by Keith H

What color is you RV? In Arizona on a 104 deg day my Adventurer sides are : Beige 140 deg, Red 160 deg and Black 195 deg. The darker the color the more heat absorption.

Hi Keith H,
Those are stunning differences. I chose Polar White for my Minnie Winnie (and for my truck) just for that reason.
Thanks for sharing the data, Eagle5

[Keith H]

When I go camping in the AZ mountians in the summer I often run my AC for a time to keep the coach below 80deg. I walk into my son's all white travel trailer and it is cooler and very comfortable. An my AC's drop is 20+ deg. Never ever buy black but it was a very popular color when we purchased it.

[Fanrgs]

I did just the opposite with our 2020 Navion 24V. I removed the 90#, C-M Mach 10 heat pump-AC unit completely after it had a meltdown. That was due to loose 120vac connections on the terminal block inside the control box. Instead of spending $500 on repair parts, I replaced it with a $650, 12v, 30#, TurboKool evaporative cooler. Wouldn't work for most of the folks on this thread, but works great west of the 100th Meridian and east of the Sierra/Cascade ranges where we live and camp. With our higher altitudes and very low humidities, it provides as much temp. differential as a compressor unit for us, but, with a 5A draw at 12v, we can use it when boondocking. Like everyone else, we use Reflectix on the windows, have the silver insulation panels in the front windows and windshield, and have a curtain to close off the cab. But we originally did all that for fall and winter camping and snowbirding in the SW, not for the AC. Of couse, it helps that we live in Colorado and never camp below 7,500' feet in summer! And just an FYI, we have had only evaporative cooling in our homes for 50+ years.

[Camper Ken 2]

Having been in the RV service business for many years (now retired) this was a common complaint I heard as service advisor. Any RV tech can tell you that an RV air conditioner can only cool your rig about 10-12 degrees cooler than the outside ambient temperature.. Face it, your travel trailer or motorhome is simply a giant tin can, and the air conditioner can only do so much.

[luvnlife219]

In cold temperatures we hang a queen size comforter behind drivers compartment to block that area from the living space. It works equally well in hot summer days to isolate the cab from the area you are trying to cool.

[bigb]

Originally Posted by Camper Ken 2

Having been in the RV service business for many years (now retired) this was a common complaint I heard as service advisor. Any RV tech can tell you that an RV air conditioner can only cool your rig about 10-12 degrees cooler than the outside ambient temperature.. Face it, your travel trailer or motorhome is simply a giant tin can, and the air conditioner can only do so much.

What? Seriously? Maybe it's just me but if an RV tech told me that I would immediately write them off as full of BS. Maybe that was the case in the old days, I don't know.

I've been in triple digits in full sun and been able to bring inside temps into the 70's. Just recently we were in 111F and inside we were a full 34 degrees cooler at 77F. My system puts out air about 19 degrees cooler than the intake air, as the interior temps drops the supply air keeps dropping as well.

I'm sure in some RVs it can get warmer once solar gain exceeds your btu output but 10-12 degrees difference between outside and inside is un-acceptable and indicates a problem either with the unit(s) or the sizing/design. When shaded or after sundown it shouldn't have any problems getting you to comfortable temps if sized correctly.

[bigb]

Here we are in Desert Center on July 7th, late afternoon, ambient of 116F. The interior had got up to 96F due to generator overheating on the highway. At the time of this photo it was 116F outside and 82F inside and dropping. I had got out a ladder and sprayed water on the AC coil to help bring the temps down faster. If memory serves me right at one point the delta between inside and outside was 39F.

Until sundown, the only shade was the awning. We kept both slides in till sundown. After sundown it remained in triple digits till after midnight but we were down below 75F inside and got cold so I put it up to 77F.

[bigb]

Originally Posted by JohnnyVL

Yes we have the same exact coach with the same problem we were in Missouri in June 9-15 it was a high of 89 and we burned up all day at night it would cool off once the sun went down
This coach is poorly insulated the rear wall in the bathroom has no insulation in it and is just the thickness of the outside wall and inside wall total.
There a so many air leaks we usually put the inserts in the windshield and side windows in the cab plus we have a room darkening curtains hung from the ceiling to the floor behind the driver and passenger seats just help block out having to cool that area too.
Yes this is a true WINNEBAGO screw up they should be recalling these coaches and fixing this problem but that won’t ever happen.
I tested my unit the other day it was 102 F outside 90 inside unit was pushing out 67 degree supply air and 90 degree return a 23 degree drop which is awesome just the a/c unit is working itself to death trying to keep up.
This coach is a joke the way it was made we have had the entry door replaced 4 times since we purchased the coach all under warranty thank god.
Good luck I’m an air conditioning contractor here in Texas so trust me I know what’s going on

Curious what color your roof is?

