Keeping cool

[Jewellbags]

First time in a moho when is actually warm - and it’s warm , couple of questions , tips for best ventilation (I have bug screens ) and keeping the van cool and aircon ? Is it powered on ehu only , is it effective and silent ?

cheers in advance

 

[62272]

Truma hab air con, only works on EHU (on my unit), it gets very cold in hot weather, but I find I get a sore throat and cold from it, so just put it on to cool the van down, then switch off. You could sleep with it on once it gets to temperature, but it is very noisy when it brings the temperature down from a hot van and would disturb neighbours on a camp site during the night.

When it warms during the night we use a small fixed fan, which is lovely and cool, especially as the night air temp drops (windows and roof vents all open)

 

[EuroTrotters]

Truma Saphir

Brilliant

 

[Potty]

Close blinds on any windows that have the sun on them; if you have cab screens put them on; if you have an awning put that out; open windows that are out of the sun; open roof lights using blinds where necessary.
Don’t have air con but having an old fashioned gas fire instead of a Combi boiler, we can run the blown air which draws in cool air from underneath.

 

[Swifter]

We have a small portable air con unit we use if it’s going to be really hot ( like this weekend )
The hose feeds out the window behind the external screen cover and then I use a blanket to close off the cab

. Takes the temp down nicely at night so the kids can sleep

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[RubyOptics]

We had a maxxfan deluxe installed over our twin rear beds. Last weekend we were in 36-40 degree weather and with the fan set to extract at around 50% and the front skylight open the van interior was kept pretty cool. Its much much quieter than aircon and you can also use it off EHU.

 

[Swifter]

We had a maxxfan deluxe installed over our twin rear beds. Last weekend we were in 36-40 degree weather and with the fan set to extract at around 50% and the front skylight open the van interior was kept pretty cool. Its much much quieter than aircon and you can also use it off EHU.

I am looking to get one of those fitted . For now I’ve sorted this temporary solution for off grid but would prefer something more permanent.

 

[Boris7]

Cool

 

[Richard n Ann]

I am looking to get one of those fitted . For now I’ve sorted this temporary solution for off grid but would prefer something more permanent.
View attachment 516660

You can fit those in properly...

I put a 1000 ohm 100w resistor in series with the motor to slow it right down at night, it's super quiet and blows in a lovely draught.

 

[Richard n Ann]

Here's the off grid version made on a piece of 6mm ply and uses 120mm 12v computer fans. I made a PWM speed controller and fitted a stat to switch it off if it gets cold in the night. I also fitted mozzie guards slotted in front of the fans made out of old AC filters

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[Landy Andy]

Get a Maxxfan. Brilliant bit of kit.

 

[Otter Spotter]

Get a Maxxfan. Brilliant bit of kit.

I second that, ours works really well.

 

[In a Pickle]

We have a Truma Aventa Compact Plus air con unit. Would highly recommend and definitely not noisy, you have to be on hook up to use it but when it hit 46 degrees here in Murcia on Monday it would have been unbearable without air conditioning.

 

[TOAD on Tour]

Truma roof mounted air con unit at the front of van and Saphir air con for middle and rear bedroom (8.5m van!), gets lovely and cool, but need to be on EHU.

 

[Pebble99]

You can fit those in properly...

View attachment 516666

I put a 1000 ohm 100w resistor in series with the motor to slow it right down at night, it's super quiet and blows in a lovely draught.

Hi, nice job. Would you be able to provide more details on the product and where you can purchase them from. Also, can you reverse the fan to extract?

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[Neil S]

I have the Truma Aventa compact + fitted , it works fine on 6 amp hookup and on night mode the noise level is not intrusive.
Used it on CCP aires and asked other Motorhomers if they were bothered about - no complaints.
It’s was a godsend in 100f temperatures we experienced in South of France

 

[Jewellbags]

All great suggestions thanks I will investigate more . Ta folks

 

[ChrisL]

I have a Dometic FJ2200, it's very quiet outside the van and I don't think it would disturb anyone's sleep unless maybe they were parked alongside like in a car park, it has a sleep mode for when you are a sleep. During the day, so far in the UK, I've only needed it on cold at the lowest fan setting to keep my van comfortable, it only works on EHU although it may be possible to run it off an inverter you would need a lot of batteries to run it for any length of time, it draws about 4 amps and has a soft start feature so should not trip site electrics even abroad as long as you don't have much else on at the same time, so far here in the UK i've had no power issues on hookup using electric for hot water and running the A/C and a laptop computer. The only negative I've found so far is there is a bit of a shudder through the van when the compressor starts and stops but it's not that bad that it disturbs me. It can also blow warm air in the winter if required.

