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Old 03-24-2017, 04:29 PM   #1
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Difficulty Controlling uniform heat/cool temps between zones 1&2

I have a 2017 30' FC. Near as I can tell Zone 1 is the bedroom and Zone 2 is the main living area. The temperature sensor for Zone 1 is the thermostat and the sensor for Zone 2 is located on the living area wall between the TV and side window just above the coaxial cable connection to the Outside antenna. (I think).

Both AC/HPs are rated at 15,000 BTU.

Here's what happens. Set both zones for 75 degrees Automatic. If it is cool outside say 55 degrees both HP start Zone 2 first then Zone 1. But Zone 1 reaches set temp first. (Smaller area to heat), Zone 2 continues to heat to try and reach 75 degrees. Zone 1 now decides it's too warm and begins to cool down to 75. Since the ducting is shared by both it dilutes the heat cycle of HP for Zone 2 and the heating/cooling are out of sync and are fighting each other. The result being that a stable 75 degrees cannot be achieved. Same is true if starting up on the AC cool cycle when 90 degrees outside and set point inside temp 75 degrees F. Zone 1 AC unit cools faster than Zone 2 , Zone 1 overshoots set point as Zone 2 continues to cool then, Zone 1 begins to heat and fights Zone 2. Makes no sense.

What am I not operating correctly?
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Old 03-25-2017, 12:22 PM   #2
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Rather than using the Auto mode set them both as Cool or Heat as needed.
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Old 03-25-2017, 03:21 PM   #3
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A variation of the last suggestion would be to use Auto in the zone where it matters (depending on the time of day and temperature conditions) and then in the other zone, just turn on the Fan Mode to Low speed. With the bedroom door open, the "fan only" room/zone will be an acceptable temperature for occasional use, while the room/zone in the Auto mode will be comfortable. Of course it it is super hot or cold outside, this partial solution will not work that well.

Good luck, and please let us know what solution works for you.

Peter
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Old 03-26-2017, 09:05 AM   #4
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We had a 30' classic with the same problem...here is what we did.

Put the bedroom setting if using heat to a lower temp than the living area. Usually 5 degrees is plenty. If running ac then set the bedroom 5 degrees higher.

At night we only ran the living unit so the noise was less in the bedroom and it kept us comfortable.

A well seasoned airstream tech once told me to never run the fan on auto but always on high. The compressor will cycle but the fan keeps air moving and helps in humid climates to keep the coils from freezing up. Plus the noise is constant so you sleep better not hearing that fan kick on and off.

We are using the same procedure in our 26U now as it also has the twin ac heatpumps and have had no problems.

If you are camping in cold climate be sure the main unit is set to auto (not the fan but system setting has a auto too) because if the temps get below 40 degrees at night your heatpump will stop working and your furnace will kick on to maintain your temperature setting.

Play with it some and you will find settings that work for you. Dont mess with the time settings on the thermostat as those can cause undue stress and hairpulling!
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Old 03-26-2017, 11:54 AM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cabinetmaker View Post
We had a 30' classic with the same problem...here is what we did.

Put the bedroom setting if using heat to a lower temp than the living area. Usually 5 degrees is plenty. If running ac then set the bedroom 5 degrees higher.

At night we only ran the living unit so the noise was less in the bedroom and it kept us comfortable.


A well seasoned airstream tech once told me to never run the fan on auto but always on high. The compressor will cycle but the fan keeps air moving and helps in humid climates to keep the coils from freezing up. Plus the noise is constant so you sleep better not hearing that fan kick on and off.

We are using the same procedure in our 26U now as it also has the twin ac heatpumps and have had no problems.

If you are camping in cold climate be sure the main unit is set to auto (not the fan but system setting has a auto too) because if the temps get below 40 degrees at night your heatpump will stop working and your furnace will kick on to maintain your temperature setting.

Play with it some and you will find settings that work for you. Dont mess with the time settings on the thermostat as those can cause undue stress and hairpulling!

