24v and 12v AirConditioners for your next Modification

[Coach George Jessup]

For your next AC upgrade!!

Two new AC systems I've come across. The best is 24v and used in military vehicles. 12000btu; too big for some of ya. Made by Webasco in Europe. Solid company!. Not sure how expensive a new RV AC is to compare the two. Its not your little window air unit in quality or price!! Contact Scott about prices make sure you tell him I sent ya. ASK ABOUT WEIGHT. I didnt think about that.

Scott's, Expedition Imports web site AC unit may not be on their site yet. Webasco is big name but Scott just became a vendor for them.
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12v AC low amp draw unit. Apparently the crompressor(s) in some way works in steps so if you dont need the full compressor power..... it will step down thus drawing less power.

I'm leaning toward the 12v and move it between things. (my home; only 12x16 and off the grid, My shop, my Egg 5ver, Cab of my truck, All still under construction though)

Cold Marine Air

PS- yes they are made for boats BUTT.... they got an add on that makes it work fine in other applications.

NOT ENDORSING either one. Just ran across them and letting you know about them.

[Al V]

on the marine units .. take a close look at the installations. if they need water hook up for removing heat . most low voltage marine units use the ocean . lake , river for cooling water. or have one good sized radiator with its own cooling fan
good luck with your search

[Coach George Jessup]

on the marine units .. take a close look at the installations. if they need water hook up for removing heat . most low voltage marine units use the ocean . lake , river for cooling water. or have one good sized radiator with its own cooling fan
good luck with your search

Somebody didn't read the material LOL

They state in their material that NO WATER IS USED FOR CONDITIONING THE AIR. Sorry for the all caps.. but they state it several times. I just capped it instead.

The water is used only to cool some "components" of the unit. For non marine use they use a seperate little radiator with a 12v pump for cooling those components. It is not an evaporative cooler or a heat pump sorta thing.

[Rob S.]

While I love the idea of off grid Air, the smallest one draws 16 amps on low. Your battery isn't going to last with that kind of draw.

[Gina D.]

However, those with gen sets may find it useful.

My genny is too puney for it (7a) but.. those with bigger ones might like it.

[Byron Kinnaman]

That's 16 amps on low setting. If you're going to use a fan it has to move a lot of air and that would be a lot more current. I know about peltier devices and the amount of current to drive them and what it takes to cool the hot side. They might work in a boat with water to remove the heat from the hot side. Removing hear from the hot side with moving air would require an outside vent, then if the air temperature is hot, it would not be very inefficient.

Byron

[James Harper]

I had one of these units on my boat ( 38 ft Trojan convertable) It used alot of power to run the pump and fans...It was 110v and the lights would dim when it was turned on ..I never took a amp reading but im sure it was alot. If there was a 12 v unit you would need a bank of batteries or a good sized generator to run it.( golf car and turf equiptment repairman for over 25 yrs)

[Coach George Jessup]

Only their small units are Peltier. I think their small ones are too small for an egg by looking at the BTU numbers. They are made for the cab of a truck or boat. Not for the living area of boats, campers etc. Well their largest Peltier might not be too small? Its 3500btu. I cant remember what BTU you folk found to be minimal in your eggs. Wasn't the smallest reccommended around 3,000btu?

Their larger units; they call Extreme and are compressor type NOT peltier

[Coach George Jessup]

I had one of these units on my boat ( 38 ft Trojan convertable) It used alot of power to run the pump and fans...It was 110v and the lights would dim when it was turned on ..I never took a amp reading but im sure it was alot. If there was a 12 v unit you would need a bank of batteries or a good sized generator to run it.( golf car and turf equiptment repairman for over 25 yrs)

One of these? You say yours was 110 and these are 12v. the heavey draw you mention that would dim the lights at initial turn on sounds normal for a big old compresor AC and these units have no compressor for the small ones...... and have sequential compressor for the larger ones. Thus your comparison might be an apples to oranges thing, and not valid.

