Closet AC - Previous Mod Causing Sagging - Fiberglass RV
Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×


Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 03-30-2020, 08:33 AM   #1
Junior Member
 
Name: Addie
Trailer: Scamp 13
Georgia
Posts: 17
Closet AC - Previous Mod Causing Sagging

In need of some more advice! I searched and didn't quite find others with this issue.

Previous owner did a HACK job at installing an AC unit in the bottom of the Scamp 13 closet. They cut out a huge opening in the fiberglass closet, laid a couple 2x4s across the wheel well stuck the AC on top and it gets better... SPRAY FOAMED it into place! Then they "shored up" the sides by putting a small piece of 1x4 on the outside of the closet on either side and screwing it in 12+ times.

What we're left with is bowed out fiberglass cloest with tons of holes in it. How do I get the fiberglass to straighten up? I'm planning on building a 1x4 encasing for the AC unit with a drip pan but should I be running the 1x4s up to the top of the closet? Do I glue them to the side of the fiberglass closet?

Thanks so much for any advice/pictures!
Attached Thumbnails
IMG_1259.jpg   IMG_1277.jpg  

IMG_1586.jpg   IMG_1588.jpg  

Acollot is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-30-2020, 08:44 AM   #2
Senior Member
 
Trailer: 13 ft Scamp
Posts: 1,773
No advice but that is probably going to win the award for worst hack job
Good luck keep us posted
alan H is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-30-2020, 08:53 AM   #3
Junior Member
 
Name: Addie
Trailer: Scamp 13
Georgia
Posts: 17
This entire camper was full of failed hack jobs... let me tell you the surprise we found under the dinette. I pulled off this awful laminate and the floor was 1x6s, no plywood of any kind. We've never renovated anything before so this 1980s scamp is giving us a run for our money. So thankful for this forum!
Acollot is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-30-2020, 09:29 AM   #4
Senior Member
 
FRED SMAILES's Avatar
 
Trailer: 13 ft Boler
Posts: 1,175
Registry
If it were me I'd probably come up with some type of method to jack up that area.
Then use a piece of 3/4 plywood as instead of 1x4 and glass it into the area and up the wall so the fenderwell is involved in holding up the
wall. Glassing it in will unify all panels. Then you cut the correct size hole.
Where are you getting the air from for the condenser? It needs outside air.
Fred
FRED SMAILES is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-30-2020, 09:39 AM   #5
Junior Member
 
Name: Addie
Trailer: Scamp 13
Georgia
Posts: 17
That's a great question! And unfortunately reminds me that we'll have to cut a new hole into the side of the scamp, above the bellyband. What size air vent do you think we will need? I was going to follow in the footsteps of this video but they don't detail what size vent they placed:
Acollot is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-30-2020, 02:25 PM   #6
Senior Member
 
FRED SMAILES's Avatar
 
Trailer: 13 ft Boler
Posts: 1,175
Registry
I mouted mine in a different location but the 2 holes I made are about
2x4 inches and seem to supply enough air.
You could use the wheel well as air access then you would need to have a sealed door of some sort for traveling.
Knowledge from someone that has mounted one successfully in that location would be beneficial here.
Fred
FRED SMAILES is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-30-2020, 03:12 PM   #7
Senior Member
 
Name: Carter
Trailer: Eco
Kansas
Posts: 143
You need to be able to vent quite a bit of air to get the heat away from the AC. I've seen very large vents. I put in two 4" vents (mostly because my PO had already cut a pair of 4"-ish holes) like this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B073ZCHCCS/

Then put a 4" heat-activated fan behind one of them to push more air through. These fans are often sold to vent RV fridges. Boats use them too. The idea is that when it gets hot (like from the AC running) it kicks on and starts shoving some of that hot air out.

Appears to work, at least so far as I've been able to test it.

Most people just put a big vent on the side of the trailer though.
__________________
My '71 Eco Restoration Gallery
Baxter is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-30-2020, 03:37 PM   #8
Senior Member
 
Name: R.T.
Trailer: Big Foot
Georgia
Posts: 197
Casita has installed many a/c's in their front closet in the past. You might want to go over to their forum and check out the many repairs done.
dblcola is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-30-2020, 09:32 PM   #9
Senior Member
 
Mike Magee's Avatar
 
Name: Mike
Trailer: 2012 Escape 19
Oklahoma
Posts: 6,021
Previous mod causing sagging? Which moderator caused this?


Oh, wait, not that kind of mod....
Mike Magee is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-31-2020, 08:00 AM   #10
Junior Member
 
Name: Addie
Trailer: Scamp 13
Georgia
Posts: 17
Quote:
Originally Posted by Baxter View Post
Then put a 4" heat-activated fan behind one of them to push more air through. These fans are often sold to vent RV fridges. Boats use them too. The idea is that when it gets hot (like from the AC running) it kicks on and starts shoving some of that hot air out.
This is an interesting idea! So to make sure I understand, you mount it to the back of the AC, so it pushes the hot air out of my existing large vent?

