Help us settle the Air Conditioner debate

[pete33458]

Can you go without AC? Of course. Will it save you money and hassle? Of course!

Having sailed mainly in Florida, the Bahamas, and the Caribbean, however, I can tell you that whether you're in an anchorage or a marina, the difference between having it and not is massive. I can remember many nights when my piece-of-crap one cylinder generator wasn't working, lying in a pool of sweat all night, unable to sleep. Fans don't help much under those conditions (although they are certainly better than nothing). Cooking makes it worse again.

So I would say if you can afford it and you are planning on sailing in tropical latitudes, whether summer or winter, you should have one. I wouldn't own a boat without it (unless I proceeded to install one immediately...).

Pete

[iyamwhatiyam]

Ever since my wife nixed the Pompanete Thru-Hatch Portable A/C, and admitting to self with the guidance of my mechanic that there is simply no room in a Catalina 30 for full on sea water cooled unit what with ducting and generator and so on, there is no solution in my case. Keeping in mind we have no practical cruising experience on this vessel, still re-plumbing the Universal 25 XP.

[Sailmonkey]

Originally Posted by iyamwhatiyam

Ever since my wife nixed the Pompanete Thru-Hatch Portable A/C, and admitting to self with the guidance of my mechanic that there is simply no room in a Catalina 30 for full on sea water cooled unit what with ducting and generator and so on, there is no solution in my case. Keeping in mind we have no practical cruising experience on this vessel, still re-plumbing the Universal 25 XP.

there is plenty of space in a catalina 30 for a built in AC.....nix the generator however.

[ValiantV]

Originally Posted by iyamwhatiyam

Quotes from ValiantV"

"We have AC on our C30, but it's on the fritz right now."
"As for the "what to do?", If my existing marine AC is beyond repair, I'll buy a new one for $1,500 online and install it myself."

"I've used portable air conditioners in my cabin in the woods previously, but based on this experiment, I'm swearing them off entirely."

"Window unit? Clunky, ugly, kludgy. No thanks."
************************************************** ****
ValiantV: Thank you for your insights and the fact that we both own Catalina 30 MKIIs is a big plus, as you have the practical experience on the same vessel that I am researching A/C Solutions.
Questions: Did you install the current A/C or did it come with the
boat when purchased?
Were you satisfied with your current unit when it was operable?
What make is it? What are the basic specs? (BTU's, Power Demands? Modifications required? Anything else I should be aware of?)
If you decide to replace it, what would you replace it with?
Many Thanks,
Bob&Tammy

Howdy Bob & Tammy,

New to me boat (took possession in May) so more questions than answers at this point, but here's what I got:

AC was in the boat and working during survey. 'Course, that was early in the morning in early May - not high noon in July/August. (Boat is on Lake Ponchartrain)

Unit is a "Lunaire" - which I understand has been out of business for at least two decades and appears to have vanished without a trace. Can't find any documentation from PO or online.

2001 survey for PO says unit is 16,000btu. My survey from this year says 12,000btu. I haven't found a data tag yet, so could be either.

Not sure what the rated current requirements are, but I can't get it to run unless I turn off all other large electrical loads - else it trips the main 30A breaker. Based on past owner information and my assessment, this is due to bad wiring at the marina I'm at that can't deliver 30 amps.

The compressor shuts off long before it should IMHO, so the unit struggles to cool and can't deal with midday heat.

My boat is slipped in a bayou where the water is exceptionally "dirty'. The raw water strainer was pretty much slime plugged when I first cranked up the air, and clogged again pretty quickly. My wild guess as to the poor performance is that either the water-cooled condenser is seriously gunked up, the unit has list some of its charge, or after 25 years, it's just reached the end if its life.

I plan to pull the unit, attempt to flush/clean the condenser, and test it on the bench to test my theories.

If I need to replace it, I'm currently looking at an "Aqua Air" that can be had online for ~$1,500 plus shipping for a 16,000btu unit.

Also (again, imho) the current unit is installed in a terrible location - deep in the port cockpit locker up against the side of the quarter berth. Not only does this make for a noisy place to sleep, but it's also asking for the "return" air path yo he restricted or blocked, and, it doesn't make for very efficient or easy ducting of cooled air to the front half of the boat. Several C30 owners install them under the V-berth - but I think that's still a less than optimal location. I hate to sacrifice the hanging locker though that seems to be pretty standard. I'm hoping to be able to shoehorn a new unit in under the dinette or starboard settee. Though I may have to relocate a water tank or mess with the holding tank.

Let me know your thoughts as well!

[ValiantV]

Originally Posted by Sailmonkey

there is plenty of space in a catalina 30 for a built in AC.....nix the generator however.

You prolly could even find a place for the generator if you really wanted to.

