Solar Powered RV

Hi Mr Wiz,

Tell us more?

MrWizard wrote:
i Put a $25 one on my first pre-owned class A, to cool the bedroom it worked well enough

We use a large swamp cooler in our house (plumbed into the HVAC ducting). Works very well as long as it's dry meaning under 30% or so humidity. Doesn't work very well over that. Doesn't use anywhere near the amount of electricity that our A/C unit uses.

i Put a $25 one on my first pre-owned class A, to cool the bedroom
it worked well enough here in So Calif, but i'm not pulling out a roof top BR A/C to mount a $500+ evap-cooler
the current pricing is outrageous, for the amount of cooling efficiency
and my sealed BR 'quiet' windows don't open
keeping the humidity controlled would be hard

its NOT about not using it with Solar
in the Right RV and right climate, its a good match for solar and cutting fuel costs

MrWiz, has help us along the way to better understand making good use of Solar for RV use. So, I guess if the swamp cooler idea was useful he might be using that idea. Yes, the cost was a jolt. Us old folks (like myself) can't understand all the price increases we see every single day. Maybe some one will come through with some personal experience with the use of the 'swamp cooler' I know they work in drier climate. How this idea might work well with 24/7 use of Solar would depend on many factors. If I were RV'ing with the use of Solar I might give it a try. Maybe just an old folks thought?

Old & Slow
Floyd

pianotuna wrote:
Hi mena,

I'm not concerned about the size--but all reviews on the aims are POOR and that is being generous.

Damn! Thanks for that info.

swamp coolers
not production costs
they used to be $100~
i remember buying good used working units for $25

iirc Dometic bought the company and jacked up the price

Mainstream EV LI batteries are WAY too volatile for RV use. Those require sophisticated management systems and auxiliary cooling. There are LI batts better suited to RVs.

Hi Floyd,

I don't understand why "swamp coolers" cost so darn much.

What about finding a wrecked Prius and using their Li battery pack and their 'Electric' air conditioner?

Everyone seems to be hung up on how to use their existing roof or window mounted AC units - but if someone is developing an all electric, solar augmented motorhome then they are going to choose or design new systems that are appropriate for the technology.

The Prius Li pack produces (from memory) 144V - that means thinner cables and more efficiency at the expense of better safety systems.

Looks like MrWiz has every thing (to me) correct all the way around. I have a LG 6000 Btu that only uses 560 watts, however that is way to much for RV Solar use 24/7.

Here is one idea. If you really need cooling, perhaps look into 'Evaporative (swamp type) coolers that have been mentioned by others. Tweety's shows several 12v units that will draw much less amps than the std A/C. Looking at the map, seems to me A/C is not always needed. Older now than RV'ing some years ago, with no A/C on board we lived out many dreams pulling our first TT, a 17 footer with three small kids. Lot's of great memories. RV type folks have a leg up on those motel kind. OMG yes, yes. What a life.

Solar can add some to the mix, that's a good thing.

Floyd