Is summer camping with 1 AC another compromise?

[lsbrodsky]

The first two summers we owned our AS we did not camp in hot weather because we do not like sitting outside in the heat and we do not like being trapped in the trailer.
We just attended a rally that required us to travel in some 95 degree weather. Our AC unit has been fine in shoulder months bringing the temp down nicely for sleeping. But after a day of travel, it seems one AC started up about 4 PM cannot get temp down to 72-74 until the middle of the night when it was 95 during the day and 90 at bed time.
Vents were open, curtains closed during travel. I see plenty of people buying or converting to 2 AC's. I also see advice to stay North in the summer.
Do others, especially in the deep South or Southwest have tips for cold sleeping during summer camping?
Larry

[slowmover]

Takes several days in regions of high humidity in a 32'+ trailer on the hot Gulf Coast to come down to 40% with the use of a dehumidifier. This is in somewhat better insulated Silver Streak trailers. At which point the A/C can bring interior temps from 90F to below 80F in a couple of hours.

Absent the high humidity it will take twelve hours or longer to sufficiently cool a trailer to 73F. In all spaces. And all surfaces. Air temps "seem" cooler than this earlier than this, but once one takes to ones bed is the discrepancy apparent.

Two A/C units on a trailer from middle length and up is the way to go, IMO. Even with shade from mid-afternoon onwards it is difficult to keep one of these trailers cool given main door opening and closing.

Awnings, roof coatings and being diligent about air infiltration points all help (as do interior storm windows), but to travel in high heat and then expect the trailer to be cool in regions that DO NOT cool off much at night and have medium to high humidity is asking too much.

I'd say that the cost is low compared to some upgrades seen, and that the largest Avions of the late 1980s used to feature twin furnaces for heating DESPITE having the best insulation of this trailer is another proof about comfort control.

Roof air is quite efficient given a fighting chance. But it's a welterweight against the heavyweight heat of the southernmost swath of the U.S.

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by lsbrodsky

Is summer camping with 1 AC another compromise?

I live along the Gulf Coast, and to date all of my Airstream camping has been in Gulf Coast states except for a couple of trips to Arkansas. Daytime highs outdoors in the high 90s and overnight lows in the mid-80s aren't at all unusual for me, and coupled with relative humidity in the 80% range besides, so my one-and-only AC— thank you ever so much for that condescending question, by the way— has to work overtime.

The first thing I turn on when I get to a campground is the AC, and it will run constantly until bedtime— and beyond— the first night trying to get the indoor temperature down to my comfort range. Sometimes it doesn't shut off until the wee hours of the morning. But after that, it will generally keep the interior at or below 80° even in the hottest part of the day.

The trick is, stay outside right until you're ready to go to bed, or at least until the bugs drive you indoors. The temperature inside might still be higher than your normal comfort zone, but it's so much cooler than outdoors that just stepping inside feels good, and you'll have no trouble sleeping despite the heat.

[Sneakinup]

I lived in my previous AS 72' Overlander with one AC for 2 years in Tampa FL while renovating a home. Florida summers are brutal. Fortunately, I had full time 30 amp service and supplemented the work for my AC with a small dehumidifier that was on all the time. It really helped by leaving it on all the time on a medium setting. I had a permanent drain set up to the outside so there was no emptying of buckets of water. When I would get home (to the AS) I would turn on the AC and the trailer would cool down much quicker and be more comfortable. I never wanted for a second AC with this setup. I already purchased a small dehumidifier for my "newer" (77) Airstream to help out. So far so good.

[rodsterinfl]

It is super hot and humid at my home. My first camp with my AS was up the road at a campground- super humid and above 90 with one AC. I can tell you that I have to turn mine down or it gets cold and damp inside- cools down too fast for the humidity to get all the way out. I have it dialed in about right now. Two years ago we went to South Carolina. During part of the stay it was a steam bath of rain and humidity- one AC did just fine. Previous to this I ran a piezo-type dehumidifier like sneakunup mentioned. I have to run the AC continuously in weather like that but monitor the inside humidity/temp. I bought one of those clocks that has both and used it to dial in the comfort. Another issue is that Dometic, assuming what you have, changed compressors and refrigerant somewhere around 2009-10.

[jayseejay]

We live much of the year in south Florida and do a lot of summer camping in the Keys and elsewhere in the area. Our prior 25 AC with no awning and a single 13.5 btu AC generally could not keep up in combinations of hot days and high humidity in full sun. It was the main reason we traded for our current 2015 27' Eddie Bauer. We have fixed the problem with dual ACs, the greater insulation afforded by ducted air, full awning package, and aftermarket heat rejection 3M film on all windows. Maybe this was overkill, but we wanted to be sure to address the issue. The unit now cools quickly, and stays cool (so far) under even the worst Florida conditions. Best, Joe

[dznf0g]

I'm in southern Florida right now. Have been to the south west as well. One a/c is fine. Small compromise for not carrying all that extra weight and having to have 50 amp hookup. It's really not as big a deal as some would say as far as NEEDING 2 a/c's. Imo

[dznf0g]

It is taking about 3 hours to cool to 72* after a 97* hot soak run all day. Very high humidity as well, full sun. I have one 13.5k in a 30 footer.

