Mini Split AC/Heat

[sunshine 1]

I plan to sell my house this fall and go fulltime. I been thinking for a while to put in a Mini split system.
I plan to put the inside unit in the rear cabinets, and the outside unit on my cargo hitch.
My question is how do I feed my power cord to my inverter which is close to the battery compartment in the front?
I plan to run the system on my solar system. I have almost 2000 watts of solar.
Any suggestions would be appreciated from people who has done it

[AZ Traveler]

Tommy,

I assume you already have your inverter wired to support your entire rig. You will need to run a cable from your fuze box back to your ac unit.

If your rig is not full wired off the inverter, I would install a transfer switch up front which would allow you to plug your inverter in there.

I assume you have installed a battery bank that will support running the air.

[sunshine 1]

Zack,
I have only 3 lines going from my inverter. One to the microwave, one to the coffee counter, and one to the bedroom. I have plenty of battery power. 4 Battleborn batteries with total of 400 Ah.
I don't have any knowledge how to put in a transfer switch.
When I bought the trailer from CW 2 1/2 years ago, I made my request to them to put in a transfer switch, when they installed the inverter. They told me that was a bad idea, and instead run 3 lines to 3 outlets.

[firestation12]

Originally Posted by sunshine 1

Zack,
I have only 3 lines going from my inverter. One to the microwave, one to the coffee counter, and one to the bedroom. I have plenty of battery power. 4 Battleborn batteries with total of 400 Ah.
I don't have any knowledge how to put in a transfer switch.
When I bought the trailer from CW 2 1/2 years ago, I made my request to them to put in a transfer switch, when they installed the inverter. They told me that was a bad idea, and instead run 3 lines to 3 outlets.

Your contemplated battery amp hours and inverter sizing needs some professional help in the design phase. 600 watts at 120 volts will require 6,000 watts of DC battery power for every hour that the a/c runs. That doesn't take into account the losses that occur in the conversion or DC current to alternating current or that the solar panels will only deliver about 80% of their stated power and only for a few hours during the day at optimal conditions. Your project is doable if you will plugged into shore power exclusively. If that is the case, you power needs can be acquired at the power pedestal or at the power inlet of your camper. Keep in mind that mini splits that also have heat pump capabilities usually run on 240 volts not 120 volts as the cooling only units do (18,000 BTU's or less). Your mini split condenser mounted at the back of the camper is going to get a lot of bouncing which the ac manufacturer may not have allowed for. Best of luck!

[sunshine 1]

Pioneer Air Conditioner WYS009A-19 Wall Mount Ductless Inverter+ Mini Split Heat Pump, 9000 BTU-110/120V
Visit the Pioneer Store
4.4 out of 5 stars 2,664 ratings
Amazon's
Choice
in Split-System Air Conditioners by Pioneer
Price: $818.00

[AZ Traveler]

What is the brand and size of your inverter? Sounds like there is more wiring needed to get the most out of your set up.. Some of the hybrid inverters have an integrated transfer switch.

[sunshine 1]

Zack,
I have zantrex 2000 freedom inverter.
I have been thinking about upgrade my inverter to a 3000 watt inverter.

[AZ Traveler]

It has been a few years since my inverter was installed. Magnum and GoPower are both hybrid inverters that allow you to combine shore power and inverter power. I believe there are others.

Your battery bank and solar can support a larger inverter.

Recommend professional help if you are not very familiar

[sunshine 1]

Ok, thanks Zack

[GreG L.]

In general a normal mini split uses between 560 and 600 watts. Remember a mini split is just a small AC unit (allot like what is on the roof), has a compressor, uses freon and the wattage will jump when the compressor starts, just like a normal AC unit. They are generally just an air conditioner, but some are heat pumps.

They are designed to have the condenser outside (to transfer the heat to the cooler air), putting it in the cargo area will generate allot of heat and severely impact the units efficiency.

Not sure how well a mini split designed to never move will hold up to bouncing around in a RV.

[sunshine 1]

So if I get an inverter/charger with built in transfer switch, would I be able to use all the AC receptacles?
What about the converter charger built in? What would I do with it ?

[mlh]

Originally Posted by sunshine 1

I plan to sell my house this fall and go fulltime. I been thinking for a while to put in a Mini split system.
I plan to put the inside unit in the rear cabinets, and the outside unit on my cargo hitch.
My question is how do I feed my power cord to my inverter which is close to the battery compartment in the front?
I plan to run the system on my solar system. I have almost 2000 watts of solar.
Any suggestions would be appreciated from people who has done it

We have been heating and cooling our home with mini splits for years. The one on the sun room is a one ton. The room is 200 square feet with 5 sliding glass doors and 3 sky lights. It heats and cools with no problem. It heats down to zero with a SEER of 26. The mini split in the main house is 3 tons and has a SEER of 20. It will heat down to -15. The unit in the main part of the house is 12000 BTU. That one unit will heat and cool all the house except for our bedroom. It’s up stairs.
You may have problems with putting the unit in a cabinet. They draw air from the top and that might restrict it too much. Another problem you may encounter is the outside heating and cooling coils are very thin and probably not designed for all the whiplash it will encounter on the rear of your camper.
If you are successful it will be a great way to heat and cool your camper. You will need a 110 volt unit. They can be bought but as you know most are 220 volt.
Lynwood

[sunshine 1]

Lynnwood,
Thanks for your advice, yes the bouncing back on my hitch might not work with the condenser unit.
I have watched other people who have installed them on their RVs.
They might not last very long.
A mini split would be perfect for my solar system, I am boondocking 95% of the time.

