Leaky AC on new Flying Cloud

[Gene]

Using a compressor sounds like a good idea. If you are still getting water out of the hose by the wheel, there may be a partial blockage.

Gene

[KJRitchie]

I took my compressor to the AS in storage and applied about 25psi. The air seemed to pass through OK and didn't try to push back. I was able to prop the air nozzle on the tire and used a clamp to keep the air blowing while I walked into the trailer and checked the AC. With the air distribution housing and the mounting plate off I could air entering the drain pain. I then took my shop vac and connected it to the pipe. No evidence of restrictions. That's the good news, the bad new is if it starts to pour water in the trailer then my AC is not designed well to take care of the humidity. Being used an out of warranty I'm on my own. Might as well see if someone can modify the AC to drain outside vs the drain pipe of I'll have to get a new AC that drains to the outside. Might as well upgrade to a 15k BTU units. Hope AS can handle outside water.

Kelvin

[lewster]

Typical mess I see on drain pan installs from the factory. I have removed 3 drain pans in the last couple of months and had to cut them off the roof and clean up the mess.

They were replaced with new A/C units. 2 Penguin upgrades and one RVP Mach 8. The RVP had a drain pump system and the Penguins mount with Dometic's auxiliary drain kit.

All very clean and functional installations!

[KJRitchie]

Is it the design of the drain pan that is bad or the amount of caulking used inside the drain pan?

Could you cut a round hatch in the bottom of the drain pain, Clean the caulking from the inside tube fiting then glue the plug it back in and them fiberglass the exterior?

I'm actually look forward to some warm humid air to retest.

Kelvin

[Tater]

Our 10 FC leaked as well. We have very high humidity here as well. Try running the unit on high fan whenever unit is on. That helped our situation as we previously had to remove the shroud ans dry the connectors and reset the CCC. Try high fan speed only.

[KJRitchie]

I haven't used my Comfort Control Center (CCC) much so I'm reading from the user guide.

My AS has the heat pump so I only have fan speed low and high available. On mode Fan I've been able to change the fan speed between high and low. There doesn't seem to be an a lot of difference between the speeds. I'm assuming with the AC on the speeds are the same as in Fan mode.

When my AC dripped I removed the plastic air distribution box and with a flash light peered into the evaporator housing. I noticed the ceiling of the evaporator housing was wet. Did incoming air pick up the moisture from water that had pooled in the the plastic housing or is it cold enough in the evaporator house to condense against the housing that is exposed to hight outside temperatures. The outside shroud would keep direct sun off the evaporator housing but it would still be hot. I'm going to take my wireless infrared thermometer and see what it shows next time I'm out.

In Cool mode with Auto fan (heat pump equipped like mine) the fan will be on high if the temperature spread is 8 degrees or more and low when less than 8 degrees. I haven't checked if this is the way it works as I'm still not used to listening to the fan and determining if its in low or high speed mode.

When I remove the mounting plate I can see where the water has stained the dense foam insulation. The water seems to be dripping in center right under near where the tube comes out. I'm tempted to remove all that gray caulking and then reseal it with my own caulk and leave the tube to where I can see water flowing through it. Question is does the gray caulk come off easily,

I would think if its overflowing from the sides I would see residue else where on the foam but maybe the way the pan is angled the water has a tendency to bunch up there drip on to the foam then run into the C channel where it seems to run forward out the end in to the plastic distribution housing where it collects in the corner which then pools until it overflows the support and onto the floor it goes. I may take a little vibration to break the water tension and then you hear a stream hitting the floor. We didn't notice the leak until bed time and the AC was off and the moving to change for bed unleashed the dam.

Kelvin

[KJRitchie]

Maybe Airstream installed the drip pan in the wrong location. Instead of putting in the AC unit, mount it on the floor of the trailer

Kelvin

[Gene]

Originally Posted by KJRitchie

Maybe Airstream installed the drip pan in the wrong location. Instead of putting in the AC unit, mount it on the floor of the trailer

Kelvin

Good way to save on water when boondocking and you want a shower.

Gene

[TBRich]

Without seeing it first-hand, and since you have no obstruction in the drain tube, it seems to me that the excessive caulking might be limiting the area where condensation collects before running down the drain tube (it can only drain so fast) ... with not enough area to accommodate the amount of condensation if it's particularly humid ... so it's overflowing into the wrong place... Is it possble to clean up the caulking around the drain connection?

[lewster]

dump the drain pan !!!!!!!!

Why is it that Airstream is the ONLY RV company using such a device and seems to be the only one that has drainage problems???????

Not to mention that the thin wall, NON-REINFORCED junk drain line that they use does not help the situation at all!!!!!

Also Interesting that as of several 2012 models I have seen, the drain pan HAS BEEN DUMPED!! in favor of the DOMETIC AUXILIARY DRAIN KIT that every other RV manufacturer that installs Penguins with internal drain lines uses.

[Another Road]

We have a 2011 International that the AC would dump water under the right conditions. I removed the cover underneath the unit, and with a little research, found a hole in the drain pan (it's not really a pan) that was the result of an errant drill bit during installation. Once I showed the problem to the dealer they were able to replace the pan, and no I received no diagnostic fee. We are 6 hours from the dealer we purchased from..... things that make you go,hmmm.

