EasyStart Install -- in One Image

[rmkrum]

Originally Posted by Tombomb68

I was wondering why I should buy the easy start for $300 when I can just buy a capacitor and time delay relay for the fan?

The EasyStart also provides undervoltage, overcurrent, and compressor protective lockout functions as well as a much smarter control of start current than a simple capacitor and time-delay relay. These functions would have most likely prevented the destruction of the compressor in our original A/C unit. Fortunately the insurance covered the replacement...

[Troutboy]

The battery bank can help with the peak starting, but I think you need the right inverter/charger that will augment from the battery. Victron and Magnum make such a hybrid. I have the Victron and it works well.

[10Smiles]

Finished my install and the five "learning" starts. I left all the parts in the electrical box in case I want to reverse the process in the future. Now I have to break out the Yamaha 2000i generator and give it a test.

[10Smiles]

I ran the AC (in heat mode) on the little (blue) generator for a few hours today. It seemed to work great. It was a bit cold out (mid 40's), so the heat pump was not the most efficient, but it did warm the trailer up. Great!!

[Mx468]

Will this work with the original 1972 ac unit that came with my airstream? If yes is the coupon code still effective? Thanks.

[gypsydad]

Originally Posted by afk314

I'm under the impression that the EasyStart and 2000w generator solution doesn't necessarily perform at altitudes above 5000'. That is understandable, technology has its limits.

I'm wondering if I can put my (planned) lithium batteries into use to help with the startup if I find myself in a situation where the genset+ES combination won't start/keep it running?

Next question is - if thats true, will my lowly stock 1000w kick out anywhere near what I need?

I love the EasyStart solution, just want to make sure it covers the primary use case - summertime afternoon naps in between insect hatches on a favorite trout stream!

-Adam

I would suggest contacting Mateo, before getting the Easy Start and verify if your 2000W generator will work with the Easy Start. My Champion 2000W would not; only Honda or Yamaha, I believe. I recently purchased a 2017 28' and a Champion 3400W Dual Fuel so I could run the AC with propane. It does work well with either AC unit, without the Easy Start.

I am now looking into weather I can run both AC's if I install an Easy Start on just the 1500 of the AC? Mateo??

[The Ice Man]

Installed the Easy Start today (Saturday afternoon and 75 here in Tucson) and got the E7 error code. Called Matteo at the 609 phone number and got an immediate response. It doesn't get any better than that!!

Impressive customer service.

Turns out that there are 4 white wires in contention and we selected the wrong one. Make sure the one you select is the one that comes from the compressor. See POST #58, above. We came to that conclusion about the time Matteo called back and he confirmed our diagnosis.

After the 5 learning starts on a 30 amp circuit, I switched to the Honda 2000i -- success! Then, a 15amp household circuit (but used a heavier 20 amp extension cord) and again, success.

In this day,it simply doesn't get any better than that -- great customer service with a product that does exactly what it's supposed to.

Hats off to the folks at Micro Air and Matteo in particular.

One happy camper...

[upnorththree]

Hi Everyone.
It may appear I know what I'm doing but, don't be fooled.

I am about to order an Easy Start but, I keep reading about putting it through a 'learning' process. I have no idea what that is and, everyone doing it has a home 20-amp line for this learning process.

I just took delivery of a 2200/1800 watt inverter and made a test 'run' at climbing to the top of our 25' FC and am alive to write about it.

What's this 'learning curve', why five attempts and what if I don't have a 20 amp house line?

Your input would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks one and all,
Popeye

[DaveP]

If you do not have 120 volt hook up, find it some where. It is easier.

The "learning curve" is the processors in the EasyStart learning the circuitry in your A/C. It is called fuzzy logic learning and let's leave it at that. Takes three to five tries.

[Micro-Air]

Originally Posted by upnorththree

What's this 'learning curve', why five attempts and what if I don't have a 20 amp house line?

Hi Popeye. I believe I also saw and responded to your inquiry that you sent to our website, asking the same question.

The EasyStart's 5-start learning process is an optimization routine that it carries out to establish some critical parameters that are matched to your particular A/C's compressor. This allows EasyStart to fine tune and optimize its start-up surge reduction, thus allowing it to achieve the superior results of 65-70% reduction.

Since the 5 starts are precisely compared by the firmware algorithms in the EasyStart, it is important that the power source be stable and solid (i.e. utility) so that the results achieved are the best they can be. If a utility power source is not available, it is possible to use a generator or inverter source, but you must take a few extra steps in order to achieve good results.

First, you should make sure everything else inside of your trailer is turned off at the circuit breakers, especially the converter, water heater, refrigerator, etc. Second, if your generator has an ECO mode, you should make sure it is turned off. Third, if you have access to a larger generator that you can use temporarily, then go with that instead. The first startup of the five is the most critical.

