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A/C vs. Skylight


Damien

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I’ve got a lot of work to do on my camper, but I’m hoping to have the inside gutted and the roof sealed up before the temperature starts to dip in the fall. I plan on replacing the existing skylights with some that have fans in them. I’m wondering if I should ditch the A/C to cut down on some weight and just put a skylight in, or if I should keep the air conditioning. How many of you find the air conditioning a must have? Do you use it a lot in those hot summer months?

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Depends on where you live or where you plan to travel. I live in NC and A/C is a must have in the summer.

If you have a working A/C I’d leave it alone. I don’t care how powerful your vent fan is, nothing beats A/C.

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I know a lot of people ditch the air conditioning for the weight and little use. Out west here most houses don't have central air if any air conditioning, me included. However I found keeping my unit that days over 90 degrees we tend to cook outside or in the motor home in the driveway. We certainty use the A/C for these occasions. Every once in awhile I'll end up in a campsite say Yakima desert where it gets to 105 or better,  no way could live through that without A/C.

 

All depends on your usage of it. With a V/6 I's say the weight would not be a issue. I grew up in PA so I know the summers are hot and humid, I'd say keep it just for that.

 

Gary

 

 

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Working A/C requires 115 v ac. So you need a generator or you camp in RV parks.

If your doing a total redo see if you can add a generator enclosure.

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Okay, you’ve convinced me. A/C is staying. I plan on running almost everything off solar, but I know that’s not possible for A/C. At least not without a really large and expensive system. Every generator I’ve ever heard is pretty loud. Do they make quieter ones now? When I’m camping I like to hear the nature. Nothing worse than noisy generators in the background.  

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Onan Microlite. Pricey, but really quite. I love mine. About $2500 new.

Edited by fred heath
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Anything but an Onan will end up with a kluge job. You will have cooling and starting problems. If you don't mind taking it out each time then an inverter is a good deal.

If you invest $300 in an Micro-Air easy start you can run just a single 2500w inverter generator

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2 hours ago, Damien said:

When I’m camping I like to hear the nature. Nothing worse than noisy generators in the background.  

 

Normally I dry camp (no power hookup). I've spent many weeks at a time in high desert mountain terrain, propane and solar only. Yes temperatures do get above the 100's during the day but keeping the windows open keeps a nice cool breeze coming through. I observe the dark skies at night and take naps during the day. As the sun hits high noon above my rig is the coolest time of day, my napping time. 😉  

 

I only use A/C if hooked to power at the campsite. The generator is not worth the $$ in IMHO plus extra weight. Pay extra for a hookup if you want A/C. Besides even if you have a silent generator, the A/C unit give a good hum of a normal generator IMO. Give the A/C a try before you decide...

 

Gary

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Thanks for all the tips and advice everyone! This forum has been such a godsend! Aside from all my questions you guys keep answering, I’ve learned so much from pouring through older threads you’ve all posted on. It’s so great being able to turn to people with more experience. 
 

The main reason I bought an RV is so I could take my grandma camping. I moved her in with me about 5 years ago to take care of her (in reality she takes just as much care of me). She’s been wanting to go camping but with her age and limitations she can’t really be climbing in and out of a tent. For her comfort I think I’m gonna look in to one of those Onan generators. I also think I’m gonna take your advice and not do a complete gut job just yet. That way we can get some use out of it while she’s still able without it being under construction for a year lol. I can always re do it down the line. That being said, I’m sure there will be another thread coming with more questions hahah! Thanks in advance everyone :) 

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I'm personally using a Maxxair Max fan.  Keep the temperature is bearable even up to 80 degrees, and if it's 70 or lower it stays very comfortable. Plus it's thermostatically controlled and you can run it with the vent open or closed, in rain or not.  But we only have about one month here where it's really super hot and the rest of the year not so much.

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