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  1. #1
    Long Hauler DaveMatthewsBand's Avatar
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    Running a window unit A/C off batteries while dry camping

    I recently purchased a 5,000 BTU window unit air conditioner to be used on warm days while we are dry camping in remote locations.
    In the video,we were already running our WiFi network and Weboost so we were using about 6 amps through the inverter before turning on the AC unit.
    I started at High Cool which is the maximum setting. At this point, the inverter display showed 40-41 amps draw.
    Then I went down to the Low Cool setting and didn't see any drop in amperage, then I switched it to the Fan setting so the compressor is no longer running, which dropped us down to 11 amps. Finally, I turned the AC unit Off, resulting in the original 6 amps. 41-6=35. So the window unit runs at 35 amps on High.
    My educated guess is, anyone with 500+ (492) watts of solar could run this unit pretty much all day. Since we have 1155 watts of solar on a good day we're pulling in about 75 amps.

    I realize this little unit wouldn't be practical for a large RV or for anyone camping in really hot places like 100+. That's not why I bought it. We follow the weather, staying up North in the Summer and down South in the Winter so we rarely experience temps below 40F or above 80F.

    This was purchased for those very rare warm days when it would be nice to drop the camper down about 10 degrees after a long hike or spending the day site-seeing. I doubt we'll even use it more than a couple weeks a year, but it's so small and easy to store it was well worth the $130 we paid for it!

    This initial test was done on a warm day (Aug 14th) in Washington state. The inside temperature of the camper was the same as the outside temp because we had all the windows and door open. It was 80 degrees Fahrenheit and 60% humidity. This little unit cooled our camper down to 71F in just under one hour.

    It is also FAR quieter than our roof air, which we rarely ever use at all because it is so incredibly loud.
    I will do more testing when we travel further South in the coming months!

    The unit I bought was the "Arctic King" from Walmart.

    Amazon sells one that is rebranded with their name and looks the same and according to the product description, it is the exact same size.

    https://youtu.be/jddiRoey3lc

    Links for both below:

    https://www.walmart.com/ip/Arctic-Ki...hite/222806043

    https://amzn.to/2TzT0LH
    Last edited by DaveMatthewsBand; 08-16-2019 at 12:25 AM.
    Resistance is Not Futile, It's Voltage Divided by Current.


  2. #2
    Seasoned Camper
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    Davemathewsband

    Do you have any images of how you have it mounted ?
    Sounds like a nicxe addition for you.
    Jim T.

  3. #3
    Long Hauler DaveMatthewsBand's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by ScopesNC View Post
    Davemathewsband

    Do you have any images of how you have it mounted ?
    Sounds like a nicxe addition for you.
    I didn't think to take a picture since it was just a mockup, using cardboard and painter's tape to fill in the 5" gap on the side.
    The unit is back in the box it came in and stored in our pass-through until we actually need it.
    I'm working on a more aesthetically pleasing solution to fill in the gap on the side.
    The window opening is about 1.5" taller than the AC unit so I just sat it on a pool noodle which made the unit fit perfectly, no external bracing was needed.
    These units are front-heavy so it is pretty much balanced in the window with about a 10 degree slope toward the rear which allows the condensation to drip off the backside, outside. It is 120v so I just plug it into the outlet in the corner by the door.
    The kitchen window is the best location in our Reflection, which puts it on the back wall with the air blowing down the center of the kitchen/living area.
    The red square in this stock photo shows its location.

    Click image for larger version. 

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    Resistance is Not Futile, It's Voltage Divided by Current.


  4. #4
    Seasoned Camper
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    DavemMathewsBand

    Thanks for the picture posting. Hope you can add a few other images once you use it.
    Jim T.

  5. #5
    Left The Driveway
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    DaveMathewsBand,

    I've always thought doing such a project would be feasible way to remove the humidity and give some cooling to a trailer that wasn't too big. With the weight of the AC being 40 lbs, do you have any reservations about the window frame developing cracks or leaks when it rains because of the vibration of the compressor/fan? I've thought about using a simple T support under the AC to take some of the pressure off the window frame. Glad to see someone who has actually tried, and plans to use this method.

  6. #6
    Big Traveler
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    Quote Originally Posted by gang63304 View Post
    DaveMathewsBand,

    I've always thought doing such a project would be feasible way to remove the humidity and give some cooling to a trailer that wasn't too big. With the weight of the AC being 40 lbs, do you have any reservations about the window frame developing cracks or leaks when it rains because of the vibration of the compressor/fan? I've thought about using a simple T support under the AC to take some of the pressure off the window frame. Glad to see someone who has actually tried, and plans to use this method.
    If you go to DMB's post and click on "Reply With Quote" to make your post as I've done here with you, DMB will get a notification. Might increase your odds of getting a response.

  7. #7
    Left The Driveway
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    Quote Originally Posted by DaveMatthewsBand View Post
    I recently purchased a 5,000 BTU window unit air conditioner to be used on warm days while we are dry camping in remote locations.
    In the video,we were already running our WiFi network and Weboost so we were using about 6 amps through the inverter before turning on the AC unit.
    I started at High Cool which is the maximum setting. At this point, the inverter display showed 40-41 amps draw.
    Then I went down to the Low Cool setting and didn't see any drop in amperage, then I switched it to the Fan setting so the compressor is no longer running, which dropped us down to 11 amps. Finally, I turned the AC unit Off, resulting in the original 6 amps. 41-6=35. So the window unit runs at 35 amps on High.
    My educated guess is, anyone with 500+ (492) watts of solar could run this unit pretty much all day. Since we have 1155 watts of solar on a good day we're pulling in about 75 amps.

