Excessive Heat in Fifth Wheel

Leave the fan in the ON position.

Our 5er does better than that. Also being in Texas we have been out in temps over 100 degrees and, for the most part, once the trailer is cooled the rear 15K A/C will keep it cool except for maybe the hottest part of the day.

I would guess either the A/C is not cooling properly or the trailer insulation is not adequate.

jsteward1976 wrote:
This is a 4 part question. I have a Columbus Palamino 5th wheel and went camping this week in Texas. The temperature was only 91, but I was in full sun. I have 2 A/C units. A 15,000 btu Ducted Air Conditioning - Living Room and a 13,500 btu Ducted Air Conditioning - Bedroom, but my trailer got up to 88 degrees inside. I even had the fan on and window shades down.

1.) Is this normal being in full sun?
2.) If I tinted the windows would it help alleviate the heat coming in?
3.) I’ve seen the awnings that go over the slides. Are those worth it to help keep the heat out?
4.) The trailer is a mid bunk. The 2nd bedroom got up to 95 degrees. There was barely any air coming out of the air vent. I took the cover off and felt around but did not feel any obstruction. Is this normal for a 2nd bedroom to not get good airflow?

Thanks - Jeff

Is this a new trailer? Have you run the AC's in the past with no issues? A little more info could help us help you.

Doesn't sound right to me. Check the temperature of the a/c air going into the return vs the the temperature coming out. There should be at least a 20 degree difference. Then if the filters are not blocked and the condenser on the roof is not clogged then there is probably nothing wrong with the a/c units.
Window shades (white shades) will help keep out the heat. Window tinting is questionable because the dark color in tinted windows absorbs heat which transfer heat. I had an Outback fiver with single pane non-tinted windows and I tinted them with 3M reflective tint which helped with interior temps.
Walk around with an infrared temperature gun and check various areas of the rig to find out areas of excessive heat transfer. You may be surprised at the differences due to dark colors on the exterior, improper insulation installation, etc. Of course, not much of anything can be done about those factors.
Awnings and slide toppers may help but not black. My awning is black and the amount of heat that accumulates under it is unreal. White would be harder to keep clean but would reflect much more heat.
If you have a clear "storm door" it will allow a lot of heat inside so keep the solid door closed.
Finally, a 3rd a/c unit OR moving the bedroom air to the middle of the coach would help. The bedroom is much less volume to cool than the high ceilings of the main level.
Good luck.

Do you by chance have slide toppers? They would help as well.

Window shades help alot on hot hot days. As someone said you have a air conditioner or disconnected vent problem. Air should be blowing out pretty good out of the vent.

Poor installation would be my guess.

Also possible you are icing up. Remove the inside covers and inspect. Look for ice on the evaporator coil. Look for the freeze sensor is placed on the evaporator coil. Plenty of posts where the sensor was poorly installed or has fallen away.

Also check the plenum divider. This separates the air in and air out. If it was poorly installed much of the air just circulates within the unit instead of being forced out to cool the RV.

I had both these issues.

And further I am certain that a portion of my precious cold air leaks into the ceiling cavity. Otherwise why do I get cool air coming in around the electric outlet by the tv. Quality is just non existent.

Some brag on how well a single A/C cools the RV and I believe they are the lucky few where the installer paid attention to some detail that day.

Best of luck.

What is the temperature of the air blowing out your AC vents?

I found with my trailer that the hole the a/c was sitting in did not have the sawdust removed prior to applying metal tape to seal up the area. Tape doesn't stick to sawdust. Not much was coming out of the ceiling ducts as the cold air was disappearing into the ceiling. I cleaned up the duct, re-taped, and it's been working fine ever since.

I think you have an air conditioner problem. Check outlet air temperature to see if they are both working.