[uhftx]

Originally Posted by sunshine 1

Lynnwood,
Thanks for your advice, yes the bouncing back on my hitch might not work with the condenser unit.
I have watched other people who have installed them on their RVs.
They might not last very long.
A mini split would be perfect for my solar system, I am boondocking 95% of the time.

I"m not sure I follow what you are trying to do. A minisplit will work so long as it is attached full time. There are 3 lines A supply, A return and a condensate drain. I'm wondering if people are thinking of a unit compressor in the truck bed or a receiver hitch. Just for A FYI. I know you are aware. You are very knowing. Just for the others. I have great respect for the things you do.

A mini-split will work. IS it worth attaching to an inverter? Most are 220 Volts I do not know of any converter which produces single-phase 220V. I may be behind the times as of late. But. For what it is worth. These units will not last if you are connecting and disconnecting the refrigerant lines. Upon installation. Get a good vacuum pump. Suck out the compressibles then release the gas. This is the key to a long lasting system. Skip steps and it will cost you $$ or $$$.

Self contained and sealed system will last a long time. I"m a huge fan of mini splits with heat pump option.
Best of luck. Just consider the compressor location and how to locate it.

[sunshine 1]

Uhftx,
thanks for your comments. It has worked great so far, only time will tell if it will hold up.There are other people which have installed mini splits on their RV's they have held up for a long time.
I love my mini split, with my solar set-up I should be able to run my air-conditioning unit in the summer.

[rames14]

Sunshine, I am trying to figure out your system. First, what year and model do you have? What are you trying to accomplish? I can tell you first hand that 400 ah of lithium is a modest amount of battery. To contrast, the new Super Solar has 540 ah of batteries (still modest), 3000 watt inverter, soft start on AC and 1200 watts of solar. The rear AC has a heat pump as well. Will you be camping in the heat or moderate temps? Following the temps - south in winter/mountains in summer? Whichever, I would not use Camping World as my solar consultant. Keep us posted on your progress.

[sunshine 1]

rames 14, yes I will go to mountains in summer and south in winter. I want to do away with my 3400 watt champion inverter generator, and run my heatpump on the split Ac on the cold mornings in the winter. Also in the summer I want to use my split Ac on hot days.
I dont need any 540 Ah battery bank, my 400Ah is enough for me.Lol

[Chasw98]

Originally Posted by sunshine 1

rames 14, yes I will go to mountains in summer and south in winter. I want to do away with my 3400 watt champion inverter generator, and run my heatpump on the split Ac on the cold mornings in the winter. Also in the summer I want to use my split Ac on hot days.
I dont need any 540 Ah battery bank, my 400Ah is enough for me.Lol

I have 400AH of lithium, 1,380 watts of solar. a 3,000 watt inverter, and a 600 watt inverter. Right now I can run my rooftop AC for approx. 4 hours a day without any problem.
I would definitely look into a Magnum or GoPower inverter, charger, transfer switch to put in your rig. They are setup to have 120 VAC/50amp legs so you don't have to mess with splitting up your circuit breaker box and your neutral system. I wish I had gone that route. The 3,000 watts will give you headroom for startup and is helpful in case someone else is using another appliance on the same leg as the AC unit. I installed a GoPower for my friend's Monaco Class A and it was so easy to integrate with the shore power and the generator. All 3 work perfectly. BUT! you will want to locate the inverter unit as close to the batteries as you can (because of the 4/0 battery cables needed to run them) and because you will need to run #6-3 w/ground to integrate AC with shore power. It is much easier and less loss to run the AC cable a fair distance than it is to run the battery cables a long distance. Good luck and I have seen that Pioneer unit in a YouTube video from a guy in Florida. He did build a fairly serious rack on the back of his rig to hold the condenser in place.

[sunshine 1]

Chasw98,
thanks for your input.I have a xantrex 2000 inverter right now. It is about 30" from my 400 Ah Battleborn batteries. I have a 4/0 inverter cable going to my batteries.
I am going to get a 3000 inverter/charger with built in transfer switch.I am not sure how to connect the #6-3 cable from the inverter to the load board on my Montana.
A friend of mine is going to build a rack for me,he has welding equipment.
I have a cargo hitch now for my generator, but that is to bouncy for my condencer unit I plan to put in the rear.

[triplebvalp]

https://youtu.be/arj2ioF8z9o