Coleman Roof Top AC Units

luvrbus · July 17, 2023, 07:30:23 AM

Quote from: chessie4905 on July 17, 2023, 06:48:21 AM
Spend the extra money for the heavy duty version. Thicker tubing and heavier duty components.

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A Coleman rep told me the Ruff Neck is just heaver plastic the condensers, evaporators and components are the same except they use metal blower fans blades

chessie4905 · July 17, 2023, 03:51:38 PM

I don't know about that. Just checked. They are indeed built to withstand shock better in off road conditions, for example.
Need to fire that clueless rep

luvrbus · July 17, 2023, 05:42:06 PM

Only difference I ever saw on one was the way the fan motor was mounted and the fins,I was asking because I thought the shrouds would be better made and wouldn't blow off

Van · July 21, 2023, 04:20:11 PM

luvrbus · July 21, 2023, 04:42:45 PM

Quote from: Van on July 21, 2023, 04:20:11 PM

Where are you,I am next door and it is only 76 degrees

,Sprit Mountain sign say 132F I think the Indians are reading the asphalt parking lot

Van · July 22, 2023, 09:07:43 AM

Quote from: luvrbus on July 21, 2023, 04:42:45 PM

Where are you,I am next door and it is only 76 degrees ,Sprit Mountain sign say 132F I think the Indians are reading the asphalt parking lot

I saw that yeah, it was 76° in the bus this morning. Also I don't know where these people are getting their forecast. The temperatures from there roll over to place. 😉

Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM · July 22, 2023, 09:46:52 AM

Well, it could be worse. Your bus could be stuck in a snowbank like this Greyhound.

windtrader · July 22, 2023, 10:02:04 AM

OR could be here.

Jim Blackwood · July 23, 2023, 07:59:33 AM

So where are those rooftop units now, about Seer 15? (Might be wishful thinking.) That'd be sucking down about twice the amperage of a good mini-split of the same rating. Makes you wonder who is designing those things.

Jim

luvrbus · July 23, 2023, 09:03:59 AM

Quote from: Jim Blackwood on July 23, 2023, 07:59:33 AM
So where are those rooftop units now, about Seer 15? (Might be wishful thinking.) That'd be sucking down about twice the amperage of a good mini-split of the same rating. Makes you wonder who is designing those things.

Jim

Different crowds people buying RV's could care less about a Seer rating, Seer rating is only important to BoonDockers and full timers paying for power,most manufactured RV's stay in campgrounds with the price of power is included in over priced spaces.I have 45,000 btu's in 3 roof tops with 35,000 btu dash air and not setup for boondocking and could care less about the seer because I am always plugged into power and the generator works good if not plugged in. If I was a full timer or boondocker it would be different (maybe) .Jim I don't recall ever seeing a seer rating on roof tops only AMPS

windtrader · July 23, 2023, 10:56:13 AM

What Clifford says makes a lot of sense/ Rooftop AC are not designed for indoor use and those ratings are established by the DOE and the HVAC industry AHRI is the trade association representing manufacturers of heating, ventilation, air conditioning, commercial refrigeration (HVACR), and water heating equipment). I'm speculating the work is directed to homes and RV is not in the equation at all. Mini-splits and portable AC units are made for homes so receive ratings.
Measuring amperage while running across the range of cooling is an easy way to know definitately how much your own cooling requires. The ratings provide equipment efficiency but what about all the other factors that determine the actual energy requirements to keep interior at a given temerature. There is so much variability in glazing, insulation, roofing, shade coverage, etc. that SEER rating is only one variable in the true calculation of what energy you use.

luvrbus · July 23, 2023, 11:10:51 AM

Quote from: windtrader on July 23, 2023, 10:56:13 AM
What Clifford says makes a lot of sense/ Rooftop AC are not designed for indoor use and those ratings are established by the DOE and the HVAC industry AHRI is the trade association representing manufacturers of heating, ventilation, air conditioning, commercial refrigeration (HVACR), and water heating equipment). I'm speculating the work is directed to homes and RV is not in the equation at all. Mini-splits and portable AC units are made for homes so receive ratings.
Measuring amperage while running across the range of cooling is an easy way to know definitately how much your own cooling requires. The ratings provide equipment efficiency but what about all the other factors that determine the actual energy requirements to keep interior at a given temerature. There is so much variability in glazing, insulation, roofing, shade coverage, etc. that SEER rating is only one variable in the true calculation of what energy you use.

Very good explanation Don ,all I know about the seer rating the higher it is the longer the unit runs under reduced capacity .lol not good in Az at 122 F we need cold

chessie4905 · July 23, 2023, 02:47:22 PM

If you want to mess with mini split with seer of a million or so, fine. Rooftops are simple, easy to replace and start jacking the efficiency and the price will skyrocket even more. Campers and tt's are a very competitive market. You make a super efficient ac unit and you'll be priced out of the market.
Look for feds to address ac efficiency again soon. Water heaters are on radar now.

Jim Blackwood · July 24, 2023, 07:32:11 AM

I'm not sure I really agree with all that. Those power hogs on the roof are the single biggest amp suck in the rig, with almost all of the shore line and generator requirements being determined by how many warts you have. How many of you today could get by with a single shore line and still be comfortable in the summer? Not many I suspect. So it goes to more than whether you full time or boondock. Any time you have limited amperage available the power draw is a concern. Especially when you consider that a new 13.5K Btu unit can cost you 3 Kw of power which works out to 13.63amps at 220v. Just to make the math easy let's say a baseline of 1 amp per kw@220.

Now, I've seen warts with seer ratings around 9 and I've seen mini-splits with ratings of 36. That's a 4 to one ratio. That means that your 80K of Btu could cost you 80 amps of power that must be provided just for the AC. That means 17.6 Kw of power btw so a 24Kw genset is about the minimum for that rig.

OTOH if you had a 36 seer rating your energy requirements might be only 20 amps, which is only 4.4 Kw of power, requires a much smaller genny, and if spit between 3 units could each even be powered off a standard 110v circuit giving much more flexibility in the wiring and shore connections. The above is mostly a hypothetical so don't get your underwear in a bunch if your numbers work out a little differently. The idea is the same.

I don't blame anyone for not wanting to jump in and change what they have. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. BUT if the opportunity is there, it makes a lot of sense to go for the lower power requirement. Also it begs the question of why a rooftop unit has to be 4 times less efficient than a mini-split. I get that there are a few valid reasons, but four to one? Come on. That's not even close to realistic.

Jim

luvrbus · July 24, 2023, 07:54:40 AM

There will never be a high seer rating on roof tops Coleman looked into that several years ago and tossed the idea,maybe the Chinese will make one.No one ever says anything about the problems with mini splits for mobile use lol but I know they have some,and I know mini's take a long time to cool a hot bus like in the hours.I have no problem running 3-15000 btu Colemans off a 50 amp,Roof top AC couldn't be that bad they are you see on the 2-1/2 million dollar conversions