Air Conditioning Question for SoCal, Arizonia, New Mexico

Remeron

Member
Hi everyone,

Just curious what are people's opinion about the cooling capabilities between 1 versus 2 air conditioning units for their Road Warriors? I currently reside in Canada and plan to do some longer trips into Southern United States in the SoCal, Arizona, and New Mexico region. Our RW310 came from the factory with only one a/c unit which is adequate in maintaining the unit cold in the PacNorthWest. Some opinions will be greatly appreciated. Our rig was ordered with the dual pane windows, and extra underside insulation package and heated tanks. I doubt these would make much difference in creating efficiency in keeping the heat out of our rig and keeping the cool air inside.

Thanks for your input!
 

caissiel

Senior Member
We winter in the south for the past 9 years. Seldom use the AC.
Can't imagine loosing the comfort of loosing the bedroom vent when parked while traveling.
It's the best vent for natural air flow in the summer here in the maritimes.

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TravelTiger

Founding Texas-West Chapter Leaders-Retired
You'll definitely need 2 Air Conditioners for summer in the southern U.S.

X2! We went form Dallas, Texas to Las Vegas, Nevada and back one summer in our ElkRidge with 2 ACs. Definitely needed!!


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taken

Well-known member
It's not just about how hot it is, it's about how quickly it cools. We added a second this spring for just this reason. Living and camping mostly in New England, the main ac would have been fine if started when cool in the morning. However, when starting when the rig is already is hot, the main ac could never catch up. Another trick for this while traveling is to start your generator a couple of hours before getting to your campground and firing up the ac. Helps to have a nice cool rig when you arrive. Again though, last year we did this while traveling during a heat wave to a park about 3.5 hours from home. Had the main ac on for 2 hours before we got there and couldn't get the temp below 83. That's when we decided we needed another unit. As for loosing the vent this concerned us as well but after two trips this year, we don't miss it. We actually found the ac blocked a lot of light in the early morning allowing us to sleep in a little better while on vaca. We took the fantastic fan that was in the BR vent and moved it to the bathroom so it was a double upgrade.

You can get a second unit for around $600 shipped and it's easy to install yourself as your trailer is prewired for it. We went with the Atwood Air Command 13.5. It comes with a remote control that you can keep in your nightstand and use from bed. We also bought two new ac duct vents for our BR and Bath vents so we could close them completely when running the BR AC. This will divert more air from the main ac to the LR and garage.
 

TandT

Founding Utah Chapter Leaders-Retired
If you are going to travel the southwest, I definitely recommend ordering with the second A/C. Trace
 

pegmikef

Well-known member
When we ordered our 3010RE which is somewhat smaller than a lot of HL fivers I told my wife that we'll try just one AC and I'll put a Vortex fan in the bedroom, because we can always add a second one later . . . .yeah, right! We picked the rig up in the first part of July, put in the fan and took a test trip to a COE park on Proctor Lake, near Comanche, Texas and the second or third week in August I was at Big Country RV in Abilene, TX having the second A/C installed. I figure it only cost me about 400 dollars more than if I had ordered and an extra 200 mile round trip to Abilene.

By all means, order the second one!
 

DocFather

Well-known member
When we ordered our 3010RE which is somewhat smaller than a lot of HL fivers I told my wife that we'll try just one AC and I'll put a Vortex fan in the bedroom, because we can always add a second one later . . . .yeah, right! We picked the rig up in the first part of July, put in the fan and took a test trip to a COE park on Proctor Lake, near Comanche, Texas and the second or third week in August I was at Big Country RV in Abilene, TX having the second A/C installed. I figure it only cost me about 400 dollars more than if I had ordered and an extra 200 mile round trip to Abilene.

By all means, order the second one!

Excellent advice! It is always easier to tune down 2 A/C to feel comfortable whereas it is impossible to cool more when the only ya got one is maxed out.
 

Remeron

Member
Thanks everyone for the advice. Unfortunately we are leaving this Saturday for our month long road trip. We are starting in Vancouver, Canada and will be following I-5 south with stops in Mount St. Helens WA, Medford OR, Stockton CA, Palm Springs, Los Angeles, San Diego, Yosemite, San Francisco and back up the Oregon Coast. I am hoping that our single air conditioner will keep us cool - using the tips which you guys have suggested. I have pretty much decided on purchasing and installing a second A/C once we get back. I'll have to keep an eye out for sales on the Camping World website.
 

Bob&Patty

Founders of SoCal Chapter
Your RW should be pre- wired for the 2nd A/C. Not tooo hot in Socal yet...86* today but wait a month. The weather should be nice along the coast. Just be prepaired for all the traffic and the crazies in cars.
 
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