7'*18' V-Nose Cargo Trailer Toy Hauler Conversion

[m.colley]

The AC is in and working awesome! it was 70 degrees in there when I came inside tonight. I am going to let it run overnight to pull out the humidity and then turn it up some tomorrow and see how it does in the heat of the day. It is about 87 degrees outside even now and about 90% humidity.

Lots of pics, but I wanted to show the install. I still have to tape it all up tomorrow. I will not be paneling right away and putting the front on as I have to build all the walls still. Tomorrow I will get the Refrigerator installed below the AC. The pics do not show it, but the AC is fastened to the shelf with "L" brackets I made. The screws already existing in the AC cover hold them on and then I screwed the other side into the shelf.

The sweet thing about this AC, and my primary reason for doing the AC this way instead of the roof mount, is that it will run off my Honda 2000 generator and cool the trailer very well with enough juice left over to run other things and charge the batteries if needed.

Your AC install and vent setup looks good Don. Its pretty much what I've thought about doing on my install. Keep up the good work.

Martin

[m.colley]

Hey Don, a quick question. Are your walls 24" OC or did you weld in framing prior to re-installing your plywood for the vent opening. Aren't most of those sidewall vents around 21" wide or so?


Martin

[flboy]

Hey Don, a quick question. Are your walls 24" OC or did you weld in framing prior to re-installing your plywood for the vent opening. Aren't most of those sidewall vents around 21" wide or so?


Martin

Martin, My walls are 16" on center. Anything wider that 15" requires cutting at least 1 stud. The vent is 21 inches wide. I had to cut the stud and reinforce the window. I used 1" tube aluminum to create the frame. The studs are the P-hat type, they have a 1/4 in surface to screw the tubing into. I screwed them in and then ground down the heads leaving enough to keep the screw but not offset the plywood too much. I was going to weld, but I am not good at it and I figured the heat could burn the paint on the outside. It is plenty strong with all the plywood tying it together also.

[flboy]

It is late afternoon here and 94 degrees outside with high humidity. The 6000 BTU AC is keeping the inside of the trailer about 20 degrees cooler than outside. I am in full sun with no awning to shade one side. It is running continuously right now and creating lots of water.... but my house AC is working hard today too. I think when I have the awning and I put the reflective paint on the roof, it will improve more.

Does anyone know if insulating the floor underneath helps the AC much? . or is that more a a winter thing for up north? It would be easy to do.. and I'll do it if it will have some benefit.

[Iconfabul8]

Have you tried the ac without the exhaust vent cover on? Just wondered if it might not be getting rid of the heat. If it helps to take off the cover, installing a box fan on the vent might help pull out some heat. Idk just a thought.

[hankaye]

flboy, Howdy;

Mr "Look at what I can do with all my fancy tools" (joking), has a good idea.
Some of the upper scale RV's and some of the RV DIYer's install computer fans
in the Fridge exhaust to help draw the excess heat up and out. Perhaps you
might ponder the idea of one , perhaps 2 to help you get the heat out of there.
Still got all your digits where they ought to be?

hank

[McDave]

The fact that you are producing lots of condensate would indicate lots of vapor (i.e. hot humid air) getting in..
Most of that floor should be vapor resistant due to the diamond flooring, but you have put a few holes in there and there is a giant 7x7' hole, the ramp which will be tough to make air tight. And obviously anytime you open a door the cold air will fall out and be replaced by hot, wet air. I think that if you are running 74f inside that's pretty damn good. Just for kicks, you may want to check the temp under the trailer and even put your hand on the underside of the floor. See if it seems cold and damp. The roof paint helps considerably with heat, but not vapor. Look for places where cold dense air can get out, which would be replaced by hot wet air. For 6000btu, I think its performing amazingly well. Maybe just sealing the floor (underside) would be helpful. Just imagine how nice a dry 74f will be after riding all day in humid 94f.
Also, if one side of the was in the shade all day (awning) you would be collecting less radiant heat, a lot less. Remember the lessons learned from the Heliodon.... trailer N/S orientation, awning on east side, big trees on west side and cold beer on inside. That should help... If all else fails, remember, "Don't sweat the petty things, Pet the sweaty things".....

McDave

PS. Also be sure if there is a "Fresh air" vent on the AC it is closed. Those will produce a ton of condensate.

[m.colley]

It is late afternoon here and 94 degrees outside with high humidity. The 6000 BTU AC is keeping the inside of the trailer about 20 degrees cooler than outside. I am in full sun with no awning to shade one side. It is running continuously right now and creating lots of water.... but my house AC is working hard today too. I think when I have the awning and I put the reflective paint on the roof, it will improve more.

Does anyone know if insulating the floor underneath helps the AC much? . or is that more a a winter thing for up north? It would be easy to do.. and I'll do it if it will have some benefit.

