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Old 08-03-2019, 04:13 PM   #21
John Shasky
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I have a home south in Arizona. It is well insulated has double pane windows and a good AC System. On a 115 degree day I can easily maintain the house at 75 degrees.
 
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Old 08-03-2019, 05:53 PM   #22
jcurtis934
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I would be running a 20" box fan in the rv which will make things way more liveable for you. I also have wondered about black colored ac covers. Sure do love my old white rv with very few dark accents in the decal scheme.
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Old 01-30-2020, 01:48 PM   #23
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2014 Montana 3402RL/August 2019 Update: Well We are sitting here at 2 PM in the afternoon in Cave Creek Phoenix area (113 degrees outside). with both front and rear Acs running it is now up to 87 in the living room. Meat thermometer in an outlet measured about 66 degrees. I had placed spacers in the return ducts as suggested a year ago. I also took the intake air grills off and have the paper framed filters screwed into the ceiling temporarily, I thought it was working better. Thinking about cutting larger holes i the duct and put larger filters on the openings..Maybe the AC units are freezing up. I often wonder with the fact the the the accents on the exterior including the AC covers are black that maybe it causes the units to overheat, I'm sure the everyone who has problems with their Dometic dual systems has reached a high frustration point. Short of ripping out some ceiling panels and working on the cut system I don't know what else to do!!! I am close to a decision to sell/dump it. Not a very comfortable rv during the Arizona summers!!!!!
Your post raised my eyebrow...what did you decide to do with your Rig? We also have the same problem with lack of volume of air flow. Its crazy and we live in the south..tried all the tricks in the book. It seems the new AC units and 'ducts' are not doing the job. We are learning we are not alone. Not a year into our 2019 and we are ready to get rid of it.

AC with quick cool OR dump AC as some call it will cool the rig with a lot of volume. Current set up is awful..
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Old 01-30-2020, 02:21 PM   #24
John Shasky
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What I wish I could do

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Originally Posted by skippydoo View Post
Your post raised my eyebrow...what did you decide to do with your Rig? We also have the same problem with lack of volume of air flow. Its crazy and we live in the south..tried all the tricks in the book. It seems the new AC units and 'ducts' are not doing the job. We are learning we are not alone. Not a year into our 2019 and we are ready to get rid of it.

AC with quick cool OR dump AC as some call it will cool the rig with a lot of volume. Current set up is awful..
**********************

I wish I was physically able to cut larger holes in the return air ducts and see if that takes care of the problem and make other modifications to help. I'm not! We are seniors almost 80,

I have for sale signs on the front and back and have the unit sitting her right now. My recreation is baiting mouse traps and checking them every few days.

We had some good trips and I love the floorpan of the 3402 but heavily dissappointed in the AC system.

I think a commercial "mini-split" Ac would work better. I saw a trailer with the condenser mounted on the bumper to supplement the rooftop. Great idea

My latest problem was the transmission unit on the bedroom slide out motor. Gears blew for the second time. Had the same problem four years ago. As I have had those two incidents and the real AC failing and the fireplace failing when it was new,

I might have broken even on the cost of the extended warranty. I guess that means I paid for the repairs/replacements in advance! Should I be hoping for more failures to make it worth it? Just kidding! Pain to take the unit to Camping World 50 miles away for the routine: Evaluate, authorize, order parts, repair, and then pick it up a couple weeks later with a dead battery. The unit is fixed right now waiting for the next problem.
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Old 01-30-2020, 02:39 PM   #25
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**********************

I wish I was physically able to cut larger holes in the return air ducts and see if that takes care of the problem and make other modifications to help. I'm not! We are seniors almost 80,

I have for sale signs on the front and back and have the unit sitting her right now. My recreation is baiting mouse traps and checking them every few days.

We had some good trips and I love the floorpan of the 3402 but heavily dissappointed in the AC system.

I think a commercial "mini-split" Ac would work better. I saw a trailer with the condenser mounted on the bumper to supplement the rooftop. Great idea

My latest problem was the transmission unit on the bedroom slide out motor. Gears blew for the second time. Had the same problem four years ago. As I have had those two incidents and the real AC failing and the fireplace failing when it was new,

I might have broken even on the cost of the extended warranty. I guess that means I paid for the repairs/replacements in advance! Should I be hoping for more failures to make it worth it? Just kidding! Pain to take the unit to Camping World 50 miles away for the routine: Evaluate, authorize, order parts, repair, and then pick it up a couple weeks later with a dead battery. The unit is fixed right now waiting for the next problem.
LOL, you too experience the CW 'pick up with a dead battery'....WE thought it was just us. Similarly we thought at first we only had the AC problem. The more I google the more I see others do too.