[HawkTX]

We are in Texas and I have a Winnebago View 24J. We went to Choctaw Casino to see a concert last weekend and it was 103 degrees outside when we arrived. I ran the generator for 30 mins on the way to the RV park at Choctaw Casino and got the inside temps to around 73 degrees with the Coach A/C and the chassis A/C and then plugged in and left the chassis A/C and Coach A/C running for 15 mins and got it down to 70 degrees and turned off the chassis. It quickly got up to 77 degrees, but maintained until sundown and then got down to 67 degrees after sundown. We went to the casino until midnight and got back and the inside temp was 65 degrees, which is what we set it at (we like it COLD!!!). Not bad for a 103 degree day, but I'm thinking about ordering the RV airflow systems, which you can see at RV Airflow Systems My buddy who has a Winnebago Navion highly recommends it.

[bigb]

One thing you folks with Views and Navions might want to check is air leaks. I found two big ones. The first one I was tipped off because every time we'd take a trip there would be dust all around the fridge. I found when they put the fridge in 1. they put the foam weatherstrip on the wrong edge and it was not doing anything! and 2. There was a 3/4" gap underneath the fridge leading to the outside. The fridge sits on feet on the floor and nothing was done to seal that gap. I fixed it with round foam that they sell to stuff in cracks before caulking and I finished it off with foil tape.

The second leak was where the ceiling meets the rear wall, there was a gap of about 3/8" which I believe was open to the outside through the space behind the tail lights that you can look up into from underneath. I fixed that one with some tight fitting edge protector from Amazon.

[creativepart]

Originally Posted by HawkTX

We are in Texas and I have a Winnebago View 24J. We went to Choctaw Casino to see a concert last weekend

That KOA is really nice. Any time we're heading north of Dallas we route ourselves to the Choctaw KOA.

We liked it so much, we decided to make it a 3-day stop and toured all around the area. There's a lot to see. It may have slowed us down getting north of TX but it was worth it. Fond memories for sure.

Then there was that night I won $150 at the dollar slots in the Casino. Yes!

[SeeTheUSA]

Originally Posted by HawkTX

… snipped …
but I'm thinking about ordering the RV airflow systems, which you can see at RV Airflow Systems My buddy who has a Winnebago Navion highly recommends it.

Take a look at the KoolRV product. I opted for it for two reasons .. seemed to be a better design and cost about 1/2 the price of the other. Was easy to install. Leaves the air intake side of the plenum more open for better air flow. Love the result!

Hope this helps.

https://koolrv.com/?srsltid=AfmBOooi...wrzfm4_U9vCXAs

[Scotty B]

Having experienced close to a month's worth - maybe more - of at least 95 degrees or greater and often well over 100 starting in Lone Pine, CA through to Paso Robles and points in between, I think I have found the perfect solution. It's called Santa Barbara! This place is as close to paradise as I've ever been.
Not making light of extreme heat or the methods we take to try and control our environment. Extreme heat is no joke nor is it a lot of fun...at least at our stops it was low humidity and cooled down at night. That helps heaps!
And Coctaw Casino? Is that the place James McMurtry sings about in Choctaw Bingo? Love that song...

[HawkTX]

Originally Posted by SeeTheUSA

Take a look at the KoolRV product. I opted for it for two reasons .. seemed to be a better design and cost about 1/2 the price of the other. Was easy to install. Leaves the air intake side of the plenum more open for better air flow. Love the result!

Hope this helps.

https://koolrv.com/?srsltid=AfmBOooi...wrzfm4_U9vCXAs

Thanks! I like that system. Ordered it today!

[SeeTheUSA]

Originally Posted by HawkTX

Thanks! I like that system. Ordered it today!

You are welcome! I hope it works out for you

[Bnystrom]

Originally Posted by Hermes2

My two cents. Encountered a similar problem in Las Vegas a few years ago. Installed reflextix, etc. All of which helped. After looking at other DIY solutions and costly add-on's, I decided to make my own. This plenum duct connects the blower output directly to the two interior ducts in a smooth fashion. Once the duct is taped into place, it also eliminates the baffle that blocks some of the incoming return air, improving air flow even more. Altogether the solution cost about $25 worth of material and a few hours of time. Installed on Coleman Mach 10 and 15, they work very well for us.



OR, you could try one of these ShadeRV units (very pricey and I'd be concerned about windy days and reviews are mixed): https://www.shaderv.com/

Hermes, can you perhaps post a larger image of the plan alone? Some of the dimensions are difficult to read.


Thanks


Brian