Air conditioning

[markyboy]

Having just come back from France, we felt it was too hot at night so we are going to fit air con for next year as we will be travelling for 3 months around France and Spain.
We have the swift excellence twin axle and have plenty of payload,what I would like to know is which one truma or dometic ? our dealer sell both but they have said the dometic fresh light 2200 which comes with the rooflight but weighs heavier. Also they said they can fit it for a price of £2500 as a deal,which is cheaper than the trauma.Do anyone have any experiences with the dometic?

 

[Buckman]

Our original air con was a Dometic 2200 and wew had endless issues with it even having to call out the techincian in Spain. Eventually about 5 - 6 years after purchased it packed up altogether and a repair was uneconomical.

We had it replaced with a Truma Comfort which also includes the heating side. We got a 5 year warranty with the installation from S&G Home Leisure who are based outside Luton. In winter the Truma warms up the caravan a lot faster than the ALDE so we run it for the first 30 minutes if it is really cold.

 

[Jcloughie]

I have never had aircon in a van. So I cannot properly advise. But I always fancied the underbed ducted system. Looks very neat and can be directed to different parts of the van. I did fancy fitting one myself. Looked like a nice project.



John

 

[Buckman]

In a previous caravan we did look at fitting the under bed one, but firstly weight displa cement was an issue as nowhere over axles to fit it. Secondly if you have ALDE heating ducting is required. Lastly and more annoying, because it is mounted on the floor the noise and vibration seems to penetrate every corner of the caravan.

The other thing about under bed is the theory that cold air does not rise so your feet may be cold while your forehead is sweating. With the overhead air con, the cold air drops down through the warmer air overall cooling the air a lot quicker.

 

[Jcloughie]

In a previous caravan we did look at fitting the under bed one, but firstly weight displa cement was an issue as nowhere over axles to fit it. Secondly if you have ALDE heating ducting is required. Lastly and more annoying, because it is mounted on the floor the noise and vibration seems to penetrate every corner of the caravan.

The other thing about under bed is the theory that cold air does not rise so your feet may be cold while your forehead is sweating. With the overhead air con, the cold air drops down through the warmer air overall cooling the air a lot quicker.

I take your point that it may be noisier and is something to research.

But I had a plan for my Lunaar to duct through the wardrobe so the outlets would have been at a high level. This would not have interfered with the Alde heating. The unit would have been just to the rear of the axle.

John

 

[Mr Plodd]

I would be inclined to do a bit of shopping around as that quote seems a bit on the high side to me.
In addition have you considered the "Cool My Camper" portable unit? About a third of the cost BUT it is a somewhat unwieldy "lump" but it weighs a lot less, in addition it probably won't cool as much as a permanent fit.

I have a CMC unit and last year, in The Loire, when it was over 30, it made a huge difference. The most notable being that in addition to lowering the temperature it also drastically reduced the humidity, and thats what makes a great difference to comfort.,

If I had the payload (and the money) I woukd probably opt for a roof mounted unit, but having neither, the CMC is a decent compromise.

 

[ProfJohnL]

There are pros and cons to both types, some of which have already been mentioned. The issue of cold air not rising is usually overcome by ducting the chilled air to head height before letting it out, but the ducting does take up space,
But on a positive note the ducting can also ensure the chilled air can be directed to other parts of the caravan, where as the roof mounted unit usually sits in the main saloon, and won't chill other spaces. Both roof and floor mounted units have direct mechanical connection with the carcase of the caravan, and will couple some noise to the structure. Careful placement may reduce these effects to some extent.

The other factor often not fully understood is how effective (or ineffective) these units can be, so its important to manage expectations. If your expecting chilling performance like you get in your car - Forget it, it wont happen to anything like the same extent. AC units in cars can typically consume about 7 to 8kW of mechanical energy from the engine. The maximum power available in a caravan for AC is typically up to 2kW, or roughly a quarter of the input energy, consequently a caravan unit is only ever likely to provide about a quarter of the chilling effect of that found in a car, coupled to that the volume of a caravan is several times larger than a cars cabin, so that will further reduce the overall effectiveness of the AC. Just don't expect the bone chilling car experience in a caravan.