Well, good Sir please know your not alone. We are going to take a hit on our 2019 M High Country....its a darn shame. Yes we have nice trips as long as temp is not above 70. Take care. Thanks for answering...Skippydoo
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Old 01-30-2020, 04:43 PM   #26
BUBBA-NONNIE
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Do you run your ac on auto or manual?
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Old 01-31-2020, 12:14 PM   #27
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Do you run your ac on auto or manual?
i usually run the ac on manual. That is another item that requires a degree in Engineering to figure out the operating instructions.

A few times when I have had it set to auto during the summer I have come out of the house in the morning (the 5th wheel is hooked up on my property) the AC has been running and it is down in the 40's in side it.

As the ceiling ducts are common between both units. i have the Living room unit set about 3 degrees higher than the bedroom. That seems to keep both rooms at about the same temp. In the hot weather the rear living room unit needs the boost from the bedroom!
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Old 01-31-2020, 12:24 PM   #28
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Yep. That is what I do. I do run a small circulating fan. Even in hot (100-105) weather my ac works ok as long as block the windows from getting direct sun. I have never had it as low as you got yours.
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Old 01-31-2020, 02:16 PM   #29
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We also use manual---
The auto would keep us awake. ON, off, ON, off, ON, off lol
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Old 01-31-2020, 05:40 PM   #30
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Mazboy is right.


We live in an A/C test bed here in SE New Mexico desert. I did all the recommended A/C upgrades and have a temp monitoring system that graphs the indoor temp. Consistently in our 42' HC381TH we can only keep it a max of 20F cooler than the exterior with the two factory Penguin II roof units. We added a portable A/C and got another 6-8F. We will be installing a third Penguin II roof unit this year and will update everyone if it performs any better. But lets face it, these rigs only have walls that are about 1 1/2" thick. We are basically living in a giant Styrofoam cooler. You can only do so much. If you want better your going to have to move to a well insulated house or a cave......
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Old 01-31-2020, 10:47 PM   #31
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I would like to stay in the loop on any meaningful improvements. Thank you for your feedback.
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Old 02-01-2020, 09:31 AM   #32
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I am having a problem with the rear AC not performing as it shouldI have read many posts abut rear air conditioner problems and some regarding collapsed return ducts. I have a 2014 3402RL Montana. The return duct is in fact collapsed to about 38th inch. I have tried fixes to prop it open. Since the ceiling and roof is curved I have found nothing flexible enough to span the duct. i also don't want to block air in the process. Worried also about damaging the duct. Tried pvc pipe, golf balls to no avail. Any ideas? Maybe i need to cut a new vent hole in the center below the AC? Increased noise? Or could replace existing return air intake vent covers with larger ones? I have an extend warranty but hate to deal with the dealer who would charge for evaluation and tell me it is performing as designed. It is not!
my 2017 305RL worked great the first 3 months but Texas summer took a toll.

Remove return grills - see if you can push duct up. It collapsed so should have room to go back up. I used 1" pvc couplings place in-line with duct to allow air flow. If you have a bore scope, check supply and return ducts. When it went back to dealer, they installed the Keystone FIX …

Adding another return grill will increase noise but only to a minimal extent. Also consider cutting every other blade out of supply grills
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Old 02-01-2020, 11:22 AM   #33
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my 2017 305RL worked great the first 3 months but Texas summer took a toll.

Remove return grills - see if you can push duct up. It collapsed so should have room to go back up. I used 1" pvc couplings place in-line with duct to allow air flow. If you have a bore scope, check supply and return ducts. When it went back to dealer, they installed the Keystone FIX …

Adding another return grill will increase noise but only to a minimal extent. Also consider cutting every other blade out of supply grills
Ditto to all of the above. Getting the most out of your A/C units is all about how much airflow you can achieve. Also check the roof units to see if there is any leaking cold air.

