Forum Discussion

Dynalmadman's avatar
Dynalmadman
Explorer
Jul 06, 2014

Running A/C on Low

Hi guys,

Wife and I are pretty new to RVing, just bought our 5th wheel a couple weeks ago and are loving it so far.

When we bought it, our salesman and the tech that gave us our walk thru instructed us to not run the A/C on lo fan because there was a greater chance of freezing up the unit. Lo was fine for heating but not cooling. A/C must be run on Hi.

Now we have 2 units, one in the main living area and another in the bedroom. They are pretty loud and wake us up every time it cycles on during sleep.

Finally, my question. Is this true? Are we risking a freeze up if we run the bedroom A/C on low? Didn't want to try it until I get some wisdom from you fine folks.

Thanks.
Michael
  • Golden_HVAC's avatar
    Golden_HVAC
    Explorer
    Jul 06, 2014
    Hi,

    IF the air conditioner is running so long that they rarely cycle off, such as a average RV with only 1 A/C unit, and they run 23 hours out of 24, then it can freeze on low speed, and normally will not freeze on high speed.

    Yet you have 2 A/C units in a reasonably small RV, so the compressors normally will cycle off for about 10 or more minutes per hour, and will offer time for any frost to get off the coils. Yes in your case, running on low fan will help it be quiet, and will not freeze the coil in normal weather.

    However in high humidity, it can still freeze up. If you leave the fan "On" then it will not cycle off and wake you when it restarts, and also it will thaw out any ice that might get on the coils during the compressor off time.

    Some say they will run the bedroom A/C on high speed while in the living area, and then the living area A/C on high while sleeping, and that keeps the noise "Over there".

    Good luck!

    Fred.

About RV Newbies

4,026 PostsLatest Activity: Jun 15, 2017