Dash Air Conditioning

Our dash air keeps us frosty in 90 degree weather while driving our 2013 Allegro with Ford chassis. See absolutely no need to run generator for coach air unit

Had problems with the dash air on our Winnebago 2011 Adventurer and had the compressor replaced because the seals were bad we were told. it was under warranty so no cost to us. However, the air still continued to blow warm air. Went back to Ford truck dealer and they found a hose had been rubbing against something under or on the chassis. This hose was not warranted so had to pay for repairs. That did, however, solve the problem and air is cold. The dealer told us that because the hose wasn't a ford installed part, they couldn't cover it. Has anyone else had this same problem with that or any hose rupture do to rubbing against the chassis?

dougrainer wrote:

Groover wrote:
Automotive air conditioners use a cool-reheat system where the air is cooled by the air conditioner and then warmed to a comfortable temp if full cooling is not required. It can even be heated to an elevated temp for de-fogging the windshield. If the reheat function is not shutting off properly it can make your airconditioner useless. Turn your system to "Vent" and the temp all the way down and see if the output air is warmer than the air coming in. If so, you have a heater control problem. Some Fords have a valve in the hot water line supplying the heater that is supposed to shut when no heat is asked for. If that valve leaks your air will be warmed somewhat, how much depends on the leak rate. My father had a Ranger with that problem new. The dealer's mechanics had no clue how the system worked or what that valve did. He finally replaced the valve himself and solved the same symptons that you are describing.

Good Luck.

ALL CORRECT. BUT, NOT for RV motorhome systems. Motorhome systems have no such blend door system like Automotive systems. Yes, if the Hot water shut off is seeping or not closing, the AC will not cool but when that happens on a motorhome system, the air output will be over 100 degrees and higher. Doug

Doug,

The Denso AC/heater systems used by Fleetwood in the 90s and early 2000s is indeed a blend door system. No water control valve used. I have personally been inside said systems, replacing exp. valves and heater cores.
It is a much more robust system than used in small truck cabs.

Richard
95 Bounder

rgatijnet1 wrote:
If the air coming out of your dash Ac ducts is not cool enough, the first thing I would check is whether or not you have a leaky heater control valve. If even a slight amount of coolant leaks past that valve it will cause the heater coils to get hot and raise the temperature of the air blowing into the coach. The adjustable heater valves are known for leaking so you may want to just add a cut-off valve in the syetem to stop water circulation during the months when you need AC.

That's a good point, to have a cut-off valve put on for the heater. I never use heat, never (while driving). I like it cold, ice cold, blowing right in my face.

Off topic, but my Dad inherited his brother's '02 Chevy Impala. I cannot believe how ice-freezing-cold that car dash air is. I've had many cars with perfectly great working air conditioners but I have never seen one as cold as this car and it's an 11 yr. old. I have had to turn it down when it's was almost 100 degrees outside with 90+ humidity.

MM.

If the air coming out of your dash Ac ducts is not cool enough, the first thing I would check is whether or not you have a leaky heater control valve. If even a slight amount of coolant leaks past that valve it will cause the heater coils to get hot and raise the temperature of the air blowing into the coach. The adjustable heater valves are known for leaking so you may want to just add a cut-off valve in the syetem to stop water circulation during the months when you need AC.

Don't know if U can , But I put a rod across behind Driver and Pass Seats and put a shower Curtain on it to contain the A/C air !

Worked For Me / Tyge

We have always run our dash air in the MaxAir position(no outside air is pulled in) 99% of the time, and occasionaly use our overhead dash fans on low to help move the air around. This keeps the front of the coach very comfortable back about 6-8 ft when outside temps are in the mid/upper 80's or cooler. After that, we start the gennie when outside temps start rising and turn on the front overhead coach air to supplement and set it's fan on high. On rare occasions, we have run the second coach air when in places like Az, NM, NV. Our vent temp exiting the dash air will remain in the 42-47 degree range regardless of how hot the out side temp is. Bottom line, keep the dash air on the MaxAir position, use the overhead fans on low if present, use the gennie and roof air(s) when needed. They're meant to be used and should not be sitting idle.

topflite51 wrote:
It is my understanding that the dash air in the MH was never intended to cool the entire coach while traveling. It is intended for the driver and front passenger. If it is working properly it should blow approximately 50degs when the ambient temperature is 70. On my F53 I set the fan to high, the temp to its lowest setting and press the recirc and vent buttons. I have driven considerable miles with the outside ambient temperatures are in excess of 100 degrees and I have yet to be uncomfortable, heck my wife even closes one of the vents blowing on her as she feels it is too cold. I have never ran the coach AC's while driving. I would not hesitate to do so if I were the least bit uncomfortable.

Same for me, very seldom do I use the roof a/c I do run it on occasion when in the high 90's but my dash air seams to do just fine. Maybe Fleetwood just does a good job of insulating.

It is my understanding that the dash air in the MH was never intended to cool the entire coach while traveling. It is intended for the driver and front passenger. If it is working properly it should blow approximately 50degs when the ambient temperature is 70. On my F53 I set the fan to high, the temp to its lowest setting and press the recirc and vent buttons. I have driven considerable miles with the outside ambient temperatures are in excess of 100 degrees and I have yet to be uncomfortable, heck my wife even closes one of the vents blowing on her as she feels it is too cold. I have never ran the coach AC's while driving. I would not hesitate to do so if I were the least bit uncomfortable.

I'm pretty sure the air hitting the doghouse from a V10 with the AC on is hotter than the air hitting the rear bedroom of a DP.
I rarely have to run my roof air, but there is only two of us and I close the door to the back and leave a roof vent open back there.
As was suggester earlier, you need to make sure the hot water is turned off to the heater and most DO NOT shut all the way off so I added a manual valve to mine. I also removed the cap tube from the evaporator so my compressor never turns off, but in the East after 4-5 hours the air flow will drop off because the evaporator is stating to ice over. Turning the AC off and running the fan on high for 15 minutes will usually melt the ice and your good to go for another 4-5 hours. Out West it rarely ices up because of the lower humidity. These changes let me run only the dash AC on days when it's 100. I do leave two of my AC's turned on so 20 minutes before getting to a CG on a hot day, I start the generator to cool the back of the MH down. If it gets too hot while traveling all I have to do is reach down and start the genny.
I also adjust the amount of freon in my system by making sure 90% of the condenser is 15-20 degrees hotter than the last 10%.