Some tricks for keeping your rig cool.

[Lost]

Many years ago I worked construction near Palm Springs CA in the summer and learned alot about keeping your house cool. Where I camp in MI the shore power isn't the best to say the least. Were lucky to have 110 volts on a 30AMP hookup. There is no way I can run both AC's at the same time. This last week in MI it's been in the 90s with a heat index of 105. On our first day of camping this week in this heat everyones AC was cutting on and off in the campground and it was a lost cause to even try to get the rig cool. That night after it cooled down a little and we had more power I closed all the blinds, turned off all the lights etc then turned on the AC and set it at 64. By morning it was ice cold in the rig. I then reset the AC to 69 and we took off fishing for the morning. We came back in around 1:pm (It was too hot to fish any longer) and once again everyones AC was cutting on and off except ours, our rig was a cool 70 and the AC didn't have to work hard to get it cold, it just had maintain that temp. This works great for keeping your rig cool especially in low voltage conditions."bouncey:

[raytronx]

I put reflective bubble foil on all the windows, have the awning out to shade the rig and use vent pillows, makes and big difference. Most of the heat comes in through the vent openings and windows, we have huge ones.

Good tip running it at night to precool, another thing to do is open all the cabinets at that time to fill them with cool air too. Surprising how much heat gets trapped in the cupboards, once it cools at night I open them up for a while before bed to release it, otherwise it seeps out at night.

Ray

[Kristi]

I put reflective bubble foil on all the windows, have the awning out to shade the rig and use vent pillows, makes and big difference. Most of the heat comes in through the vent openings and windows, we have huge ones.

Good tip running it at night to precool, another thing to do is open all the cabinets at that time to fill them with cool air too. Surprising how much heat gets trapped in the cupboards, once it cools at night I open them up for a while before bed to release it, otherwise it seeps out at night.

Ray

Hadn't thought about the cabinets, great idea. Thanks!

[JRTJH]

Sunblock insect screen is available at HD and Lowes. You can put velcro adhesive tape on the outside frames of your windows, cut the screen to fit the window size and add velcro to the edges (matching the window frame. Then just press the screen in place on the window frame velcro. It will shade the windows and stop about 87% of the heat (per advertisement).

We used it on our big back window last summer on our "central American tour" and found that it significantly cut down on the heat buildup when sitting in the chairs inside that window.

[GaryWT]

110 is not bad, some place have 110/220 instead of 120/240. The first day is always the hardest and once cooled you should keep up. If you have 2 ACs then you need 50 amp. In the real hot weather it is a good idea to run the water heater on gas and be careful what else you run. We keep the shades down all day and general keep the temp at 64 or lower around the clock.

[crash]

Our Raptor has dark tinted windows and that helps out a whole lot too plus we have two fans that we use for our Bulldog (he really cannt take the heat that good so we have to keep him really cool):D

[davidjsimons]

If possible, I like to set up camp with the nose of my unit facing north. That affords me plenty of afternoon shade on the curb side, plus my unit does not have a south facing window.


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[Sparky]

We also close the bedroom door so the ac cools and maintains the living portion of the rv. Also make sure the ceiling vent located by the stairs is turned away from the stat. If it is blowing the cool air directly toward the stat the ac will cycle off early due to false temp readings.

[suza]

Thanks for all the great tips for keeping cool. We frequently dry camp, so we are always conscious of the heat and ways to keep the RV cool.

Oregon is not excessively warm and many of our campgrounds have partially shaded sites. We have been experiencing a long spell of unusually warm weather, however. We had our 5th wheel parked in the driveway, preparing for an upcoming trip. It received quite a bit of afternoon sun (though mostly at the front end, so there wasn't much direct sun coming in the windows). I was amazed at how cool the inside stays. Our 1996 Nash did not stay cool, at all - and had no AC. I guess the Polar Package is good for keeping cool as well as staying warm :cool: