ROOF AIR

[dizzyspots]

So...the StarCraft pop up I got has a "window" a/c installed in the front window...near the truck cab


Thinking of replacing it with a roof top a/c and putting the sliding window back in...

any thoughts on window a/c vs rooftop...efficiency...weight on the pop up roof etc

 

[bob91yj]

I've had a roof air on my SunLite for 3 years or so now with no issues. I will say that I cringe every time I go down a rough road, half expecting to find the roof air laying in the floor. So far, so good. I don't notice any significant sagging in the roof. The biggest issue is getting the roof up, the crank system will NOT get the roof up by itself. I have to use my back/arms as an assist to get it started up. If I had it to do all over again I'd put the AC in the rear window of the camper.

My AC unit is a Coleman, specifically designed for pop up campers, and to run on a 2Kw generator.

 

[kerry]

I've got a window AC in the same location as yours. I like it and wouldn't put one on top for a number of reasons, the main one being that I frequently carry boats on top and don't want to deal with the interference of an AC unit up there and the additional weight on top of the 3 boats I often carry. But also, window AC units are considerably cheaper than RV rooftop units so if anything goes wrong, replacing the window AC unit is easy and inexpensive. I think I paid $79 for mine at an end of season sale at HD. The downside is that the location in the window is not as efficient as a roof top location since cold air falls. But my window AC still manages to cool the camper so I'm happy. Also, as Bob mentioned, if you want to run it on a small generator you have to make sure to buy the versions which can do that. The typical ones pull too heavy a starting load to run from a generator. My window AC has no trouble running on my 2k Honda generator.

 

[Scoutman]

I would say that if it works where it is and the previous owner installed it correctly (no leaks and drains condensate correctly) then I would leave it. If you're wanting to move it to the roof to see out of the back you may be disappointed at the view. If you want to know what the weight will do to your roof, place an 80# sack of concrete up there and see if you have any sag. I think a lot of these ac units are over 100# but I think most roofs are designed to handle at least that much. My Starcraft has a factory installed AC and while I love having AC (a must in the South), I hate the high profile it creates. My 13,500 btu AC is about 14" tall over the roof line and to me it sort of negates the low profile of the pop-up roof. If you do one, I would definitely do the low profile Coleman (or similar) that will run off a 2kw generator.

 

[mojave joe]

You might consider adding gas struts to assist your lift system (instead of moving the a/c). The FWC people use them quite a bit.

 

[kerry]

I considered gas struts. I then realized that most of the problem of raising the roof with 3 boats on top was caused by too short a handle on the original HECO crank mechanism. I converted a sailboat winch handle into a crank handle (adding 3 or 4 inches to the original) and now cranking the roof up is much easier. I can't figure out why HECO provided such a short handle to begin with when a longer handle would be very easy to make and much better.