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Old 07-15-2012, 12:55 AM   #21
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WOW......neat idea!
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Old 07-15-2012, 05:16 AM   #22
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Love it!

Touring Dan,
Thank you for reporting on your A/C conversion! I also have a 5000btu unit using the old refrigerator opening. It slides in and out when needed. I was considering a 6500btu unit, but will wait until they are on sale at Home Depot! I don't have a generator setup, but will definitely explore this new opportunity for my hookup free camping trips!
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Old 07-15-2012, 08:20 AM   #23
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Quote:
Originally Posted by surfpod View Post
Touring Dan,
Thank you for reporting on your A/C conversion! I also have a 5000btu unit using the old refrigerator opening. It slides in and out when needed. I was considering a 6500btu unit, but will wait until they are on sale at Home Depot! I don't have a generator setup, but will definitely explore this new opportunity for my hookup free camping trips!
That is a nice setup. I like the way that TouringDan and you, used an existing opening to install your AC unit in a way that it can be easily removed without any trace of it ever being there.
I bought my Avion camper from my grandfather around 1983, as I recall. I may have only used it once, but I can't remember, its been too long ago. I do remember that my grandfather had a theory about putting an AC unit on the Avion camper. He felt that if he needed AC, he was camping in the wrong spot. He would put AC on trailers that he had because they were meant for longer trips where hookups were sometimes available. I agree that putting an AC on a classic Airstream just doesn't look good. Sometimes you have to do it if you don't have an alternative, but this is a great alternative.
What I really like about this AC unit is using a 1K generator instead of having to buy, and carry, two 2K generators. Especially when the camper will be used mainly for Boondocking. I am installing a 15 gallon automotive gas tank, with pump, under my trailer so that I can refill quads or my 1K generator. If my figures are correct, the 1K generator should run this AC unit and my little 12V charger. I can't wait to try it out.
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Old 07-15-2012, 09:48 AM   #24
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M2HB

Amazing that you have had your grandfathers camper for 20 years and have not used it. But now the time is right. I think it is great that you recognized 20 years ago that you wanted this camper, but that you weren't ready to use it yet. Now you are. Bravo.

I think that if your grandfather had available to him, what we have, he would have installed the 5k AC and powered it with a 1k genie.

When we were without power the 1k genie powered the AC, tv, lights, computer and also charged a 12v battery.

Dan
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Old 07-15-2012, 11:17 AM   #25
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M2HB

Amazing that you have had your grandfathers camper for 20 years and have not used it. But now the time is right. I think it is great that you recognized 20 years ago that you wanted this camper, but that you weren't ready to use it yet. Now you are. Bravo.

I think that if your grandfather had available to him, what we have, he would have installed the 5k AC and powered it with a 1k genie.

When we were without power the 1k genie powered the AC, tv, lights, computer and also charged a 12v battery.

Dan
The last time I used the camper was on a deer hunting trip and one of the copper water lines rubbed through in an area that was hard to get to. I never used it since. In the process of restoring it I noticed that the water line rubbed through, by rubbing against a copper LP line. The LP line was almost wore through. I'm glad the water line broke before the LP line. I don't remember if I borrowed the camper unit from my grandfather for that trip, or if it was the only trip I took it on right after I bought it. I bought the entire truck and camper unit. It was the truck that I really wanted at the time. It was a 1977 Chevy K-30 dually. The first year that they made it in 4WD as I recall. The camper has been sitting in my back yard ever since. That truck is long gone, but the camper is still here. It really needed a major interior restoration. The funny part is that structurally, it is probably one of the best Avion C-11 campers out there, but the interior looked so bad that nobody wanted it. I haven't found one bad piece of structural wood, but several pieces of cabinetry were ruined when the rear vent disitengrated from the sun, and I never checked it for about 15 or 20 years.
I have a nice 1988 Avion 34' triple axle trailer so there was no need to fix the camper. Now I want to go off road and camp. The Avion C-11 would be perfect for that. My Avion trailer wouldn't make it very far off road without getting stuck or ruined.

