The shround around my still functioning air conditioner is not in the greatest of shape. It is cracked in one place and the screen that are on there have some gaps between the shroud and the screen. It also does not come down 100% flush with the top of my roof. My worry is that red squirrels might make this their home during the winter. My question is once they are inside the outer shroud is there anything to keep them from going all the way inside the trailer?
The shround around my still functioning air conditioner is not in the greatest of shape. It is cracked in one place and the screen that are on there have some gaps between the shroud and the screen. It also does not come down 100% flush with the top of my roof. My worry is that red squirrels might make this their home during the winter. My question is once they are inside the outer shroud is there anything to keep them from going all the way inside the trailer?
Thanks,
Steve
I guess they could get throught the squirrel cage blower.
I repaired my shroud by fiber glassing and repainting it after it blew off the trailer.
But seriously is there any internal screening to keep the buggers out or is the only protection the shroud itself?
I was serious.
With out looking at a drawing of the unit I think you are ok. Many units use a common motor to drive a fan for the condenser and the evaporator and they are separated by a baffling system. What would concern me would be the tree rats eating the wiring.
Andy at Inland RV sells a replacement for most of the units, and a few have custom built covers from aluminum. I agree on the wire-eating monsters being the problem. Cheap solution is to use a tarp cover and tape or strap down - the cover, not the squirrels.
I was in Camping World a couple of weeks ago and they sell the exterior covers for air conditioners. I'm not sure what models they fit, but they seemed to be "universal".
__________________ WBCCI #5957
VE3JDZ
1994 Land Yacht 34 diesel
Although my trailer has only been through 3 summers, the shroud has started cracking at the screw mounts. I saw Camping World has them for $68 or so. Are these actual Dometic shrouds, and has anyone replaced one on the 15K unit? I'm curious about sizing. My dealer wants over $100 plus a 70 mile round trip drive to pick it up. While the air conditioner is still under Duo-Therm's 3 year warranty, they only warrant the shrouds for 90 days. I've never had one disintegrate so quickly.
Jack
__________________
Jack Canavera
STL Mo. AIR #56
'04 Classic 30' S.O.
'03 GMC Savana 2500
'08 Vespa GTS 250
I am also interested in the Camping World replacement....along with jcanavera. My 2002 has cracked at the screw holes; I added large washers. I have forgotten the name that someone on this post told me....the name of the washers. They are used in body shops.
I know I am going to lose the shroud one of these days in a high wind.
__________________
Kistler
Brenda
Misty (Maltese)
Maxwell (grey tabby)
2002 Classic 25'
2003 Expedition EB 5.4L, AWD, AdvanceTrac Class IV hitch pkg. Reese dual cam/Prodigy
The shroud on my 73 was pretty broken up and very brittle from UV deterioration. (a good reason to cover them off season especially in the Southwest) I was able to repair it with fiberglass and then spray painted it aluminum. I know it won't last forever, but so far so good. The repacement cost on these old Armstrong units is $250+ a hefty shipping charge.
That was the name--fender washers. You, sir, might be the one who told me what to buy...
My trailer has been in covered storage most of its life--with us. It sat out in Phoenix at Dillons for about 6 mos. until we bought it in October of 2002.
Someone here on the forum surmised that possibly the shrouds were stressed; like they were too small for the frame they are screwed to.
The shrouds were made from ABS plastic. ABS is only moderately resistant to Sunlight. I was the materials engineer at Evinrude outboard motor engineering department. I did alot of outdoor exposure testing of plastics at our Florida test station. They usually failed unless they were colored black. We did not allow any usage of ABS, if it was exposed to long term outdoor exposure. The Air conditioner engineer were not as smart. I painted my cover with gloss latex acrylic house paint as soon as I got my trailer and installed the fender washers to spread out the stress. They should have used shoulder screws to control the stress. People usually overtighten the regular screws and set up too much stress in the plastic which leads to it cracking.
Just my opinion, but after having seeing fiberglass hold up well on three boats ('72, '85, '99) the secret to successful fiberglass preservation appears to be the paint & clearcoat applied to it during manufacture.
If I was to buy a new replacement AC shroud, I would give strong consideration to spraying a good, UV-resistant paint and/or clearcoat on it before restoration.
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