That then begs the question is AC in a caravan a really a cost effective solution? That is a personal decision, but it's worth thinking about the loss of payload, weight distribution (from a towing stability perspective) how often will you need it, If its only a few times, is it worth the cost? If you need it at night, then the system needs to located in the right place, and quiet enough not to disturb you. Could yo actually be comfortable enough with a couple of decent fans at a fraction of the cost?

 

[Buckman]

We did try the Cool my Camper and luckily we were able to send it back for a full refund. It would probably be okay in a smaller single axle, but not is a twin axle as it cannot cope with the volume of air that needs to be displaced.

The OP has plenty of payload available according to their post so weight of air con is not an issue. Our Truma Comfort will drop the temperature significantly so there is no issue there. However by the same token why drop the temperature down to 16C when 20C is a nice comfortable temperature.

Maximum consumption on our Truma is 3.7amp when heating and 4.2amp when cooling. No issue using on sites on the continent with only a 6amp supply. Cooling power is 2.4kwh and heating 1.7kw. Air volume flow is 400 square metres per hour.

 

[Peanut]

You can have up to 3.1 Kwt 10,500Btu of cooling, I have had A/C in my caravans for nearly 30yrs the best one was a "Telair" quieter than the others never had any problem with them , all dealers push Dometic as most of your domestic equipment will be that make which if Iam not mistaken is "Electrolux". The part to be aware of is where to fit it, usually they are a direct swap for the standard roof light, but these things are heavy 35+Kgs, also they need 240vlt so you may be limited its not the payload you have to worry about its the strength in the roof thats the weakest link, some manufactures are offering to pre strengthen and pre wire. I have always asked my neighbours if it was disturbing their sleep, most had no idea it was on, the others thought it was just a small fan blowing.

 

[markyboy]

I’m off to the nec in October so will look at options. I think the truma might be the way to go but we shall see.

 

[Steve1962]

I’m off to the nec in October so will look at options. I think the truma might be the way to go but we shall see.

We are going as well and will also be looking at AC for our Bailey Unicorn Valencia 2017, just to get an idea of what’s suitable and to consider the best options if we decide to proceed.

Steve

 

[Bob_5041432]

We have a Truma Saphir Comfort RC under bed/bunk A/C. It is very efficient at cooling the caravan and the noise inside is acceptable - it doesn't disturb us at night. However, a word of caution. If you were think of fitting one, when the compressor cuts in, it is noisy outside. Consequently, because of disturbing our neighbours, we use it very infrequently.

Why have an a/c at all? We tend to drift all over Europe. In some places, it can be very hot and an a/c is a blessing. Also when the family come and join us, 4 adults in a small van create a lot of heat.

Why an under bed/bunk one? We didn't ask for it but specified an a/c when ordering our caravan in 2006 - I was working in Germany at the time. When the caravan arrived, it was clear that there was not room for a roof fitted one. Being none the wiser, we accepted the under bed/bunk one.

We replaced it in 2018 for a new one hoping that it would be quieter - but the outside noise reduction was marginal.

Accordingly, if I had a choice, I would avoid an under bed/bunk one and go for a roof fitted one. We had a Truma roof fitted one on our previous caravan and it was quiet and efficient.

 

[Jcloughie]

Welcome to the forum Bob, a very informative post.

John

 

[Bob_5041432]

Welcome to the forum Bob, a very informative post.

John

Thanks, John. I have popped up in the forum from time to time over the past 9 years but, as our caravan is a 17 year old German one and most of our touring has been in Scandinavia and Europe (with a quick excursion to Morocco), I don't have much to contribute to the general discussions, so most of the time I am on 'read only'! Bob

 

[markyboy]

Many thanks for your input 👍we will most likely fit a rooftop one and possibly the truma.
We are off to the nec show in October so we can get some feedback and options.

 

[Buckman]

Thanks, John. I have popped up in the forum from time to time over the past 9 years but, as our caravan is a 17 year old German one and most of our touring has been in Scandinavia and Europe (with a quick excursion to Morocco), I don't have much to contribute to the general discussions, so most of the time I am on 'read only'! Bob

As we are from Africa, we always wanted to go to Morocco, but never got around to doing it. Must have been quite an exciting trip?