[Scott Corsaro]

heh, thats pretty neat, I can have AC and a water heater all in one unit. I wonder if recirculating the fresh water tank would work enough to cool it down. I would guess it would work untill the water get's to hot.

the peitler chips are pretty neat, add 12 volts, one side get's almost freezing cold, other super hot, reverse the 12v and the sides switch

[Byron Kinnaman]

Only their small units are Peltier. I think their small ones are too small for an egg by looking at the BTU numbers. They are made for the cab of a truck or boat. Not for the living area of boats, campers etc. Well their largest Peltier might not be too small? Its 3500btu. I cant remember what BTU you folk found to be minimal in your eggs. Wasn't the smallest reccommended around 3,000btu?

Their larger units; they call Extreme and are compressor type NOT peltier

OK, but I still contend that you'll have a hard time finding enough power to run one these off the grid and if you're only going to use it while on the grid what's the point?

[Coach George Jessup]

OK, but I still contend that you'll have a hard time finding enough power to run one these off the grid and if you're only going to use it while on the grid what's the point?

You might just be right.

then again some folk camp completely off the grid. I will be. My home is also completly off the grid and 12v powered.

Not sure if the amp draw on these would allow for a smaller genset (APU) and a few battaries when compared to having a genset sized large enough to run a typical RV or window AC unit.

also anyone who pays "metered" electricity instead of flat rate ... the smaller genset and battaries might save them some money??

[Coach George Jessup]

heh, thats pretty neat, I can have AC and a water heater all in one unit....

good point on the hot water heater. Instead of using your stored water to coool it you could wrap lines around a hot water tank that run between this AC unit and the small radiator used for non marine applications like the Egg.

[Pete Dumbleton]

The bottom line reality is that it really doesn't make much difference what the voltage is that the air-con runs at, but where are the Watts going to come from! If one is off the grid then that means either a solar rig (of rather large proportions, including the battery bank) or a generator.

My personal approach to stuf like this is to try to keep it all off-the-shelf for cost and simplicity, so a 5KBtu window air-con from Wally, run by a quiet generator, would be the way to go.

Every time one changes the power from the original source, one loses some efficiency.

[bgeery]

Also take a look at DCAirco About $3500 (last time I read) for the 4400-4700BTU model looks just like a standard RV AC model. That's what I've been planning on using on my solar powered trailer.

[bgeery]

For your next AC upgrade!!

Two new AC systems I've come across. The best is 24v and used in military vehicles. 12000btu; too big for some of ya. Made by Webasco in Europe. Solid company!. Not sure how expensive a new RV AC is to compare the two. Its not your little window air unit in quality or price!! Contact Scott about prices make sure you tell him I sent ya. ASK ABOUT WEIGHT. I didnt think about that.

Scott's, Expedition Imports web site AC unit may not be on their site yet. Webasco is big name but Scott just became a vendor for them."

"12v AC low amp draw unit. Apparently the crompressor(s) in some way works in steps so if you dont need the full compressor power..... it will step down thus drawing less power."

Anyone find out more info on these units? Pictures, price, weight, installation? Sounds like they are using the same technology as the DCAirco units I mentioned, but maybe in a different package? I like the DCAirco units because they look and install exactly like standard RV units, so don't eat up any interior space in the trailer. The 4400BTU DCAirco will be all I need for my trailer, even in 135 degree F weather, but I wouldn't mind having a slightly larger unit in the same style package.

[Coach George Jessup]

Anyone find out more info on these units?...

Scott will email you a PDF on the Webasco 24v system that has all that info. I tried to attach it here but its too big.

The other units, their websites seem to all have the information your wanting. Just go look.

[bgeery]

...Not sure how expensive a new RV AC is to compare the two...

They seem to run $500-$800, plus the $300-$500 cost of a big enough inverter. The DC units are several times this cost, but also much more efficient; in the 1/3 less power usage range. Add another 15-20%% or so for inverter loses (if running off batteries), and we are about 50% savings in power. Then there is the savings because the DC models use the rotary variable speed compressor technology, saving the surge loads (and inefficiency) at startup. The rotary compressors also have the advantage that an oversized AC unit wouldn't be constantly cycling on and off, making for more consistent temperature in the RV, and much better humidity control.

It's a lot extra, but they do come with some real-world advantages.