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Old 19-09-2012, 16:43   #1
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Air Conditioning

Moderator's place keeper for a new Helia 44 thread
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Old 08-03-2015, 14:02   #2
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Re: Air Conditioning

Well, I see there hasn't been a whole lot of discussion on air conditioning on board the Helia, but we came across 2 items that I wanted to share.

1) We have the factory installed air cons and after using them, I would notice pools of water in or near the compartment where they're located. After tracing all the condensation drain hoses, checking the connections for tightness and watching the units themselves for leaks and not finding anything, I was stumped.

When we arrived in Miami, our dealer informed us that the leak is caused by a crack in the condensation drain pan which resulted from FP over tightening the connection for the condensation hose. They pulled our air con units (all 6 of them!) and discovered that 4 of them had this issue. Once patched up, the units are nice and dry but hopefully this will just be a heads up for others who may experience this issue.

2) We've had issues with air getting into the intake line for the air con pumps. This leads to the High Pressure fault and could damage the pump. The fix for this has been to loosen one of the hoses coming off the pump to let out the air until water comes out and then retighten the connections. This has happened several times so I will eventually install a value that can be used to easily bleed the system.
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Old 19-04-2017, 10:42   #3
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Air Conditioning

Helia 44 Air Conditioning units

6 Dometic Cruisair systems, 1 under each bed, 1 in stb. forward closet, 1 in saloon under seat, 1 in saloon upper cabinet.

Two AC units use 1 March Air-cooled A/C pump.

Arag 324 (# 3242A022) high pressure line filter. Note: RED dot on filter means 32 mesh screen.

ARAG - products

Screen type - Inox 32 mesh (RED)
Red - Filter element # 3222002.030 - 38mm dia. x 89mm tall (1.5” dia x 3.5” inch tall)

The efficiency of the system is dependent on both the seawater and cabin temperatures.
In Cooling mode, the air conditioner works best when the seawater temperature is below 90°F.

In Heat mode, as the seawater temperature gets colder, there is less heat available and heating performance drops. Full heating capacity is available in water temperatures as low as 55°F, but drops to about 50% capacity in 40°F water.
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Old 20-04-2017, 08:08   #4
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Re: Air Conditioning

FYI we have been buying replacement screens for the strainers from.

Salvarani and ARAG products. Foam Markers, 12 volt Controls, Booms, Sprayer Nozzles, Fittings, Filters.

Jay
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Old 01-08-2017, 23:45   #5
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Re: Air Conditioning

Hi all, we have an interesting situation with the air-cond in the master's cabin on our Helia. When using the controller near the bed, the pump turns on and the unit under the bed works for a few hours before icing up. It then becomes less efficient and eventually stops. We set the temp to 23 degrees celsius where the ambient temp is around 30. The water and air filter is clean.

When turning on the second controller closer to the bathroom for the other unit in the owner's hull, I am seeing the HP message. I can get the fan to work by selecting HUMIDIFIER but no cooling (or heating) whatsoever.

I have put in bleeder valves on the pumps, but am now starting to think there must be an air bubble or blockage after the bleeder to the second unit.

Any ideas on both issues? All other units are working fine.
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Old 02-08-2017, 01:53   #6
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Air Conditioning

The icing is most certainly caused by poor airflow. Either the ducts are too long too small or both, or there are not enough vents or the vents are too small.

The hp means the second unit isn't getting water flow to cool it. Is the pump running? Is there a blockage that is reducing the flow (what does the overboard stream look like)?
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Old 02-08-2017, 05:24   #7
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Re: Air Conditioning

Quote:
Originally Posted by FlyTheCoop View Post
Hi all, we have an interesting situation with the air-cond in the master's cabin on our Helia. When using the controller near the bed, the pump turns on and the unit under the bed works for a few hours before icing up. It then becomes less efficient and eventually stops. We set the temp to 23 degrees celsius where the ambient temp is around 30. The water and air filter is clean.

When turning on the second controller closer to the bathroom for the other unit in the owner's hull, I am seeing the HP message. I can get the fan to work by selecting HUMIDIFIER but no cooling (or heating) whatsoever.

I have put in bleeder valves on the pumps, but am now starting to think there must be an air bubble or blockage after the bleeder to the second unit.

Any ideas on both issues? All other units are working fine.
Mine had the same issue but, I don't know why, the other unit ahead works fine all night long, and don't bother us with the annoying "click" every time the compressor turns on and off.

So I turn both units on to cool the cabin and then turns the aftermost one off for the night.

PS.: if they run together, even before the icing issue, one interferes with the other and they start to fight... sometimes one is still cooling while the other is trying to warm the cabin!!!
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Old 03-08-2017, 02:41   #8
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Re: Air Conditioning

Icing up is a sign of low freon.
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Old 03-08-2017, 04:50   #9
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Re: Air Conditioning

Quote:
Originally Posted by DotDun View Post
Icing up is a sign of low freon.


Not always......I've seen a large number of poorly installed AC units Ice up for lack of airflow.
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Old 03-08-2017, 05:29   #10
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Re: Air Conditioning

I seemed to have rectified the icing problem for now... a doona cover could have been restricting the air intake under the bed. I also moved the thermostat up a degree to 24 and so far so good. Now to work on the High Pressure error message I'm still seeing on the second unit in the main cabin! Thanks for all advice so far.
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Old 03-08-2017, 18:22   #11
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Re: Air Conditioning

For the hp error message Try switching the remote control box with one you know works (I.e. The one in the salon). Sometimes it's a bad remote control box that gives the error. If that doesn't work pull the wood panel that hides the ac unit (4 screws just before the bathroom on the saloon side of the hull). There's a water flow sensor with 2 wires. Unplug it and switch the wires around. Sounds crazy but I had a similar issue with an ac unit and an error code (I knew it was getting good water flow). The sensor trick worked.

Assuming you have factory installed ac.
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Old 04-08-2017, 23:09   #12
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Thumbs up Re: Air Conditioning

Tried the swapping of the wires and it worked! No more HP error. Thanks Spear06, much appreciated.
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Old 26-08-2018, 07:44   #13
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Re: Air Conditioning

Just had to order some replacement filters for our Lucia. Found them here in the US. 32 Mesh/Red

https://partstospray.com/replacementcartridge323.aspx
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Old 01-05-2019, 09:58   #14
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Re: Air Conditioning

I just bought a Helia 44 2103 and want to install the Air conditioner. What would be the best way to do this
Thanks
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Old 08-06-2019, 14:18   #15
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Re: Air Conditioning

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Originally Posted by grobles View Post
I just bought a Helia 44 2103 and want to install the Air conditioner. What would be the best way to do this
Thanks
Grobles, we would have to write a book for you.. I owned a Helia 44, same year, Hull number 8.. This is not something we can just tell you over this Forum, it is waaaaay to big and complicated.. My Helia 44 had 6 units from memory. The best practical is CruiseAire, now bought by Dometic so Dometic Cruiseaire...

My Saba 50, has seven of the units, around the 16,000 BTU size.. Here is what I suggest you do: Have one put in by a Professional. Most that sell the Cruiseaire will have a Installation Guy... Then you have a hope of copying what he did yourself.

In really hot weather like Florida in summer, or where I am in the Great Barrier Reef area, you need one in each bedroom area, and two in the main salon. You turn them on as needed, I usually have one or two on at dockside to take the pressure off the refrigeration... Cold air runs down hill, so the hulls get a bit with one or two units on in the main salon area..

Good luck with that...
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