Casita AC and 16 vs 17 size

[Apltrez]

I have owned 2 casitas in the distant past. Since then I have goe though old airstream restorations, painted airstream, Rpod and tw big foots....a 21 FB being my current. An assortment of things are catching up with me including age, my wife now thinks Hampton In qualifies as camping, Grand kids have largely aged out etc. I still enjoy fly fishing and playing Old Time Fiddle music so my current plan is to down size. My past experience with Casita makes me think Casita will be a good fit for me alone.

But I have 2 question for Casita-philes.
Is the front, under/in closet mount AC any quier than the roof mount?

other than the "trackway in the 17 ceiling for tall folk, are there any other significant differences.

FYI, I'm not wavering on downsizing, just curious which one to go to.

Thanks

Apltrez

[WaltP]

To your main question, yes, the closet mounted AC in the 16er is MUCH quieter. But it is also much less effective in really hot, humid weather.
Good luck with your downsizing.
BTW, I assume you know Casita is no longer manufacturing 16ers and used ones are snapped up an hour before they go on sale.


Walt

[Apltrez]

Thanks Walt. About what I expected.

[CASITA BANANA]

I agree. I live in a 34' 5th wheel and travel in a Casita 16. I get so tired of the ACs in my 5th wheel that the sound of the 16's front mounted AC seems like a blessing. It isn't as effective, true, but as I travel mostly in the southwest where it's drier, it's good enough outside of the two months or so that it's not. But it's too hot for camping in Texas then anyway. Good luck in your quest.

[Motoboss]

My ‘17 footer front air conditioner is quiet (relatively) and cools fine. Living in the midwest we usually don’t have to deal with extreme heat, but humidity is a constant.

I’m 6’ 3” and find the height to be quite livable. We enjoy it as a traverler.

[WaltP]

That would be a 1996 model. The only other one I know of belongs to Larry Gamble of LHC fame.

Walt

[Bonnie RB]

Jon MB here. If it's humid enough to warrant using the air con, I prefer the noise to the sweat. As far as head room goes: If the Casita 17 didn't have the mohawk, we wouldn't be in it. Lack of headroom is the one reason we're not in a 16. I'm 5' 10" but I want to be upright.
Not possible for me to stand upright in the 17's shower, or under the roof air con either, but between them there's enough (just) for me.
Now if I could stop smacking my head going in and out the door....

[Jann Todd]

Originally Posted by Apltrez

I have owned 2 casitas in the distant past. Since then I have goe though old airstream restorations, painted airstream, Rpod and tw big foots....a 21 FB being my current. An assortment of things are catching up with me including age, my wife now thinks Hampton In qualifies as camping, Grand kids have largely aged out etc. I still enjoy fly fishing and playing Old Time Fiddle music so my current plan is to down size. My past experience with Casita makes me think Casita will be a good fit for me alone.

But I have 2 question for Casita-philes.
Is the front, under/in closet mount AC any quier than the roof mount?

other than the "trackway in the 17 ceiling for tall folk, are there any other significant differences.

FYI, I'm not wavering on downsizing, just curious which one to go to.

Thanks

Apltrez

Last I knew the 16 didn't have a screen door. So bugs would be a problem. We like having the screen door so we can open it for air when it is not to hot.
The fridge is smaller in a 16 at last check.

[WaltP]

Originally Posted by Jann Todd

Last I knew the 16 didn't have a screen door. So bugs would be a problem. We like having the screen door so we can open it for air when it is not to hot.
The fridge is smaller in a 16 at last check.

True on both counts. Several owners have designed and built nice screen doors.
Pat Crawford comes to mind.

Walt

[Jon in AZ]

The 16’ has a raised center trolley roof, too, it’s just not as prominent and the overall headroom is 2-3" less. Headroom aside, the trolley roof adds strength, with the vertical part serving as a sort of beam.

The screen door is a biggie for me. There are a number of ways to make one, but you’ll have to decide if you want to start your ownership with a project.

Another big difference between the 16’ and 17’ is the rear window. The 16’ has a small fixed plexiglass window and the 17’ has a large glass slider. The 17' has a flat door; the 16' is curved. The 17' has a flat floor; the 16' is stepped. The 17' has a 54" wide rear bed; the 16' is only 45".

Personally, I think Scamp has the superior 16’er if you decide the smaller size works better for you. Larger fridge, roof A/C, screen door, rear slider, and more headroom.

