21' NE air conditioner

[1200bruce]

I walked in a brand NE 21 and my head hits the air conditioner do they have a lower profile inside air conditioner they can put in there?
Thanks

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by 1200bruce

I walked in a brand NE 21 and my head hits the air conditioner do they have a lower profile inside air conditioner they can put in there?
Thanks

You must be quite tall. Look into the Houghton Belaire unit being imported by Advanced RV in Ohio. Much quieter than the Dometic and the indoor profile may be a bit more favorable. Advanced RV was doing all the installs initially but may now be in a position that they will send these out to OEM's for them to install. Would be nice if Escape would consider it as an option. Much more expensive but might be worth it if you aren't hitting your head and you'll be able to hold a conversation with it running. A custom mini-split install recessed in an overhead cabinet like I have done completely takes care of the overhead clearance issue but is much more complicated and something you would likely need to do yourself.

My original post about Houghton Belaire unit:
https://www.escapeforum.org/forums/f...tml#post271225

Another video showing the sound difference:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qk7Ol80x2K0

[cpaharley2008]

or, just take your shoes off while inside, that should help with clearance.........

[padlin]

Get the 5.0TA.

[Vermilye]

How do they deal with the 240V & 50 Hz?

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by Vermilye

How do they deal with the 240V & 50 Hz?

Jon: I assume you are referring to the Houghton Belaire unit that I referenced above. Advanced RV is importing a version of the unit made for 120V 60Hz. Supposedly they have the exclusive license to distribute the unit in the U.S.

[steve dunham]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

or, just take your shoes off while inside, that should help with clearance.........

I just learned to duck down when walking under the A/C the same way I do when going out the entry door . It’s an acquired skill

[tdf-texas]

Originally Posted by steve dunham

I just learned to duck down when walking under the A/C the same way I do when going out the entry door . It’s an acquired skill

Steve, you are a better person than me.

I continually smacked my head on the Casita door head knocker to the day I sold it!
You would think that I would learn to duck sooner or later but it didn't happen.

Thank goodness, the 21 Escape is fine for someone 5' 10" - no head knockers!

[steve dunham]

Originally Posted by tdf-texas

Steve, you are a better person than me.

I continually smacked my head on the Casita door head knocker to the day I sold it!
You would think that I would learn to duck sooner or later but it didn't happen.

Thank goodness, the 21 Escape is fine for someone 5' 10" - no head knockers!

You learn fast when you don’t have any hair to cushion the blow !

[rjbny]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

Jon: I assume you are referring to the Houghton Belaire unit that I referenced above. Advanced RV is importing a version of the unit made for 120V 60Hz. Supposedly they have the exclusive license to distribute the unit in the U.S.

Must not be exclusive. This unit from a company called RecPro seems to be the same thing (after reviewing photos/videos available on web). Currently running about $1200 with a coupon online and free shipping.

https://www.recpro.com/rv-air-condit...te-non-ducted/

Photos on the web are branded "RecPro by Houghton", but the actual units only have Houghton on them and it is model A3400 (see photo below). Houghton is an Australian company (see packaging). The unit arrives on a steel pallet and everything seems high quality.

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by rjbny

Must not be exclusive. This unit from a company called RecPro seems to be the same thing (after reviewing photos/videos available on web). Currently running about $1200 with a coupon online and free shipping.

https://www.recpro.com/rv-air-condit...te-non-ducted/

Photos on the web are branded "RecPro by Houghton", but the actual units only have Houghton on them and it is model A3400 (see photo below). Houghton is an Australian company (see packaging). The unit arrives on a steel pallet and everything seems high quality.

Great news that this unit can be procured without going through Advanced RV! This unit should be much quieter than the standard Dometic and Coleman units. This could be a game changer for those that want a quieter unit without wanted to do a custom installation of any sort (i.e. mini-split). Please post a video with the unit in operation once your are complete!

[mfschu]

Rec Pro site quoted me $1,375. It's a little more than the new Coleman, but if it's that much quieter it might be worth the trouble and added cost.

[rjbny]

Originally Posted by mfschu

Rec Pro site quoted me $1,375. It's a little more than the new Coleman, but if it's that much quieter it might be worth the trouble and added cost.

Current price on RecPro site still showing $1299.95 - https://www.recpro.com/rv-air-condit...te-non-ducted/

Coupon code gets you 5% discount = RVWITHTITO

[tacchino]

We tried talking to AdvancedRV about their unit. Was concerned that the length of the unit was going to be a problem. It's longer than the Dometic that ETI installs and longer than the reinforced section on the roof. We were trying to get a solid answer out of AdvancedRV about whether there would be any supports / weight that fell on the roof beyond the raised / reinforced section that is built in but they stopped responding to us.

[tacchino]

Better photos on the RecPro site than what AdvancedRV had. Hard to tell but maybe all the weight of the unit is at the mounting site?

[rjbny]

Originally Posted by tacchino

We tried talking to AdvancedRV about their unit. Was concerned that the length of the unit was going to be a problem. It's longer than the Dometic that ETI installs and longer than the reinforced section on the roof. We were trying to get a solid answer out of AdvancedRV about whether there would be any supports / weight that fell on the roof beyond the raised / reinforced section that is built in but they stopped responding to us.

Yes, the ~4" of additional length was also something we considered. Weight wise, the units are comparable. Here is a photo of the bottom of the Houghton.

On our 19', the support blocks highlighted in red do land on the back edge of the raised/reinforced section of the roof. If the supports at the rear had extended beyond the raised area, we likely would have had to add new ones.

All this proves, however, is that the unit does fit on the second gen 19'. The important dimension is the distance between the cutout on the roof and the back edge of the raised roof section. An owner would need to look closely at this dimension on the model they are considering modifying.

Doing the install has challenges and we seriously considered just having AdvancedRV do it, but we can't see making the trip out to Ohio in the near future. I consider them to be a high quality company with an excellent reputation, which actually gave us confidence in the Houghton unit.

[tacchino]

Originally Posted by rjbny

Yes, the ~4" of additional length was also something we considered. Weight wise, the units are comparable. Here is a photo of the bottom of the Houghton.

On our 19', the support blocks highlighted in red do land on the back edge of the raised/reinforced section of the roof. If the supports at the rear had extended beyond the raised area, we likely would have had to add new ones.

All this proves, however, is that the unit does fit on the second gen 19'. The important dimension is the distance between the cutout on the roof and the back edge of the raised roof section. An owner would need to look closely at this dimension on the model they are considering modifying.

The shroud on our 2020 21NE is 36'' front to back and the hole cut out starts about 2.5'' back. How does that compare with your 19 do you know?

[rjbny]

Originally Posted by tacchino

The shroud on our 2020 21NE is 36'' front to back and the hole cut out starts about 2.5'' back. How does that compare with your 19 do you know?

Just measured - it appears to be the same.

[mfschu]

Is the 36" length for the Dometic? The Houghton is 44" long. So it sounds like the Houghton is 8" longer than the Dometic model Escape is using.

[rjbny]

Originally Posted by mfschu

Is the 36" length for the Dometic? The Houghton is 44" long. So it sounds like the Houghton is 8" longer than the Dometic model Escape is using.

No, the 36" refers to the length of the raised section of the roof on the 19. The Penguin II is 40" long and the Houghton is 4" longer.