Propane powered AC?
Since the fridge can run off propane; why can't a roof mount AC be ran off propane?
Forum Discussion
DrewE wrote:
I suppose one practical approach (more practical than a whole-RV absorption air conditioner, at least) might be to modify a truck reefer unit by replacing the little diesel engine with a propane-fueled engine. It wouldn't have much if any advantage over a propane fueled generator and traditional electric air conditioner except possibly being a bit more efficient overall (due to avoiding the conversion from mechanical to electrical energy and back again).
Most interesting! I don't know how efficient generators are but I would guess no more than 80%, so this approach using a propane engine to directly power the AC should be significantly more efficient than using a generator. The engine in either case is only about 25% efficient.
The downside is that you wouldn't have an electric AC to use at powered campsites, and would have a lot of noise on the roof.
