2nd Air Unit - Montana Owners Club

LAURA · 12-22-2007, 06:20 PM

We just purchased a 2008 3075RL. Do we need to purchase a 2nd air unit for the bedroom?

Okie Guy · 12-22-2007, 07:03 PM

Hi Laura and welcome to the Montana Family.
I think the answer to your question depends on your summer camping. I just purchased the 3000RK and my christmas present was the second AC in the bedroom. The dealer told us to keep a unit this big as cool as we want in 100+ temps we need the second ac. I have the same Duo-Therm in the bedroom as the standard which comes with the unit. Most people like to get the low profile unit as their second ac for the 5th wheels. I have the regular size ac and it does add about 6 inches to my total height.
Also...check around. Camping world wanted about $300 more than the other delaer in Oklahoma City to install the second aid unit. The local Montana delaer wanted $200 more than Camping World and wouldn't budge on price. This pushed us away from our local dealer. I was tired of dealing with their snotty parts department. We went to Missouri and purchased our unit along with the air-conditioner. The dealer we purchased from only charged us for the purchase price of the air conditioner. He threw in a free install because we drove so far to purchase our unit.
It all comes down to where your camping, the temperature of your locatioin during the summer months and how much you want to spend.
Good Luck and Welcome aboard the forums!
Phil

ole dude · 12-23-2007, 01:44 AM

I have a 3075, have camped in some pretty hot Texas, New Mexico and southwest weather, so far the one a/c unit has done well and is sufficient. It will take a while to cool down in a 100 degree day.

SlickWillie · 12-23-2007, 02:07 AM

We managed to keep our unit cool with one AC, but we had to close off the bath and bedroom to do so. We added the Penguin 13.5 to the bedroom just for the extra comfort. I was a little concerned about the height with the regular Dometic unit and the dealer made a good price on the Penguin. (I seldom say anything good about our dealer, but they do give us 10% off all accessories for the RV.)

richfaa · 12-23-2007, 03:16 AM

We do have the second A/C in the bedroom. The penguin 13.5.We have been in some brutally hot weather and to be perfectly honest the single A/C will do the job in our 3400. The 2nd A/C helps with the initial cool down..Most of the time we will use only the bedroom A/C and it will keep the entire unit comfortable and cut down on the noise in the main living area. When sleeping we use the main A/C and turn the bedroom A/C off as it is very noisy. The comfort level each of us require is of course a individual thing. Having said all that , in our case the 2nd A/C was a good buy.

Montana Sky · 12-23-2007, 05:20 AM

Only having one a/c unit in my 3400RL was not enough. When temps rose above 90 degrees, the main a/c could not keep up causing the unit to shut down and trip the breaker. Since having the 2nd a/c installed the main unit works as it should. Last 4th of July weekend, the outside temps exceeded 105 degrees, but the inside of the coach was a cool 70 degrees. All comes down to personal choice.

TLightning · 12-23-2007, 07:19 AM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by ole dude

I have a 3075, have camped in some pretty hot Texas, New Mexico and southwest weather, so far the one a/c unit has done well and is sufficient. It will take a while to cool down in a 100 degree day.

My experience as well.

If I were you, I'd try it with one A/C...if it's too hot get the second unit.

Dave Nowlin · 12-23-2007, 08:26 AM

This past summer was somewhat brutal all over. The only way I could see one unit being sufficient on a very hot day is if you are in an area with low humidity. That was not the case around here this summer. I added a second A/C and am very glad I did. I will admit that if the unit is comfortable at sundown we kick the bedroom A/C off at night to keep from listening to the noise. On the other hand if you should find yourself camping somewhere that is loud at night. I.e. near an interstate highway. You might choose to run the front unit with the fan on manual to block out the exterior noise.
Dave Nowlin

stiles watson · 12-23-2007, 08:33 AM

My vote is for the second unit. Its greatest value is quicker cool downs when you have traveled in the hot part of the day and want to cool down as soon as possible after set up. When the main unit can't keep up on hot or humid days, it is sure nioce to have that second unit. I am comfortable at 73 degrees and can tolerate up to 80, but I don't ever want it warmer than about 76 in the unit.

mail2us · 12-23-2007, 12:36 PM

Laura,

The 2nd AC is dollars but we opted for it due to where we live and our living style to have it comfortable and cool when it is hot.

It was not expensive in the scheme of things and worth it. We just don't like high humidity and hot sleeping! Dennis

Driftwoodgal · 12-24-2007, 06:23 PM

Hubby convinced me that we didn't need the second AC when we bought our 3400RL. That lasted one summmer only, even after I put the silver bubble wrap on each and every window. The one unit just wouldn't cool the RV in the Texas weather. It really didn't have to be over 100 degrees to use both AC's. I turn on the bedroom AC as soon as I hook up power, it cools so much quicker than the living room AC. I prefer the bedroom AC at night as it drowns out the campground noise/diesel trucks early in the morning. I do sleep with a fan on at night to drown out hubbies snoring, so the white noise is a plus for me. We had a 31.5 ft trailer and the one AC worked great when we shut vents off. The 3400 was just to big in hot weather for the one unit IMHO.

Now we use the fireplace and a ceramic heater to take the chill off the Monty during the winter. So I guess it just depends on if you are hot or cold nature. Hope you find the combination that keeps you happy when camping.

Colleen

Exnavydiver · 12-25-2007, 04:23 AM

I agree with all the above, last year we hit some 90 degree weather in Fla in March and we had a SOB. It was a 29 ft TT and the single unit didn't keep it ahead of the heat. So when we ordered our new Big Sky we talked about last years trip and decided to go ahead and get the 2nd AC. We haven't hit those temps yet but after towing all day in 80 degree weather it sure helped cool down the rig when we parked. It was 94 inside when we stopped, I guess being all shut up all day made the rig act like a solar oven. So I guess our vote is for the 2nd unit, it just makes life easier and a lot cooler in the hot humid times... Dave and Betsy.

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