A/C....Newbie!

[Hamb7]

My husband and I are brand new Airstream owners. We have a 1962 ambassador. It has the original A/C unit, the armstrong Bay breeze. We have a couple questions and I know all of you experienced folks will be able to point us in the right direction.....so here goes....

1. When we switch the thermostate and put the unit on high nothing happens. We are doing this while the AS is plugged into our house electric. Could it not be getting enough juice?

2. Where are these fuses I hear about?...lol. We are having trouble locating them.

3.My husband climbed up top to look in the unit. He says the fan blades will not turn. He thinks the whole thing could be seized up. Could it just be rusty and need some oil? Is this a sign of death of our unit?

4. Our Shroud looks terrible. How in the world do you take it off? How long of a project is it to take off the shroud rehab it and reinstall? Can it be done in a wekend? What do you use to put it back on with?

I guess this is enough for now. If we had these answers I believe we could start going in the right direction. Thanks for your input!
Heather

[Hamb7]

Anyone?

[CaddyGrn]

Welcome to the forums, and congrats on your Airstream!

I am sorry I am clueless on the air conditioner questions... ours didn't come with one. If the air conditioner is 1962 vintage, or about there.... the freeon or cooling stuff might need replacement and all. I would think taking the unit off, or at least getting up and taking it apart a bit to look in there might be helpful. If it sits on the top of your 'stream, be sure and have some kind of scaffolding to work from... the top of your airstream isn't really designed to hold the weight of the air conditioner and certainly not a person...I don't know how the shroud comes off, but probably snaps somewhere or has a few screws... they seem to blow off the top of SOB's all the time.

At the top of the forum is a blue toolbar. Click on the search button and do a search for air conditioners.... or broken airconditioners, etc. perhaps you will find threads you can read through that will give you ideas on what to do.

In the meantime, post some pictures of your Airstream! We love to see pics! Inside & out!

Mrs. NorCal Bambi (traveling in S Tardis)

[SafeHarbor]

Hi, Heather,

Sometimes answers can be slow in the restoration section of the forum. You can try some things to improve your chances.

For example, if you had included something like "Bay Breeze Siezed" in your title, somebody who has had something similar happen to their A/C may chime in.

Also, you can find folks with similar traliers in the model-specific section of the forum. That's where I often start when I want info about my exact trailer and it's systems.

Unfortunately, I don't know anything about that specific A/C. In general, I'd suspect that the shroud is held on by screws or rivets. If rivets, they'll need to be drilled out.

To find your fuse box, start where the power cable enters the trailer. It probably won't be too far away. Look in closets and cabinets.

I just clicked the search link at top in the blue bar and entered "bay breeze." If you do that, too, you'll find plenty of reading and information.

And welcome to the forums. You have come to the right place, and we all want to hear about your progress and experiences with your Ambassador.

By the way, you get a photo gallery with your membership here. As Caddy said, we LIKE pictures.

Lamar

[enduroryda]

Hi Heather..Welcome to the forums!!

I can't help you with your specific unit but I will encourage you to get up there and take the cover off. It took a little persueding for me to get up on the roof but it was defintely worth it. You'll never know what you'll find in there...44 years of debris..leaves...acorns..& who knows what. I would spray down all moving parts with penetraitng oil and let it sit. If you have a tester maybe you could test the power lines coming in to make sure juice is getting to the unit. I was doubtful about having enough juice from our house to power up the AC and didn't want to screw it up trying but everyone here on the forums reassured me that the house service should do it...it did. Are you getting any sounds at all coming from it??....

I wonder what the oldest original living AC unit is in an Airstream...Anybody??

[Hamb7]

Thanks everyone....sorry if I seemed impatient...lol. Just excited! Thanks for the tips to get started. There are pictures of our airstream on the vintage airstream site. The previous owner took these and posted them there. When I get some of my own taken I will place them on the site. For now, you can see them here.
Thanks,
Heather
http://www.vintageairstream.com/arch...dor/index.html