After the learning process is completed, you can switch between utility, generator, or inverter power as often as you'd like, and you can operate your generator with its ECO mode turned on. Depending on the size of your generator, some power management may still be necessary since 13.5k or 15k BTU A/Cs consume between 1650W and 1900W when running steady-state, depending on weather conditions. For example, a 2000W generator could not handle both the A/C running and the converter in rapid (bulk) charging mode at the same time because most Airstream converters consume close to 1000W just when they're running in bulk mode by themselves.

I hope this helps you.

[FishByFly]

For a while now I have wondered:
1. Does the EasyStart continue to learn over time as it is used to optimize the process or is it a 5 times and done?
2. If one doesn’t think they got a good learning process, is there a reset to have a do over or is it a one time done and that’s it?

[Lumatic]

Originally Posted by upnorththree

what if I don't have a 20 amp house line?
Popeye

Nowadays it would be uncommon to have a 120 AC house circuit less than 20 amps which is standard.

[upnorththree]

Originally Posted by Micro-Air

Hi Popeye. I believe I also saw and responded to your inquiry that you sent to our website, asking the same question.

The EasyStart's 5-start learning process is an optimization routine that it carries out to establish some critical parameters that are matched to your particular A/C's compressor. This allows EasyStart to fine tune and optimize its start-up surge reduction, thus allowing it to achieve the superior results of 65-70% reduction.

Since the 5 starts are precisely compared by the firmware algorithms in the EasyStart, it is important that the power source be stable and solid (i.e. utility) so that the results achieved are the best they can be. If a utility power source is not available, it is possible to use a generator or inverter source, but you must take a few extra steps in order to achieve good results.

First, you should make sure everything else inside of your trailer is turned off at the circuit breakers, especially the converter, water heater, refrigerator, etc. Second, if your generator has an ECO mode, you should make sure it is turned off. Third, if you have access to a larger generator that you can use temporarily, then go with that instead. The first startup of the five is the most critical.

After the learning process is completed, you can switch between utility, generator, or inverter power as often as you'd like, and you can operate your generator with its ECO mode turned on. Depending on the size of your generator, some power management may still be necessary since 13.5k or 15k BTU A/Cs consume between 1650W and 1900W when running steady-state, depending on weather conditions. For example, a 2000W generator could not handle both the A/C running and the converter in rapid (bulk) charging mode at the same time because most Airstream converters consume close to 1000W just when they're running in bulk mode by themselves.

I hope this helps you.

Thanks Matteo and everyone else.

Yes, I see your email came through and thank you. Very gracious.

After reading the replies I'm wondering, since I can control the timing of this 'learning process', would it be possible I wait until I get to a campground where 30/50 amp facilities are available to me for the learning process?

Afterall, I won't be needing the AC for some time given we live north. I'm guessing the use of the heat pump feature after the Easy Start installation but before the learning process won't have an affect on the learning process when that time comes. Would that be accurate?

Thanks again,
Popeye

[upnorththree]

Originally Posted by Lumatic

Nowadays it would be uncommon to have a 120 AC house circuit less than 20 amps which is standard.

Nowadays your theory may hold true in some parts of the country but, it is not practiced as much as you may think.

Here, if it's not in steel conduit it doesn't get wired, while in most parts of the country that rubber-stuff, I think it's called romex, is widely used.

Our home was built in 1953 with 20 amp lines throughout. As trades today are looking for maximum profits our new 4 car garage was wired 15 amps (in conduit) which is code.

My closest 20 amp line is too far to run extensions since I believe power would drop too dramatically to be effective.

If their is an electrician out there to prove me wrong, I'm all ears.

[Al and Missy]

Originally Posted by upnorththree

Thanks Matteo and everyone else.

Yes, I see your email came through and thank you. Very gracious.

After reading the replies I'm wondering, since I can control the timing of this 'learning process', would it be possible I wait until I get to a campground where 30/50 amp facilities are available to me for the learning process?

Afterall, I won't be needing the AC for some time given we live north. I'm guessing the use of the heat pump feature after the Easy Start installation but before the learning process won't have an affect on the learning process when that time comes. Would that be accurate?

Thanks again,
Popeye

The heat pump is just the AC running with different refrigerant flow. From a power perspective it is the same as the AC. Until the Easystart has trained, you may not be able to start the heat pump on generator and will be stressing the compressor if you do.

Just my opinion, Matteo will probably chime in with more authoritative data.

Al

[rmkrum]

Originally Posted by upnorththree

Nowadays your theory may hold true in some parts of the country but, it is not practiced as much as you may think.

Here, if it's not in steel conduit it doesn't get wired, while in most parts of the country that rubber-stuff, I think it's called romex, is widely used.

