AC has trouble keeping up on the 8285WS !

DAISY BOYKIN · 05-22-2011, 04:08 PM

We are at the Mac Dill Air Force base for 11 days of R&R. The temp here is in the low to middle nineties, the A/C has been running constantly during the day on high. We are parked with the awning/ door side facing east and the large bump out in the living room is facing west. I had to cover all the windows with heavy towels to keep the heat out. The black window frames get so hot from the sun on the inside you can barely touch them. Even the little window going into the bedroom at the top of the stairs gets so hot it is unbelievable. Covered it with foil! Shade trees are sort of scarce here at the RV park. It seems the vents in the living room should put out more air. Oh, the air coming out the vents is at 40 Degrees with the outside temp at 93 degrees. The inside temp is at 79.5
degrees. I sure am glad I ordered the 15K A/C when "ROCKY" was built. The 13.5K A/C sure would not cut it for sure.

Forest River should take a closer look at the A/C ducting in the roof design. I feel the ducts should be larger inside in height so more air can travel through the system. The bedroom stays cool. At night time we set the thermostat at 73 Degrees, all works good, ac even turns off and on during the night keeping it comfortable.

Has anyone found a "FIX" for the AC in the 8285WS? Everything else works great, no complaints.

The_Stuff · 05-22-2011, 05:02 PM

here is a tip, get some aluminum foil and put that in the sun windows. it reflects the UV out again. Also if your AC ice's up then it wont put out cold again. try leaving a tiny window cracked in a far corner and see if that lets air flow go so the cold can take over.

**Herk7769** · 05-22-2011, 06:05 PM

If the AC runs continuously, it WILL eventually ice up. These air conditioners are designed to cycle on and off to keep the chiller from freezing. You should always set the temperature setting to be 10 degrees cooler than the outside air; NO MORE.

10 degrees cooler at 95 degrees is still a "hot" 85; BUT it will cycle and remove humidity. Trying to make it arctic in the camper will hurt your AC in the long run and most likely will freeze it up and airflow through the ice will drop to near zero.

DAISY BOYKIN · 05-25-2011, 03:06 PM

Found my fix for the A/C not keeping up with the heat. Still covered the windows with large beach towels, opened the vents on the A/C itself on the overhead (opened the rear one and the one facing the table). What a difference it makes. The temp between the outside and inside is now 20 degrees and holding. I left the four vents in the living room open, likewise for the two for the bedroom.

The conclusion is, the vent ducts for the four round vents in the L/R are not large enough or there is a problem with the plenum connection in the overhead.

Will research it when I return to home in Jacksonville, FL>

**Herk7769** · 05-25-2011, 03:35 PM

Sid,

You are quite right. The ducts to the round AC vents are too small for those of us who NEED air conditioning while camping the the Southwest and the Southeast. To get air into the bedroom at night the AC "dumps" must be closed and the round vents in the L/R have to be closed. Then I get good air flow to the bedroom.

When we are in the L/R and Kitchen area, I just open the dumps on the air handler. The round vents in the L/R are useless IMO.

08flagvlite · 05-25-2011, 05:16 PM

The air is not going to work as well in any situation when it is 95 degrees and you're in full sun. These campers aren't insulated THAT well, and those vents and the unit are on the roof- exactly where the sun is beating down on. I wondered about those newer model black window frames! I had bronze colored aluminum frames on my mobile home before I got double pane Vinyl windows, and they were the same way, you could not touch them without getting burned, they got so hot from the Florida sun. Incidentally, mine has a 13.500 unit, and it seems to work great! I don't go places that have no shade, though. Daisy the Boykin, I'll be at SHADY Hanna Park this weekend! Randy

cfsoistman · 05-25-2011, 05:20 PM

The only thing enlarging the ducts would do is reduce the velocity of the air. The blower will only push so much air and that's all. Think of it like a hose with the water turned on. If you allow the water to just run out the end it doesn't go very far from the end. Restrict it slightly with your thumb and the water flies out farther, Same amount of water different velocity. The reason it blows so hard out the dump grille is it straight off the blower and leaving at one central place instead of the numerous round registers. RV AC Units can't keep up due to the lack of R-Value of the insulation in the ceiling, walls etc.
Residential HVAC Systems are designed to bring the temperature down to a difference of 20 degrees versus the outside temperature. 95 degrees outside the best you can hope for is 75 degrees inside. As the sun goes down and temperature drops outside so will the temps inside. That's when a house is properly insulated and that's way more insulation than an RV.

DAISY BOYKIN · 05-26-2011, 09:37 PM

Herk, I have no problem with the vents in the bedroom, we have to sleep under a blanket at night. I leave the thermostat at 74 Deg, all round vents open, Dump vents closed, good cool sleeping. Even during the day time the bedroom is cool.

I believe there is some kind of restriction in the plenum ??? Will find out next week when returning home.

Randy, I know you will be in the shade at Hanna Park. I used to squirrel hunt there before it ever became a city RV park. Right now I am in the Mac Dill Air Force Base Rv Park in Tampa, a shade tree would bring a nice price right now.

2Susan · 05-26-2011, 11:53 PM

I`m wondering about shade cloth on the outside of the windows - especially the windshield of the motor home (Huge greenhouse effect there) Sure covering the windows on the inside helps but wouldn`t keeping it out to begin with be better --

I`d like to make my own - how to hold them in place is my issue. I was thinking magnets - one set sewn into the shade cloth, the other on the inside of the glass - obviously woudl take two people to install. Anyone tried this before

**Herk7769** · 05-27-2011, 05:37 AM

Susan,

Check out this bulk material.
Coolaroo Sunblock Fabric, Lawn & Patio, Coolaroo at Sportsman's Guide

They also have snaps pre sewn on cotton strips.
J R Products Type A, C & E 72", Rv, J R Products at Sportsman's Guide

2Susan · 05-27-2011, 09:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by herk7769

Susan, check out this bulk material.