Another Road

[KJRitchie]

Originally Posted by TBRich

Is it possble to clean up the caulking around the drain connection?

You can't get to the inside of the drain pan without going on the roof and removing the exterior shroud then removing the evaporator housing. Maybe then you can get to it but the blower squirrel cage housing seems very close. I'm not sure you could get a tool in there to clean up the caulk.

I'm spent a lot for this trailer and I couldn't sell it without a guilty conscious until I fixed this issue. So I will bite the bullet to have the AC removed and the other drain system installed if I find this summer my Airstream develops a second shower. The question is will the local AS dealer just look at me like a deer in headlights and not know what I'm talking about.

So with all the thousands of AS out there is every owner just carrying a mop with them and sucking it up or is this problem not as widespread as we think.

Kelvin

[HiHoAgRV]

Originally Posted by KJRitchie

You can't get to the inside of the drain pan without going on the roof and removing the exterior shroud then removing the evaporator housing. Maybe then you can get to it but the blower squirrel cage housing seems very close. I'm not sure you could get a tool in there to clean up the caulk.

I'm spent a lot for this trailer and I couldn't sell it without a guilty conscious until I fixed this issue. So I will bite the bullet to have the AC removed and the other drain system installed if I find this summer my Airstream develops a second shower. The question is will the local AS dealer just look at me like a deer in headlights and not know what I'm talking about.

So with all the thousands of AS out there is every owner just carrying a mop with them and sucking it up or is this problem not as widespread as we think.

Kelvin

My 34' has a 90's Dometic on the front and a 2 year old one on the rear. The 2 units are completely different looking under the shroud. The new one DUMPS water when the fan shuts off, this is when overflow happens and the bed gets wet. IMHO, the 2 year old one has a design that holds water in the evaporator as long as air is flowing (bad). Once the fan shuts off, GLUG, if it can make it down the drain, the flow looks like a water hose. If not, it's time to sleep on wet sheets.

[ROBERT CROSS]

Originally Posted by lewster

dump the drain pan !!!!!!!!

Why is it that Airstream is the ONLY RV company using such a device and seems to be the only one that has drainage problems???????

Not to mention that the thin wall, NON-REINFORCED junk drain line that they use does not help the situation at all!!!!!

Also Interesting that as of several 2012 models I have seen, the drain pan HAS BEEN DUMPED!! in favor of the DOMETIC AUXILIARY DRAIN KIT that every other RV manufacturer that installs Penguins with internal drain lines uses.

Lew,

Is this the "kit" of which you speak?

Pretty basic looking, for the price Dometic is charging.

Bob

[lewster]

Originally Posted by ROBERT CROSS

Lew,

Is this the "kit" of which you speak?

Pretty basic looking, for the price Dometic is charging.

Bob

Ding...Ding...Ding...Ding

Give that man a prize!!!!

That is the exact part. It is not rocket science to install it. Just be careful not to kink The thin wall, non re-inforced substandard drain tube that you will find in your Airstream's ceiling. Maybe get a 1/2" X 1/2" barb by barb 90º elbow to make the transition and you should be fine!

[KJRitchie]

So all our 2000 model year Penquin IIs can be modified to use this drain tube system? My AS is 2008 so its probably a 2007 vintage AC unit. The evaporator is above the drip pan and water trickles down into the pan then out the hole. I don't understand on that link the second photo. I see the round hole and I guess a drip cup is mounted below that hole and the same on the other side and then to the T which goes into the AS drain hose. How does the evaporator water get diverted to those outside holes? Is the orignal drain pan removed and another part installed?

Also I see the plastic tube goes through the gasket. Is there any danger of the tube getting squished when the lower mounting plate is tightened down.

I would sure be nice to have addtional photos so if I need this done I can then confer with the RV technician who will do the work. Right now I can't see how just adding the cups and the tubes and T sections is all you need.

Thanks

Kelvin

[KJRitchie]

I found this photo of the top of what I think is the Penguin II low profile. The evaporator comparment is in the front. Looks like you have to remove the foam strip. It appears the cover will come off the question is whether you can do anything once its' off. I would be nice to find a photo with the evaporator exposed.

Kelvin

[lewster]

Unfortunately, I just last week scrapped a couple of older Penguin units that I replaced due to lack of remaining refrigerant that had the aux. drip kits installed on them. I know a picture is worth a thousand words.

I'll check in the shop to see if I have any 'dead Penguins' laying about and take a shot of the bottom. It will make a lot more sense if you see it from that angle.

When installing the auxiliary drip kit, there is no need to open the evaporator covering. In fact, there is no need to even remove the outer shroud at all. I never do unless it is a new unit in a multi-unit install and the replacement unit has to have the dip switches re-set to it's new environment.

Stay tuned!

[TBRich]

We have never had this problem with our AC leaking, but that may be totally attributable to the low humidity we enjoy in the SW part of the country. It's not a problem that looks like one that's fun to deal with.

[KJRitchie]

I'm going out this weekend. Temps will be in the 80s and there is a chance of thunderstorms. If it starts to drip I'll drop the air distribution and mounting plate. I want to see where the water is coming from. I'll take photos.

Kelvin