Our home was built in 1953 with 20 amp lines throughout. As trades today are looking for maximum profits our new 4 car garage was wired 15 amps (in conduit) which is code.

My closest 20 amp line is too far to run extensions since I believe power would drop too dramatically to be effective.

If their is an electrician out there to prove me wrong, I'm all ears.

Nope, you are exactly right. Lighting circuits are often wired with 15-amp circuits per NEC. Most 20-amp convenience outlet circuits are breakered at 20 amps, but the cheap back-wired outlets are only rated for 15 amps max.

A real 20-amp circuit would have a short run, have minimum 12-gauge romex on it, and a real 20-amp outlet rated as such. I have ONE in my garage that is inches from the breaker panel, and has a single 20-amp outlet and breaker. This one can probably pull 20 amps, although I bet its back-wired like the rest of the originals. I need to fix that soon. The rest are barely to code...and most of the ground (safety earth) connection screws fell off from inadequate tightening when I replaced them with better grade outlets wired UNDER the screws like they should be.

[upnorththree]

Originally Posted by Al and Missy

The heat pump is just the AC running with different refrigerant flow. From a power perspective it is the same as the AC. Until the Easystart has trained, you may not be able to start the heat pump on generator and will be stressing the compressor if you do.

Just my opinion, Matteo will probably chime in with more authoritative data.

Al

THAT'S GOOD ENOUGH FOR ME. Thanks.

I'll just wait for a campsite because I think I'll lose amperage/watts if I run a 50 foot extension cord to our house 20 amp outlet.

Thanks again for the 'warning'.

[Micro-Air]

Hi everyone. I've been out of the office on business the past 3 days, so sorry for the delay in responding to everyone. I'll try to catch up below.

Originally Posted by FishByFly

For a while now I have wondered:
1. Does the EasyStart continue to learn over time as it is used to optimize the process or is it a 5 times and done?
2. If one doesn’t think they got a good learning process, is there a reset to have a do over or is it a one time done and that’s it?

Hi FishByFly. In regards to your questions: (1) The EasyStart does NOT continue to learn over time. Many years ago, we experimented with learning continuously versus learning one-time. We found that the latter is MUCH better, avoids problems, and makes the device much more robust. (2) Yes, the learning process can be reset by temporarily moving the computer jumper to pins 4 and 6 on the 6-pin header along the edge of the circuit board inside of the EasyStart. With the jumper in this position, it resets the learning process back to zero (i.e. unlearned or factory reset). After conducting one start with the jumper in this "relearn" position, the jumper must then be moved back to its "parked" position for all the subsequent starts so it doesn't keep resetting back to 0 with each power up. The parked postion is pins 3 and 4. All of this is covered in the EasyStart installation or troubleshooting manuals, which can be found on our website.

Originally Posted by upnorththree

THAT'S GOOD ENOUGH FOR ME. Thanks.

I'll just wait for a campsite because I think I'll lose amperage/watts if I run a 50 foot extension cord to our house 20 amp outlet.

Thanks again for the 'warning'.

Hi UpNorthThree. The key to conducting a successful 5-start learning process is "consistency in the power source". So, you could attempt learning on the 20-amp outlet, even with a 50ft extension cord. It'll likely work well since the first learning start already knocks down the starting surge by about 45% (reaching 65-70% reduction after the 5th start and all the learning optimizations are done). Just make sure that EVERYTHING else in the trailer is turned off at the circuit breaker before attempting this, including the out-of-sight and sometimes-elusive converter! After learning is completed, you can restore as many auxiliary loads that the power source can handle when the A/C is running at its steady-state current load. For example, if you are running your trailer on a 2000W generator, and your A/C draws 1700W (~14A) when its compressor is running, then the net sum of all of your auxiliary loads cannot exceed 300W, lest you cause the generator to overload for reasons completely unrelated to EasyStart! (Many people don't realize that power management is always required when using any limited power source.) And of course, as explained above to FishByFly, if you are not satisfied with the learning results, you can always re-initiate the 5-start learning process at anytime by temporarily moving the jumper inside of the EasyStart.

[70CT]

I have 2 units and for my unit that I have the easy start on will not stay on. It starts up the A/C and then cuts power 3-4 seconds in and tries again. Then I get the E5 code that pops up on the thermostat. I am hooked up to 50amp power with a surge protector and all with good solid power. The unit that has no easy start works without issue. Not sure where to start...

[Micro-Air]

Originally Posted by 70CT

I have 2 units and for my unit that I have the easy start on will not stay on. It starts up the A/C and then cuts power 3-4 seconds in and tries again. Then I get the E5 code that pops up on the thermostat. I am hooked up to 50amp power with a surge protector and all with good solid power. The unit that has no easy start works without issue. Not sure where to start...

Hi 70CT. Sorry you're having trouble. Please send me a PM and I'll do my best to assist you.