I actually already bought some material - sun shade fabric in a neutral buff color. The question is on how to attach it. My sweet husband is reluctant to deface the outside of the motorhome with velcro or snaps. That is where the magnet idea came from.

I am wondering if anyone else has played around with this. Obviously keeping the sun from hitting the side of the unit would make a difference - especially the windshield which is not dual pane!

**Herk7769** · 05-27-2011, 09:56 AM

Last I checked magnets won't work on Aluminum.

You are pretty much stuck (pardon the pun) with snaps or velcro on the outside. Inside you have more options.

cfsoistman · 05-27-2011, 11:16 AM

Recreational Vehicles Windshield Covers

Saw this on TV a while ago. Not sure if it will work for you but it's a starting point.

2Susan · 05-27-2011, 02:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by herk7769

Last I checked magnets won't work on Aluminum. You are pretty much stuck (pardon the pun) with snaps or velcro on the outside. Inside you have more options.

Ha Ha Ha! Funny, no I wasn't thinking of using the magnets on the fiberglass sides but rather on both sides of the windows! Especially that big greenhouse called a windshield!

**Herk7769** · 05-27-2011, 02:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 2Susan

Ha Ha Ha! Funny, no I wasn't thinking of using the magnets on the fiberglass sides but rather on both sides of the windows! Especially that big greenhouse called a windshield!

The window frames are aluminum, not steel, in a travel trailer.
OH, you have a motor home!!!

I TOTALLY appologize.

2Susan · 05-27-2011, 02:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by herk7769

The window frames are aluminum, not steel, in a travel trailer.

I was thinking on the inside and outside of the glass so the magnets would hold the shade cloth in place through the glass. Saying both sides wasn't very clear was it?

Filthy Beast · 05-27-2011, 04:33 PM

I pulled off one of the round ceiling vents in the kitchen one time because the ac didn't seem to be working real well. Was I surprised when I could see light coming from the vent area for the fridge. used some great stuff and filled it in.

wayne anthony · 05-27-2011, 05:18 PM

Didn't realize there were vents on the a/c unit until herk mentioned it above. All mine were open, but still seemed like I got a fair amount of air out of the vents. Biggest problem so far is that after running the a/c for awhile, the round vents have a tendency to close. Was hoping the vented a/c would be more quiet than my old unit that the air came straight from the a/c unit, but it doesnt seem so. Maybe with the vents closed on the a/c unit it might make a difference.

PatrickCrotty · 06-04-2011, 07:44 AM

Sid,

I have the same model, same year, you have and just spent the last week at Henderson State Park in Destin Fl. I too had trouble with the A/C keeping up. There was a 20 degree drop in temp between the return air and the output A/C (15,000 BTU unit) so the A/C was doing as well as it could. But, I found that there was hot air coming throught the return screen from the cargo hold area. The return screen is located in the entertainment center. It is the botton left door. You will find it is not a opening door so you have to take the screw out of the right hinge they us to hold it shut. The return I'm assuming is used when heating the cargo hold in the winter. I opened the door and installed a block on the door, on the inside, and closed the door. It helped a lot. I was able to maintain 72 degrees with 97 degrees outside, but the A/C still did not cycle from 11am until 7pm. That was with the unit dump sldes open. I also found that the thermistat on mine may not be working properly. I have it set for 78 and it continues to run even though the temp it 72. If I tap the thermistat when it is at 72 it will cycle, but it will not go on again until it reaches 82 degree in the rv. Not good. The lovely wife gets hot and the trouble starts. So I'm calling my dealer today.

DAISY BOYKIN · 06-04-2011, 03:37 PM

Sorry Ladies and gentlemen, didn't me to hi-jack
the post, I had to go back and read to see what happened.

SORRY

Patrick, the screen door under the television is for the SUB-WOOFER speaker that is located in the compartment behind the screen door. It is also for the recycle of the heating system return air in the winter.

When I first got my 8285WS in Jan 2011, there is not a place I have not been in or looked at. The first thing I did when I got my 5 VER was to get a can of insulating foam, fill in around all the openings in the floor (under sink next to water heater, in storage compartment behind the false panel)
I stuffed fiberglass insulation around the heater duct, wiring, water pipes
near the water filter behind the door that you have to remove two screws to gain access. You have to remember there is also are openings underneath the lavatory in the bath for pipes, vent line, laundry chute. I only made a small drop-in panel for the laundry chute opening (D/W thought a small person might use this to get inside through the storage compt in case I left it open. LOL !

Hope this makes sense ????

Patrick, there is a web site that details how to change your analog thermostat to a HUNTER digital. ( about $20.00) Just type in convert analog thermostat in RV to Hunter digital thermostat. It will give you the wireing diagram. The hunter is about 1 1/2° differential (very accurate).

If you will PM me, I will give you details about how to change it and add a HI-LO fan switch to the thermostat.

The biggest improvement I have made about the A/C is the plenum box opening. I get more air now out of the vents on the door side because it is the air flow direction from the squirrel cage fan blower as it is cycled from the A/C on the roof. That is the direction of the flow of air as it comes off the fan down into the plenum box.

As I have stated before, I believe my A/C air flow has increased 75% to 100 + %. It really works !!!!!!!!

I will try the plastic rain gutter 90° elbow trimmed to fit into the vent to smooth the air flow as it goes from plenum to vent ducts. This will be my next project to even improve the air flow.

The air flow has increased so much now that when you open the "DUMP VENTS",there is less air coming out of the "DUMPS" because it now has less restriction in the plenum, the air now is traveling to the ducts and the round diffusers.

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