I can't wait to try the AC setup with my generator. I need to have the carb overhauled because the generator has been sitting for years. This was the only part of the build that my wife and I hadn't figured out. She wanted AC for the few times that we may need it and I didn't want an AC on the roof.
She was also the one that gave me a choice, buy a slightly used Airstream Bambi, or rebuild the Avion camper. I chose the camper because this one will go off road and I can carry about 2000# above the wet weight of the camper.
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Old 07-15-2012, 02:13 PM   #26
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Interesting, but pricey, fuel tank for generators, etc.:

Generator tank

Does anyone have one of these?
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Old 07-15-2012, 03:09 PM   #27
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Interesting, but pricey, fuel tank for generators, etc.:

Generator tank

Does anyone have one of these?
It looks like all they did was convert a new LP tank. It is a neat idea, but I want to keep all my LP supply that I have.
I think that you are correct, they are a little pricey.
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Old 07-15-2012, 09:39 PM   #28
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I wanted to report on the performance of the 5k AC today since it was a reasonably warm day with considerable sun on the Airstream. I went out to work on the Airstream floor today about 2:00. It was 86 outside and 93 in the Airstream. I closed off the rear bathroom, but opened the folding door to the front area. The middle section, where the AC is located, went down to the set temperature of 70 degrees and stayed there. The temperature in the front room went down to 76 degrees. The 6 degree temperature difference between the middle area, 40 sq ft, and the front area, 80 sq ft, stayed constant until the sun went down, when the front area cooled to 73 degrees.

I was quite happy with the performance of the 5k AC unit. I believe there are several reasons for this. One reason that it performs well is that the windows are fully tinted. Another is that all the curtains were closed. This makes for a real dark trailer. I used the LED lights so I could see to work on the floor. Another is that trailer is facing east, so that the AC unit is on the north side and therefore shaded from the sun. The AC unit was always running on low cool, to keep the noise to a minimum and it seemed to cool adequately.

Dan
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Old 07-16-2012, 06:31 PM   #29
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Dan, thanks for the update. I'm going to try to build part of my AC mount tonight when it is a little cooler. I can't wait to try it out.

I went to work on my Yamaha 1000 generator and when I removed the gas cap, I noticed that the gas tank is completely rusted. I live in AZ and the generator wasn't left out in the rain (what little that we have). I took in to a local repair shop to see what it would take to fix it. I know it has less than 10 hours on it since it was new in 1994, and it probaby has less than 5 hours run time. The reason that is has such low time is because it wouldn't run the AC, so there was no reason to run it.
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Old 07-17-2012, 06:07 PM   #30
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I started this thread back on 5/16 about installing a 5,000 btu A/C in the window of my TW and operating it while boondocking with power coming from my 1,000 watt Honda genny. I finally completed the installation today and tested the unit. The installation and the test results were a resounding success.

I will carry the unit in the bottom of a closet just behind the rear wheels and will install it in the side window of my TW. The installation procedure is as follows: open the side window, remove the screen, remove the window crank and the right window latch, install the air conditioner using 4 sheet metal screws, install the clear Duraplex window panel using 15 sheet metal screws. The advantage of installing it in the side window is that the side window is not as important as the front or rear window in terms of window use or visibility and 2/3 of the window is still available for letting light in or viewing out. Installation takes about 10 minutes. Photos of the installed unit are shown below.

The beauty of this design is the flexibility. I believe that in the normal summer camping we will only need the air conditioner 1/3 to 1/2 of the time. As long as it only gets into the 80's and drops into the 60's at night we will probably just leave the A/C in the bottom of the closet. But if we go camping in a heat wave like we have had the past two weeks here in Virginia where the high is close to 100 every day and the low is only in the mid 70's, then we will have the option of installing the A/C.

It was in the high 90's today, but I did not get the installation complete and ready for testing until the temperature had dropped to 92 degrees. My plan is to only cool the middle section of the TW during the real heat of the day. I don't care how hot it gets, this area is only about 40 sq ft and I am sure the 5000 btu/hr A/C unit will keep this area cool just fine- either for a mid afternoon nap for adults or more than likely one of our grand kids. It cooled down just fine. It went from 92 to 70 in 30 minutes. I then opened up the door to the front of the trailer which adds another 70 sq. ft. My plan is not to cool this area during the day, but probably just in the evening especially if we have others with us sleeping in the front part of the trailer. This area cooled down to 75 degrees in about an hour.

