We went camping in the new camper last weekend on Lake Texoma and it was pretty hot out (around 98 degrees) and I have a 15,000 BTU A/C in the main cabin and had what I thought was a Dometic 15,000 BTU A/C installed in the upfront bedroom. It just didn't cool like my other unit in the upper bedroom I traded in, which had a 15,000 Coleman. I got to checking the model number for some online help and noticed it was only a 13,500 BTU. I'm not very happy and I am sure they will fix this on Monday when I call, but before I go through the hassle of taking my camper about 30 miles into Dallas is there really that big of a difference from the 13,500 BTU vs the 15,000 BTU. Is it worth the headache? I have an Onan 5500 generator so I should be able to run both fine I'm thinking. I would appreciate any thoughts. I wish people would do things right the first time. Ugh!!!
2012 Keystone Raptor 300MP Velocity Toy Hauler
2012 Ford F350
We have 2 13.5 Dometic on our 40' coach and it does get hot down here in Three Rivers. Is there enough difference between a 13.5 and a 15 to make the change....not in my book. Also, the 15 is "much" louder than the 13.5 and that may be the reason the 13.5 is in the bedroom area. We use a small tower fan to move the air around at the floor level and that works wonders.
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HawkTX wrote: is there really that big of a difference from the 13,500 BTU vs the 15,000 BTU.
The easy answer would be, yes, 1,500 BTUs, but does that really answer your question? Probably not.
Have you tried putting a thermometer at the two units, to see what kind of air temps you are getting from the two units? My first thought was that the unit up front may not be working very well, so you're not getting the cooling you expect...and that could still be the issue?
If you paid for a 15,000 BTU unit, you should get one, so either they should replace it, or give you the difference between what you got and what you paid for. I think I'd be looking for the larger unit, if you feel that this one isn't doing the job.
Also agree with the others, that a fan will make a HUGE difference in what you perceive in the temperature of the RV....the fans in the A/C unit aren't all that powerful, so it doesn't really circulate very well.
Before you go and take the RV in for the replacement, you should double-check your invoice, to make sure that you were supposed to get a 15,000BTU unit. Just because you thought it should be, doesn't mean that is what you bought, or what is on the bill of sale....just saying.
Good luck, and keep cool
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Check the inlet and outlet air temperatures. If the air is going in at say 75F and coming out between 53 and 57F, then the unit is working normally, because it is cooling the ideal 20F +/- 2F. However if the unit is taking in 80F and blowing out 70F, then it is only cooling by 10F, and that is the problem, the unit has a freon leak and is missing about 1/2 of it's freon.
High humidity will consume some of the unit's cooling capacity, because each pound of water made will consume about 1,000 Btu's of cooling capacity.
WHen I lived in Mesa Arizona, and only have a single 13,500 Btu air conditioner on my roof, and it was 107F out, humidity really low (like 7% RH) I could keep it at 85F inside, and it felt much cooler than outside. Sometimes I would block off my bedroom to concentrate the cool air into one room, but most times it was OK, and kept up sort of well. The key is mine has the correct freon level, yours probably does not.
Also I have about 20% of my roof shaded by solar panels, and at one point I used about 40 square feet of Reflex insulation to cover more of the roof, that seemed to make a difference too, until it all came apart and blew away in a windstorm. The roof insulation was not all that great, and that was also before I recoated my roof with white bedliner material.
So take in the RV if the temperature drop is not 18F across the air conditioner. Check both, so they can not tell you "15 is normal for a RV air conditioner and you where getting 16 - what is wrong with that?"
And if your build sheet says 15,000 Btu's and they put in a 13,500, then they are liable to install the upgraded unit, at this point especially if yours is not working properly, I would go for the larger unit, it will make a 20F temperature drop with each time the 350 CFM of air goes through the unit.
If the upstairs A/C is not cycling on the compressor frequently, try setting the main unit to say 85F for a short time, see if that brings on the bedroom unit. Then you can blame it on the energy management system for shutting off one compressor at a time, to save energy and keep the amp draw below a certain threshold.
If you decide to keep the current one, verify all the ductwork is sealed properly, pay particular attention to the divider between the supply and return at the units. My divider was laying on it's side, the return and supply was not even separated! Here is the sealing I did on mine. This had a huge effect on cooling.
Guess it kind of depends on what makes you happy. Personally, I want every BTU in can get out of an air conditioner. If Dometic made a 20k a/c, I'd buy that! We have two 15K a/c's on our 30' 5'er and there have been times in Fl. during the summer that we needed every BTU they could crank out. When I want to be cool? I want to be cool!!! If you prefer a 15k vs. a 13.5K and it won't cause your roof clearance up front to be excessive, I'd swap out the 13.5 most hubba hubba. JMHO.
Happy camping!!! See y'all down the road!!!
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I did pay for the 15,000. I can honestly tell the difference too. I'm going to call in the morning and schedule a swap. I want what I paid for. I appreciate the comments and advice.
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..not in my book. Also, the 15 is "much" louder than the 13.5 and that may be the reason the 13.5 is in the bedroom area. We use a small tower fan to move the air around at the floor level and that works wonders.
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, but does that really answer your question? Probably not.