 

[Richard n Ann]

Hi, nice job. Would you be able to provide more details on the product and where you can purchase them from. Also, can you reverse the fan to extract?

I bought it in a Benidorm Chinese shop for about €15 I think. If you look them up they are known as '30cm box fan'

You have to saw the feet off and remove a tilt switch from inside, then screw a little 90° angle piece down each side (I made mine out of cut up electrical trunking) so it rests in the skylight flyscreen rails. The small piece of rectangular plastic with 2 screws in it on ours locks it in place.

It can't be reversed, even if it could it would be useless as the blade is made to scoop air one way.

Even on speed 1 they move a lot of air and are too noisy and blowy for night time, ours is right above the bed. I looked at different ways to slow it down and decided the resistor was the simplest and best, it's switched in and out of circuit for day/night modes and needs a heatsink (top left)

Very worthwhile making, one of my favourite gadgets, even Ann regularly comments how good it is . I also sometimes rest it in the window during the day.

Amazon product ASIN B096SG7BR2

 

[TerryL]

We had a Dometic B2200, came with the van. It hardly ever got used as it required EHU and we tend to be "off-grid" more often than not. Also many of the campsites we use have very low EHU ampage so have difficulty supporting it.
So I replaced the AC with a Maxxfan and find it gets used far more often, the extract setting being effective when I'm cooking breakfast............................ But it does create a nice breeze which we find is just as effective as the aircon ever was.
And I sold the AC unit for more than the cost of the Maxxfan......................

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[Googlebot]

We are never on hookup so went for a for a Maxfan.

Very pleased with it, works much better than I thought it would.

 

[Swifter]

Don’t have air con but having an old fashioned gas fire instead of a Combi boiler, we can run the blown air which draws in cool air from underneath.

Thank you for this advice . We have struggled to keep the toilet/shower room cool today despite keeping the main hab area nice and cool . Had the truma blown air on as you suggested and it’s really done the job with the roof vent open

 

[rolosroller]

Got one of theses when on hook up <Broken link removed>
I did not pay as much

 

[gerrym11]

We had a maxxfan deluxe installed over our twin rear beds. Last weekend we were in 36-40 degree weather and with the fan set to extract at around 50% and the front skylight open the van interior was kept pretty cool. Its much much quieter than aircon and you can also use it off EHU.

It is much quiter than aircon mainly because it is a lot less effective. It does bring in fresh air but iunfortunatkey it does not cool. Iused to have one, now have a/c, they are worlds apart.

 

[Richard n Ann]

It is much quiter than aircon mainly because it is a lot less effective. It does bring in fresh air but iunfortunatkey it does not cool. Iused to have one, now have a/c, they are worlds apart.

Yeah I hear you. We've had the fan running above us at night a couple of times and it's like a hair dryer blowing down on you in Spain . It's mostly ok though, better than nothing

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[TerryL]

I accept that the Maxxfan is not an air conditioning unit, i.e. it doesn't physically cool the air down. But as we were rarely able to use the aircon it's a good solution for us.

I tried an Endless Breeze fan but it takes up quite a lot of room, storage space being at somewhat a premium for us. Looks like it's going to be well hot at Straford next week so I might stick it in somewhere as a supplement.

 

[John H.]

Our 1500W inverter will run the air con quite happily (with the new lithium batteries)

But, then we need to re-charge the batteries and the solar panels take too long, so the next day is hot.

I must investigate to ideas mentioned here.

 

[RubyOptics]

It is much quiter than aircon mainly because it is a lot less effective. It does bring in fresh air but iunfortunatkey it does not cool. Iused to have one, now have a/c, they are worlds apart.

It's horses for courses in my opinion. We rarely use sites and ever more rarely get EHU, and so for us Aircon would be a waste of money and payload. The maxxfan gives us a solution that cools the van well (not as well as Aircon of course as you rightly say) that we can use when not hooked up with minimal power draw and also takes away less payload.

 

[138go]

12volts, we have three and they work really well.

 

[Ditcha]

I have the Truma Aventa compact + fitted , it works fine on 6 amp hookup and on night mode the noise level is not intrusive.

Like wise great for cooling the van, we also have a removable fan in the front heki.

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