Don,
Insulating the floor will help but, insulating the floor and sealing any cracks you can find will help even more. It will be next to impossible to keep out all the humidity out and heat gain to a minimum due to the limited amount of insulation we can install in these thin walls. We just can't cram enough R value in the walls without furring them out and losing interior space. As McDave said, a 20 degree differential between indoor and outdoor temp isn't bad. The average stick built home is designed to maintain somewhere around that in the HVAC field.

Buy a hygrometer and see what the humidity level is in your CTC. If your in the 50-55% or lower and your maintaining that 20 degree differential your doing good. Painting the roof from the outside will definitely help. As McDave said, check that fresh air. You could be pulling in some xtra humidity if its in fresh air mode.


Martin

[m.colley]

Hey Don, a quick question. Are your walls 24" OC or did you weld in framing prior to re-installing your plywood for the vent opening. Aren't most of those sidewall vents around 21" wide or so?


Martin

Martin, My walls are 16" on center. Anything wider that 15" requires cutting at least 1 stud. The vent is 21 inches wide. I had to cut the stud and reinforce the window. I used 1" tube aluminum to create the frame. The studs are the P-hat type, they have a 1/4 in surface to screw the tubing into. I screwed them in and then ground down the heads leaving enough to keep the screw but not offset the plywood too much. I was going to weld, but I am not good at it and I figured the heat could burn the paint on the outside. It is plenty strong with all the plywood tying it together also.

Don,
Thanks for the reply. I thought you might have cut in some way but wanted to ask. I'm trying to avoid cutting unless absolutely necessary.

Martin

[flboy]

Don,
Thanks for the reply. I thought you might have cut in some way but wanted to ask. I'm trying to avoid cutting unless absolutely necessary.

Martin

I actually had to cut wall studs for all the windows, the AC exhaust vent, and the Hot Water heater as well. There really is no way around it unless whatever you are installing is no wider than 15". Just make sure you do frame the window and ensure it is all tied in with a weld or screws if you have the P-Hat type studs that you can actually fasten the frame with screws. It will be fine. The plywood paneling is also part of the structure and it further supports when you get it all back up. Following is an example of how I did it where the aluminum tubing sets behind the P-hat and then I used 2 screws on each side. I did grind the heads of the screws dow a bit so they did not stand off the paneling significantly.

[flboy]

Have you tried the ac without the exhaust vent cover on? Just wondered if it might not be getting rid of the heat. If it helps to take off the cover, installing a box fan on the vent might help pull out some heat. Idk just a thought.

No I haven't taken the outside vent cover off. I did estimate the open area on the vent cover and it is greater than the area between the cooling fins by a significant amount. With the large vent on the roof as well for intake, I think the circulation is good (there is a lot of hot air coming out of the vent and plenty of air coming in) . The A/C seems to be cooling well... I am just looking for some ways to make it work better by sealing and insulating what I can on the trailer itself. This is the peak test in Florida now given the July weather and the fact I am in full sun with no shade or awning on the trailer or reflective paint on the roof except the area of the solar collectors.

I am not surprised at the water coming out. That is very normal in Florida and one of the reasons why I wanted a smaller AC unit that ran longer and did not short cycle. Just opening the door exchanges a lot of air with near 100% humid air outside, It is muggy here.. almost a steamy haze in the air.

I may put a small computer fan to pull air out of the compartment for the refrigerator to ensure that compressor get some air circulation.

[flboy]

Got a few more hours in today. Progress pics below. Finished the AC, Got the fridge in and have one of the fresh water tanks placed. I'll start installing the bathroom next. I need to get the toilet installed, panel the sidewall, then frame in the Bathroom walls. Working my way around clockwise.

The AC taped and and sealed. It cooled the trailer while I was working inside today with 94 degrees and full sun outside. You'll see on next pic, I have double insulated the inside and underneath.



The refrigerator is in. I left enough room to put 1 inch foam around the fridge to double insulate it. I'll cut the foam and put in this week. The space above the fridge will be a panel with a Bluetooth Car Stereo (12VDC) and a cabinet door to access the TV antenna electronics and etc. Below, the fridge will be the water hookups, pump, etc.. I have another saddle tank for the other side. It will connect up by running a pipe underneath and connecting both at the pump inlet so the level off and pull both down evenly.



I have the toilet and vanity in place as I make measurement to start the bathroom framing. I need to run the blackwater tank vent pipe up to through the ceiling also. It will be in the corner behind the toilet.

[hankaye]

flboy, Howdy;

So, what ya got looks great! Lookin' forward to the next installment.

hank

[flboy]

Thanks Hank! How was the BBQ?

Sent from my SM-N900P using Tapatalk

[aggie79]

Don,

I agree with Hank. Your CTC is looking really good! I like the "appliance stack" design.

Take care,
Tom