I really like the two smaller circular vents, looks much better and more manageable than cutting another large opening!
Acollot is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-11-2020, 10:41 AM   #11
Junior Member
 
Name: john
Trailer: unknown
Ontario
Posts: 13
My concern would also be where the water generated by the air conditioner is going.
john hackert is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-11-2020, 12:44 PM   #12
Member
 
Name: Bill & Jeanie
Trailer: Building camper in Ram Promaster van
North Carolina
Posts: 73
I built a 5,000 btu window AC unit into an area below a twin bed in my van conversion and I'm very satisfied with it's operation. The album below may give you a few ideas in dealing with your situation. In my opinion forced air is the logical solution for condenser cooling.

https://photos.google.com/share/AF1Q...xGSEJJLVQ0ODNR
wbullivant is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-11-2020, 01:27 PM   #13
Junior Member
 
Name: Addie
Trailer: Scamp 13
Georgia
Posts: 17
Quote:
Originally Posted by john hackert View Post
My concern would also be where the water generated by the air conditioner is going.
It drips out through the wheel well via a tube!
Acollot is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-11-2020, 02:10 PM   #14
Senior Member
 
Raspy's Avatar
 
Name: John
Trailer: Roamer 1
Smith Valley, Nevada
Posts: 2,880
The temperature activated fan, as Baxter described is a good plan. But you could also do it in possibly a better way with a muffin fan mounted to a matching sized vent and wire it to the compressor so it runs whenever the AC is on. This way you don't wait for heat to build up, you begin venting when the AC goes on. The idea is to keep exchanging the air in the area behind the AC condenser, so that it can blow cool air over the coils as much as possible. An auxiliary fan allows a very small vent, as opposed to the huge opening you show. This might end up being two 4", or 6" round screened grills in the side of the trailer. BTW, when you bought the trailer, did you get the piece that was cut out?

It seems a shame to cut holes in the side, but most of us are used to a huge water heater vented cover in the sides of our trailers and hardly notice them. Most of us also have a heater combustion air and exhaust vent too.

Just be sure you don't vent the warm exhaust into the trailer, or draw inside air to cool the condenser. Either one will defeat the function of the AC, either by heating the inside, or by causing a needed draft of air in from the outside.
__________________
I only exaggerate enough to compensate for being taken with a grain of salt.
Raspy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-11-2020, 02:27 PM   #15
Member
 
Name: Bill & Jeanie
Trailer: Building camper in Ram Promaster van
North Carolina
Posts: 73
Quote:
Originally Posted by Acollot View Post
It drips out through the wheel well via a tube!
In my installation the AC does not have a dedicated condensate drain (mixes with air flow over condenser). I sloped the bottom surface toward the drain and fiberglassed all interior surfaces of the containment. I don't use it while driving as pitching of the vehicle could cause problems. My unit seems very quiet compared to roof top units I have owned.
wbullivant is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-14-2020, 10:13 AM   #16
Junior Member
 
Name: Addie
Trailer: Scamp 13
Georgia
Posts: 17
Quote:
Originally Posted by wbullivant View Post
In my installation the AC does not have a dedicated condensate drain (mixes with air flow over condenser). I sloped the bottom surface toward the drain and fiberglassed all interior surfaces of the containment. I don't use it while driving as pitching of the vehicle could cause problems. My unit seems very quiet compared to roof top units I have owned.
So it seems like I could try and go one of two ways with pretty much the same components: drip pan, RV fridge fan, some insulation, and circular vent for cold air intake. In order to avoid placing the intake vent right above the hot air vent, I could use a periscoping dryer vent up the interior of the closet to be able to place the intake vent near the roof of the scamp. The downside to this is losing a good chunk of closet space.

Do you think option B (see photo), can work despite the very close (~6in) proximity of the intake and exhaust?

Thanks!
Attached Thumbnails
scamp AC idea.JPG  
Acollot is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-15-2020, 10:23 AM   #17
Senior Member
 
Raspy's Avatar
 
Name: John
Trailer: Roamer 1
Smith Valley, Nevada
Posts: 2,880
Quote:
Originally Posted by Acollot View Post
So it seems like I could try and go one of two ways with pretty much the same components: drip pan, RV fridge fan, some insulation, and circular vent for cold air intake. In order to avoid placing the intake vent right above the hot air vent, I could use a periscoping dryer vent up the interior of the closet to be able to place the intake vent near the roof of the scamp. The downside to this is losing a good chunk of closet space.

Do you think option B (see photo), can work despite the very close (~6in) proximity of the intake and exhaust?

Thanks!
Option B is the better choice. The warm air will not just go right back into the cold inlet, through side by side vents, in any way that is noticeable. For example, look at heater combustion vents. Right next to each other with no problem. Some of them are even concentric, and still work fine.