My wife HATES fan noise.
How about setting it on low?
Would it still work as. Described?
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Old 03-26-2017, 12:20 PM   #6
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Originally Posted by MelGoddard View Post
My wife HATES fan noise.
How about setting it on low?
Would it still work as. Described?


I thought the newer ducted systems are not as noisy.
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Old 03-26-2017, 12:25 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cabinetmaker View Post
We had a 30' classic with the same problem...here is what we did.

Put the bedroom setting if using heat to a lower temp than the living area. Usually 5 degrees is plenty. If running ac then set the bedroom 5 degrees higher.

At night we only ran the living unit so the noise was less in the bedroom and it kept us comfortable.

A well seasoned airstream tech once told me to never run the fan on auto but always on high. The compressor will cycle but the fan keeps air moving and helps in humid climates to keep the coils from freezing up. Plus the noise is constant so you sleep better not hearing that fan kick on and off.

We are using the same procedure in our 26U now as it also has the twin ac heatpumps and have had no problems.

If you are camping in cold climate be sure the main unit is set to auto (not the fan but system setting has a auto too) because if the temps get below 40 degrees at night your heatpump will stop working and your furnace will kick on to maintain your temperature setting.

Play with it some and you will find settings that work for you. Dont mess with the time settings on the thermostat as those can cause undue stress and hairpulling!
So in this regard there is no difference between the ducted system and the non ducted. In all the years I never could synchronize both units. I don't believe its important in any event.
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Old 03-26-2017, 12:55 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cabinetmaker View Post
We had a 30' classic with the same problem...here is what we did.

Put the bedroom setting if using heat to a lower temp than the living area. Usually 5 degrees is plenty. If running ac then set the bedroom 5 degrees higher.

At night we only ran the living unit so the noise was less in the bedroom and it kept us comfortable.

A well seasoned airstream tech once told me to never run the fan on auto but always on high. The compressor will cycle but the fan keeps air moving and helps in humid climates to keep the coils from freezing up. Plus the noise is constant so you sleep better not hearing that fan kick on and off.

We are using the same procedure in our 26U now as it also has the twin ac heatpumps and have had no problems.

If you are camping in cold climate be sure the main unit is set to auto (not the fan but system setting has a auto too) because if the temps get below 40 degrees at night your heatpump will stop working and your furnace will kick on to maintain your temperature setting.

Play with it some and you will find settings that work for you. Dont mess with the time settings on the thermostat as those can cause undue stress and hairpulling!
CabinetMaker- Thanks for the suggestion. Makes sense. Actually had begun to do something similar ( adjusting the temperature spread) just to make the system work. Wanted to use the Auto setting to make it easier for the wife to adjust. Appears that that isn't going to happen. Thanx
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Old 03-26-2017, 03:19 PM   #9
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Same in our '16 FC.

I ignore the 'actual' and balance 1 and 2 by feel. Zone 2 is usually 9 degrees higher than 1.

We also shut the vents off in the bathroom (why 2 vents there anyway?) as well as bedroom, to push more air into zone 2.

Good thread, I appreciate the suggestions as we've had this
problem for a while too.
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Old 03-26-2017, 04:00 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Llando88 View Post
Same in our '16 FC.

I ignore the 'actual' and balance 1 and 2 by feel. Zone 2 is usually 9 degrees higher than 1.

We also shut the vents off in the bathroom (why 2 vents there anyway?) as well as bedroom, to push more air into zone 2.

Good thread, I appreciate the suggestions as we've had this
problem for a while too.
Some clarification needed here. Do you mean set the Temperature in Zone 2 9 degrees higher than 1? Or Do you mean that Zone 2 sensor indicates it is 9 degrees higher than zone 1. I assume you mean here that this is on the heat cycle and the reverse would be true on the cold cycle?
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Old 03-26-2017, 04:31 PM   #11
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We have a '17 27FB International and have the same issue at times, one is cooling while the other is heating! I have resorted to running one unit at a time; we run the Zone 2 (living) at night so it's less noisy and run Zone 1 (bedroom) during the day, both on Auto so it's easy for my wife to adjust!