I am so satisfied with the results of the 5k window installation that I am now ready to remove my Armstrong A/C unit and replace it with a Fantastic Fan.

The advantages of this design are overwhelming. They are:

- Clean design lines with no ugly appendage on the top.
-Save weight by carrying the 40 lb unit on the floor of a closet.
-Better handling dynamics for the trailer due to the weight savings and carrying the weight low.
-Save energy by cooling with 5k unit instead of 14k unit.
-Operate with a 1k genny instead of a 3 or 4k genny.
-Unit is new, so more reliable. If it dies, replace it for less than $200.
-Much quieter than the Armstrong unit.
-No annoying vibrations like with the Armstrong unit.

The only disadvantage is the 10 minutes it takes to install it. But hey, when it is 90-95 degrees, I will gladly spend 10 minutes to get cool.

Dan
Hi Dan
really like the design and idea of the clear duraplex window.
Just a quick question:
How do you secure the AC from "tilting" back?
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Old 07-18-2012, 10:12 PM   #31
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If you look at the photos in post #15, you will see the slot that I cut in the bottom of the AC unit. The location of the slot was selected mainly so that it was below the CG (center of gravity). By locating the slot below the CG the unit does not really want to tilt, and not much support is needed to hold it in place. Another photo shows the aluminum angle that is attached to the AC unit and is then secured to the window frame with only 5 sheet metal screws. The mounting is very solid because the CG sits right over the bottom of the window frame.

All

It was 97 degrees in Lynchburg today, so a good day to test my 5k AC unit. I first kept the door closed between the mid section and the front section. The temperature dropped from 93 degrees at about 1:00 to 75 degrees in 12 minutes. I then opened the folding door between the mid section and the front section. At about 2:00, in full sun, the temperature in the mid section was 73 degrees and the temperature in the front section was 79 degrees, a little warm, but 16 degrees below the 95 outside temperature. At 6:00 pm with the trailer in full shade, the mid section temperature was 70 degrees and the front area was 72 degrees.

I could not be happier with the performance of the 5k AC unit. I am now removing the Armstrong AC unit from the top. I will show photos tomorrow.

Dan
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Old 07-26-2012, 05:36 PM   #32
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Originally Posted by TouringDan View Post
VeggieBullet

...the slot that I cut in the bottom of the AC unit. The location of the slot was selected mainly so that it was below the CG (center of gravity). By locating the slot below the CG the unit does not really want to tilt, and not much support is needed to hold it in place....The mounting is very solid because the CG sits right over the bottom of the window frame.....

I could not be happier with the performance of the 5k AC unit. I am now removing the Armstrong AC unit from the top.
Dan
That CG point was clever...very nice point to consider, now just wondering if a 8K or 9K BTUs wall unit wouldn't work with a 1K Gennie..? That would cool your whole TW with no issues
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Old 07-26-2012, 06:52 PM   #33
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TouringDan, I wanted to thank you for the idea of the 5,000 BTU AC unit. I finally got to try it today. Of course it was hot in Phoenix and after about 1 hour of running, in the afternoon, the camper was very comfortable. The camper was in the shade, but that AC, would probably even cool it in the direct sunlight. Unfortunately, I didn't bring my camera today, so I will have to get some pictures of it tomorrow. I still need to finish the mount on it. The stainless steel transition piece that slides into the front sliding window fits perfect. The folks at Premier Industries did a terrific job.
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Old 07-30-2012, 06:23 PM   #34
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Here are the pictures that I promised. Premier Industries did a great job on the stainless steel transition piece. The AC works great. I can't wait to try it out boondocking with my 1000 watt Yamaha generator.










http://www.airforums.com/forums/f417...ml#post1181090
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Old 07-30-2012, 09:45 PM   #35
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All

Here are the photos I promised. The first photo is of the top of my TW showing the 3 vents and the original Armstrong AC unit. The second photo shows the Armstrong AC interior hardware. The third photo show the interior after the AC interior hardware has been removed. The fourth photo is the TW roof with the hole for the fan shaft and the hole for the refrigerant lines and the electrical wiring.

