Evaporative Cooler vs AC

[cpaharley2008]

Seems that water quality is an issue for the system to operate properly......reading the reviews on Amazon

[rbryan4]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

Seems that water quality is an issue for the system to operate properly......reading the reviews on Amazon

It's always an issue with these kind of coolers. I grew up in Utah and we only had the swamp coolers at our house. Unfortunately, we also had very hard water. That oftem meant taking apart the swamp cooler and replacing the filter media that the water went through because it was completely covered in calcium. Water lines and the pump, same thing.

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[gyuill]

Are there any LP powered AC units? Use the frig to cool the trailer?

Graham

[rbryan4]

Originally Posted by gyuill

Are there any LP powered AC units? Use the frig to cool the trailer?

Graham

Yes, there are LP powered AC units - but they are for either commercial or residential use, since they are quite large and heavy.

An absorption fridge has a hard enough time keeping an insulated fridge box cool - no way it could cool the trailer interior as well.

[Brian B-P]

Even though many refrigeration units (for cold storage or for cooling occupied space) are based on an absorption cycle, they normally have a powered solution pump, so they do not have the propane-only operation of an RV absorption refrigerator.

As Robert said this design is just too bulky and expensive to be practical for air conditioning, especially in a mobile application; the variant driven only by heat (propane or otherwise) is even worse. My guess is that would also be inefficient, although the energy source is at least cheap and readily available (compared to electricity to run a pump or compressor).

[dfandrews]

Originally Posted by Brian B-P

Even though many refrigeration units (for cold storage or for cooling occupied space) are based on an absorption cycle, they normally have a powered solution pump, so they do not have the propane-only operation of an RV absorption refrigerator.

As Robert said this design is just too bulky and expensive to be practical for air conditioning, especially in a mobile application; the variant driven only by heat (propane or otherwise) is even worse. My guess is that would also be inefficient, although the energy source is at least cheap and readily available (compared to electricity to run a pump or compressor).

For those who have not done it, and would like to use up to an entire weekend, study Brian's posting of the absorption cycle carefully. The "Ah-Ha" at the end might be worth it. (It's also why my prof. hated to have to teach the thermodynamics portion of physics.)

[C&G in FL]

Originally Posted by Mike Lewis

I should probably run a dehumidifier in my trailer when it's parked at home in the liquid Florida air. I'm sure some people do.

I do exactly that. I attach the hose and run it into the sink and the gray water tank. The "sewer" cap has a "hose" outlet on it. That way I don't have to dump the tank every couple of days and the water goes onto landscape plants. Best of all, the trailer doesn't get "saturated."

[rbryan4]

That will make a big difference over time Carl. I've seen too many trailers in Florida and Louisiana and the like, whose interior was pretty sad after years there.

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[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by dfandrews

For those who have not done it, and would like to use up to an entire weekend, study Brian's posting of the absorption cycle carefully. The "Ah-Ha" at the end might be worth it. (It's also why my prof. hated to have to teach the thermodynamics portion of physics.)

Trying to really understand this stuff makes the brain hurt
The point is just that to make this run, there needs to be a pump... not what you want in an RV air conditioner.

[Mike Lewis]

Originally Posted by C&G in FL

I do exactly that. I attach the hose and run it into the sink and the gray water tank. The "sewer" cap has a "hose" outlet on it. That way I don't have to dump the tank every couple of days and the water goes onto landscape plants. Best of all, the trailer doesn't get "saturated."

Good idea. I've seen those sewer caps with the hose fitting and wondered about the purpose. Now I know. I'll set up something like this when I return home. Thanks.

[float5]

Originally Posted by Mike Lewis

Good idea. I've seen those sewer caps with the hose fitting and wondered about the purpose. Now I know. I'll set up something like this when I return home. Thanks.

The hose fitting is used by many to fill containers which people then pull to the dump, often with a vehicle, instead of having to take the whole trailer.

[Mike Lewis]

Originally Posted by float5

The hose fitting is used by many to fill containers which people then pull to the dump, often with a vehicle, instead of having to take the whole trailer.

Oh, okay. I've seen people doing that, at my current location no less. Eeww (IMHO).

[Earl]

Originally Posted by jjimmyb

Hello-
A friend recently turned my on to using an evaporative cooler (the brand is Turbo Kool) instead of an air conditioner to cool his travel trailer.
We live in the arid SW and will be doing a vast majority of our traveling here. We will mostly be boondocking as well, so AC will not be used very often. The evaporative cooler, however, runs on 12V.

We have used these swamp coolers before to cool our home, and they work great. We will have the solar option along with dual 6V batteries as well in our 19'er. Our completion date is July 20th!

My questions for you all are:
1. Does anyone have any experience with these coolers for an RV?
2. Did it work well? Drain your batteries? Any problems with leaks?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Jim

This is my first time posting...
We had a swamp cooler like the "MightyKool" that we used for two years in Australia. We set it to blow directly on us at the table or the bed. It made a difference when dry camping. It would not cool the whole camper. Current draw was low enough to run it all night. Good for those time when it was just a little bit too warm to sleep; not good enough when it was very hot. We carried it under the bed when not in use. Plan to get something similar here before next summer

[cpaharley2008]

I used a portable 12v unit in my first trailer w/o a/c. It worked fine, about 3 hours on a bag of ice when it was 90 degrees. I'd recommend using it again in the south west.