third ac

[beeje]

Yeah you're pretty much screwed there. Can you purchase one of those large aluminum carports to cover the whole camper. Not sure if it would help but it will keep some of the sun off

[mtlakejim]

Originally Posted by beeje

I see your dilemma. There are campgrounds everywhere it's not possible for you to move to one that's wooded at least somewhat. ?

OBVIOUSLY you have never visited this section of the country!! And as I said, I am stuck in one place due to work and the company limits you to a 90 mile radius of the office. That's generous compared to some jobs but it doesn't get you anywhere near any trees.

I bought a long term lease in an Escapee park and while the people here are very friendly, the environment is very harsh. Trust me when we finish my career in 5 years we are headed back to Arkansas where we have 20 acres with a 2 acre pond and 14' waterfall!! We literally moved from Heaven to Hell on earth.

This is however the ideal place to test A/C units and being an engineer, I take experimentation rather seriously. Particularly since it affects our own well being. With the stock two roof units on our 42' unit we got about 17F with no mods to the coach. With minor mods to the vents and reflective covers in the windows we get about 22F. Adding the third portable A/C adds another 5F. 27F may sound like enough to a part time camper. BUT when your full time and the heat is in the triple digits for MONTHS in a row your really working the A/C units too hard and the electric meter is spinning like crazy.

Trust me we are intensely interested in any mods that will help keep the unit at a reasonable temp. And we are anxiously awaiting the day we can leave the New Mexico Oilfields to another generation. Please say a prayer for all the hard working Oilfield workers that suffer this climate so you can enjoy your wonderful lifestyle!!! They are out in the fields every day working in conditions you cannot begin to imagine!!!

[mtlakejim]

Originally Posted by beeje

Yeah you're pretty much screwed there. Can you purchase one of those large aluminum carports to cover the whole camper. Not sure if it would help but it will keep some of the sun off

We REALLY wanted to add a roof over but the park rules here will not allow it!! We have considered buying land so we could do what we wanted in that regard BUT water is a big deal in the desert. It is nearly impossible to find lots/property that has water available at a reasonable price. Water wells are a very risky venture costing upwards of 10-15K with no assurance that you will get even marginal water. Even then your more than likely going to need to spend another 10-15K on a water treatment system. In other words you could easily be $100K into a bare lot just with the land and water!! I just can't justify that for only 5 years. Is a house an option. Yes, but you haven't seen the housing market in this area and considering the volatility of the oilfield I don't consider that a wise choice at all (turns out I was really right on that call). I don't want to start retirement upside down on a mortgage in a place I do not want to live!!

So we are basically stuck doing our 5 year sentence (which granted we chose to do) but racking up the savings towards retirement. When you see me enjoying the good life in a few years just say "well he earned it"!!

[mtlakejim]

Originally Posted by Mikendebbie

Jim - Can you ask Steve to post his info here? I don’t do Facebook/Twitter/instagram or any of those things and I never will. I build their data centers but I do not use their product. Ask him to put it here!

Already asked Steve to do just that. He has an excellent video and looks like he may have a potential real solution. I'm sure going to try his advice.

Not sure if he is a member on here or not.

[beeje]

Wow, all I can say is I wouldn't want to be in your position. Lol. I hope it's all worth it in the end. You must think it is or you wouldn't be doing it

[mtlakejim]

Originally Posted by beeje

Wow, all I can say is I wouldn't want to be in your position. Lol. I hope it's all worth it in the end. You must think it is or you wouldn't be doing it

Trust me, every time we take a trip back to Arkansas and that waterfall in our back yard it's "what the heck were we thinking"! But doing 5 years to finish out the already 40 year oilfield career just makes sense from a financial standpoint. I just hope I don't keel over before I can enjoy retirement!

[beeje]

I hear you

[Ram Montana High Country]

Originally Posted by Mikendebbie

I would love to know the true answer to this also.

I don't know the definitive answer - but based on what I have read - I am betting the answer is NO you can not run three 15k ACs on 50 amps...and you can't run three 13.5k ACs on 50 amps either.

Well - don't big motorhomes sometimes have 3 or more ACs?
I have read info an another forum that leads me to believe motorhome ACs are cycled with two running on cool and the others running on fan. Don't know how they do it or if this is not the whole truth.

Also - on this forum I have read about folks who have added a 3rd AC with a dedicated/separate 30 amp cord to plug into the campground power. That makes complete sense to me. However - if you do the dedicated 30 amp power source - what is the plug in the ceiling for up at my current fan/skylight where the 3rd AC would go?

I have also seen info that if the ACs have a soft-start capacitor it may be possible to run multiple 13.5k ACs at once on 30 amp power. However, I don't know if two 13.5 k units would adequately cool a big Monte.

Now - I am just throwing all of these rumors, hearsay, and half truths out there because I know there are some smart dudes here that can clear all of this up for a slow student like me.

Key was Micro/Aires - believe it only let’s them to operate in a fashion that could allow it to work.