M2HB

Looks like a very solid installation of your air conditioner. It appears that you have the same 5k AC unit that I have used (with the plastic bottom).

Dan
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Old 07-31-2012, 06:51 AM   #36
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VeggieBullet

The 5k AC unit cools the TW adequately. I am very happy with the performance. I still am planning on painting the roof white and insulating the vents after I get the new Fantastic Vents installed; this will reduce the heat load and thus improve the cooling performance even more. I can not go to a larger AC unit because the 1k genny will not provide adequate power to start up the compressor on anything larger than 5k. Going to a larger AC unit also causes the weight to go up and the amount of space the AC takes in the window to go up- both are going in the wrong direction. Even if the 1k genny would start up a larger AC unit, I would stick with the 5k unit (460 watts power consumption) because this gives me more watts to power other things like the water pump, a circulation fan and recharging the batteries if needed.

Dan
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Old 08-01-2012, 08:46 PM   #37
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When I decided to install the AC unit in the window, I knew that I would have to deal with some unanticipated problems, because "new solutions have new problems".

The first problem had to do with having too much water in the bottom of the AC unit for one hole to drain. It was not that the hole was not large enough, the problem was that the drain pan was not flat allowing the easy flow of water to the drain hole. I just added about 4 more 3/8" holes. This was pretty easy to do since the bottom is made out of plastic. They do a much better job of draining the condensate from the drain pan.

The second problem had to do with the condensate running down the outside of the trailer. This was easy to fix also. I just put a scrap piece of aluminum sheeting under the AC bottom and it kept the water from running down the side of the trailer.

The last problem had to do with moving the AC unit from the window to the bottom of the closet. The condensate in the unit would leak all over the floor. I just put a towel on the floor and set the "wet" AC unit on the towel and let the water drain into the towel.

All three problems had to do with the condensate and all three were pretty easily solved.

I just returned from 4 days camping while I went to Floydfest in the mountains of Virginia. Since the camping area was at about 3,000 ft elevation (Rocky Knob on the Blue Ridge Parkway) it was only in the middle 80's during the day and got down to the mid 60's at night, so I did not even need to install my AC unit and run the genny. I just opened my windows and ran the Endless Breeze fan for a few minutes when I returned from the festival about midnight each night.

My batteries started out at 12.79 volts and after 4 days of camping, they were still at 12.79 volts. Go figure.

Dan
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Old 10-09-2019, 10:24 PM   #38
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5000 BTU/hr AC and 1,000 Watt Genny

A little update to this thread. Isn’t it amazing how time flies. It has been 7 years since I last posted on this thread.

The air conditioner generally rides in the bottom of a closet. We went to Florida in April, so we needed it. Before that we probably had not used it for two years. Here are a couple of photos.Click image for larger version

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We can operate it with our 1,000 watt generator, but we have recently installed two 100 Ah lithium batteries, a 2,000 watt inverter and 400 watts of solar. We can now operate the air conditioner if we are traveling in the heat and can get a good (cool, dark and quiet) nights sleep. We did this in August on our way to Michigan and the battery SOC never went below 35%!

DanClick image for larger version

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Old 03-15-2021, 07:54 PM   #39
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AC SOUND LEVEL TEST RESULTS

I measured the sound level of my AC unit last July and documented the results in another thread titled “AC SOUND LEVEL SURVEY”. The sound level was 60 dB in the area where the AC unit was located and 50 dB in the kitchen/living area where the gaucho was located and where we slept. I am extremely happy with the test results as the sound level was lower than that of a new Airstream with a ducted AC unit. Now I am not saying that the 5k window unit cools as well as a ducted 13.5k unit, (that would be impossible) but it did maintain the temperature at 72F, kept the humidity low and allowed us to sleep comfortably with a low sound level, no outside noise and no light pollution since the windows and blinds were closed.

Dan
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Old 03-16-2021, 06:37 AM   #40
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Dan,

It is good to see you still using your A/C, and now with solar.

Awesome job.

I haven’t used my camper for a few years. I’m going to use it this summer so it will get a workout.
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