The important thing is to get adequate cool air circulation in the area of the condenser and condenser fan. If you can do this with a small muffin fan, of about 4"- 6", fine. That reduces the size of the holes and the fans don't use much power. You might even want two fans, one one each vent, depending on the size you pick, where one is blowing in and the other one out.

You might be able to also partition the interior space to direct the warm exhaust to the exterior vent. You either need an abundance of cool air in the vicinity of the condenser fan, that then gets exchanged with outside air, or a system of cold air ducting through the condenser from the outside and back to the outside. Either way, the addition of a high flow muffin fan is needed, unless you simply have a huge cutout such that the AC is working as though it is hanging out of a window.
__________________
I only exaggerate enough to compensate for being taken with a grain of salt.
Raspy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-17-2020, 06:34 PM   #18
Member
 
Name: Bill & Jeanie
Trailer: Building camper in Ram Promaster van
North Carolina
Posts: 73
Quote:
Originally Posted by Raspy View Post
Option B is the better choice. The warm air will not just go right back into the cold inlet, through side by side vents, in any way that is noticeable. For example, look at heater combustion vents. Right next to each other with no problem. Some of them are even concentric, and still work fine.

The important thing is to get adequate cool air circulation in the area of the condenser and condenser fan. If you can do this with a small muffin fan, of about 4"- 6", fine. That reduces the size of the holes and the fans don't use much power. You might even want two fans, one one each vent, depending on the size you pick, where one is blowing in and the other one out.

You might be able to also partition the interior space to direct the warm exhaust to the exterior vent. You either need an abundance of cool air in the vicinity of the condenser fan, that then gets exchanged with outside air, or a system of cold air ducting through the condenser from the outside and back to the outside. Either way, the addition of a high flow muffin fan is needed, unless you simply have a huge cutout such that the AC is working as though it is hanging out of a window.
Acollot-
Hard for me to tell exactly what your design details would be. One concern is that the air coming off the condenser will be warm and warm air tends to rise. So it would seem better to have the exhaust above the intake if possible. And your internal passages should be ducted as then the forced air cooling will be far more effective. I used computer case fans extensively in my van build as they are inexpensive, durable, quiet, and can have significant cfm. Almost anything made specifically for an RV will often be overpriced and subpar in quality. Below is a link to the fan I used which was $13 (but who knows in the current environment).

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
wbullivant is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-17-2020, 08:34 PM   #19
Senior Member
 
Raspy's Avatar
 
Name: John
Trailer: Roamer 1
Smith Valley, Nevada
Posts: 2,880
Quote:
Originally Posted by wbullivant View Post
Acollot-
Hard for me to tell exactly what your design details would be. One concern is that the air coming off the condenser will be warm and warm air tends to rise. So it would seem better to have the exhaust above the intake if possible. And your internal passages should be ducted as then the forced air cooling will be far more effective. I used computer case fans extensively in my van build as they are inexpensive, durable, quiet, and can have significant cfm. Almost anything made specifically for an RV will often be overpriced and subpar in quality. Below is a link to the fan I used which was $13 (but who knows in the current environment).

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Plan "B" is simply more practical because it does not require an internal duct. And both new vents can probably be in the cut out area you now have, instead of making another hole up high. The warm exiting air will immediately mix with the surrounding air. Little, if any, will go right back into the cold inlet. And the differences in the two temps will be small if it is designed well. The greater efficiency will come from moving a larger amount of air at a lower differential temperature. Don't get stuck on the idea that all of the exhaust will immediately go into the intake. I used an example of how RV heaters have their combustion vents right next to their intake vents. If there was mixing there, the flame would go out. Mine is even a concentric vent, where the exhaust is a smaller tube, inside a larger tube and they exit one inside the other with no problem. It's easy to overthink this, but not necessary. The main thing is to not have the condenser heat just going around and around inside the area behind the AC. Keep that area cool, and run the muffin fans whenever the AC is on, instead of having a heat switch control them.
__________________
I only exaggerate enough to compensate for being taken with a grain of salt.
Raspy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-21-2020, 07:43 AM   #20
Junior Member
 
Name: Addie
Trailer: Scamp 13
Georgia
Posts: 17
Thank you all so much. This has been really helpful information. It's our first camper, our first renovation, and I have no real depth of experience in any of the components of the renovation! This forum is truly wonderful.
Acollot is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Any idea what could be causing my tow problem Jane H. Towing, Hitching, Axles and Running Gear 26 05-02-2016 11:53 PM
TV vibration causing doggy fears & big woes for us! Penney H. & Mike E. Problem Solving | Owners Helping Owners 29 05-10-2015 03:24 PM
ParkLiner Concerns from a previous owner LindaK General Chat 31 05-13-2013 07:01 PM
Spring '08 Event on youtube(and previous years too) Doug Mager Ft. Langley B.C. Rallies 0 05-23-2008 04:07 PM

» Upcoming Events
No events scheduled in
the next 465 days.
» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 03:21 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.