 

[Bob_5041432]

As we are from Africa, we always wanted to go to Morocco, but never got around to doing it. Must have been quite an exciting trip?

It was! We went on a little bit of a whim. We were on a 6-month drift through Spain going down the Portuguese side and back up the Mediterranean coast. We had been invited to a wedding in Toledo in the middle of October which was our only fixed point and one of only 2 sites that we booked in advance. Other than 'bucket & spade' holidays a very very long time ago in the Bay of Rosas, we had never really visited Spain - tending towards Italy instead. So this was an excellent opportunity to rectify that.

Looking at the map, it was clear that we would end up at the bottom of Spain at some stage so we wondered about going to Morocco. Before we left UK, I negotiated a Green Card from my insurance company for the car giving me a 7 week window of opportunity and the caravan policy already included Morocco. I also bought a campsite book (in French - all that I could find) and a Michelin Road map.

We sat at in Tarifa for a week looking across the water at Morocco and wondered whether we should give it a go or whether we were totally mad. However, everyone we spoke to there, and in Gibraltar, said that we would love it. So we found a 10 year old Rough Guide to Morocco in a second-hand bookshop in Gibraltar, download the Lonely Planet Guide onto the Kindle and went for it.

We didn't really have a plan but, at our first stop in Asillah, we met an 'Old Moroccan Hands' French couple who circled various places on our road map that they recommended we visited. That essentially formed our plan and route.

We started at Fez, went south to the Sahara, turned right and went west towards the coast and then followed the coast down to Tan Tan. On the way back we went via Marrakesh, Casablanca and Chefchaouen. We were the only caravan right up to Chefchaouen where we met another one but there were lots of motorhomes & campervans.

This was 2018/19 and, for family reasons, we only had just under 4 weeks, so it was just a taster. Will we go back? Most certainly as soon as my new knee has settled down. The scenery is stunning, especially driving through the Atlas mountains, the people are delightful and friendly, the architecture interesting, the bazaars are lively, colourful and exotic (including the obvious tourist orientated one in Marrakesh) and the culture completely different from Europe which makes the whole package an adventure.

To put it all in perspective, we were then both nudging 70 towing a small but heavy 12 year old German caravan with a 2 year old Santa Fe.

If this post is being moderated, I am aware that this probably belongs in the Overseas part of the forum but I am not sure how to get it there and it is really an answer to Buckman's observation.

Bob

 

[markyboy]

Fantastic. That’s the reason I’m getting air con as next year my wife and myself are going to travel for 3 months around Europe,I would go for longer but it’s the brexit rule now🙁

 

[timofleeds]

We have a Truma Saphir Comfort RC under bed/bunk A/C. It is very efficient at cooling the caravan and the noise inside is acceptable - it doesn't disturb us at night. However, a word of caution. If you were think of fitting one, when the compressor cuts in, it is noisy outside. Consequently, because of disturbing our neighbours, we use it very infrequently.

Why have an a/c at all? We tend to drift all over Europe. In some places, it can be very hot and an a/c is a blessing. Also when the family come and join us, 4 adults in a small van create a lot of heat.

Why an under bed/bunk one? We didn't ask for it but specified an a/c when ordering our caravan in 2006 - I was working in Germany at the time. When the caravan arrived, it was clear that there was not room for a roof fitted one. Being none the wiser, we accepted the under bed/bunk one.

We replaced it in 2018 for a new one hoping that it would be quieter - but the outside noise reduction was marginal.

Accordingly, if I had a choice, I would avoid an under bed/bunk one and go for a roof fitted one. We had a Truma roof fitted one on our previous caravan and it was quiet and efficient.

Hi Bob, we also have this unit fitted but I am unhappy in that the sleep mode does not make any difference to the noise level than the slow speed on the remote. Does your sleep mode make a difference in noise level. I know it does not effect the compressor noise. Not sure if this is normal or a fault on my unit.

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hi Bob, we also have this unit fitted but I am unhappy in that the sleep mode does not make any difference to the noise level than the slow speed on the remote. Does your sleep mode make a difference in noise level. I know it does not effect the compressor noise. Not sure if this is normal or a fault on my unit.

The thread you have answered was over 12months old, please read the forum tips about resurrecting old threads here