The new ducted units are more quiet as far as air noise but the units themselves still can stir up some racket! If it's 90+, we will just run both units on Cool and we're good to go.

Good luck finding what works best in your AS!
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Old 03-26-2017, 08:33 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by zapper View Post
Some clarification needed here. Do you mean set the Temperature in Zone 2 9 degrees higher than 1? Or Do you mean that Zone 2 sensor indicates it is 9 degrees higher than zone 1. I assume you mean here that this is on the heat cycle and the reverse would be true on the cold cycle?

Ah, yeah, I could have explained that better.

Example:

Zone 2 is set to 76F.

To get Zone 1 to cycle on/off "with" zone 2, we have to set zone 1 to 67F.

It gets pretty cold in the back. Hence why we shut off the rear 4 vents most of the time.
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Old 03-27-2017, 07:02 AM   #13
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It will never cool evenly.
The temperature sensors behind the televisions or by the refrigerator makes it even more complicated.
It is much warmer behind the flat screen televisions, so the air cools the main cabin down to less than the selected temperature.
Forget the numbers on the display and set it where it is comfortable.
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Old 03-27-2017, 10:17 PM   #14
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Thanks for all of the feedback. Will have to run an experiment to see what works for us. Ain't gonna be simple.
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Old 03-30-2017, 08:55 AM   #15
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Originally Posted by m.hony View Post
It will never cool evenly.
The temperature sensors behind the televisions or by the refrigerator makes it even more complicated.
It is much warmer behind the flat screen televisions, so the air cools the main cabin down to less than the selected temperature.
Forget the numbers on the display and set it where it is comfortable.


m. -

Would it be possible to pull the temp transducer out from the wall and provide more exposure to ambient?

I was thinking of trying to mount it on some type of 2" to 3" standoff but I haven't come up with any good mechanical solutions that would look ok in the living room.
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Old 03-30-2017, 10:09 AM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Llando88 View Post
m. -

Would it be possible to pull the temp transducer out from the wall and provide more exposure to ambient?

I was thinking of trying to mount it on some type of 2" to 3" standoff but I haven't come up with any good mechanical solutions that would look ok in the living room.


This is a fairly common problem with dual zone 27' and larger units that have a temperature gauge behind the tv and on a wall shared with the fridge. Bad design.

We just made a small hole in the plastic cage that surrounds the zone 2 gauge and pulled the loose interior wire that holds the gauge out through the cage about 2 inches. Hardly noticeable and helps get a more accurate ambient reading since it's away from the fridge heat.

Others have then covered the extended wire with k-cup like covers to insulate it from short term temperature swings in the air.

More than anything, we just set both zones to either cool or heat (not auto), and remember that zone 2 will always read several degrees warmer than Zone 1 and actual.

Best,
Joe
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Old 03-30-2017, 12:03 PM   #17
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Originally Posted by jayseejay View Post
This is a fairly common problem with dual zone 27' and larger units that have a temperature gauge behind the tv and on a wall shared with the fridge. Bad design.

We just made a small hole in the plastic cage that surrounds the zone 2 gauge and pulled the loose interior wire that holds the gauge out through the cage about 2 inches. Hardly noticeable and helps get a more accurate ambient reading since it's away from the fridge heat.

Others have then covered the extended wire with k-cup like covers to insulate it from short term temperature swings in the air.

More than anything, we just set both zones to either cool or heat (not auto), and remember that zone 2 will always read several degrees warmer than Zone 1 and actual.

Best,
Joe


Thanks Joe, some good ideas here.

Good thing I have an Airstream to fiddle with, lest I should need a hobby.

Rich
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Old 09-12-2017, 09:18 PM   #18
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My 2015 Flying Cloud 30 has the two zones as discussed. However, both AC units start and stop at exactly the same temperature setting on the thermostat in the bedroom. My thermostat fault codes show that zone 2 temp input is not present. Is mine not hooked up correctly by Airstream? Wondering if anyone has seen this issue.
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