Other than that about all you can do is add insulation where possible to minimize heat gain (IE: insulate basement, storage areas and reflective barriers on windows you don't use). And of course you can add a third A/C $$$.
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Old 02-02-2020, 02:34 PM   #34
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We tackled and solved our A/C issues last summer in 95-100 degree heat. Removed all supply vents and cut off the 1 1/2" flanges that protrude into the duct causing airflow turbulence. Then resealed all voids between hard ceiling and duct board with aluminum HVAC tape. Removed all return vents and opened collapsed ducts with 1x2 wood strips from Lowe's cut about 8" long and installed on edge and perpendicular to return vents. I read that many are using PVC but to me the rough wood surface grips the duct board better and doesn't need to be adjusted or re-positioned after road trips. The front Dometic Penguin supply temps were 49 in 95 degree heat. We did find the rear Dometic Blizzard NXT blowing 76 degree air and replaced it under extended warranty with a new Penguin that supplied 47 degrees. I check all temps with a Fluke 62 Max IR gun. Anxiously awaiting Spring now!
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Old 02-03-2020, 08:37 AM   #35
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We tackled and solved our A/C issues last summer in 95-100 degree heat. Removed all supply vents and cut off the 1 1/2" flanges that protrude into the duct causing airflow turbulence. Then resealed all voids between hard ceiling and duct board with aluminum HVAC tape. Removed all return vents and opened collapsed ducts with 1x2 wood strips from Lowe's cut about 8" long and installed on edge and perpendicular to return vents. I read that many are using PVC but to me the rough wood surface grips the duct board better and doesn't need to be adjusted or re-positioned after road trips. The front Dometic Penguin supply temps were 49 in 95 degree heat. We did find the rear Dometic Blizzard NXT blowing 76 degree air and replaced it under extended warranty with a new Penguin that supplied 47 degrees. I check all temps with a Fluke 62 Max IR gun. Anxiously awaiting Spring now!
Thanks-- how did you twist the arm of Keystone to replace 'rear" / living room AC? Our 2019 MHC also has a 7 year extended warranty. So far it has been 100percent useless.
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Old 02-03-2020, 12:19 PM   #36
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Skippy - Keystone didn't replace it. it was covered under our 3rd party extended warranty policy. Mobile RV tech handled all the paperwork, coordination, and swap out. We paid the $75 service call fee.
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Old 02-03-2020, 12:44 PM   #37
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I've heard of 3 different areas that can reduce air flow.


1. As has been discussed, most common is collapsing ducts.
- a. In 2018 Keystone started adding a coupler that prevents the duct collapsing at the joints. A boro scope can help you see if that's your issue
- b. The newer "whisper quiet" systems that have the return vents rather than the bottom grill of the AC unit can also collapse a bit. This one has been discussed a lot and is an easy fix. I wedged some 1 1/2" pvc pieces in mine and opened it up a lot.

2. also discussed are the vents that stick up into the ducts too far. Simply cutting those down will help flow

3. incorrectly installed AC unit. I've seen a few different YouTubes on this. It's possible at the factory that the AC unit is installed slightly off center so that the air flow is partially blocked by the roof. Taking the AC unit loose and re-seating it properly can also solve the issue.

The issue in all of these is air flow. The units themselves are either 15K or 13.5k BTU so should be adequate for cooling. As has also been said, there can be a limit to how much the units can cool from the outside temp. That will generally be true regardless of the trailer OEM. If the air flow is working well then 2 AC units will typically keep the rig comfortable in hotter climates. One AC unit should work OK in moderate climates.
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Old 02-03-2020, 09:29 PM   #38
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I have come to the conclusion that it takes multiple improvements to get the a/c's to work properly. I installed 2- 1 1/4'' pvc pipes 9'''s long in each return air to open them up. I installed pvc pipe in some of the a/c vents to open them up. I installed new a/c vents thru out the rv that have the vents more open and trimmed a couple of ducts that were blocking the vents. It's all about circulation and these rv's have a problem with that. I bought my a/c vents from PPL in Houston. If you are expecting the a/c in these rv's to cool as good as a regular home then forget it as there is no way you can insulate the roof and walls as well.
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Old 02-03-2020, 10:11 PM   #39
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that's why our new unit is getting the third AC b4 delivery - will do insulation shortly after delivery
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Old 02-04-2020, 08:52 AM   #40
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that's why our new unit is getting the third AC b4 delivery - will do insulation shortly after delivery
Smart decision. !!!!!
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