Visit our Popular Forums

TCM1968 · 30-10-2019, 10:23

Quote:

Originally Posted by galynd

TCM. I hope you'll keep us informed of your progress, especially if you go ahead with the frigomar system. I've been watching it a while waiting for my current Dometic to die. I'd love to have a system I can run, dependably, with my honda 2000.

Definitely will, I have reached out to a Frigomar dealer to get some feedback on my options, waiting on their input now.

john61ct · 30-10-2019, 10:30

I stand by what I wrote.

No matter how much improved and efficient the units, the OP's requirements are much higher than what can realistically be supported by battery stored energy for any length of time.

That genset will need to run while away from shore power, for many hours per day regardless. If you don't want the noise to disturb the neighbors, then either turn off the aircon or relocate the boat.

And completely forget solar as a significant contribution to the total energy required.

Yes it is possible that gennie runtime can be delayed or reduced by some percentage, e.g. a "silent cocktail hour" or something.

That does not mean trying to do more than that, will be worth the investment.

TCM1968 · 30-10-2019, 10:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by john61ct

Tens of thousands of years, billions and billions of humans say otherwise. Words really need to mean things.

You just have high expectations, habituation to a certain level of comfort and cheap access to unsustainable energy resources.

In my case, I prefer to acclimate my body to the heat, and have lived many decades without aircon in places where 35°C is a normal day, dozens of days in a row over 40 are common, including "concrete jungle" cities near the equator with millions of residents packed into a small area.

There is always the option of moving too.

Clean water is a necessity, but having large quantities of it available on tap inside your living space is a luxury.

This is an irrelevant comment. Is there a prize or something I am unaware of on this forum for number of posts? Otherwise I don't see your point of this argument? I'm not trying to win an episode of Survivor, I'm trying to enjoy my life on my boat.

TCM1968 · 30-10-2019, 10:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by john61ct

I stand by what I wrote.

No matter how much improved and efficient the units, the OP's requirements are much higher than what can realistically be supported by battery stored energy for any length of time.

And completely forget solar as a significant contribution to the total energy required.

Yes it is possible that gennie runtime can be delayed or reduced by some percentage.

That does not mean trying to so is worth the investment.

That genset will need to run while away from shore power, for many hours per day regardless. If you don't want the noise to disturb the neighbors, then either turn off the aircon or relocate the boat.

I have no intent on using solar. I believe the others interest are not to run 5 16k BTU units at the same time as I do. Solar would be quite doable for one smaller unit.

captstu · 30-10-2019, 13:01

Quiet. Inverter Air Conditioner is our nearly silent. When running in maintenance mode at night you can barely tell they are on.

Temperature: inverter Air Conditioner is maintaining a steady temperature. The temperature varies typically within 0.2° range. This results in superior do you modification and a much more comfortable environment.

I converted the unit in my home and have enjoyed it every day sense.

I’m trying to buy an air cooled unit for my RV as soon as I can find one adult one.

Pelagic · 30-10-2019, 16:57

Here is my Users take on the advantage of an efficient 24v air con unit being discussed

So shore power with AC aircons became standard

In those situations AC is not a luxury in the tropics

With Solar and R/O there is little attraction for us to stay to marinas where their enclosed situation and often industrial polluted air, prevents open hatches and a nice breeze

At anchor, I agree with John, it is a luxury except when there are lots of Mosquitoes/Flies or hot/humid with rain.

Our typical, tropical boat life, starts early at sunup with light boat chores while cool, light breakfast at 8, playtime and main meal at noon.
Siesta in afernoon, then light snack at 4pm as last meal

The advantage of 24v Air con system is that I have choice to cool down our cabin for siesta without using invertor or Gen.
If we really needed 24 hr aircons, then battery chargers keep the house bank at 100% to supplement Solar..this with either shore power or judicious use of Gen.
My solar gives me about 55a @ 24v daily.
Seems a shame not to use it for that Siesta period at anchor.

**a64pilot** · 30-10-2019, 18:02

I don’t believe it’s a 24V air conditioner. I believe it’s AC, so you need either an inverter or other source of AC power.
Funny thing is ALL brushless DC electric motors run off of AC current, the electronics that run them change DC into AC to do so.
So there is an inverter in there whether you want it or not.

However properly sized a good pure sine wave is not that inefficient.

John ref it’s just time shifting, if an AC pulls a low enough power and you have a big enough bank and enough Solar no running of a generator is required, and it may well be run the generator for a coupe of hours and shove a few hundred AH into that bank to then dribble them out the rest of the time, as opposed to running it all day and half the night.
There is no difference in running air conditioning or a refrigerator off of a battery bank, it’s simple a matter of scale is all. Now I can’t, I can’t have enough Solar or a bank big enough, but others can.

Now so far as living in the Gulf Coast on a boat without AC, you need to experience that first before you can render a verdict on it.
Yes, you probably won’t die, you’ll most likely survive, but it’s survival, not living.
You see a boat absorbs quite a lot of heat, there really isn’t much effective shade, then combine that with that very often the Gulf Coast in the middle of Summer often there is no wind and add humidity.
Yeah I “lived” in a GP Medium tent in Summer in Kuwait, and I’ll never, ever live like that again. You can’t even put convicted criminals in those kind of conditions, it’s considered in humane.
If you try to live like that and you have a wife or girlfriend don’t be surprised when she doesn’t come home.

Chotu · 30-10-2019, 18:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by a64pilot

Yeah I “lived” in a GP Medium tent in Summer in Kuwait, and I’ll never, ever live like that again.
If you try to live like that and you have a wife or girlfriend don’t be surprised when she doesn’t come home.

I don’t think truer words have ever been spoken. LOL I have always had women on my boats. Wife, girlfriend, etc. There is a certain level of comfort that you have to provide in order for that to work out. It’s not much, but it can’t be a survival situatiion for long term happiness.

John Holbrook · 04-11-2019, 07:35

Unless things have changed since I last looked it’s because there are no energy efficiency ratings required like residential units. Also no standard testing basis for BTU output. I put a 34,000 BTU domestic unit on a 52’ power boat in Singapore and it was frosty. A friend with the same boat had 72,000 BTU worth of marine aircon units and his boat didn’t cool as well as mine. Possibly it was 72,000 BTU in cold Alaskan waters but not in warmer tropical waters.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TCM1968

I have a couple reverse cycle A/C units that need replacing. I am interested in the newer technology units that run with variable speed inverter compressors. I am curious as to why there seems to be little info on suppliers here in the U.S. Why hasn’t this technology become more mainstream yet? I was looking online at the advertisement of the Dometic Turbo units and this has been out since 2007. Surely in 12 years someone has improved their design. I don’t want to drop several thousand on replacing units with 12 year technology only to have them become the old style a year later.

dougkimmerly · 04-11-2019, 08:58

We had one installed last year by Titan Marine and it does work exactly as advertised. Very quiet no surge and we can run it off house batteries for several hours. Currently we have 800ah 12v bank looking to upgrade so we can run it all night.

john61ct · 04-11-2019, 13:07

Quote:

Originally Posted by dougkimmerly

We had one installed last year by Titan Marine

To what does that "one" refer specifically?

dougkimmerly · 04-11-2019, 13:13

It was the Frigomar 230v 11000btu unit. Uses a max of 3A until cooled down and then 1A to maintain temp. It takes about 3 minutes to start up very slowly and quietly.