    I realize this little unit wouldn't be practical for a large RV or for anyone camping in really hot places like 100+. That's not why I bought it. We follow the weather, staying up North in the Summer and down South in the Winter so we rarely experience temps below 40F or above 80F.

    This was purchased for those very rare warm days when it would be nice to drop the camper down about 10 degrees after a long hike or spending the day site-seeing. I doubt we'll even use it more than a couple weeks a year, but it's so small and easy to store it was well worth the $130 we paid for it!

    This initial test was done on a warm day (Aug 14th) in Washington state. The inside temperature of the camper was the same as the outside temp because we had all the windows and door open. It was 80 degrees Fahrenheit and 60% humidity. This little unit cooled our camper down to 71F in just under one hour.

    It is also FAR quieter than our roof air, which we rarely ever use at all because it is so incredibly loud.
    I will do more testing when we travel further South in the coming months!

    The unit I bought was the "Arctic King" from Walmart.

    Amazon sells one that is rebranded with their name and looks the same and according to the product description, it is the exact same size.

    https://youtu.be/jddiRoey3lc

    Links for both below:

    https://www.walmart.com/ip/Arctic-Ki...hite/222806043

    https://amzn.to/2TzT0LH
    DaveMathewsBand

    I've always thought doing such a project would be feasible way to remove the humidity and give some cooling to a trailer that wasn't too big. With the weight of the AC being 40 lbs, do you have any reservations about the window frame developing cracks or leaks when it rains because of the vibration of the compressor/fan? I've thought about using a simple T support under the AC to take some of the pressure off the window frame. Glad to see someone who has actually tried, and plans to use this method.

  8. #8
    Long Hauler DaveMatthewsBand's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by gang63304 View Post
    DaveMathewsBand

    I've always thought doing such a project would be feasible way to remove the humidity and give some cooling to a trailer that wasn't too big.
    With the weight of the AC being 40 lbs, do you have any reservations about the window frame developing cracks or leaks when it rains because of the vibration of the compressor/fan? I've thought about using a simple T support under the AC to take some of the pressure off the window frame.
    Glad to see someone who has actually tried, and plans to use this method.
    We've spent 2 Summers so far in the Pacific Northwest and 99% of the time don't camp anywhere we'll need air conditioning so we've never had any issues with condensation. So we've never owned or run a dehumidifier, I guess that's just a bonus feature of having this little unit.

    I realize the product documentation says 40 lbs but it doesn't feel that heavy, feels more like 25 or 30, and I am able to pop it into the window pretty easily.
    At any rate, that force is applied evenly across the 16" of window sill, so even if it is 40 lbs, that's 2.5 lbs per inch of window sill.
    It is also pretty much balanced, there's no stress on any other part of the window frame, so I'm not worried about it.
    I'm pretty sure the aluminum sub-frame supports the window casing too.

    As far as leaks or rain go, again this is a temporary and occasional solution for warm days, it doesn't spend much time in the window at all, a day or two max, so I doubt I'll put a lot of effort into making it completely leak-proof. I am using it today but I just stuffed some memory foam around the unit and it works just fine.
    We're experiencing abnormally warm weather in this part of Washington right now and it supposed to top out at 95 degrees tomorrow and we are sitting pretty much in full sun so that will be a good test to see how well it performs under extreme conditions. I realize 95 isn't what most people would call extreme but we generally follow the weather and purposely don't camp anywhere that gets hotter than that. If it was going to be 100+ for instance, we would just head North or up into the mountains, or maybe back to the coast.

    I'm just amazed at how well it works for something that costs just over a hundred bucks and only uses 35 amps!

    I purposely chose this model for the simplicity of the mechanical controls, most others have remotes but those fail and require additional electronics in the window unit. It's also so small it will fit in pretty much any window.

    Right now it's only $109 at Walmart:

    https://www.walmart.com/ip/Arctic-Ki...hite/222806043
    Last edited by DaveMatthewsBand; 08-27-2019 at 03:24 PM.
    Resistance is Not Futile, It's Voltage Divided by Current.


  9. #9
    Site Sponsor BigSwick's Avatar
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    that looks like a great idea for someone without solar but with a 2000 watt generator. What is the dimensions of the window opening you are using?
    Mine looks similiar, but according to the dimensions on the listing, it isn't big enough.
    ~Dean

    2019 Ford F250 Supercab, 6.2L
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  10. #10
    Long Hauler DaveMatthewsBand's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by BigSwick View Post
    that looks like a great idea for someone without solar but with a 2000 watt generator. What is the dimensions of the window opening you are using?
    Mine looks similiar, but according to the dimensions on the listing, it isn't big enough.
    The unit is only 16” wide and 13” tall and there’s about an inch of space above and 4” on either side, inside the window. So it should fit in pretty much any window you have.
    Obviously there are models that are physically larger with more output, if you have a larger trailer and a larger window. I purposely selected this one for it’s small size because I wanted to put it in the kitchen window.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    Resistance is Not Futile, It's Voltage Divided by Current.


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