[xrvr]

Perhaps 72 degrees is overkill. We live in Florida and keep our house at 80 and the trailer the same. Use a fan with your AC. I think this is a Yankee thing as far as how cool it must be in the trailer or house. When we visit relatives in Ohio in the summer we freeze, in the winter we melt. AC is too cool in summer, heat set too hot in winter. Just my observations, Jim

[lsbrodsky]

Rich,

That is what my thinking was until this week. Maybe I should give AS the benefit of the doubt and assume they figured out years ago that if they installed a big enough unit for cooldown in really hot weather that it would not dehumidify under daily use. But I can see an advantage for the two A/C trailers in that scenario. One unit seems just fine if you let it run all day so that the heat never builds up inside, leaving the setting at say 78 or 80. But cooldown from 95 really never happens until outside temp drops.
In the beginning I said the trailer would sit in storage June-Aug and perhaps I will just stick to that plan.

Larry

[dznf0g]

There is a lot one can do to improve th a/c performance due to sloppy builds. I am talking about the sealing between the hot and cold halves of the system. The foam under the shroud and using aluminum duct tape inside to seal leaks from hot and cold air flows. Makes a big difference.

[rodsterinfl]

I too have no issues with one AC and cooling. Most of my camping is in Florida. My unit is an 11K BTU, the smaller one, and it does fine. I have a theory, that the pano windows have a major impact on cooling and heating. Makes sense. There are just too many posts about burning up or cold drafts (winter). What is the area of a pano? I can calculate BTU from that based on a 25' with what I have already from mine.

[lsbrodsky]

OK, how does the shroud detach?
Larry

[KJRitchie]

I've camped in the Midwest during summer and the best my AC Can do is pull down to the low 80s during the day and mid 70s at night. Anything cooler is uncomfortable for us so it works out. In Zion NP yesterday it was close to 100F but little humidity. Temps in the rear living area was about 80 and the AS was in full sun I have the awning package fully deployed and it keeps the sun off the side windows that were in full sun. When the sun started to set the AC was able to cycle. We usually set the AC fan off Auto so the fan continuously runs. During the evenings here I cracked a bedroom window and turned the AC off and a Fantasic fan on to draw in the night air. No humidity here. Can't do that in the south or Midwest.

My AS has the vinyl ceiling and mouse fur walls so that may provide some additional insulation.

Kelvin

[AWCHIEF]

Everyone has different temp/humidity tolerance levels. I am comfortable at 78-80 degrees F. Anything lower and I start getting too cool, higher and I am warm. My personal issue is high humidity. The older I get the more high humidity levels drain me. I made Reflectix interior panels for all windows and overhead vents. I use them on the sunny side to block the sun and keep the cool or heat in as necessary. With an outside temp of 100 degrees F my single AC unit has no problem getting the interior down to 70. The AC unit is just over a year old and works very well as AC or heater for my 23 foot Safari.

[m.hony]

We had a 28' sob with one a/c. It worked OK, but I'm glad I have 2 a/c units now.

[lsbrodsky]

Seems like my experience is normal, so I have trouble understanding how Rich can cooldown with 1 AC in Florida in 3 hours. I do not want to go tearing things apart looking for ways to retape and insulate if I cannot expect much better results. Perhaps Airstream would not have moved to a 2 AC option if people did not like the performance with 1 AC in very hot climate conditions. Sure, we are spoiled but that is why we have an Airstream instead of a tent.
Larry

[Bill M.]

We avoid really hot weather when we can. On our 25' we can close the sliding door between the living area and the rear bedroom and keep all the cold air up front. We close off the bathroom. The biggest limitation is that we can not run the microwave and the air conditioner at the same time so sometimes we just eat cold stuff out of the fridge. Awnings out all around helps some. Any way you can shade it helps. A couple of spray downs with water on the top and sunny side if you are in a place that you can get away with that. If you are pulling it will be hot when you stop. Turn on the air and go find a place to eat. If you stay still for a day or so it seems better to keep the air running and keep it cool all the time.

[Gneiss Guy]

My first AS was a 25' Safari (2006) with one A.C. When we got to the Rockies it was wonderful, but from Nashville to the mountains, it sucked! We first got the full ZipDee package and it helped some, but just not enough. We then got a big roll of the aluminized bubble wrap, cut it to size to fit all the windows and kept it in place while moving. That also helped some, as the trailer didn't heat up as much during the day. I had it checked by a couple of people and it was cooling as efficiently as it was designed to do. We finally decided that summer in the south or the midwest is not the place to be in an AS with one A.C.

We recently acquired a 2011 FC 30 with two A.C.s and I am cautiously optimistic. We leave East Tennessee in early July, heading once more for the Rockies. We have at least three stops before we reach the mountains, so I will have a better feel for things then.

[lsbrodsky]

I should have mentioned that we found that we absolutely must have a fan inside blowing from rear to front to equalize the temperature, otherwise the bedroom area(front) is much warmer than the rear. The overhead unit blows to the rear. I know ducted air should solve that issue but I cannot believe that 1 AC would do the job in a 95 degree trailer, even with ducted.
I also found out that leaving the AC running during the day at a reasonable temp allows the unit to keep up and cycle.
If I am on a multiday driving trip, I do not disconnect so the option to go find a cool restaurant is out. So, it seems summer camping in the South/Midwest is indeed another compromise. I already committed to an August rally but next year I may go back to my store it in the summer routine.
Larry