Thinking about adding a 2nd AC

All 3 of the fifth wheels I have owned had ducted AC in the bedroom. All 3 were 50A service and wired for the second AC. It could be tied into the ducts or not. I like ducted for when the trailer cools down the bedroom AC can be run in the daytime and keep it cool. Then at night switch to the main AC. Both times no noise where you are, living area or bedroom.

On the current trailer the living and bedroom are ducted and the third AC is not.

Is the second AC normally ducted or is it normally one of those direct vent or whatever they call it when it dumps into the room it is set up for?

Ours, in the bedroom, was added later and it is direct output into the bedroom. I think that would be true of most added units, though there may be some trailers which allow adding into the existing ducts.

Unless I am wrong, most added ACs are direct output.

BTW, we have not found this to be a problem. We use both ACs when we arrive at campsite, especially in the Texas heat and humidity, but have never had to run both after the trailer cooled down. I expect there might be some really hot days when it would take both units, but we have so far avoided staying in such conditions.

Sometimes we run the bedroom AC and turn off the main unit when we are sitting in the living room and watching television. That works good. It would work even better with a small fan to move the air out of the bedroom, but we always forget to bring one.

Here is a link to a guy that did a self install recently:


RV AC install

CW has both the units and the installation on sale this month.

Is the second AC normally ducted or is it normally one of those direct vent or whatever they call it when it dumps into the room it is set up for?

I added a second unit to mine and it was very easy as others have said. Mine was not prewired and I have a 30 amp unit so I ran a wire to the front compartment, installed a dual breaker box and from that box installed a 20 amp plug on the side. I then plug into the 20 amp receptacle on the pedestal. That way I can run both air conditioners and the microwave without tripping the 30 amp breaker. While I was at it I ran another line from the new breaker box inside and added another receptacle so I can run a second electrical heater in the winter again without tripping any breakers.

Humpty wrote:
Adding the 2nd AC was the best thing we ever did. Hardest part of the job is getting the unit on the roof.

X-2 If your handy it's an easy job, I've done about 6, couple for myself and the rest for friend.

rrbowman wrote:


How were you able to connect a thermostat to the new unit? Is there a second thermostat for the bedroom AC?

If it is pre-wired for a ducted unit the wires are probably already there. If not you just use the standard a/c grill that has the thermo and fan controls built in. If your going to tackle it yourself remove the trim ring for the vent and see what wires are there. The thermo wire will have about 6 wires in one sheath. You would then have to ask JAYCO where they would have put the thermo on the wall to find the other end.

SanMarMor wrote:
I added a second to ours. It was pre wired, and I bought a 13.5 on-line, had it installed by a local RV shop. All in buying and installing was just over $600 if I remember right. And it did make a difference. A side benefit, you can run only the bedroom AC if it's not too hot, and it is much quieter in the living area.

I got a 13.5 Dometic Brisk Air2 w/ inside distributor for $539 shipped.

Mark

How were you able to connect a thermostat to the new unit? Is there a second thermostat for the bedroom AC?

Halmfamily wrote:
You won't regret it, well spent money.

X2 It's hard to put a price tag on personal comfort. :W

Dan

zackyboy3rs wrote:
Local Rv service persons quote was $1300...my dealers quote $1000. Little surprised.

Recently, a couple people have posted about adding a dehumidifier instead of a 2nd AC, and were happy with it. A whole lot cheaper than a 2nd unit. Just sumpin' else to think about. :-)

Lyle