[2 Yoopers]

I sold my Montana this spring and purchased a diesel pusher. It has 3 - 15000 btu air conditioner/heat pumps that all run on 50 amp plug in. They are all running the compressor and are dripping water at the ground. There are 16 ceiling outlets compared to 7 in the Montana. We are able to hang meat in there if we wanted to. My breaker box looks like one used in my house, with each air on its own breaker. Thinking if it can be done in a motor home, why not in a fifth wheel?

[steiny93]

Originally Posted by mtlakejim

And what legal power does RVIA hold to enforce anything I do with my own coach after I buy it? They are strictly an advisory council to manufactures and have no legal authority to enforce codes. Much less tell owners what mods then can or can't do.


As far as I know there are no government codes that would keep you from using all the available power at the pedestal. They would have to stop people from plugging in lights, grills and fans if that were the case. Additionally if two power sources were illegal then what about solar at the same time your hooked up or using a generator?


Besides they have had wishbone cords that got you extra juice for years. They only stopped working when they started requiring GFI plug ins on the pedestals.

RVIA doesn't carry any legal powers to affect what owners do. Its a set of 'codes' that RV's follow when they are manufactured, very similar to homes and the 'codes' they follow.

But... electricians will follow the code when doing work. An owner will encounter an issue finding an electrician to attach a secondary power source to an RV in a hardwired manner. That is what I was referring to.

The dual power source is explicitly called out by the RV electrical code the topics of solar and generators are also described within the code.

[ejerni]

No you can't run 3 all at once. They will rotate between them. Defeating the purpose of having a 3rd one. We set a fan on the table of our 3791 to pull the ac from the bedroom. works great in out 100+ heat.

Originally Posted by azwiz

Can you run three 15,000 ac's on 50 amps? (w/micro-air units on each)
Thanks in advance

[RMon]

Probably could but not all three at the same time.
Another thought their may not be any wiring for another ac.

[ingalmi]

I run all 3 15k units without issue however my hot water heater is an on-demand and has no electrical requirement (gas only). Best way to see what kind of amps you’re pulling is the progressive ems.

[steiny93]

Originally Posted by ejerni

No you can't run 3 all at once. They will rotate between them. Defeating the purpose of having a 3rd one. We set a fan on the table of our 3791 to pull the ac from the bedroom. works great in out 100+ heat.

This isn't universally true,
You can run 3 15k btu ac's at the same time on 50amp service; but you can't have two of them start the compressors at the same time on 50amp service.

Other manufacturers solve this by having power management on the triple ac system which will only allow one compressor to start at a time.

[ingalmi]

So let me amplify my earlier remarks;
Some Montana models come with provisions to add a 3rd A/C unit normally by removing the ceiling fan in the kitchen area. The wiring is pre-wired for both 115vac and the thermostat. However the 3rd A/C unit will share power with the bedroom A/C unit through a power shed switch which is located in the basement behind the soft removable panel (same area as the heater and hot water heater.
The only way to have all 3 A/C units running at the same time is to remove the 115vac feed for the 3rd A/C from the power shed switch and route it to the breaker for the dryer (if you’re not using a dryer). Or...... use the power shed switch to control the dryer and 3rd A/C. Dryer on no 3rd A/C, 3rd A/C on no dryer. Bottom-line it’s doable and plenty of power. I do it all the time.

[DQDick]

Originally Posted by ingalmi

So let me amplify my earlier remarks;
Some Montana models come with provisions to add a 3rd A/C unit normally by removing the ceiling fan in the kitchen area. The wiring is pre-wired for both 115vac and the thermostat. However the 3rd A/C unit will share power with the bedroom A/C unit through a power shed switch which is located in the basement behind the soft removable panel (same area as the heater and hot water heater.
The only way to have all 3 A/C units running at the same time is to remove the 115vac feed for the 3rd A/C from the power shed switch and route it to the breaker for the dryer (if you’re not using a dryer). Or...... use the power shed switch to control the dryer and 3rd A/C. Dryer on no 3rd A/C, 3rd A/C on no dryer. Bottom-line it’s doable and plenty of power. I do it all the time.

Or you can skip the power shed all together and run a seperate power line for the third AC and get the power from the 30amp or 20amp outlet on the pedestal. Works for us.

[Mikendebbie]

I like DQDicks idea!

[Buckfisher]

Some campgrounds don't allow using all the available power connections available because it will overload the campgrounds electrical system. If too many people plug in too much stuff, an entire section, or the entire campground may loose power due to the overload. It has happened to us.

[mtlakejim]

Originally Posted by Buckfisher

Some campgrounds don't allow using all the available power connections available because it will overload the campgrounds electrical system. If too many people plug in too much stuff, an entire section, or the entire campground may loose power due to the overload. It has happened to us.

That might be true at a few old campgrounds (the kind we never stay at if we can help it) but the vast majority of campgrounds built in the last 20 years would have to meet codes that would eliminate that being an issue.

Besides how may folks do you see running all kinds of lights, fans and appliances outside off of an extension cord...….

[mtlakejim]

Originally Posted by Mikendebbie

I like DQDicks idea!

Ditto!

We like it so much we are copying it!