How long do RV ACs last?

[lenr]

I've been through 3 Dometic air conditioners in 5 years. My son's Coleman is freezing ice on the evaporator coil--sure sign of low Freon. It's 3 years old and the freeze sensor is in place. We both run our ACs all summer long set to a high temperature to control moisture and keep cans from exploding in the heat. I did have a Dometic that lasted from 2005 to 2013, also run in the summer. Is Coleman now getting crappy Chinese evaporators like Dometic? So, how long should an RV AC last?

[timmac]

I have 2 Coleman AC's with heat pumps that are now 10 years old that has been used a lot here in the west/southwest heat and during the winter months, both have new fan motors but other than that they still keep my motorhome cool even at 110 degrees, if I ever have to replace I am sticking with Coleman..

[Big_Katuna]

Lots of people give lip service to wishing for better quality, but I can guarandamtee you if a high quality, squirrel cage, stainless steel beauty was available for 50% more it would rot on the stockroom shelf.

[dougrainer]

lenr wrote:
One other comment. I am not blaming China for poor RV AC quality--I'm blaming Dometic, Coleman, and anyone else for sending manufacturing to China without establishing a quality control program. No one complains about iPhones made in China because Apple includes quality in their relationship with the Chinese manufacturer.

RVP/Coleman's are built in Wichita, Kansas. Doug
PS, with Chinese parts

[wa8yxm]

How long do they last 5-50 years (ok perhaps not 50) for the most part.

Carrier, Designed theirs with a built in problem. Even fixing it mine only lated about a decade. (the other one went faster) Carrier made a change later and I do not know how it affected the problem. but then they dropped out of the RV market.

My Advent Air .. Save for the fan.. is now about 7 years old (Guessing a bit) my Coleman 2.. The RV is 13 and came with carriers. (I like the coleman best).

[1320Fastback]

It's safe to say that Dometic today is not the Dometic of years past, as is true for most all manufacturers. Our 2015 model trailer was brand new when we got it and the AC was giving problems from day one. All the band aid fixes were done to it and the final fix was me throwing it off the roof. After much research, and seeing how many people online are saying their new in box replacement Dometic ACs we're failing, even on Class As I went with a Australia DESIGNED and BUILT air conditioner. Of course Dometic bought the company out and may kill off the brand but so far they have not touched the ACs or cheapened them out.

[lenr]

Service man says Freon is all gone after 3 years in son's AC. Pathetic. He also says he sees ones that are 15 - 20 years old still running fine. Of course, they were made 15 - 20 years ago. Duh! Good news is this guy has a line on scratch and dent RV AC units out of Elkhart. So, replacement is about one third the cost of anywhere else. So, if you have to replace them every few years, nice that they are inexpensive.

[lenr]

It is a wall T-stat. Son said freeze sensor was up in the evaporator. He's going to get an evaluation soon to help decide money now or wait until spring.

[wa8yxm]

I won't tell you how many times I've gotten flamed for saying that low refrigerant causes Icing. Nice to see someone who knows what they are talking about. However it is not the only cause.

Is your coleman a "local control" or is it a Wall t-stat? The Local control models DO NOT have a frost sensor so they can indeed ice up from "other causes" the remote's do. That's about all I an tell you other than Clean everything both inside and out.

[Desert_Captain]

midnightsadie wrote:
lot has to do with your incoming power. if they are running on low volts its tuff on them ,could burn a new out in a heart beat.

X2 Look at all of the discussion here about running AC with less than ideal {120 volt} AC. Smallish generators and 15 amp power cords may get them running but the low voltage takes a toll. A decent EMS will add years to the life of any AC by protecting it from voltage fluctuations.

Also consider realisitc expectaion for performance. Most RV Ac's will only get you 20 degrees of cooling vs the outside abient temperature if they are sized properly for the RV. A 13,500 BTU AC in anything over 27' is expected to do things they were never engineered to do.

The Coleman on my Nexus is 6 years old and going strong and living in southern Arizona it gets a workout on a regular basis.

As always... Opinions and YMMV.

:C

[Second_Chance]

We've used our 15K and 13.5K dometics full-timing for three years, now. We spend a lot of time in the deep south and New Mexico - it gets plenty hot in both places. We have a Progressive Industries EMS that takes us off-line if there's anything wrong with the electrical grid (under- or over-voltage, phase or ground issues, etc.). Electrical protection will go a long way toward extending the life of your ACs and other appliances.

Rob

[Big_Katuna]

I’ve replaced both Colemans at 12 years.

Are you sure the others were truly bad? I used to make PCTRs fail prematurely by flipping the breaker off when they were running. Acted like a bad unit next time you used it. You should always turn it off at controller.

[lenr]

One other comment. I am not blaming China for poor RV AC quality--I'm blaming Dometic, Coleman, and anyone else for sending manufacturing to China without establishing a quality control program. No one complains about iPhones made in China because Apple includes quality in their relationship with the Chinese manufacturer.

[lenr]

Thanks for all of the replies, confirming my suspicions.

[lenr]

A few more answers: My 2013 and 2015 Dometics failed from Freon loss as told to me by the service man, likely caused by a leaking evaporator with lubricating oil all over it. Strikes me that that voltage problems would be more likely to cause compressor burn out than Freon loss. I am very voltage conscious. We haven't had my son't Coleman diagnosed yet--he is currently baking in a hot campground for the weekend. His previous AC lasted 9 years before the unit was sold.

From the responses and my own family's experience, I must conclude that around 2012 when significant Chinese manufacturing entered the business, the longevity plummeted. Those with great stories were built before then, including both myself and my son.

While ordinarily shy of extended warranties, it would seem to be a no-brainer in the case of an RV AC.