Generator/AC sertup for vehicle?

[Malamute]

Has anyone done a small generator and AC setup for a vehicle? I'm meaning for when its parked and not running. I was thinking a small Honda generator and a small 120v window AC unit, mounted on a hitch rack cargo carrier. The window AC could be set in the left barn door, or a duct cut through the door. There may be a better AC type than a window unit for a house, but I'm not aware of any.

It would allow me to take the dog along when it would otherwise be too hot to leave her in the vehicle.

 

[camodog]

I would love to hear more about this. This is one of the things I have wanted to do for a very long time.
Maybe put the window unit on the tailgate with a plywood frame, then close the liftgate of the topper and run the ac.

 

[Joe917]

A possibility?
http://www.webasto.com/us/markets-products/truck/bunk-cooling-systems/products/bluecool/

 

[bob91yj]

The roof air on my camper is powered by a Honda 2kw generator, it's a Coleman unit, specifically designed for that application.

 

[DiploStrat]

Earthroamer and Tiger use a 6,000 BTU window unit and simply run it on batteries, no generator required.

You do need:

-- Big battery bank, say 400Ah or more.
-- Big inverter, say 2800w or more.
-- Proper wiring to your alternator/solar/shore power, to charge the whole mess.

Finally, proper installation or the condenser coils will overheat. How long will it run? How hot is the day, how much sun, how big is your battery, etc.?

Roadtrek do a similar setup, but they slap a special, belt driven generator on the Mercedes diesel.

 

[dlh62c]

Has anyone done a small generator and AC setup for a vehicle? I'm meaning for when its parked and not running. I was thinking a small Honda generator and a small 120v window AC unit, mounted on a hitch rack cargo carrier. The window AC could be set in the left barn door, or a duct cut through the door. There may be a better AC type than a window unit for a house, but I'm not aware of any.

You might do a search on the Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers Forum.

 

[eviioiive]

I just leave it running and locked. If I cant see the car from wherever I am, it will also be in 4Lo, and a chain from the steering wheel to the brake pedal...and if someone wanted it they would still need to deal with the dogs...You can also set up a couple frs radios with vox on the in car radio.

 

[AFBronco235]

What kind of vehicle are you designing this for? That would help a lot since, with a little creativity, you can customize a build to make whatever you wanted really.

What I would do for the AC is see if I can salvage the AC from an older vehicle, say mid 90's and convert it to work on an electric motor. Of course, I'm a mechanic with crazy engineering skills and a mad scientists laugh so this may not be the way to go. But if you do, you'd actually need two or three electric motors. One to drive the pump and the other two fro fans to move air over the coil and condenser. How you'd set that up would be dependent on the vehicle of course.

 

[DiploStrat]

Diplo, did you do the 3M Crystaline window tint to help with the UV? Plus proper insulation of the vehicle is necessary to retain the temperature.

No. The camper has double pane windows with aluminized shades. We shade any window in the sun. The roof is mostly white where it is not a double roof because of solar panels.

 

[Haf-E]

Its been done - see mike hickcox's sprinter build a couple of years ago. One caution on using standard window AC units - they are not designed to handle the vibrations involved so some additional work might be involved.

There are small "portable" AC units which can be used that have hose connections for the outdoor air flow - which makes them a lot easier to install (perhaps).

One concern is what happens if the generator shuts down unexpectedly - could result in a cooked dog... I know one inverter manufacturer (Magnum Energy out of Everett WA) offers a generator start system which can be based on the indoor air temperature - it is intended for doing exactly what you want but would shut off the generator when it wasn't needed (i.e. the AC unit cycles off).

http://www.magnumenergy.com/products/AGS-N.htm

 

[Camelfilter]

If you can afford them, look into computer server air conditioners. I "think" I read about using them somewhere on here on the portal...not sure on that though.

...Anyways they would seem easier to modify to fit our applications as a portable (vehicle or tent) airconditioning unit.

I'm thinking along the lines of this Trip Lite Unit as seen over on Amazon. Priced very well at $599!

12000BTU might be too much. I'd imagine somewhere in the 6000BTU range would be best suited for most needs as a portable. Lower BTU's would also mean lower power consumption & hence longer runtime.

 

[zelatore]

If you can afford them, look into computer server air conditioners. I "think" I read about using them somewhere on here on the portal...not sure on that though.

...Anyways they would seem easier to modify to fit our applications as a portable (vehicle or tent) airconditioning unit.

I'm thinking along the lines of this Trip Lite Unit as seen over on Amazon. Priced very well at $599!

12000BTU might be too much. I'd imagine somewhere in the 6000BTU range would be best suited for most needs as a portable. Lower BTU's would also mean lower power consumption & hence longer runtime.

That is very interesting. It seems extremely well priced for 12KBTU of cooling. I'm wondering why we don't see more things like this in RV/Marine applications ???
I didn't see a current draw listed, which would be important for an inverter based system, but I would expect most generators would be able to handle it except the smallest units.

 

[dfroman]

I just got these two units to put in my trailer with RTT
both units are pretty quiet. depending on your space they may not work for you.
I originally purchased an end of season closeout window ac unit. when I came across the climate right, it made sense to pick that up.

Climate right CR5000 A/C and Heater
http://www.climaterightair.com/climateright-5000-btu-a-c-heater.html

Yamaha 2400i I got the tri fuel unit runs on gas, propane or natural gas
http://www.yamaha-propane-natural-gas-generators.com/ef2400is.htm