[SMSample]

One nice thing about the front mount ac, if it quits, they are easy to replace. And most box stores carry them.

[WaltP]

Originally Posted by SMSample

One nice thing about the front mount ac, if it quits, they are easy to replace. And most box stores carry them.

I've done it and I can say it's doable but not all that easy. Getting it all sealed in the right areas to ensure the proper air and condensate flow does take some doing. Be very careful to observe all the caulking and sealing as you take the old one out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CeUwQf37UFE

Definitely a lot less expensive than a roof mount unit though.

Walt

[Craig Alan]

We have noticed that to maintain a nice sleeping tent in the AZ Spring or Fall, we run our factory installed AC on Low fan and the temp setting about midway. The fan is still very loud and being right over the bed, a little annoying.

Does anyone know if the fan speed can be set lower by a trained technician. Any other thoughts about handling the the tornado buzzing above our heads?

[WaltP]

Originally Posted by Craig Alan

We have noticed that to maintain a nice sleeping tent in the AZ Spring or Fall, we run our factory installed AC on Low fan and the temp setting about midway. The fan is still very loud and being right over the bed, a little annoying.

Does anyone know if the fan speed can be set lower by a trained technician. Any other thoughts about handling the the tornado buzzing above our heads?

It has always been a peeve of mine that The AC in RVs have fixed speed fans. Is there more to that than saving a nickle (or $1.24)?

Walt

[starbrightsteve]

If you can find a17’ between the years of 2000 and 2011 it will have a quiet air conditioner on the roof.

[sonnyk]

Originally Posted by WaltP

It has always been a peeve of mine that The AC in RVs have fixed speed fans. Is there more to that than saving a nickle (or $1.24)?

Walt

If the evaporator fan does not move enough air through the coil to transfer enough heat, the coil can freeze up and block airflow. Then you get no cooling until the unit is shut off for long enough for the ice to melt. Then the cycle would repeat itself if the same fan speed was used on subsequent start ups.
This may not be an issue though, in dry climates.

[Motoboss]

Originally Posted by starbrightsteve

If you can find a17’ between the years of 2000 and 2011 it will have a quiet air conditioner on the roof.

Our 2001 SD has a front air conditioner under the closet.

[jgilliam1955]

Originally Posted by Apltrez

I have owned 2 casitas in the distant past. Since then I have goe though old airstream restorations, painted airstream, Rpod and tw big foots....a 21 FB being my current. An assortment of things are catching up with me including age, my wife now thinks Hampton In qualifies as camping, Grand kids have largely aged out etc. I still enjoy fly fishing and playing Old Time Fiddle music so my current plan is to down size. My past experience with Casita makes me think Casita will be a good fit for me alone.

But I have 2 question for Casita-philes.
Is the front, under/in closet mount AC any quier than the roof mount?

other than the "trackway in the 17 ceilings for tall folk, are there any other significant differences.

FYI, I'm not wavering on downsizing, just curious which one to go to.

Thanks

Apltrez

I think the Casita would be great. I think there is a year build time & they start at $25K.
We installed an RV Soft Start on our AC. I have been told Casita installs one on the 2021 models but do not know if it is true.
Ours is the Liberty 2019 model. ( We wish we got the double bed model because we get tired crawling over each other.)
After the AC woke me up a few times, I discovered the Soft Start for RV AC units. I had one installed. Now all you hear is the fan come on & that's all. It is wonderful.
Now I can plug the Casita into a 110-volt outlet & it will run the AC unit. ( My wife uses it as her she shed in the backyard.)
Instead of taking 55 AMPs to start, it takes 15 AMPS. I had a 3500-watt Generator & the AC unit would overload the generator.
Now I use a 2000 watt dual fuel generator. It has no problem running the AC on propane fuel.
I installed a Softstart on my home AC unit & instead of 105 AMPS starting & in now 53 AMPS starting & 16 AMPS running.

The EasyStart 364 Soft Starter For RV and Marine By Micro-Air, Inc.

https://www.softstartrv.com/

[WaltP]

Originally Posted by Motoboss

Our 2001 SD has a front air conditioner under the closet.

That's really interesting. I had no idea Casita continued offering the 17er with the front AC that late.

Walt

[Motoboss]

Originally Posted by WaltP

That's really interesting. I had no idea Casita continued offering the 17er with the front AC that late.

Walt

Yep 👍🏻