Our '92 C30 MKII has the quarter berth, though most folks seem to shun it for sleeping. If you're among that crowd, plenty of room there to put a genset.

Alternatively, you could put a generator in the cockpit locker.

I'm sure there are other places as well.

[iyamwhatiyam]

Originally Posted by Sailmonkey

there is plenty of space in a catalina 30 for a built in AC.....nix the generator however.

I appreciate the encouragement, what practical advice would you lend in terms of design? Use an existing thru hull to start, got that, where to place unit to heat and cool? Best practice for ducting? Any C30 owners out there who have working examples?
For the generator, I was considering something along the lines of a Honda 2000.

[ValiantV]

Originally Posted by iyamwhatiyam

I appreciate the encouragement, what practical advice would you lend in terms of design? Use an existing thru hull to start, got that, where to place unit to heat and cool? Best practice for ducting? Any C30 owners out there who have working examples?
For the generator, I was considering something along the lines of a Honda 2000.

Join the C30 Yahoo mail group of Facebook page for more first hand specifics.

You may also want to obtain the C30 Tech manual from the International C30 Association. Several stories in there from owners who have installed AC.

[Shrew]

Originally Posted by Holly3785n

............. and ditch the air conditioner and generator drama.

There is no 'drama' in Air Conditioning or Generator, with the possible exception of them not working.

Agreed with previous posts. A/C is mandatory in a marina. Optional in an anchorage. If you spend a lot of time in anchorages then either solar or a generator will become necessary.

There are still several hot nights, even up in a New England summer where I wished I had A/C in the anchorage. Not many, but they occur.

[iyamwhatiyam]

Originally Posted by ValiantV

You prolly could even find a place for the generator if you really wanted to.

Our '92 C30 MKII has the quarter berth, though most folks seem to shun it for sleeping. If you're among that crowd, plenty of room there to put a genset.

Alternatively, you could put a generator in the cockpit locker.

I'm sure there are other places as well.

Thank you. Yes, the quarter berth is only used for storage at the moment, so it can easily be re-purposed for any number of things. Quite frankly, I believe the Pompanette to be the most practical solution, but I sabotaged myself by negatively commenting to my wife about other similar solutions that had been permanently affixed. Minds change, EVERYTHING is on the table.

[Pizzazz]

My suggestion would be to put the AC unit in the cockpit locker. Use the engine seawater intake for cooling water, watermaker and AC cooling water. Take hot air from the aft cabin and feed cooled air in the galley area (the shorter the runs the better). Take a separate small (3") duct all the way to the front cabin and head.

I have a similar setup in a Hunter 31, except for my AC being a window unit that is in the locker with custom ducting covers. It is quieter than a water cooled unit but you need to keep the locker cover open during operation.

[iyamwhatiyam]

Originally Posted by Pizzazz

My suggestion would be to put the AC unit in the cockpit locker. Use the engine seawater intake for cooling water, watermaker and AC cooling water. Take hot air from the aft cabin and feed cooled air in the galley area (the shorter the runs the better). Take a separate small (3") duct all the way to the front cabin and head.

I have a similar setup in a Hunter 31, except for my AC being a window unit that is in the locker with custom ducting covers. It is quieter than a water cooled unit but you need to keep the locker cover open during operation.

Neat! There is actually a spring loaded door from the galley to the port cockpit locker. We do have a water maker as well, (still a mystery due to my having strategically placed the manual in the house somewhere).

[iyamwhatiyam]

Originally Posted by ValiantV

Join the C30 Yahoo mail group of Facebook page for more first hand specifics.

You may also want to obtain the C30 Tech manual from the International C30 Association. Several stories in there from owners who have installed AC.

On my way to check them out, thank you!

[Zven]

Originally Posted by thinwater

I wonder how many people on this forum own a car without air conditioning or own a home without air conditioning. While there are a few, I'm sure it is a small number...

You might be surprised :-)
This forum has members from all over the world. Hot and cold places. In Scandinavia or the UK, for example, air conditioning is not so common.

[john61ct]

And not just based on climate.

Some are opposed to A/C on principle, and realize given enough time, the body does acclimate if given the opportunity.

[valhalla360]

Originally Posted by Zven

You might be surprised :-)
This forum has members from all over the world. Hot and cold places. In Scandinavia or the UK, for example, air conditioning is not so common.

Haven't been to Scandinavia all the rentals in the UK and Ireland have had air/con and we usually rent the small subcompact.

Remember talking to the bus driver on a tour in Ireland about 15yrs ago. They were finally getting busses with air/con because they would have had to pay more and special order to omit it.

I suspect cars under 10yrs old, it's pretty darn rare not to have air/con, no matter where you are. Now if you are talking about 30-40yr old cars, yes.